Gender and coda /s/ variation in the speech of Cordobese cis- and non-binary teenagers

Previous variationist research has primarily concentrated on how sociolinguistic variants help construct male or female identities. However, it has largely overlooked other non-normative identities that are integral to our contemporary societies. This is a variationist sociolinguistic study that draws on social constructionism to examine variation in the realization of coda /s/ in the speech of Cordobese teenagers and its connection to cis female, cis male and non-binary gender identities. The data were collected in sociolinguistic interviews with students aged 14 to 16 at a high school in Córdoba, Argentina. A quantitative analysis of the data confirms a statistically significant gender-based effect on one of the coda /s/ realizations, with cis male speakers notably favoring the omission of /s/ (i.e. [Ø]) compared to cis female and non-binary speakers. Linguistic factors were shown to constrain the realization of this variable as well. The aspirated variant [h] was most frequent in all phonological environments except word-final prevocalic position, where full [s] prevailed. In contrast to earlier findings by Holmquist (2011) and Bernate (2016), this study found no evidence of any tendency for speakers of different genders to decrease the frequency of use of standard variants as the interviews progress. By incorporating non-binary identities into the analysis of linguistic variation, this research extends current sociolinguistic debates surrounding gender and language, challenging the binary framework that has dominated the field. This study advocates for more inclusive research practices, acknowledging the significance of gender nonconforming identities in contemporary society and their rightful place in scientific discourse.