Toward a comprehensive framework for tonal analysis: Yangru tone in Southern Min

Abstract This study establishes a comprehensive framework for analyzing tone as an important but complex mechanism in East and Southeast Asian tonal languages. The Yangru tone in Southern Min is taken for an in-depth case study for its significant historical, ethnolinguistic, and typological implications. The scientifically grounded analysis reveals severe issues of inconsistency, inadequacy, and inaccuracy in conventional studies, and the complexity of tonal behaviors across linguistic contexts that incorporate tonal realization, tone sandhi, tonal coarticulation, segmental-tonal interactions, and segmental-tonal alignment constraints. This exploration has substantially extended our knowledge of tonal phonetics (tonetics), tonal phonology (tonology), and tonal phonotactics (tonotactics). It has empirical and typological significance to serve as an analytical model to sophisticatedly, adequately, and accurately analyze tone and sheds important light on exploring the complexity of human speech beyond the category of tone and decoding complexity using scientifically testable methodology and theoretical perspectives, thereby advancing our understanding of human languages.