Cross-generational acoustic variation of fricatives in Gyeongsang Korean*

This study examines a cross-generational variation in the production of fortis and non-fortis fricatives in South Gyeongsang Korean to examine whether ongoing sound change proceeds incrementally or abruptly. Acoustic analyses of speech from four age groups–children, teenagers, young adults, and elderly speakers–revealed systematic age-related differences in both spectral and temporal dimensions. Younger speakers, particularly teenagers and young adults, showed enhanced contrasts between fortis and non-fortis fricatives in center of gravity and frication duration, while elderly speakers exhibited near-neutralization. The discontinuity in the developmental trajectory suggests that the change emerges abruptly during adolescence, likely reflecting increased exposure to the prestige Seoul dialect. These findings align with previous results on stops and vowels, suggesting that Gyeongsang Korean is undergoing a systemic restructuring of its phonetic system toward Seoul-like norms. These patterns illustrate how dialect contact and social identity contribute to the ongoing linguistic homogenization of regional Korean varieties.