The tone system of Hanoi Vietnamese as spoken by young people

Abstract

This study investigates the phonetic realization of the tone system of Hanoi Vietnamese as spoken by young native speakers, a demographic underrepresented in previous research. While Northern (including Hanoi) Vietnamese tones have been extensively studied, few empirical analyses have focused on the pronunciation of speakers born after 1990, despite their potential role in ongoing sound changes. By means of experimental acoustic-phonetic methods, the current study examines the tonal realizations of 24 young Hanoian adults (aged 20-30), analyzing a corpus of 7,200 utterances for f0 contours and phonation types. The findings demonstrate several notable patterns: the consistent falling contour of tone C1 (hỏi), as opposed to its canonical dipping shape; considerable variation in phonation types (particularly for tone C1); and the tonal flip-flop between tones B1 (sắc) and B2 (nặng). These results suggest emerging (or already emerged) phonetic shifts in Hanoi Vietnamese, providing new empirical insights into tonal variation and change. The study aims to prompt further research and discussions on contemporary sound changes in Vietnamese.