tonal language definition of tonal language in the Free Online Encyclopedia.

Tone Languages

languages with phonologically significant tones that differentiate lexical or grammatical meanings.

Tone languages are spoken in Southeast Asia (Chinese, Vietnamese, Lao, Burmese), Africa (Nilotic, Kwa, Bantu), and North America (Mixtecan, Mazatec, Trique). In some tone languages, such as the Sino-Tibetan languages, tones have a primarily lexical significance. In other tone languages, tones may also express such grammatical distinctions as number or gender of nouns, tense, and negation. Examples in Duala (a Bantu language) are à màbòlà (“he gives”) and à mábòlà (“he gave”), and in Dinka (a Nilotic language), pány (“wall”) and pàny (“walls”).

In many tone languages, it is not certain whether there is a relationship between tones and word stress; in others, there are no reliable data on the presence and function of stress. Tone languages in which tone is an obligatory prosodic feature of the syllable are in contrast to intonation languages. In the latter, voiced distinctions of pitch are an element of intonation patterns. Such distinctions are not assigned to specific syllables and are not associated with lexical and grammatical meanings.

REFERENCES

Pike, K. L. Tone Languages, 5th ed. Ann Arbor, Mich., 1961.
Welmers, W. E. African Language Structures. Berkeley–Los Angeles–London, 1973.

V. A. VINOGRADOV

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No references found	Many see the traditional tonal language as a relic of the past that will hold a youth back in schools or careers. Having their say: with digital recorders and DVDs, young people are ... by Lydersen, Kari / Colorlines Magazine His colorful tonal language, rhythmic vitality, and superb sense of text setting are communicative and compelling, and he has a dream team of performers in mezzo Stephanie Blythe, violinist Ani Kavafian, cellist Priscilla Lee, and pianist Warren Jones. PASA TEMPOS by The Santa Fe New Mexican (Santa Fe, NM) Mandarin, like Cantonese and Vietnamese, is a tonal language in which the pitch of a spoken word is essential to its meaning, reports New Scientist. The key to perfect pitch lies in tonal languages by Asian News International	Tompo Tomsic, Tone Tomsk Tomsk Medical Institute Tomsk Oblast Tomsk Polytechnic Institute Tomsk, University of Tomskii, Nikolai Tomskii, Nikolai Vasilevich Tomson, Aleksandr Tomson, Aleksandr Ivanovich tomtit Ton Ton Duc Thang ton of refrigeration ton slate Ton that Thuyet Ton that Tung Ton, Konstantin Ton, Konstantin Andreevich Ton-Kilometer Ton-Mile Tonadilla tonal Tonal Function tonal language Tonalite Tonality Tonatiuh Tonawanda Tonbridge Tonbridge and Malling tondal Tønder tondino Tondo Tone Tone Arm tone code ranging tone control tone dialing tone generator Tone Languages tone localizer tone modulation tone poem Tone Reproduction tone reversal Tone River Tone Tomšic Tone Tomsic	Ton of Equivalent Petroleum Ton of refrigeration Ton of refrigeration Ton of TNT Ton of TNT Ton petroleum equivalent ton slate Ton that Thuyet Ton that Tung ton(o)- Ton, Konstantin Ton, Konstantin Andreevich ton- ton-kilometer Ton-kin Ton-kin ton-mile ton-mile ton-miles ton-miles ton-up Tona tonadilla tonal tonal Tonal accent Tonal Adaptive Resolution COdec Tonal Function tonal language Tonal languages Tonal music Tonal music Tonal music tonal pattern Tonal Pitch Space Theory Tonal Reproduction Curve Tonal Response Curve tonal system Tonal theory Tonal theory Tonal theory Tonal Transfer Curve Tonale Tonale Tonalism Tonalist Tonalite Tonalite-Trondhjemite-Granodiorite tonalites tonalitic tonalities tonalities tonalities tonality tonality tonality tonally tonally Tonapah Test Range

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Many see the traditional tonal language as a relic of the past that will hold a youth back in schools or careers.

Having their say: with digital recorders and DVDs, young people are ... by Lydersen, Kari / Colorlines Magazine

His colorful tonal language, rhythmic vitality, and superb sense of text setting are communicative and compelling, and he has a dream team of performers in mezzo Stephanie Blythe, violinist Ani Kavafian, cellist Priscilla Lee, and pianist Warren Jones.

PASA TEMPOS by The Santa Fe New Mexican (Santa Fe, NM)

Mandarin, like Cantonese and Vietnamese, is a tonal language in which the pitch of a spoken word is essential to its meaning, reports New Scientist.

The key to perfect pitch lies in tonal languages by Asian News International

Tone Languages (redirected from tonal language)

REFERENCES

Tone Languages
(redirected from tonal language)