Phoneme inventory size and population size
Language • Vol/Iss. 83(2) • Linguistic Society of America • • Published In • Pages: 388-400 •
By Hay, Jennifer, Bauer, Laurie
Hypothesis
Population size will be positively correlated with the number of obstruents, the number of sonorants, overall consonants, and overall phoneme inventory sizes.
Note
Obstruent inventory (p<.0001, rho = 31); sonorant inventory (p<.02, rho = .17); consonant inventory (p<.0001, rho = .29; phoneme inventory (p< .0001, rho = .37).
| Test Name | Support | Significance | Coefficient | Tail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spearman's rho | Supported | p< .05 | See note | UNKNOWN |
| Variable Name | Variable Type | OCM Term(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Phonemes | Dependent | Phonology |
| Population of speakers | Independent | Composition Of Population |