What happens to [ʔ] at the end of the stem when the suffix -á is added?

[user2019]

From what I know, if the stem ends in -p [p], -t [t], -k [k], then after the -á affixaction, the last sound of the stem becomes voiced (in the case -p [p], -k [k] it becomes [b], [g]; in the case of -t [t] it becomes a flap [ɾ]) and then geminates. What happens when the stem ends in -h [ʔ] (the glottal stop)? Does it also get geminated when followed by -à affix? It's hard to imagine how would a long glottal stop [ʔʔ] be pronounced.

Or is [ʔ] deleted when the -á affixation happens? At least, according to the tone sandhi rules, the syllables having checked tones 4 and 8 which end in -h [ʔ] change their tone to the unchecked tones 1 and 7 respectively (and syllables having unchecked tones can't have a glottal stop at the end).

[CteaX55 (Tek D.)]

@user2019

From what I know, if the stem ends in -p [p], -t [t], -k [k], then after the -á affixaction, the last sound of the stem becomes voiced

As a native speaker (but not a professional linguistic), from my own experience, sometimes [p]/[t]/[k]-á is still unvoiced, other times it does become voiced.

Now this explains why in some cases, for example:

小等隻會sió-tán tsi̍t-ē（"Wait a minute/second"） can be realized as "sió-tán tsi̍-lē" during speaking as [-t] become voiced [-d], which in turn become [-l] (or [ɾ]).

@user2019

Or is [ʔ] deleted when the -á affixation happens?

I don't thinks so (not every [ʔ] would disappear). For example, when speaking 鴨ahá, there is still [ʔ].

[Kongthui (Lûi Bêng-Hàn)]

Yes, effectively deleted.

Tó-á, toh-á.
Ké-á, keh-á.

Perhaps there is a subtle difference, but I do not realize it.

[user2019]

@CteaX55

As a native speaker (but not a professional linguistic), from my own experience, sometimes [p]/[t]/[k]-á is still unvoiced, other times it does become voiced.

Maybe it's the influence of Mandarin? (Since Mandarin doesn't have voiced consonants...) I've seen a few papers about the -á suffix, and they all implied that the voicing is obligatory.

@CteaX55

I don't thinks so (not every [ʔ] would disappear). For example, when speaking 鴨ahá, there is still [ʔ].

@Kongthui

Yes, effectively deleted.

OK, it seems there's some disagreement here. Maybe it depends on the dialect?

Here's what I found in Hilary Chappell's "A sketch of Southern Min grammar" (it's about Taiwanese, not other SM varieties):

Fourth, for open syllables and for syllables with a glottal stop final, the resultant form simply preserves the underlying or overt suprasegmental glottal feature: V+a(Ɂ) -> V+aɁ

So according to this source, the glottal stop is preserved, not geminated, but a second glottal stop inserted after á. What do people here think about this?

[CteaX55 (Tek D.)]

I don't think it is due to the influence from Mandarin.

Maybe it is due to habit or dialect. For example, 罵 mē is sometimes realised as mēⁿ; vice versa, 麵 is mī but realised as mīⁿ yet some pronounced as mī.

Additionally, Mandarin does have voiced consonants such as [ʐ], [j], [w], [ɥ] and voiced nasals. What it does not feature are voiced plosives.

[EgLiongkun (Liongkun)]

Checked tone of Taiwanese are voiced sound with unreleased stop. "-p, -t, -k" are wrongly written. "-b, -d/l, -g" are real sound. Taiwanese don't distinguish d/l.

[CteaX55 (Tek D.)]

替汝補隻ê 連結：

入聲韻又稱促聲韻，是指傳承自古代漢語之一類音節結構，其韻尾以濁塞音快速結束，再無聲除阻。

高本漢《中國音韻學研究》中觀察到漢語入聲底層音為濁塞音，應表記為-b/-d/-g才對。

趙元任也觀察到塞音韻尾的雙重阻塞。

岩田禮（1984, 1992）以生理語音學的方法，用光纖維鏡和肌電觀察入聲韻尾的緊喉運動情形，發現閩南語和廣東話的入聲韻尾確實存在著口腔及喉頭的雙重閉鎖及緊喉現象。

漢字大概於隋、唐時代傳入日本，當時的漢語具有入聲，因而日語保存入聲的痕跡至今，但日語音系中無閉音節，因而一漢字被分拆成兩音節，其破音音尾已開音節化獨立成另一個音節［通常為ka行、ta行、wa行（[p] → [ɸ] → [w] → ∅）的音節］。