Work

Descriptive Analysis of Monophthongs in Pakistani English: Articulatory and Acoustic Evidence

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: This study presented an acoustic description of monophthongs in Pakistani English (PakE), an indigenized variety of non-native Englishes. The study addressed the following research questions: what are the acoustic characteristics of monophthongs in PakE as spoken by Punjabi speakers, in what ways do these monophthongs differ from or resemble those of Standard British English (SBE), how many monophthongs can be identified in PakE, and what patterns of vowel merger, if any, are observable. Monosyllabic words with /hVd/ context were recorded in a carrier phrase and analysed using Praat. The first two formants (F1 and F2) and vowel duration were extracted. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS. The values were compared with those of SBE to observe the similarities and differences. The results showed PakE having 10 monophthongs (four front, two central, and four back) classified into five long and five short vowels, unlike SBE, which has five long and seven short vowels. Depending upon these results, it was concluded that vowels in PakE behave differently. These differences lead to the variation in pronunciation patterns. The findings provide empirically grounded phonetic evidence that contributes to the descriptive documentation of PakE, offers a reference framework for future phonological and comparative World Englishes research, and supports applied linguistic domains such as pronunciation teaching, speech technology development, and accent-sensitive language assessment. The study contributes to the codification of PakE as an indigenized variety of English. Keywords: acoustic measurement; monophthongs; formant frequencies; Pakistani English; PRAAT DOI: http://doi.org/10.17576/3L-2026-3202-18

Source: 3L The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies

DOI: 10.17576/3l-2026-3202-18

Authors: Hafiz Ahmad Bilal, Ijaz Asghar, Rabia Faiz, Muhammad Imran, Norah Almusharraf

Institutions: University of Sargodha, Khazar University, Prince Sultan University

Language: English

Topic: Phonetics and Phonology Research

Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $300

Funder: Prince Sultan University