Tonal Perception in Changde Mandarin

This paper explores perceptual cues of the four tones in Changde Mandarin. Results show that T1 is perceived as a high-level tone, T2 is a low-rising tone in both production and perception, T3 is not phonologically level but falling, and the perception of T4 is influenced by various factors. And results also show that tonal perception might not be categorical, since neither the T2-T3 continuum nor the T2-T4 continuum fulfills the standards for typical categorical perception.