Creak in the Rain: Phonation in Oregon English

Although English in the US Pacific Northwest has seen comparatively little research, many scholars in the area have mentioned local speakers’ frequent use of creaky voice (Ingle, Wright, & Wassink 2005, J. Conn, personal communication, February 9, 2009, Ward 2003). Despite findings showing that creaky voice and other phonations are significant in other languages and dialects of English (cf. Henton & Bladon 1988, Ogden 2001), there have yet to be any studies of creak in the Northwest. This paper is an investigation into Oregonians’ use of creak, utilizing interviews with four speakers. The interviews were transcribed in ELAN, and evaluated using Praat and statistical analysis of individual and collective rates of usage. The results show that creaky voice tends to occur in clause-final position, and in extended turns, suggesting differences in the phonology of Oregon English, or in the function of creak, such that it signals pauses in speech.