ABSTRACT
This study examines the intonation of yes-no questions in Basque Spanish in four pragmatic contexts: (1) information-seeking, (2) confirmation, (3) surprise, and (4) requests. Previous research has shown that information-seeking yes-no questions in this dialect tend to be realized with final circumflex contours. However, other pragmatic meanings remain to be investigated. Data from 12 participants show an overall prevalence for circumflex contours in yes-no questions, especially in surprise contexts. Additionally, surprise and confirmation questions are realized with more elevated high tones in the nuclear configuration. Our results also show that relatively Spanish-dominant participants show more variation between rising and circumflex contours and display more elevated high tones overall, in contrast to relatively Basque-dominant speakers.
