# Foreign language acquisition of perceptually similar segments: evidence from Lower Sorbian

## TL;DR

This study explores how speakers of German learn to distinguish similar sounds in Lower Sorbian, a nearly extinct language, using ultrasound technology.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into the acquisition of perceptually similar speech contrasts in a second language using ultrasound imaging.

## Key findings

- Ultrasound data reveals challenges in distinguishing the sibilant contrast /ʂ, ɕ/ for German L1 speakers learning Lower Sorbian.
- The findings highlight the role of perceptual assimilation in second language acquisition of similar phonemes.

## Abstract

Lower Sorbian is a moribund language spoken in Eastern Germany that features a three-way sibilant contrast, /s, ʂ, ɕ/. The vast majority of L1 speakers are above eighty years of age and virtually no young Sorbians learn Lower Sorbian as their first language. There are language revitalization programs in place, but this means that virtually all Lower Sorbian speakers are L2 learners whose first language is German. German, as opposed to Lower Sorbian, has a two-way sibilant contrast, /s, ʃ/. So, Lower Sorbian learners need to acquire a perceptually similar sibilant contrast, /ʂ, ɕ/, that commonly assimilates with a single L1 segment, /ʃ/. The two-to-one assimilation makes acquisition difficult. In this project, I examine the acquisition of the three-way sibilant contrast using ultrasound technology. The findings are put into the context of models of L2 acquisition and generalized implications for foreign language acquisition are discussed.