Stress in Angkola Batak Language: An Acoustic Phonetic Approach

ABSTRACT


Introduction
Systemic suprasegmentals consist of tone and intonation, and lexical stress.In the study of language structure, phonology is one of the important studies in understanding and studying the structure of a language (Syahputra et al., 2018).Phonology is a study that places language sounds as the object of study (Kridalaksana, 2011).The study of phonology itself is divided into phonetics and phonemics, and (Chaer, 2009) explains that phonetics is a branch of linguistic studies that examines the sounds of language without seeing whether these sounds distinguish meaning, while phonemics examines the sounds of language and pays attention to the function of these sounds as distinguishing meaning.(Odden, 2005) also added that phonemics refers to the sounds of a language, the rules for combining sounds, and the variety of articulation, while phonetics refers to the physical units of sound that can be measured and produced from the sounds of a language.In addition, in the study of phonetics itself, there are several divisions of the field of study, namely acoustic, articulatory, and auditory phonetics (Chaer, 2009: 10).
This research will examine in depth the stress which is one of the suprasegmental elements in language.Therefore, this research can be categorized in the study of acoustic phonetics because it discusses the sound of language when it propagates in the air, including studying sound waves, frequency, and sound intensity (Chaer, 2009: 11).(Clark, 1991) divides two suprasegmental aspects, in the form of phonetic suprasegmental aspects and systemic suprasegmental aspects.Phonetic suprasegmental aspects consist of pitch, duration, and loudness or intensity, while phonetic suprasegmental aspects are considered important because they are indicators in measuring systemic suprasegmental aspects.So, it can be said that in order to measure both pitch and intonation, as well as stress, it is necessary to look at the movement of pitch, duration, and intensity of each segment in the utterance.(Zsiga, 2013:354) defines stress as prominence in relation to syllables or syllables.Furthermore, it is also stated that stress is a matter of relative prominence.So, it can be said that the stress of a word can be measured when comparing syllables that are in the same lexeme neighborhood.(Ladefoged, 2011, p. 249) also explained that stressed syllables tend to be articulated with greater force compared to syllables that are not stressed and are more prominent in speech.In addition, (Clark, 1991, p. 280)) also reveal that for when there is prominence or emphasis on a particular syllable in the word, the more visible factor is the movement of pitch compared to duration and intensity.
Looking at the definition above, it can be said that this research aims to analyze and describe the prosody of stress in declarative speech of the Angkola Batak language using an acoustic phonetic approach.This can be done by measuring phonetic suprasegmental aspects, namely pitch, duration, and intensity in Angkola Batak speech data.The movement of these phonetic suprasegmental aspects can show how a syllable experiences emphasis or prominence and can be seen more clearly by using software, namely Praat, in analyzing stress in the Angkola Batak language.

Method
This research used an experimental phonetic approach, which was by performing manipulations aimed at determining the effects of manipulation on the observed behavior of individuals (Latipun, 2002).The experimental phonetic approach was used to record sounds, analyzed them acoustically, and described the sound shape in the form of spectrogram waves.The population studied consisted of adult males aged 25 to 30 years who were native speakers of the Angkola Batak language and live in the Padangsidempuan Hutaimbaru Region.The selection of the female gender was based on the findings found by (Kuswantari, T. D., Atusaadah, M. R., Syarfina, T., & Sitinjak, 2022) which explained that the value of sound frequency and sound intensity produced by women was higher than that produced by men.The sample for this study consisted of 5 female voices.Then, researchers collected speech data from Angkola Batak speakers in the Padangsidempuan Hutaimbaru area which, when viewed from the explanation of the previous section, is part of the Angkola Batak language speech area, In this study, computer-aided spectrum analysis was used to measure speech sounds.Sound recordings were obtained using a Sony ICD-PX 470 recorder and saved in WAV file format.Praat software version 6.0.54 (Boersma, P., & Weenink, 2001) was used to analyze suprasegmental or prosodic features, such as frequency, intensity, and duration of speech sounds.Using Praat, an instrumental approach can be used to define the imaging technique, which involved tracking vocal fold motion and measuring acoustic properties.In addition, modifications were made to the pitch form and duration, including the alteration of high, low and flat tones.Time adjustments were made by shortening the duration in order to obtain the desired pitch as well as looking at the stress position in declarative utterances spoken by predetermined samples.
This study described speech sounds involved native speakers of the Angkola Batak language as a source of information.The data of this research consisted of 5 types of utterances produced by these speakers, namely declarative utterances.The examples of these utterances were mangan utte au which means "I eat orange", kehe hami tu sikola which means "we go to school", marsiajar ia di medan which means "He studies in Medan", mamasu abit umak which means "mother washes clothes" and mardahan kakak di dapur which means "the sisters cooks in the kitchen".

Result and Discussion
In the research that has been conducted, by analyzing phonetic data through Praat software, the results of data analysis in this study are presented in three components, namely frequency, duration, and sound intensity of the utterances spoken by the informants.Figure 1 above is an image of the results of the analysis using Praat.It can be seen that declarative sentences consisting of several syllables, such as the word mangan, which consists of two syllables, namely the words ma and ngan, in this case the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely ma with a frequency of 175.9 Hz, a duration of 0.582 seconds and an intensity of 73.99 decibels.Then the word utte which consists of two syllables, namely the words ut and te, can be clearly seen that the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely ut with a frequency of 323.6 Hz, a duration of 0.167 seconds and an intensity of 65.4 decibels.For the last word, au does not occur.

Frequency of Declarative Utterances by Angkola Batak Native Speakers
Figure 2 above is an image of the analysis results using Praat.It can be seen that declarative sentences consisting of several syllables, such as the word kehe which consists of two syllables, namely the words ke and he, in this case the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the syllable, namely ke with a frequency of 213 Hz, duration of 0.334 seconds and intensity of 75.78.Then, the word hami which consists of two syllables, namely the words ha and mi, it can be clearly seen that the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word, namely ha with a frequency of 272.2 Hz, duration of 0.4554 and intensity of 75.39.Besides that, the word tu does not occur emphasis and finally the word sikola which consists of 3 syllables, namely the words si, ko and la, in this case the emphasis occurs in the first syllable, namely the word si with a frequency of 397.3 Hz, duration of 1.874 seconds and intensity of 70.69.
Figure 3 above is an image of the analysis results using Praat.It can be seen that declarative sentences consisting of several syllables, such as the word marsiajar which consists of 3 syllables, namely the words mar, si, and ajar, then the emphasis occurs at the end of the beginning of the syllable or the first syllable, namely mar with a frequency of 188.2 Hz, a duration of 0.522 seconds and an intensity of 70.66.Then, the words ia and di which consist of one syllable, do not emphasis and then the last word Medan which consists of two syllables, namely the words Me and dan, the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely Me with a frequency of 180.6 Hz, a duration of 2.498 seconds and an intensity of 67.64 decibels.
Figure 4 above is an image of the analysis results using Praat.It can be seen that the declarative sentence consists of several syllables, such as the word mamasu, which consists of 3 syllables, namely the words ma, ma and su.For emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely ma with a frequency of 200.3 Hz, a duration of 0.198 seconds and an intensity of 72.65 decibels.In addition, the word abit which consists of 2 syllables, namely the words a and bit, the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the first syllable word a with a frequency of 213.4 Hz, a duration of 0.615 seconds and an intensity of 66.77 decibels and the last word umak which consists of two syllables, namely the words u and mak where the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the first syllable or syllable word u with a frequency of 213 Hz, a duration of 0.336 seconds and an intensity of 70.58.
Figure 5 above is an image of the analysis results using Praat.It can be seen that the declarative sentence consists of several syllables, such as the word mardahan which consists of 3 syllables, namely the words mar, da, and han, where the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely mar with a frequency of 196.3 Hz, a duration of 0.198 seconds and an intensity of 72.65 decibels.Then, the word kakak which consists of 2 syllables, namely the words ka and kak where the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely ka with a frequency of 177.8 Hz, a duration of 0.292 seconds and an intensity of 79.55 and the last word kitchen which consists of two syllables, namely the words da and pur where the emphasis occurs at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely da with a frequency of 183 Hz, a duration of 0.496 seconds and an intensity of 70.18 decibels.
From the calculation of the average pitch contour, intensity, and duration of each segment, several lexeme data have been collected from the elicitation of lexeme data in the Angkola Batak language.The data is classified into two groups, namely two-syllable and three-syllable lexemes.This division is needed to be able to see the pressure of the Angkola Batak language in the initial position of the word or the first syllable in a word.
The pressure or prominence is seen from the indicators of phonetic suprasegmental aspects, in the form of pitch, duration, and intensity.The units of measurement of these indicators are Hertz (Hz) for frequency, seconds (s) for duration, and decibels (dB) for intensity.The measurement is done on each syllable in the lexemes, so the data division is done according to the number of syllables in the lexemes that have been elicited.Furthermore, the data can be seen in the table below: By the analysis of the data obtained, it can be seen that the emphasis occurs in the initial position of the word or the first syllable in a word, this is obtained from the declarative utterances of Angkola Batak native speakers and processed using Praat software as an analysis instrument.Thus, two-syllable and three-syllable lexemes generally fall on the first syllable by the Angkola Batak speakers.This can be seen by looking at the movement of pitch, duration, and intensity in each syllable spoken.Generally, syllables that are stressed have a higher pitch and intensity value than those that are not stressed.

Two-syllable lexemes
In terms of word stress, Tambuwun in (Schwarz, 1908, p. 41) also suggest that word stress is in the position of the second-last syllable regardless of whether the word has changed due to morphological processes.In addition, (Ticoalu, H. Th. L., Karisoh-Nayoan, W. D. Lumenan, A. B. Djumna, A. B. G. Rattu, 1984, p. 13) also suggest that Tontemboan stress is in the position of the penultima and final syllable, and is in a fixed position despite the presence of affixes.This study found that by looking at the movement of contour and pitch values, and the intensity, and duration of syllables, word stress is in the position of the penultimate syllable.Thus, the results of the data from this research support the statements and findings made by previous studies.
However, this study supports previous studies by using an experimental phonetic approach using Praat in analyzing word stress using an acoustic phonetic approach in the Angkola Batak language.In Praat, the values of pitch, duration, and intensity can also be extracted, so that it can be seen more clearly and accurately the position of word stress in the Angkola Batak language.As from the results of the data analysis obtained, it is described that the position of declarative speech stress is highlighted or emphasized at the beginning of the word or the first syllable.

Conclusion
Through the data above, it can be said that in the research that has been conducted using phonetic data analyzed through an acoustic phonetic approach using Praat software, the position of declarative sentence stress in the Angkola Batak language is located at the beginning of the word or first syllable.Like the word mangan, which consisted of two syllables, namely the words ma and ngan, the emphasis occured at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely ma with a frequency of 175.9 Hz, a duration of 0.582 seconds and an intensity of 73.99 decibels.Then the word utte which consisted of two syllables, namely the words ut and te, the emphasis occured at the beginning of the word or the first syllable, namely ut with a frequency of 323.6 Hz, a duration of 0.167 seconds and an intensity of 65.4 decibels.In addition, with the same findings in words consisting of three syllables, such as the word mamasu, which consisted of three syllables, namely the words ma, ma and su, the emphasis occured in the first syllable, namely ma with a frequency of 200.3 Hz, a duration of 0.198 seconds and an intensity of 72.65 decibels.The stress on the first syllable in declarative sentences was based on the high frequency value produced by Angkola Batak native speakers.

Table 1 :
Values of two-syllable lexemes

Table 2 :
Values of three-syllable lexemes