Approximants

With regard to approximants, it appears that the [j] sound was produced in words such as duty and Tuesday in Gullah at the time that Turner conducted his research, although Turner transcribes such words with the symbols [ɪu] (1971: 125). Thomas (this volume) reports that this pronunciation has been declining in the South since World War II, perhaps due in part to increased contact between Southerners and non-Southerners. It is possible, therefore, that this change has also affected Gullah pronunciations.

According to Turner, [l] is generally clear before vowels and consonants, as well as word-finally in Gullah. He also reports that [l] is used either instead of or interchangeably with [r] in words such as Brewer, proud, fritter, Mary, bureau, and war, especially in intervocalic positions. And he reports occasional use of [n] instead of [l] on Edisto Island, in words such as lull (1971: 126–129).

According to Turner, [r] never occurs finally or before consonants in his data, only before vowels. While modern-day Gullah appears to show some [r]-fullness, there is clearly still a preference for post-vocalic [r]-lessness in contemporary varieties. The speaker recorded for this project, in fact, provides numerous examples of [r]-lessness in words like near, square, start, north, letter, etc.