A corpus-based analysis of the fortition of the word-initial /ʒ/ in French

Based on data extracted from two French sociolinguistic corpora, ESLO 1 (1968–1971) and ESLO 2 (2008–), this article discusses the case of a new linguistic variation and change in French native speech in France: the fortition of the word-initial fricative /ʒ/. In total, 12,276 occurrences of words beginning with /ʒ/ were identified. Mixed-effect logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine both phonological environments (the preceding phonemes and the coronal status of the preceding phonemes) and social factors (the age, gender, and socioeconomic status of the speakers). The results demonstrate that the fortition of the initial /ʒ/ is influenced by both linguistic and social factors. Notably, the initial fortition in this study was an ongoing change led by men in ESLO 1. However, its use has already spread to both gender groups in ESLO 2. From a diachronic perspective, this study suggests that the observed initial fortition is not a reverse deaffrication process but rather a gradual increase in its natural occurrence.