PROSODY
​RHYTHM, TEMPO, & STRESS
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Considering Miami has a majority Spanish-speaking population, Spanish has a major impact on the prosody of the Miami dialect. As such, the speech can reflect a mix of syllable-timing and stress-timing, with syllable-timing often being the default.
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Operative words are often elongated for emphasis.
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Overall the tempo is quick.
VOLUME
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Miami speakers tend to use volume for emphasis.
In the wave form below, the vertical size of the wave represents its volume. You can see a clear peak on the word ABSOLUTELY.
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we love to have fun. That is like, Absolutely, we had fun. I think in the end, you know, there's lots of politics surrounding this. But
PITCH
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In general, the pitch range is more narrow in this dialect, with a tendency for speakers to maintain a median note throughout their speech.
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There can be a rise in pitch at the ends of phrases, especially in lists.
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When in an emotionally heightened state or on operative words, there can also be a rise in pitch.
Rise in Pitch at ends of phrases
“I went, and I took a class, I auditioned for the BFA”
Narrow Pitch Variation Example
"So you've got Nicaraguans, Puerto Ricans, Guatemalans, Peruvians, and my mom, the Panamanian."