t-style

Noun

t-style (uncountable)

1. The consonant system of formal Samoan, differing from that of colloquial Samoan in a few particulars, among them the pronunciation of /t/ as [t].
   • In a formal setting with an unknown papālagi visitor, a Samoan would be expected to use the formal t-style, but Ali’imalemanu started his performance in k-style and then switched over to t-style after a few minutes. Later on when he knew me better he mixed the two styles when he told me stories...1987, Even Hovdhaugen, “The Story about Tigilauma’olo”, in From the Land of Nāfanua: Samoan Oral Texts in Transcription with Translation, Notes, and Vocabulary (Series B; 72), Oslo: Norwegian...
   • The diachronic development of the oral-based k--style concurrent with the literary-based t-style has resulted in their unique co-existence in the twentieth century, and has given rise to clearly defined domains of usage for each style.2001 August, John F. Mayer, “Abstract”, in Code-Switching in Samoan: T-style and K-style (Theses for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy; 4121), Honolulu, Haw.: University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, →OCLC...