Consonants S, SH, CH

In some parts of Newfoundland other than the Irish Avalon (especially the south-western and western areas of the island), the alveolar fricative [s] is occasionally pronounced as alveopalatal [ʃ] in word-initial consonant clusters (as in stutter and slap). An unusual, and recessive, feature on parts of the southwest coast is the (variable) pronunciation of the voiceless alveopalatal fricative /ʧ/ as the corresponding alveopalatal fricative [ʃ] , in word-initial position only; this results in such realizations as shicken for chicken.