This study investigates rhotacization in Beijing dialect of Chinese, employing Labov’s Principle of Accountability (1966, 1972). Previous studies primarily concentrated on rhotacized morphemes and their distribution. This paper addressed methodological ambiguities through a LVC analysis, particularly identifying the zero variant.

Data from 48 participants in Xicheng and Dongcheng Districts were collected, selected for the two districts’ historical centrality, and residents recognized for their highly acknowledged representative Beijing accent. Participants were recorded in formal (reading a story) and casual (free conversation) styles.

By decoding the story, the preliminary results show gender and education were significant factors. Considering the correlation between age and education in China, caused by the phased educational reforms (Cao, 1991), the pilot study involved six participants representing gender and age group.

Subsequently, all morphemes containing a rhotacized syllable were identified and ranked into five categories of frequency. The following analysis started from the highest-frequency morphemes to examine all the other choices used in these potential rhotacized morphemes, encompassing non-rhotacized forms, 984 tokens in total.

Comparing the results of prior research and the variation analysis, the distribution of rhotacized syllables suggests an exaggerated usage, the variationist analysis demonstrated that the use of rhotacized syllables is a gendered feature linked to a salient male local character type (Zhang, 2008). Additionally, the three age groups exhibited nuanced differences, with the middle-aged group using less, indicating a potential age-grading pattern. The research will continue analysing morphemes across different frequency levels and coding data from all remaining participants, maintaining consistency with the established principle. By doing this, this study ensures the reliability and validity of its findings, offering a solid foundation for future research on rhotacization in Chinese, fostering advances in sociolinguistic methodology in dealing with the zero variant.

Key words: rhotacization, Beijing dialect, the Principle of Accountability, zero variant, frequency