DOCSLIB.ORG

Consonant Harmony, Disharmony, Memory and Time Scales

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Consonant Harmony, Disharmony, Memory and Time Scales Proceedings of the Society for Computation in Linguistics Volume 4 Article 19 2021 Consonant harmony, disharmony, memory and time scales Adamantios Gafos Universität Potsdam, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/scil Part of the Cognition and Perception Commons, Computational Linguistics Commons, Phonetics and Phonology Commons, and the Typological Linguistics and Linguistic Diversity Commons Recommended Citation Gafos, Adamantios (2021) "Consonant harmony, disharmony, memory and time scales," Proceedings of the Society for Computation in Linguistics: Vol. 4 , Article 19. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7275/vhf9-qh54 Available at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/scil/vol4/iss1/19 This Paper is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Proceedings of the Society for Computation in Linguistics by an authorized editor of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Consonant harmony, disharmony, memory and time scales Adamantios Gafos University of Potsdam [email protected] Abstract The four-way contrast in the distribution of ejectivization in a hypothetical input set {/k'ap'i/, I argue that properties of memory, a so far /k'api/, /kap'i/, /kapi/} is neutralized to a three- largely neglected source of explanation in way contrast. This is because the high ranking phonological patterns, offer a grounding for a number of not well understood traits *1vs2 constraint bans candidate sets exhibiting a of long distance consonantal restrictions contrast between one versus two ejectives as in set (both dissimilatory and assimilatory). (1i), and neutralization to one ejective as in (1ii) is preferred over neutralization to two ejectives as 1 Introduction in (1iii), because the faithfulness constraint to the ejectivization feature FAITH(+CG) outranks the In the great variety of long distance consonantal *0vs1 constraint which bans candidate sets restrictions met across languages, production and exhibiting a contrast between zero versus one perception factors have been implicated. Here, I consider the neglected factor of memory. I argue ejective (‘+CG’ stands for constricted glottis). that properties of memory, when combined with the other two factors, enable new answers to {/k'ap'i/, /k'api/, unresolved questions about long distance /kap'i/, /kapi/} *1vs2 FAITH(+CG) *0vs1 consonantal restrictions. Section 2 considers short i. term memory in dissimilatory restrictions. Long [k'ap'i, k'api, term memory and assimilatory restrictions are kap'i, kapi] ** **** taken up in Section 3. Section 4 concludes. ii. 2 Dissimilation [k'api, kap'i, * ** Dissimilations involving laryngeal features are a kapi] primary example of long distance co-occurrence iii. restrictions in consonants (MacEachern, 1999; [k'ap'i, kapi] Mackenzie, 2009; Gallagher, 2010). A number of **! languages ban the presence of repeated ejectives, aspirated or implosive consonants within roots. Table 1. *1vs2 >> FAITH(+CG) >> *0vs1 For example, in Shuswap, roots cannot contain two ejectives, e.g., using C' to denote In support of the ranking *1vs2 >> *0vs1 that ejectivization, /kʷ'alt/ ‘to stagger’, /qet'/ ‘to hoist’, plays out in this loss of contrast analysis, /kʷup/ ‘to push’, /qmut/ ‘hat’, but */kʷ'alt'/, */q'et'/ Gallagher conducted discrimination experiments and so on are unattested (Kuipers, 1974). where listeners heard pairs of CVCV stimuli and Gallagher (2010) proposes a contrast gave a same versus different judgment. The neutralization analysis of such restrictions. The stimuli were disyllabic ‘words’ containing zero, basic generalization captured in that analysis is one, or two ejectives and were paired in three that roots with two ejectives, as in */k'ap'i/, are conditions: condition 1vs2, that is, one versus two unattested because they may not contrast with instances of the ejective as in [kap'i]-[k'ap'i], 0vs1 roots with only one ejective, as in /k'api/ or /kap'i/. as in [kapi]-[k'api], and 0vs2 as in [kapi]-[k'ap'i] An example from this analysis is in tableau (1). (and so on for aspirated Cs). Percent of judgment 188 Proceedings of the Society for Computation in Linguistics (SCiL) 2021, pages 188-205. Held on-line February 14-19, 2021 correct (of the same versus different judgment) the number of features. In our case, N is 1 as all was the dependent variable. The main result was pairs in this task (e.g., [kapi-k'api]) are identical that, for both ejectivization and aspiration, the except for [+CG] (thus, the weight parameter 푏푘 1vs2 condition was ‘more difficult’ (i.e., correct can also be set to 1 since effectively there is no responses to same versus different were less other feature, given the stimuli in this task). This accurate) than the 0vs1 condition, which in turn means that the distance between the two stimuli was more difficult than the 0vs2 condition. in any pair of stimuli of the task is given simply Gallagher (2010), whose primary concern is by the number of mismatches with respect to the synchronic analyses of dissimilation patterns as [+CG] feature. Thus, 푑([kapi], [k'api]) = 1 and they play out in their language-particular details, 푠([kapi], [k'api]) = 푒−푑 = 푒−1 = 0.37. The same leaves open the source of these discrimination holds for the other pairs, [kapi-kap'i], [k'api-kapi], asymmetries (‘A major question … is the source [kap'i-kapi]. For each pair, the distance is 1 and of the perceptual asymmetries’, ibid.: 106). therefore the similarity is 푒−1 = 0.37. Thus, the Consider what the task in the experiments average similarity between the two stimuli across above involves. A chain of auditory processing, all four stimuli pairs in this 0vs1 condition is 0.37. encoding of the stimuli in short term (or working) In the 1vs2 condition, the stimuli are [k'ap'i- memory, along with a discrimination decision is k'api], [kap'i-k'ap'i], [k'ap'i-kap'i], [k'api-k'ap'i]. implicated. That is, comparison of the stimuli is These become after overwrite [k'ap'i-k'api] → mediated by representations of their forms in [kap'i-k'api], with a resulting similarity s([kap'i], short term memory (Baddeley, 1986). This invites [k'api]) = 푒−2 = 0.13 (푑 = 2, s = 푒−푑 = 0.13), consideration of the extent to which the results [kap'i-k'ap'i] → [kap'i-kap'i] (푑 = 0, s = 푒−푑 = may derive from properties of short term memory. 1), [k'ap'i-kap'i] → [kap'i-kap'i] (푑 = 0, s = 푒−푑 A well-replicated finding about short term = 1), and finally [k'api-k'ap'i] → [k'api-kap'i] memory is that features of items in a list that (푑 = 2, s = 푒−푑 = 0.13). Across all four stimuli match features of other items tend to be omitted, pairs, the average similarity between the two a so-called interference effect. The mechanism 1 stimuli within pairs is [0.13 + 1 + 1 + 0.13] = which gives rise to this effect is dubbed feature 4 overwrite in models of short term memory 0.57 (higher than for the 0vs1 condition). (Nairne, 1990; Nairne, 2001): in a list of elements These illustrations assume that interference (e.g., syllables), a feature F of the memory trace applies in every experimental trial. To prove a of an element is omitted (with some probability; general result, I assume that overwrite applies more on this below) if it matches the feature of a with probability 푝 and show how to derive the following, adjacent element (Nairne, 1990: 252). discriminability asymmetries in the above Consider how interference plays out in the experiments for any 푝. I begin by expressing the different conditions of Gallagher’s experiments. expected similarity for each of the above pairs as In the 0vs1 condition, the stimuli pairs are [kapi- a function of this probability 푝 of overwrite (1 − k'api], [kapi-kap'i], [k'api-kapi], and [kap'i-kapi]. 푝, no overwrite). In the 1vs2 condition, the No pair is subject to feature overwrite, as the expected distance for [k'ap'i-k'api] → [kap'i-k'api] ejective is not repeated. Discriminability of the is 1(1 − 푝) + 2푝 = 1 + 푝 (read: 1, the distance two words in each pair is function of their when overwrite does not apply, multiplied by the similarity. The similarity 푠(푖, 푗) between words probability of no overwrite (1 − 푝), plus 2, the 푖, 푗 is related to their featural distance 푑(푖, 푗) by distance when overwrite applies, multiplied by 푠(푖, 푗) = 푒−푑(푖,푗) (Shepard, 1987); the larger the the probability of overwrite 푝), 1(1 − 푝) + 0푝 = distance, the less the similarity. Distance is a 1 − 푝 for [kap'i-k'ap'i] → [kap'i-kap'i], 1(1 − function of the number of featural mismatches 푝) + 0푝 = 1 − 푝 for [k'ap'i-kap'i] → [kap'i- between the two forms. More precisely, distance kap'i], and 1(1 − 푝) + 2푝 = 1 + 푝 for [k'api- ∑ 푏푘푀푘 k'ap'i] → [k'api-kap'i]. Hence, the average is given by 푑(푖, 푗) = where 푏푘 is the 푁 1 −푝−1 similarity across the four pairs is [2푒 + weight of the particular feature (some features 4 1 may contribute more to distance than others), 푀 2푒푝−1] = 푒−1 ( 푒−푝 + 푒푝). This expression is 푘 2 is a counter of the featural mismatches, and N is lower bounded (at 푝 = 0) by the similarity of the 189 −1 F 0vs1 condition, 푒 = 0.37 which does not vary swap positions: /…Ci …Cj…/ (read: feature F is as a function of 푝. Figure 1 plots the similarities associated to consonant in position j) changes to F across these conditions.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 1 Consonant Harmony in Child Language
    1 Consonant Harmony in Child Language: An Optimality-theoretic Account* Heather Goad Department of Linguistics, McGill University [email protected] Ms. dated 1995. Currently in press in S.J. Hannahs & M. Young-Scholten Focus on phonological acquisition. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, pp. 113-142. Abstract An analysis is provided of the consonant harmony (CH) patterns exhibited in the speech of one child, Amahl at Stage 1 (data from Smith 1973). It is argued that the standard rule-based analysis which involves Coronal underspecification and planar segregation is not tenable. First, the data reveal an underspecification paradox: coronal consonants are targets for CH and should thus be unspecified for Coronal. However, they also trigger harmony, in words where the targets are liquids. Second, the data are not consistent with planar segregation, as one harmony pattern is productive beyond the point when AmahlÕs grammar satisfies the requirements for planar segregation (set forth in McCarthy 1989). An alternative analysis is proposed within the constraint-based framework of Optimality Theory (Prince & Smolensky 1993). It is argued that CH follows from the relative ranking of constraints which parse place features and those which align features with the edges of the prosodic word. With the constraints responsible for parsing and aligning Labial and Dorsal ranked above those responsible for parsing and aligning Coronal, the dual behaviour of coronals can be captured. The effect of planar segregation follows from other independently motivated constraints which force alignment to be satisfied through copying of segmental material, not through spreading. Keywords: first language acquisition, consonant harmony, underspecification paradox 1.
    [Show full text]
  • 5 Phonology Florian Lionnet and Larry M
    5 Phonology Florian Lionnet and Larry M. Hyman 5.1. Introduction The historical relation between African and general phonology has been a mutu- ally beneficial one: the languages of the African continent provide some of the most interesting and, at times, unusual phonological phenomena, which have con- tributed to the development of phonology in quite central ways. This has been made possible by the careful descriptive work that has been done on African lan- guages, by linguists and non-linguists, and by Africanists and non-Africanists who have peeked in from time to time. Except for the click consonants of the Khoisan languages (which spill over onto some neighboring Bantu languages that have “borrowed” them), the phonological phenomena found in African languages are usually duplicated elsewhere on the globe, though not always in as concen- trated a fashion. The vast majority of African languages are tonal, and many also have vowel harmony (especially vowel height harmony and advanced tongue root [ATR] harmony). Not surprisingly, then, African languages have figured dispro- portionately in theoretical treatments of these two phenomena. On the other hand, if there is a phonological property where African languages are underrepresented, it would have to be stress systems – which rarely, if ever, achieve the complexity found in other (mostly non-tonal) languages. However, it should be noted that the languages of Africa have contributed significantly to virtually every other aspect of general phonology, and that the various developments of phonological theory have in turn often greatly contributed to a better understanding of the phonologies of African languages. Given the considerable diversity of the properties found in different parts of the continent, as well as in different genetic groups or areas, it will not be possible to provide a complete account of the phonological phenomena typically found in African languages, overviews of which are available in such works as Creissels (1994) and Clements (2000).
    [Show full text]
  • A Typology of Consonant Agreement As Correspondence
    A TYPOLOGY OF CONSONANT AGREEMENT AS CORRESPONDENCE SHARON ROSE RACHEL WALKER University of California, San Diego University of Southern California This article presents a typology of consonant harmony or LONG DISTANCE CONSONANT AGREEMENT that is analyzed as arisingthroughcorrespondence relations between consonants rather than feature spreading. The model covers a range of agreement patterns (nasal, laryngeal, liquid, coronal, dorsal) and offers several advantages. Similarity of agreeing consonants is central to the typology and is incorporated directly into the constraints drivingcorrespondence. Agreementby correspon- dence without feature spreadingcaptures the neutrality of interveningsegments,which neither block nor undergo. Case studies of laryngeal agreement and nasal agreement are presented, demon- stratingthe model’s capacity to capture varyingdegreesof similarity crosslinguistically.* 1. INTRODUCTION. The action at a distance that is characteristic of CONSONANT HAR- MONIES stands as a pivotal problem to be addressed by phonological theory. Consider the nasal alternations in the Bantu language, Kikongo (Meinhof 1932, Dereau 1955, Webb 1965, Ao 1991, Odden 1994, Piggott 1996). In this language, the voiced stop in the suffix [-idi] in la is realized as [ini] in 1b when preceded by a nasal consonant at any distance in the stem constituent, consistingof root and suffixes. (1) a. m-[bud-idi]stem ‘I hit’ b. tu-[kun-ini]stem ‘we planted’ n-[suk-idi]stem ‘I washed’ tu-[nik-ini]stem ‘we ground’ In addition to the alternation in 1, there are no Kikongo roots containing a nasal followed by a voiced stop, confirmingthat nasal harmony or AGREEMENT, as we term it, also holds at the root level as a MORPHEME STRUCTURE CONSTRAINT (MSC).
    [Show full text]
  • The Effects of Phonological Processes on the Speech Intelligibility of Young Children
    Portland State University PDXScholar Dissertations and Theses Dissertations and Theses 10-20-1994 The Effects of Phonological Processes on the Speech Intelligibility of Young Children Susanne Shotola-Hardt Portland State University Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds Part of the Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Shotola-Hardt, Susanne, "The Effects of Phonological Processes on the Speech Intelligibility of Young Children" (1994). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 4780. https://doi.org/10.15760/etd.6664 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. Please contact us if we can make this document more accessible: [email protected]. THESIS APPROVAL The abstract and thesis of Susanne Shotola-Hardt for the Master of Science in Speech Communication: Speech and Hearing Sciences were presented October 20, 1994, and accepted by the thesis committee and the department. COMMITTEE APPROVALS: .. \\ ....___ ____ ; --J6~n McMahon Sheldon Maron Representative, Office of Graduate Studies DEPARTMENT APPROVAL: ""' A * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ACCEPTED FOR PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY BY THE LIBRARY b on £!luve-4* ~ /99</: . ABSTRACT An abstract of the thesis of Susanne Shotola-Hardt for the Master of Science in Speech Communication: Speech and Hearing Sciences presented October 20, 1994. Title: The Effects of Phonological Processes on the Speech Intelligibility of Young Children. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between occurrence of 10 phonological processes, singly and in groups, with mean percentage of intelligibility of connected speech samples.
    [Show full text]
  • 78. 78. Nasal Harmony Nasal Harmony
    Bibliographic Details The Blackwell Companion to Phonology Edited by: Marc van Oostendorp, Colin J. Ewen, Elizabeth Hume and Keren Rice eISBN: 9781405184236 Print publication date: 2011 78. Nasal Harmony RACHEL WWALKER Subject Theoretical Linguistics » Phonology DOI: 10.1111/b.9781405184236.2011.00080.x Sections 1 Nasal vowel–consonant harmony with opaque segments 2 Nasal vowel–consonant harmony with transparent segments 3 Nasal consonant harmony 4 Directionality 5 Conclusion ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Notes REFERENCES Nasal harmony refers to phonological patterns where nasalization is transmitted in long-distance fashion. The long-distance nature of nasal harmony can be met by the transmission of nasalization either to a series of segments or to a non-adjacent segment. Nasal harmony usually occurs within words or a smaller domain, either morphologically or prosodically defined. This chapter introduces the chief characteristics of nasal harmony patterns with exemplification, and highlights related theoretical themes. It focuses primarily on the different roles that segments can play in nasal harmony, and the typological properties to which they give rise. The following terminological conventions will be assumed. A trigger is a segment that initiates nasal harmony. A target is a segment that undergoes harmony. An opaque segment or blocker halts nasal harmony. A transparent segment is one that does not display nasalization within a span of nasal harmony, but does not halt harmony from transmitting beyond it. Three broad categories of nasal harmony are considered in this chapter. They are (i) nasal vowel–consonant harmony with opaque segments, (ii) nasal vowel– consonant harmony with transparent segments, and (iii) nasal consonant harmony. Each of these groups of systems show characteristic hallmarks.
    [Show full text]
  • Acquisition of Velars: a Whole-Word Approach
    Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics ISSN: 0269-9206 (Print) 1464-5076 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/iclp20 Acquisition of velars: A whole-word approach Margaret Kehoe To cite this article: Margaret Kehoe (2015) Acquisition of velars: A whole-word approach, Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, 29:12, 873-908, DOI: 10.3109/02699206.2015.1062559 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/02699206.2015.1062559 Published online: 31 Aug 2015. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 92 View related articles View Crossmark data Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=iclp20 Download by: [Université de Genève] Date: 10 April 2016, At: 23:36 Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, December 2015; 29(12): 873–908 ß 2015 Taylor & Francis ISSN: 0269-9206 print / 1464-5076 online DOI: 10.3109/02699206.2015.1062559 Acquisition of velars: A whole-word approach MARGARET KEHOE Faculty of Psychology and Science of Education, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland (Received 6 January 2015; revised 7 June 2015; accepted 11 June 2015) Abstract This study focuses on the acquisition of velars in a child, Max, aged 1;09–4;08, with protracted phonological development, possibly as a result of his diverse input conditions: he is an internationally adopted child who produces his first words shortly after exposure to English at 1;09. Max’s acquisition of velars is characterised by U-shaped development as well as by a positional velar-fronting process, in which velars are realised consistently in prosodically-weak but inconsistently in prosodically-strong positions.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter on Phonology
    13 The (American) English Sound System 13.1a IPA Chart Consonants: Place & Manner of Articulation bilabial labio­dental inter­dental alveolar palatal velar / glottal Plosives: [+voiced] b d g [­voiced] p t k Fricatives: [+voiced] v ð z ž [­voiced] f θ s š h Affricates: [+voiced] ǰ [­voiced] č *Nasals: [+voiced] m n ŋ *Liquids: l r *Glides: w y *Syllabic Nasals and Liquids. When nasals /m/, /n/ and liquids /l/, /r/ take on vowel­like properties, they are said to become syllabic: e.g., /ļ/ and /ŗ/ (denoted by a small line diacritic underneath the grapheme). Note how token examples (teacher) /tičŗ/, (little) /lIt ļ/, (table) /tebļ/ (vision) /vIžņ/, despite their creating syllable structures [CVCC] ([CVCC] = consonant­vowel­ consonant­consonant), nonetheless generate a bisyllabic [CVCV] structure whereby we can ‘clap­out’ by hand two syllables—e.g., [ [/ ti /] [/ čŗ /] ] and 312 Chapter Thirteen [ [/ lI /] [/ tļ /] ], each showing a [CVCC v] with final consonant [C v] denoting a vocalic /ŗ/ and /ļ/ (respectively). For this reason, ‘fluid’ [­Consonantal] (vowel­like) nasals, liquids (as well as glides) fall at the bottom half of the IPA chart in opposition to [+Consonantal] stops. 13.1b IPA American Vowels Diphthongs front: back: high: i u ay I ә U oy au e ^ o ε * ] low: æ a 13.1c Examples of IPA: Consonants / b / ball, rob, rabbit / d / dig, sad, sudden / g / got, jogger / p / pan, tip, rapper / t / tip, fit, punter / k / can, keep / v / vase, love / z / zip, buzz, cars / ž / measure, pleasure / f / fun, leaf / s / sip, cent, books / š / shoe, ocean, pressure / ð / the, further / l / lip, table, dollar / č / chair, cello / θ / with, theory / r / red, fear / ǰ / joke, lodge / w / with, water / y / you, year / h / house / m / make, ham / n / near, fan / ŋ / sing, pink The American English Sound System 313 *Note: Many varieties of American English cannot distinguish between the ‘open­‘O’ vowel /]/ e.g., as is sounded in caught /k]t/ vs.
    [Show full text]
  • FL 004 293 Malikouti-Drachman, Angeliki
    DOCUMENT RESUME ED 082 566 FL 004 293 AUTHOR Malikouti-Drachman, Angeliki; And Others TITLE Working Papers in Linguistics No. 15. INSTITUTION Ohio State Univ., Columbus. Dept, of Linguistics. PUB DATE Apr 73 NOTE 224p. EDRS PRICE MF-$0.65 HC-$9.87 DESCRIPTORS Articulation (Speech); Bibliographies; Charts; Child Language; Cognitive Processes; Consonants; Diagrams; Intonation; *Language Learning Levels; *Linguistic Patterns; Morphology (Languages); *Oral Expression; Phonemics; Phonetics; *Phonology; Physiology; Pronunciation; Sentence Structure; Vowels; *Written Language ABSTRACT This issue is devoted to first language acquisition. It includes twelve papers concerning: the acquisition of liquids ("1" and "r"); creative errors in the written syntax of deaf children; theoretical and methodological problems in the acquisition of phonology, illustrated from Greek an? English: the basis of articulation; the philosophy of scie.ce; and vowel nasalization. (Author/DD) st' WORKING PAPERS IN LINGUISTICS NO. 15 By Angeliki Malikouti-Drachman, Gaberell Drachman, Mary Louise Edwards, Jonnie E. Geis, and Lawrence C. Schourup U S DEPARTMENT Of MELT4 EOUCTION t WELFARE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EOU.:ATiON THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRO DLJCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGIN ATING IT POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS STATEO 00 NOT NECESSARILY REPRE SENT OFFICIAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION POSITION OW POLICY Department of Linguistics The Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio 43210 April 1973 FILMED FROM BEST AVAILABLE COPY Int2oduction This issue of Working Papers is very largely devoted to first language acquisition. The first two papers present the full and unabridged version of ilary Edwards' master's thesis (June 1971) on the acquisition of liquids, and part of Jonnie Geis' work on creative errors in the (written) syntax of deaf children.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Consonants in Vowel Harmony
    1 Chapter 2: The role of consonants in vowel harmony 2 Gunnar Ólafur Hansson To appear in The Oxford Handbook of Vowel 3 University of British Columbia Harmony, ed. by Nancy Ritter and Harry van 4 [email protected] der Hulst. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 5 NON-FINAL DRAFT (April 3, 2021) 6 2.1 Introduction 7 Vowel harmony is defined as a phonological process, or co-occurrence restriction, that requires 8 the vowels within some domain, such as the word, to share some property. Generally speaking, 9 consonants are thus taken to be irrelevant and inert in the manifestation of vowel harmony 10 patterns. Other things being equal, then, a consonant will neither undergo nor trigger assimilation 11 in the harmonic property, nor will intervening consonants affect (e.g. block) enforcement of the 12 harmony relation between a preceding and a following vowel. 13 This chapter examines the diverse ways in which indiviDual vowel harmony systems may 14 deviate from this default state of affairs. Consonants can be implicated in vowel harmony 15 systems in a variety of ways, and such cross-over effects can have implications for phonological 16 theory, informing theories of representation (e.g. distinctive feature theory, feature geometry, 17 underspecification theory) and of the formal mechanisms that are understood to be involved in 18 assimilation (e.g. feature spreading vs. agreement/copying, relations between segments vs. 19 syllable nuclei). 20 I begin by considering the possibility that consonants may themselves be undergoers of 21 vowel harmony, albeit only in a passive, allophonic sense (§2.2).
    [Show full text]
  • Scales and Patterns of Expressive Palatalization
    Kochetov & Alderete, November 2010 Patterns and scales of expressive palatalization: Typological and experimental evidence Alexei Kochetov & John Alderete [email protected], [email protected] Abstract This paper argues for a distinct treatment of expressive palatalization – an apparently phonologically unmotivated process that applies in babytalk registers, diminutive constructions, and sound symbolism. As evidence we present results of a cross-linguistic survey of expressive palatalization and of two experiments testing native speakers’ intuitions about alternations in Japanese mimetic vocabulary and the babytalk specialized register. Both typological and experimental results point to the same scale of palatalizability, with coronal sibilants being the most optimal targets and outputs of expressive palatalization. The source of this scale, we argue, is in relative acoustic salience of palatal(ized) consonants and their ability to function iconically – as phonological correlates of ‘smallness’ and ‘childishness’ (cf. Ohala 1994). We further provide an Output-Output Correspondence analysis of Japanese babytalk and mimetic palatalization that employs a set of register-specific EPAL ICONICITY constraints referring to the scale of perceptual salience of palatal(ized) consonants. Keywords: palatalization, phonetic scales, cross-linguistic, Japanese, expressive registers/vocabulary 1. Introduction Palatalization – a process by which consonants acquire secondary palatal articulation or shift to j coronal place under the influence of front
    [Show full text]
  • Vowel and Consonant Disharmony in Turkish George N
    Vowel and Consonant Disharmony in Turkish George N. Clements and Engin Sezer Cornell University 1. INTRODUCTION The present study examines a range of phenomena related to the topic of vowel and consonant harmony in Turkish. Its purpose is both descrip­ tive and theoretical. We aim first to bring new empirical data to bear upon the question of the formal treatment of vowel and consonant harmony, and second to show that autosegmental phonology provides an internal­ ly consistent account of not only the regularities but also the irregulari­ ties and apparent exceptions within the particular system of Turkish. Turkish is normally thought of as offering a paradigm case of vowel and consonant harmony at its simplest and most transparent. According to textbook descriptions, all vowels and consonants in Turkish words agree in their specification for backness, and all high vowels agree with preceding vowels in their specification for roundness. Moreover, the velar and lateral consonants are described as having back variants in back vowel words and front variants in front vowel words. Closer examination, however, re­ veals a host of exceptions to these statements. While these exceptions - or cases of disharmony - have not gone unnoticed in the literature, they have not received the attention that their interest for phonological theory merits. The existence of large numbers of exceptions to proposed rules or principles is often a sign that a system has not been well understood. We believe that this is the case with most recent studies of vowel and conso­ nant harmony, which have been carried out within phonological theories that postulate a principle of linearity in phonological representation.
    [Show full text]
  • NIH Public Access Author Manuscript Clin Linguist Phon
    NIH Public Access Author Manuscript Clin Linguist Phon. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2012 November 01. NIH-PA Author ManuscriptPublished NIH-PA Author Manuscript in final edited NIH-PA Author Manuscript form as: Clin Linguist Phon. 2011 November ; 25(0): 968–974. doi:10.3109/02699206.2011.599473. On the unity of children’s phonological error patterns: Distinguishing symptoms from the problem Daniel A. Dinnsen Department of Linguistics, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA Abstract This article compares the claims of rule- and constraint-based accounts of three seemingly distinct error patterns, namely, Deaffrication, Consonant Harmony and Assibilation, in the sound system of a child with a phonological delay. It is argued that these error patterns are not separate problems, but rather are symptoms of a larger conspiracy to avoid word-initial coronal stops. The clinical implications of these findings are also considered. Keywords optimality theory; rules; conspiracy; phonological delay Introduction It has long been recognized that the characterization of children’s phonological error patterns as rules or natural processes advanced our understanding of developing sound systems and aided the clinical assessment and treatment of phonological disorders. These rules have revealed systematic sound patterns, context effects and intricate relationships among sounds and other processes by expressing generalizations about what is impermissible in the child’s sound system and specifying how the child repairs those illicit structures. To the extent that children internalize target-appropriate underlying representations, as is widely assumed, each rule has served to define a phonological problem. From a clinical perspective, identification of persistent or unusual processes has been useful for diagnosis and the selection of treatment targets.
    [Show full text]