Durham E-Theses The Application of English Theories to Sorani Phonology AHMED, ZHWAN,OTHMAN How to cite: AHMED, ZHWAN,OTHMAN (2019) The Application of English Theories to Sorani Phonology, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/13290/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk The Application of English Theories to Sorani Phonology Zhwan Othman Ahmed A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Modern Languages and Cultures Durham University 2019 Abstract This thesis investigates phonological processes in Sorani Kurdish within the framework of Element Theory. It studies two main varieties of Sorani spoken in Iraq which are Slemani and Hawler. Since the phonology of SK is one of the least studied areas in Kurdish linguistics and the available studies provide different accounts of its segments, I start by introducing the segmental system of the SK dialect group. I present a list of consonants and vowels and discuss the variation between Hawler and Slemani. I then present an Element Theory analysis of the segmental system of SK which reflects the phonological behaviour of each segment and how it patterns with other sounds. For example, š and ž are post-alveolar articulatorily while they behave like palatals in phonological processes and hence have a headed |I| element. I then study processes of place assimilation in SK. The process of palatalization is one area that sets Hawler and Slemani varieties apart. In SK, velar stops, k g, are palatalized before front vocoids. However, in Hawler, the output of velar palatalization is an affricate consonant while in Slemani, palatalization is secondary and adds a secondary articulation to the velar stops. Similarly, both varieties have a set of emphatic consonants which have caused considerable debate in the literature as there is no agreement on their distribution in SK. In this study, I present the first detailed account of the emphatic consonants in SK and argue that their triggers differ between Slemani and Hawler and I also argue that they differ phonologically from emphatics in Arabic. Another place assimilation process that is discussed briefly is nasal place assimilation. Other processes discussed in the thesis relate to laryngeal contrasts in SK. The data show that word-initial obstruents have a typologically uncommon laryngeal contrast that utilizes the extreme points on the VOT continuum. That is, SK has a pre-voiced set of obstruents that contrasts with an aspirated set in word-initial position. In word-final position, however, the pre-voiced set is devoiced, and the contrast is between an aspirated set and a neutral set. I also discuss the process of voicing assimilation that occurs in both Hawler and Slemani. The study also accounts for such processes as metathesis and deletion and presents data to show variations between Hawler and Slemani. The study ends with an evaluation of i the main findings and asserts the importance of this thesis and how it can be used as a basis for future work. ii Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to thank my primary supervisor, Dr Alex Bellem, for her endless patience, continuous support and invaluable advice throughout the process of writing this thesis. I have been extremely lucky to have a supervisor who always showed interest in my work and spent hours to discuss the data with me. I am also deeply grateful to my second supervisor, Dr Marcela Cazzoli, who gave me invaluable advice on how to collect the data and gave me some helpful comments and suggestions on the first chapter of the thesis. I would also like to thank Professor Jonathan Long, Head of School of Modern Languages and Cultures, for his help and support and always being available to meet with me. Special thanks also go to Ms Lucia Luck for her help and prompt replies to my enquiries. I would like to express my gratitude to Dr Bert Vaux and Dr Ghada Khattab for their invaluable comments and suggestions which helped enrich the thesis. I am thankful for the scholarship awarded to me by the Higher Committee for Education Development in Iraq. Without their grant, my PhD study would not be possible. Finally, I would like to thank my family and my friends for the help and moral support they have provided and for making the long journey of my study less stressful. iii To the memory of my father To my beloved mother and grandparents iv “The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without the author's prior written consent and information derived from it should be acknowledged.” v Contents Abstract………………………………………………………………………………….i Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………..iii Contents………………………………………………………………………………...vi List of Figures …………..………………………………………………………………x List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………..xii Transliteration and Transcription……………………………………………………...xiii Chapter One: Introduction................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Aims and Significance of the Study ............................................................................ 1 1.2 Theoretical Framework: Element Theory ................................................................... 2 1.2.1 Segmental Representation in Element Theory ..................................................... 3 1.2.2 Elements for Vowels (Resonance Elements) ....................................................... 4 1.2.3 Elements for Consonants ...................................................................................... 6 1.2.3.1 Glides ............................................................................................................. 7 1.2.3.2 Resonance (Place) Elements .......................................................................... 8 1.2.3.3 Manner Elements ........................................................................................... 8 1.2.4 Headedness ........................................................................................................... 9 1.2.5 Syllable Structure in Government Phonology………………………………....10 1.3 Language and Dialects under Study .......................................................................... 11 1.3.1 Kurdish Dialects ................................................................................................. 11 1.3.2 The Classification of Kurdish Dialects............................................................... 13 1.3.3 A Historical and Socio-political Background .................................................... 18 1.4 Previous Works on Kurdish Phonology .................................................................... 20 1.5 Methodology ............................................................................................................. 22 1.5.1 Data Collection ................................................................................................... 22 1.5.2 The Informants ................................................................................................... 25 1.5.3 The Data ............................................................................................................. 26 1.5.4 The Instruments .................................................................................................. 28 1.6 Overview of the Thesis ............................................................................................. 28 Chapter Two: The Phonology of Sorani Kurdish ........................................................... 30 2.1 The Segmental System of Sorani Kurdish ................................................................ 30 2.1.1 Consonants ......................................................................................................... 31 2.1.1.1 Stops............................................................................................................. 32 2.1.1.2 Affricates ..................................................................................................... 35 2.1.1.3 Fricatives ...................................................................................................... 36 2.1.1.4 Nasals ........................................................................................................... 40 vi 2.1.1.5 Laterals......................................................................................................... 41 2.1.1.6 Rhotics ......................................................................................................... 42 2.1.1.7 Glides ........................................................................................................... 43 2.1.2 Vowels ................................................................................................................ 43 2.1.2.1 Simple Vowels