Iberian spirantization as a syllable contact process
This paper examines Spanish spirantization as a syllable contact phenomenon subject to the Syllable Preference Laws proposed by Murray and Venneman (1987). It proposes a rule that assigns the feature [+continuant] to a voiced obstruent, provided that a minimum sonority distance is maintained between...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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UPV/EHU Press
1995-04-01
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| Series: | Anuario del Seminario de Filología Vasca "Julio de Urquijo" |
| Online Access: | https://ojs.ehu.eus/index.php/ASJU/article/view/8493 |
| Summary: | This paper examines Spanish spirantization as a syllable contact phenomenon subject to the Syllable Preference Laws proposed by Murray and Venneman (1987). It proposes a rule that assigns the feature [+continuant] to a voiced obstruent, provided that a minimum sonority distance is maintained between the obstruent as a spirant and a preceding rhyme. Otherwise, the obstruent receives the specification [-continuant]. The minimum sonority difference between an onset and a preceding segment is subject to dialectal and stylistic variation, ranging from a distance of two, in spirantizing dialects, to a distance of seven, in dialects that show a preference for stops. This approach allows us to explain the range of variation inherent in Spanish spirantization as well as the right-environment conditions of Portuguese and Catalan spirantization. |
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| ISSN: | 0582-6152 2444-2992 |