A Phonological motivation behind the diatonic stress shift in Modern English
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Ryuichi Hotta
Abstract
The paper addresses the historical growth of disyllabic stress-alternating noun-verb pairs, or ‘diatones’, such as récord/recórd in Modern English. First, I describe how diatones have increased in number since their first attestation in the late sixteenth century. Next, I critically review two accounts, the prefix effect and the frequency effect, that have been proposed to explain why the diatonic stress pattern has become productive over the last four centuries. Then, I consider two phonological factors, word-final alveolar stops and consonant extrametricality, that likely contributed to the growth of diatones. After I present an investigation into the relevance of these two factors from a diachronic as well as synchronic point of view, the paper concludes that the phonological factors have always been a driving force in the development of the diatonic pattern.
Abstract
The paper addresses the historical growth of disyllabic stress-alternating noun-verb pairs, or ‘diatones’, such as récord/recórd in Modern English. First, I describe how diatones have increased in number since their first attestation in the late sixteenth century. Next, I critically review two accounts, the prefix effect and the frequency effect, that have been proposed to explain why the diatonic stress pattern has become productive over the last four centuries. Then, I consider two phonological factors, word-final alveolar stops and consonant extrametricality, that likely contributed to the growth of diatones. After I present an investigation into the relevance of these two factors from a diachronic as well as synchronic point of view, the paper concludes that the phonological factors have always been a driving force in the development of the diatonic pattern.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
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Phonology
- A Phonological motivation behind the diatonic stress shift in Modern English 3
- Vowel reduction in verbs in King Alfred’s Pastoral Care 19
- The development of early Middle English ō 41
- The diachronic development of stød and tonal accent in North Germanic 53
- The evolution of the (alveolo)palatal lateral consonant in Spanish and Portuguese 69
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Diachronic typology
- Evaluating prehistoric and early historic linguistic contacts 89
- Patterns in the diffusion of nomenclature systems 109
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Morphology
- Morphological evidence for the paradigmatic status of infinitives in French and Occitan 135
- Constructional change at the interface of cognition, culture, and language use 155
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Morphosyntax
- Stages in deflexion and the Norwegian dative 179
- Differential Object Marking in Old Japanese 195
- The grammaticalization of progressive constructions with a focus on the English progressive 213
- Hate and anger, love and desire 233
- The argument indexing of early Austronesian verbs 257
- The syntax of mood constructions in Old Japanese 281
- Medieval Sardinian 303
- Index 325
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
-
Phonology
- A Phonological motivation behind the diatonic stress shift in Modern English 3
- Vowel reduction in verbs in King Alfred’s Pastoral Care 19
- The development of early Middle English ō 41
- The diachronic development of stød and tonal accent in North Germanic 53
- The evolution of the (alveolo)palatal lateral consonant in Spanish and Portuguese 69
-
Diachronic typology
- Evaluating prehistoric and early historic linguistic contacts 89
- Patterns in the diffusion of nomenclature systems 109
-
Morphology
- Morphological evidence for the paradigmatic status of infinitives in French and Occitan 135
- Constructional change at the interface of cognition, culture, and language use 155
-
Morphosyntax
- Stages in deflexion and the Norwegian dative 179
- Differential Object Marking in Old Japanese 195
- The grammaticalization of progressive constructions with a focus on the English progressive 213
- Hate and anger, love and desire 233
- The argument indexing of early Austronesian verbs 257
- The syntax of mood constructions in Old Japanese 281
- Medieval Sardinian 303
- Index 325
