Prosodic Licensing and the development of phonological and morphological representations
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Katherine Demuth
Abstract
One of the challenges for understanding the processes underlying the acquisition of phonology has been the variability found in early speech productions. Our recent research suggests that much of this is due to the phonological (or prosodic) context in which words (and their segments) appear. This paper explores some of the recent findings on children’s acquisition of phonological/prosodic units as a function of syllable and word structure, showing how acoustic analysis provides evidence of children’s developing phonological representations from their first words. It then shows that similar processes can account for the variable emergence of early grammatical morphemes, suggesting that these are also Prosodically Licensed. These findings are discussed in terms of a developmental model of language planning and production.
Abstract
One of the challenges for understanding the processes underlying the acquisition of phonology has been the variability found in early speech productions. Our recent research suggests that much of this is due to the phonological (or prosodic) context in which words (and their segments) appear. This paper explores some of the recent findings on children’s acquisition of phonological/prosodic units as a function of syllable and word structure, showing how acoustic analysis provides evidence of children’s developing phonological representations from their first words. It then shows that similar processes can account for the variable emergence of early grammatical morphemes, suggesting that these are also Prosodically Licensed. These findings are discussed in terms of a developmental model of language planning and production.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Foreword and tabula gratulatoria vii
- Introduction 1
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Section 1. Representations and contrast
- Prosodic Licensing and the development of phonological and morphological representations 11
- Covert contrast in the acquisition of second language phonology 25
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Section 2. Sources of individual differences in phonological acquisition
- Sibling rivalry 53
- Abstracting phonological generalizations 71
- Rapid phonological coding and working memory dynamics in children with cochlear implants 91
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Section 3. Cross-linguistic approaches to phonological acquisition
- What guides children’s acquisition of #sC clusters? 115
- The role of phonological context in children’s overt marking of ‘-s’ in two dialects of American English 133
- German settlement varieties in Kansas 155
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Section 4. Theoretical advances in the field
- The role of onsets in primary and secondary stress patterns 175
- A faithfulness conspiracy 199
- Superadditivity and limitations on syllable complexity in Bambara words 223
- Author index 249
- Subject index 253
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Foreword and tabula gratulatoria vii
- Introduction 1
-
Section 1. Representations and contrast
- Prosodic Licensing and the development of phonological and morphological representations 11
- Covert contrast in the acquisition of second language phonology 25
-
Section 2. Sources of individual differences in phonological acquisition
- Sibling rivalry 53
- Abstracting phonological generalizations 71
- Rapid phonological coding and working memory dynamics in children with cochlear implants 91
-
Section 3. Cross-linguistic approaches to phonological acquisition
- What guides children’s acquisition of #sC clusters? 115
- The role of phonological context in children’s overt marking of ‘-s’ in two dialects of American English 133
- German settlement varieties in Kansas 155
-
Section 4. Theoretical advances in the field
- The role of onsets in primary and secondary stress patterns 175
- A faithfulness conspiracy 199
- Superadditivity and limitations on syllable complexity in Bambara words 223
- Author index 249
- Subject index 253
