On vowel harmony and vowel reduction
-
John R. Rennison
Abstract
This paper examines vowel reduction and vowel harmony in disyllabic nouns of Yukuben, Mòoré and German. Morphologically, all nouns under consideration have a stem and a number + gender marker. The order of these two morphemes, namely stem-final in Yukuben but stem-initial in Mòoré and German, seems to have little effect on the phonological processes affecting the nouns. The canonical word shapes of all three languages have frequent strengthening of first syllables (by phonological lengthening in Yukuben and Mòoré, and by vowel harmony in all three languages), and weakening of second syllables: reduction to schwa in Yukuben and German; non-final elision in Mòoré. No definite conclusion can yet be proposed as to why phonology does not reflect the differing morphology more directly.
Abstract
This paper examines vowel reduction and vowel harmony in disyllabic nouns of Yukuben, Mòoré and German. Morphologically, all nouns under consideration have a stem and a number + gender marker. The order of these two morphemes, namely stem-final in Yukuben but stem-initial in Mòoré and German, seems to have little effect on the phonological processes affecting the nouns. The canonical word shapes of all three languages have frequent strengthening of first syllables (by phonological lengthening in Yukuben and Mòoré, and by vowel harmony in all three languages), and weakening of second syllables: reduction to schwa in Yukuben and German; non-final elision in Mòoré. No definite conclusion can yet be proposed as to why phonology does not reflect the differing morphology more directly.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
-
Part 1. Vowels
- Lowering harmony in Bantu 13
- On vowel harmony and vowel reduction 37
- Apophony and chiming words in Malay 57
- Understanding what has happened with the ablaut 67
-
Part 2. Syllables
- On the licensing of glides 85
- Coda constraints on tone 103
- C/V interactions in strict CV 123
- What does the Moroccan Malħun meter compute, and how? 139
-
Part 3. Templates
- Regularities in irregular Chaha verbs 163
- Overlapping morphologies in Arabic hypocoristics 177
- Staying away from the weak left edge 193
- The Modern Hebrew template tQuLa in light of Jean Lowenstamm’s work 209
- Templates and representations in phonology 219
- On templates 235
-
Part 4. The Phonology-Syntax interface
- The Ins and Outs of phonology 255
- Phase cycles, φ-cycles, and phonological (In)activity 271
- Sepp vs Paradigms 287
- On Plurals, noun phrase and num(ber) in Moroccan Arabic and Djibouti Somali 303
- The initial CV 315
-
Part 5. Selected Issues in Afro-Asiatic (Morpho-)Syntax and Semantics
- Causatives, anticausatives and lexicalization 333
- A note on labeling, Berber states and VSO order 349
- The interpretation of Construct-State morphology 361
- Index 375
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
-
Part 1. Vowels
- Lowering harmony in Bantu 13
- On vowel harmony and vowel reduction 37
- Apophony and chiming words in Malay 57
- Understanding what has happened with the ablaut 67
-
Part 2. Syllables
- On the licensing of glides 85
- Coda constraints on tone 103
- C/V interactions in strict CV 123
- What does the Moroccan Malħun meter compute, and how? 139
-
Part 3. Templates
- Regularities in irregular Chaha verbs 163
- Overlapping morphologies in Arabic hypocoristics 177
- Staying away from the weak left edge 193
- The Modern Hebrew template tQuLa in light of Jean Lowenstamm’s work 209
- Templates and representations in phonology 219
- On templates 235
-
Part 4. The Phonology-Syntax interface
- The Ins and Outs of phonology 255
- Phase cycles, φ-cycles, and phonological (In)activity 271
- Sepp vs Paradigms 287
- On Plurals, noun phrase and num(ber) in Moroccan Arabic and Djibouti Somali 303
- The initial CV 315
-
Part 5. Selected Issues in Afro-Asiatic (Morpho-)Syntax and Semantics
- Causatives, anticausatives and lexicalization 333
- A note on labeling, Berber states and VSO order 349
- The interpretation of Construct-State morphology 361
- Index 375
