Exploring the syntax-phonology interface in Arabic
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Sam Hellmuth
Abstract
Despite an abundance of research on Arabic syntax and phonology as separate domains, there is as yet relatively little research at the syntax-phonology interface in Arabic. This paper begins by providing an overview of what we know so far, in an effort to identify reasons for the lack of work at the interface to date. The paper then presents a review of prior work on the syntax-phonology mapping in Egyptian Arabic (EA) – set in the context of developments in the wider syntaxphonology literature – in order to show that interface work requires expertise in both phonetics/phonology and syntax. Some early results are then presented from a pilot study which compares for the first time the basic syntaxphonology mapping patterns in two dialects of Arabic – EA, and Jordanian Arabic (JA) – and explores whether dialect-internal, inter-speaker variation, previously observed in EA, is also found in JA.
Abstract
Despite an abundance of research on Arabic syntax and phonology as separate domains, there is as yet relatively little research at the syntax-phonology interface in Arabic. This paper begins by providing an overview of what we know so far, in an effort to identify reasons for the lack of work at the interface to date. The paper then presents a review of prior work on the syntax-phonology mapping in Egyptian Arabic (EA) – set in the context of developments in the wider syntaxphonology literature – in order to show that interface work requires expertise in both phonetics/phonology and syntax. Some early results are then presented from a pilot study which compares for the first time the basic syntaxphonology mapping patterns in two dialects of Arabic – EA, and Jordanian Arabic (JA) – and explores whether dialect-internal, inter-speaker variation, previously observed in EA, is also found in JA.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Acknowledgements ix
- Introduction xi
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Part I: Syntax and its interfaces
- Locative prepositional phrases and inalienable PLACE in Lebanese Arabic* 3
- On the syntax of exceptive constructions in Egyptian Arabic* 35
- Verbal and nominal plurals and the syntaxmorphology interface 59
- Exploring the syntax-phonology interface in Arabic 75
- A salience-based analysis of the Tunisian Arabic demonstrative hāk as used in oral narratives* 99
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Part II: Arabic Linguistic Variation
- Moroccan artists ‘blacklisted’ 123
- Lateral fricative ḍād in Tihāmat Qaḥtān 151
- Arabic ȷ̌ and the class of Sun Letters 171
- Quantifying lexical and pronunciation variation between three Arabic varieties* 187
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Part III: First Language Acquisition
- Compensatory lengthening 215
- Index 237
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Acknowledgements ix
- Introduction xi
-
Part I: Syntax and its interfaces
- Locative prepositional phrases and inalienable PLACE in Lebanese Arabic* 3
- On the syntax of exceptive constructions in Egyptian Arabic* 35
- Verbal and nominal plurals and the syntaxmorphology interface 59
- Exploring the syntax-phonology interface in Arabic 75
- A salience-based analysis of the Tunisian Arabic demonstrative hāk as used in oral narratives* 99
-
Part II: Arabic Linguistic Variation
- Moroccan artists ‘blacklisted’ 123
- Lateral fricative ḍād in Tihāmat Qaḥtān 151
- Arabic ȷ̌ and the class of Sun Letters 171
- Quantifying lexical and pronunciation variation between three Arabic varieties* 187
-
Part III: First Language Acquisition
- Compensatory lengthening 215
- Index 237
