Acquisition of morphophonemic alternations and the role of frequency
-
Mine Nakipoglu
Abstract
Bringing in acquisition data from stems that undergo morphophonemic alternation in Turkish, this study seeks to show how children’s acquisition path, mostly shaped by frequency implicates rules rather than a nondecomposed route. In Turkish most stems ending in the non-velar plosives [p], [t], [tʃ] undergo voicing alternation and stems ending in the velar plosive undergo deletion. On the grounds that the presence of non-velar-ending stems that do not undergo alternation or velar-ending stems that do not exhibit deletion may obscure the extraction of a pattern and give rise to errors in acquisition, we have tested 60 children in three developmental groups. We have found that children in all age groups erred and each sound type exhibited a variant error-path that reveals an interplay between type-frequency and token-frequency.
Abstract
Bringing in acquisition data from stems that undergo morphophonemic alternation in Turkish, this study seeks to show how children’s acquisition path, mostly shaped by frequency implicates rules rather than a nondecomposed route. In Turkish most stems ending in the non-velar plosives [p], [t], [tʃ] undergo voicing alternation and stems ending in the velar plosive undergo deletion. On the grounds that the presence of non-velar-ending stems that do not undergo alternation or velar-ending stems that do not exhibit deletion may obscure the extraction of a pattern and give rise to errors in acquisition, we have tested 60 children in three developmental groups. We have found that children in all age groups erred and each sound type exhibited a variant error-path that reveals an interplay between type-frequency and token-frequency.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- List of contributors ix
- Eser E. Erguvanlı-Taylan xi
- Prof. Eser Erguvanlı-Taylan’s Publications xv
-
Phonology
- Vowel epenthesis in the acquisition of English /s/-clusters by Turkish speakers 3
- Is there phonological vowel reduction in Turkish? 21
-
Morphology & Syntax
- A note on the compatibility of reflexive and causative in the Turkish verb 43
- Negative or not – the Case of - (y)AlI beri in Turkish 45
- Greek and Turkish influences in the clausal complements of Cunda Turkish 57
- Clause combining in Turkish as a minority language in Germany 81
-
Discourse
- Thinking for speaking and the construction of evidentiality in language contact 105
- Conditionals in Turkish 121
-
Language Acquisition
- The interface of evidentials and epistemics in Turkish 143
- Acquisition of morphophonemic alternations and the role of frequency 157
- Different paces (but not different paths) in language acquisition 183
- Index 201
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- List of contributors ix
- Eser E. Erguvanlı-Taylan xi
- Prof. Eser Erguvanlı-Taylan’s Publications xv
-
Phonology
- Vowel epenthesis in the acquisition of English /s/-clusters by Turkish speakers 3
- Is there phonological vowel reduction in Turkish? 21
-
Morphology & Syntax
- A note on the compatibility of reflexive and causative in the Turkish verb 43
- Negative or not – the Case of - (y)AlI beri in Turkish 45
- Greek and Turkish influences in the clausal complements of Cunda Turkish 57
- Clause combining in Turkish as a minority language in Germany 81
-
Discourse
- Thinking for speaking and the construction of evidentiality in language contact 105
- Conditionals in Turkish 121
-
Language Acquisition
- The interface of evidentials and epistemics in Turkish 143
- Acquisition of morphophonemic alternations and the role of frequency 157
- Different paces (but not different paths) in language acquisition 183
- Index 201
