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On the phonology of Sicilian Arabic and early Maltese

  • Andrei A. Avram
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Advances in Maltese Linguistics
This chapter is in the book Advances in Maltese Linguistics

Abstract

The existence of a historical-linguistic relationship between Maltese and Sicilian Arabic is generally accepted, although its exact nature is a matter of some debate. The paper examines the available evidence and compares a number of developments attested in the phonology of Sicilian Arabic and early Maltese. The issues covered include: word-medial and word-final imāla, the nature of “secondary”/“auxiliary” vowels, vowel harmony, the fate of the Arabic marked phonemes (e.g. the interdental and “emphatic” consonants), and obstruent devoicing. The findings are discussed in terms of their relevance to the hypothesis positing that Maltese is a descendant of Sicilian Arabic.

Abstract

The existence of a historical-linguistic relationship between Maltese and Sicilian Arabic is generally accepted, although its exact nature is a matter of some debate. The paper examines the available evidence and compares a number of developments attested in the phonology of Sicilian Arabic and early Maltese. The issues covered include: word-medial and word-final imāla, the nature of “secondary”/“auxiliary” vowels, vowel harmony, the fate of the Arabic marked phonemes (e.g. the interdental and “emphatic” consonants), and obstruent devoicing. The findings are discussed in terms of their relevance to the hypothesis positing that Maltese is a descendant of Sicilian Arabic.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Contents v
  3. Maltese linguistics: What is new? vii
  4. Part 1: New looks into the past
  5. On the phonology of Sicilian Arabic and early Maltese 3
  6. Aspects of the comparison between Maltese, Mediterranean Lingua Franca and the Occitan-Catalan linguistic group (13th–15th centuries) 39
  7. Part 2: Maltese, and just Maltese
  8. Modifiers and complements within the Maltese verb sequence 67
  9. Focus particles in Maltese: A corpus survey 87
  10. On prepositional ellipsis and the factors which block its application in Maltese 121
  11. Part 3: Beyond Maltese, now and then
  12. Verbal negation with muš in Maltese and Eastern Mediterranean Arabics 151
  13. Maltese kiteb vs. Tunisian (Sūsa) ktib 173
  14. The phonetic study of speakers along the Maltese-English continuum 193
  15. The visibility and salience of Maltese in bilingual Malta’s linguistic landscape 225
  16. The myth of the mixed languages 245
  17. Index of Authors 267
  18. Index of Languages 271
  19. Index of Subjects 273
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110565744-002

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Contents v
  3. Maltese linguistics: What is new? vii
  4. Part 1: New looks into the past
  5. On the phonology of Sicilian Arabic and early Maltese 3
  6. Aspects of the comparison between Maltese, Mediterranean Lingua Franca and the Occitan-Catalan linguistic group (13th–15th centuries) 39
  7. Part 2: Maltese, and just Maltese
  8. Modifiers and complements within the Maltese verb sequence 67
  9. Focus particles in Maltese: A corpus survey 87
  10. On prepositional ellipsis and the factors which block its application in Maltese 121
  11. Part 3: Beyond Maltese, now and then
  12. Verbal negation with muš in Maltese and Eastern Mediterranean Arabics 151
  13. Maltese kiteb vs. Tunisian (Sūsa) ktib 173
  14. The phonetic study of speakers along the Maltese-English continuum 193
  15. The visibility and salience of Maltese in bilingual Malta’s linguistic landscape 225
  16. The myth of the mixed languages 245
  17. Index of Authors 267
  18. Index of Languages 271
  19. Index of Subjects 273
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