On the phonemic status of nasalized /h̃/ in Modern Zuberoan Basque

Ander Egurtzegi

doi:10.1515/ling-2018-0024

Article

On the phonemic status of nasalized /h̃/ in Modern Zuberoan Basque

Ander Egurtzegi

Published/Copyright: October 12, 2018

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From the journal Linguistics Volume 56 Issue 6

Abstract

Modern eastern Basque dialects have several conservative features, including the maintenance of historical /h/, which is lost in other dialects. Zuberoan, the easternmost dialect of Basque still spoken today, shows both this /h/ as well as a phonetically nasalized segment [h^̃] which is a reflex of intervocalic *n. In this paper I argue that these two segments contrast in Zuberoan. Evidence for the contrast comes from both a newly described process of assimilation of /h/ to /h^̃/ in nasal environments which then serves as a basis of the analogical extension of the nasalized aspirate in a context where it cannot be phonologically derived, and from neighboring Mixean Low Navarrese where the nasalized [h^̃] has no other obvious source. Since a contrast between oral and nasalized aspirates is rare crosslinguistically, the Zuberoan and Mixean sound patterns discussed here should be of interest to typologists and phonologists alike.

Keywords: laryngeals; nasalized aspirates; rhinoglottophilia; nasalization; Basque; Zuberoan

Funding statement: This research has been partially funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness [FFI2016-76032-P; FFI2015-63981-C3-2; FJCI-2014-21348] and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.

Acknowledgments

I am greatly indebted to Juliette Blevins, José Ignacio Hualde, Joseba Lakarra and two anonymous reviewers of Linguistics for their insightful comments and suggestions that have considerably improved this paper. All remaining errors are mine.

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Published Online: 2018-10-12

Published in Print: 2018-11-27

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https://doi.org/10.1515/ling-2018-0024

Keywords for this article

laryngeals; nasalized aspirates; rhinoglottophilia; nasalization; Basque; Zuberoan