Phonological Representations Lecture 3 Phonology Phonological Representations

Definition Phonological Representations are those mental images in terms of which knowledge of a sound system is couched. The BASIC units that comprise phonological representations are: features segments syllables feet (metrical grids)

Features Two Hypotheses: Segments are groups of features. Segments are indivisible elements.

Features Segments are not the ultimate (most primitive) units of phonological structure. They are composed of smaller elements. These sub-segmental building blocks are the FEATURES: the units of phonological structure that make up the segments.

Why Features? Features reflect the coordinated articulatory activities. Features capture natural classes. Features allow for precise understanding of the nature of allophonic variation.

Coordinated Activities Speech is produced by a number of coordinated articulatory activities: voicing – tongue position – lip rounding … Each feature is rooted in an independently controllable aspect of speech production: voicing tongue position lip rounding [voice] [high] [round] Thus, each feature or group of features defines a specific property of the segment.

Matrix [] +syllabic   These define the segment as -consonantal   consonant, vowel, +sonorant   or glide. -high   These define the placement of +low   the tongue. +back   -round   This defines lip rounding. +tense   This defines tenseness/laxness.

Natural Classes Features define natural classes. They are central to phonological analysis. It is not only that individual phonemes such as /p/, /b/, /k/, and /g/ contrast in English. Rather, the entire class of voiced stops contrast with the class of voiceless stops. Therefore, it is the feature [voice] that is contrastive, not the individual segments.

Vowels in English Front vs. Back Front Vowels Back Vowels // // // // // // // // // // +syllabic  +syllabic  -consonantal  -consonantal  +sonorant  +sonorant  -back  +back 

Allophonic Variation Allophonic variation is not simply the substitution of one sound for another. It is the environmentally conditioned change or specification of a feature or features.

Liquid-glide Devoicing In English, liquids and glides have voiceless allophones after syllable-initial voiceless stops and voiced allophones elsewhere. liquids and glides voiceless stops +sonorant   [-voice] /  -syllabic  _____ -syllabic  +consonantal  -nasal  -continuant  +voice  -delayed release 

The Syllable Definition: It is a fundamental phonological unit consisting of a short sequence of segments, most typically a single vowel or diphthong possibly preceded and/ or followed by one or more consonants.

Syllable Structure There are four sub-syllabic elements: The nucleus (N) is the only obligatory member; it is a syllabic element (usually a vowel). The coda (C) consists of the elements that follow the nucleus in the same syllable. The rhyme (R) is made up of the nucleus and the coda. The onset (O) is made up of those elements that precede the rhyme in the same syllable.

Syllable Structure Wd  O R N C s p r  n t

Phonotactics Initial three-consonant clusters in English:  [   Nucleus …]      Gaps: [spw], [stl], and [stw]

Syllabification Setting up syllables involves the following steps: Assign vowels to syllable nuclei. Maximize onsets. Associate remaining consonants to codas.

Assign vowels to syllable nuclei.   | | R R N N | | e k s t r i:m

Maximize onsets.   | /| | / | | / | | / | | / | R O R | /|\ |   | /| | / | | / | | / | | / | R O R | /|\ | N / | \ N | / | \ | e k s t r i: m

Associate remaining consonants to codas.   | /| | / | | / | | / | | / | R O R |\ /|\ |\ N C / | \ N C | | / | \ | | e k s t r i: m

Syllabic Phonology Does the syllable play any role in phonological analysis? Native speakers demonstrate awareness of this unit of phonological structure. They will say that a word like accident has three syllables arranged as / .  . /. Language games like backward talk verify that the postulated syllable divisions correspond to those internalized by native speakers. One common form of backward talk is that of reversing whole syllables as units: seg.ment becomes ment.seg. However, the central reason for treating syllables as units of phonological structure is their relevance to phonological analysis.

Aspiration in English A B C [] tone [] stone [..] tomato [n] kin [skIn] skin [k.nu] canoe [pn] pan [spn] span [p.spaI] perspire English voiceless stops are aspirated when initial in a stressed syllable.

/r/-deletion in British English A B [kA] car [rk] rack [] care [.rI] caring [kAt] cart [krAft] craft In British English, /r/ deletes in the coda.

Heavy Syllables and Stress A B C [v.rn.d] [..] [sInm] veranda aroma cinema [cv.cvc.cv] [v.cv:.cv] [cv.cv.cv] L H L L H L L L L English nouns are stressed on the penultimate syllable when it is heavy; otherwise, they are stressed on the antepenultimate syllable.

Word Stress It is perceived prominence associated with one or more syllables in a word. Syllable position and/or content (e.g. weight) are essential in locating stressed elements. The formalization of stress rests on the use of units called metrical feet. The foot is an element of metrical structure whose building block is the syllable.

Diversity of Stress Patterns Stress is word-initial. (Latvian) Stress is word-final. (French) Left/Right Flank

Diversity of Stress Patterns Rightmost Heavy Syllable, Otherwise Leftmost Syllable (Classical Arabic) Leftmost Heavy Syllable, Otherwise Rightmost Syllable (Komi - Russia) Rightmost Heavy Syllable, Otherwise Rightmost Syllable (W. Cheremis - Russia) Leftmost Heavy Syllable, Otherwise Leftmost Syllable (Russian) Syllable Weight Left/Right Flank

Diversity of Stress Patterns Main stress initial; secondary stresses on odd numbered syllables (Ono - New Guinea) Main stress on the second syllable; secondary stresses on even numbered syllables (Araucanian - Chile) Rhythm Left/Right Flank

Diversity of Stress Patterns Stress a final superheavy syllable. Otherwise, stress a heavy penult. Otherwise, stress a heavy antepenult. Otherwise, stress the penult or the antepenult, whichever is separated by an even/odd number of light syllable from the preceding heavy syllable, or in the absence of such a syllable, from the beginning of the word. (Urban Hijazi Arabic/Negev Bedouin Arabic)

Diversity of Stress Patterns Syllable Weight Rhythm Left/Right Flank

Principles Boundedness The distance between the constituent’s head and the boundary is restricted to one element: ()()() () bounded unbounded

Principles Headedness Constituents are either right-headed or left-headed: Foot Level: (  ) (  ) iambic trochaic Word Level: ( … ) ( … ) rightmost leftmost

Principles Quantity-sensitivity Heavy syllables attract stress: Syllabic trochee: (  ) (quantity-insensitive) Moraic trochee: ( LL )( H ) (quantity-sensitive) Iamb: ( LL )( H )( LH ) (quantity-sensitive)

Principles Exhaustivity Elements are exhaustively parsed into higher constituents: ()()() exhaustive parsing ()()() non-exhaustive parsing

Devices Extrametricality Peripheral elements are excluded form foot structure: ()()()<> final syllable marked extrametrical

Devices Directionality Footing proceeds from left to right or from right to left: ()()() left-to-right ()()() right-to-left

Summing up The pattering of phonological units is based upon general elements and principles. They are applicable to the study of any human language. The atoms of phonological representation are the feature values. Features are grouped into segment-sized constituents. The segments are grouped, around vowels, into syllabic constituents. Syllables relate to each other in terms of relative prominence Interacting with features and segmental processes, a limited set of parameters accounts for syllabification and metrification.

Rules or Constraints in Phonological Analysis Optimality Theory