An optimalitytheoretic analysis of syllable structure in. There are three salient features of korean syllable structure. Prominent among the constraints are i a set of syllablestructure conditions, ii a strong preference for matching the input as closely as possible, and iii a tendency towards bisyllabic minimal words. A main advantage of ot over rulebased phonology is its explanation of rule conspiracies kisseberth 1970, whereby some languages have multiple rules that seem to conspire optimality theory and spanish phonology 69. Generating interlanguage syllabification in optimality theory. Section 4 introduces syllable weight effects observed in stress systems, while section 5 discusses the relationship between wordlevel stress and phraselevel prominence. Optimality theory is a general model of how grammars are structured. Again, we find that diphthongs and long monophthongs behave identically.
For example, if the maximal size is ccvcc, then cvcc, ccvc, cvc, and cv are generally good. In practice, implementations of optimality theory often assume other related concepts, such as the syllable, the mora, or feature geometry. It also addresses some frequently asked questions about this theory and offers suggestions. Optimality theoretic representation of stress in cairene. Pdf the syllable in optimality theory researchgate. The basic assumptions of this constraintbased theory as a general model of grammar. Furthermore, both behave in the same way as a closed syllable with a short vowel. Thus, the present study aims to provide an analysis of syllable structure in qa and to contribute to the current research on arabic syllable structure. The most general of these insights centers on the results available from the study of the syllable, a core concept in generative phonology after the sound pattern of. The syllable in optimality theory edited by caroline fery.
Some people think that optimality theory ot is a theory of. Thus, optimality theory as a framework is best described according to whom. The basic formal element of the theory is the constraint. It is well known that segmental rulebased theory was not adequate to represent all stressrelated phenomena, especially the internal structure of a syllable and its role in determining where stress is placed. Syllables and syllable structure in arabic in the light of the optimality theory. Your book is focused on oldfashioned rewrite rules. In this project, the input of an english voiceless stop is regarded as an aspirated stop. The syllable structure of bangla in optimality theory and its. Mccarthy university of massachusetts amherst abstract. A typical example is the constraint nocoda, which forbids the occurrence in the output of syllables ending on a consonant a syllablefinal consonant is often.
Mccarthy points out that some of the most significant work on ot is available for free on the rutgers optimality archive. As the limitations of this forum preclude an exhaustive discussion of each analysis, i shall instead briefly outline the contents of the volume and then offer some general discussion. This chapter presents an overview of optimality theory ot as applied to phonology. Theory, in which markedness has no substantive status in the grammar, but functions as an external system of annotations on parameter values, evaluating a grammars complexity. Under this view, l2 acquisition is regarded as the constraint reranking from the l1 state toward the l2 state. For example, rules could not capture the hierarchical structure of a. In optimality theory ot, markednesshierarchies have been. Section 6 examines the relative merits of footbased and gridbased theories of stress in terms of their typological. Limits on global rules in optimality theory with candidate. Description this thesis presents an optimality theory ot investigation of the role of the syllable in spanish phonology. The central role of the syllable in phonology in the seventies, several phonologists, such as vennemann 1974, hooper 1976,and kahn 1976,proposed including the syllable as a prosodic unit in generative phonological theory.
The article surveys the fundamental premises of ot as applied to phonology. Alignment and optimality theory this paper looks at the linguistic phenomenon of alignment,in which languages show a preference for certain linguistic features to be aligned with other linguistic features. We should rather see it as part of the phonological toolbox, part of the technical machinery we need in order to have a fullblown theory of phonology. Alignment and optimality theory this paper looks at the linguistic phenomenon of alignment, in which languages show a preference for certain linguistic features to be aligned with other linguistic features. Optimality theory ot is a linguistic model originally proposed by the linguists alan prince and paul smolensky in 1993. Clinical application of optimality theory 243 optimality theory is different from the majority of linguistic frameworks in that it does not appeal to rules or processes to explain such patterns in grammar. A main advantage of ot over rulebased phonology is its explanation of rule conspiracies kisseberth 1970, whereby some languages have multiple rules that seem to. Final version of the widely circulated 1993 technical report that was the seminal work in optimality theory, never before available in book format. The most general of these insights centers on the results available from the study of the syllable, a core concept in generative phonology after the sound pattern of english noam chomsky and morris halle, new york. For example, if the maximal size is ccvcc, then cvcc, ccvc, cvc, and.
Description an optimality theoretic approach to navajo prefixal syllables amy v. In optimality theory ot, a grammar is a languagespecific ranking of universal, violable constraints, which select the optimal candidate among imperfect alternatives. The prevailing nonsequential approach to phonology, the optimality theory, ot, is based not on rewrite rules but on constraints. Optimality theory hereafter, ot interprets linguistic grammar as a set of universal constraints. The basic idea behind syllable contact is that languages try to avoid a sequence of rising sonority over. This book contains 14 thematic chapters addressing various syllable related issues from an optimality theory ot perspective, as well as an introductory overview.
For example, rules could not capture the hierarchical structure of a syllable structure, as the syllable can. Theories of syllable structure defining the syllable. Syllables and stress syllables and stress and optimality theory blevins 1995 the syllable in phonological theory. The focus is on optimality theoretic approach because it is. Open science repository language and linguistics online. Differences between two languages are explained in terms of different rankings of the same constraints. An introduction to optimality theory blackwell publishing. Maximal syllable size and wordedge consonants theories of syllables structure often assume a maximal syllable size for a given language. Optimality theory for those who assume language typology, there is perhaps a limited number of types for each linguistic aspect e.
Adopting the framework of optimality theory, this study explores the effect of high vowel deletion on syllable structure and the treatment of superheavy syllables in qa. In optimality theory ot, markedness hierarchies have been formalized in one of two ways. It espouses a serialist view of morphology that is rejected by most current phonologists. Syllable weight plays a role, however, the weight to stress principle does not always apply. The syllable in optimality theory semantic scholar. The syllable has always been a key concept in generative linguistics. Syllables and syllable structure in arabic in the light of. Optimality theory in phonological acquisition journal of. The analysis is worked out within optimality theory and to the extent that it is successful provides support for that emerging theory. This book provides an overview of the role of the syllable in optimality theory ot and ways in which problems that relate to the analysis of syllable structure can be solved in ot. This article surveys the motivations for ot, its core principles, and the basics of analysis. Given the architecture of generative phonology, which distinguishes between underlying lexical forms and surface forms, and given the. The focus is on optimality theoretic approach because it is the most mod. Roa, which was created by alan prince in 1993, is an electronic depository of work in, on, or about ot.
Schematically, this is what the penult of the words in b ends in. Yawelmani, the relevant constraints are a cvc limit on syllable size and a prohibition on unsyllabified consonants. Pdf the interaction of tone and stress in optimality theory. Fountain university of arizona navajo is a southern athapaskan language spoken by approximately 160,000 people in arizona and new mexico. In previous work on syllable contact within optimality theory, a constraint like syllcon has played a relatively minor role in a larger analysis. This book is the final version of the widelycirculated 1993 technical report that introduces a conception of grammar in which wellformedness is defined as optimality with respect to a ranked set of universal constraints. Each theory contributed substantially to the theory of the syllable structure of arabic classical as well as colloquial. The aim of the present paper is not to compare between the different phonological theories. Introduction stress has always been a recurrent theme in phonology, even more so since libermans dissertation 1975, in which the foundations of the metrical theory were established. Optimality theoretic representation of stress in cairene arabic.
German word stress in optimality theory caroline fery, university of tubingen journal of comparative germanic linguistics 0. Language universals november 2, 2010 fall 2010 week 10a. The syllable contact law scl2 belongs to a class of constraints that require adjacent elements to. This book contains 14 thematic chapters addressing various syllablerelated issues from an optimality theory ot perspective, as well as an introductory overview. Optimality theory confronts these issues directly, designing its basic architecture to deal with them. Optimality theory and arawan prosodic systems rutgers. Bi moracity of a foot is very important and is largely addressed in the literature. Sonority variation in stochastic optimality theory. Syllable contact in optimality theory department of linguistics. That is, avoid rising sonority over a syllable boundary. The relevance of the syllable for linguistic theory has increased ever since. Ot is a theory of constraint interaction in grammar, which aims to solve a couple of problems that have confronted generative phonological theory since its earliest days. The onset of a syllable must not be of greater sonority than the last segment in the immediately preceding syllable. Generating interlanguage syllabification in optimality theory acl.
Sonorityrelated effects have been studied for many years sievers 18761893, and have in. Cantonese loanword phonology and optimality theory springerlink. The explanatory power of the syllable has earned it a central role in phonological theory, and this welldeserved distinction has followed it into ot. The contributions to the book show that the syllable not only sheds light on certain properties of ot itself. This dissertation examines the syllable structure alternations in the prefixes of the navajo verb.
This tutorial presents an introduction to the contemporary linguistic framework known as optimality theory ot. Sonorityrelated effects have been studied for many years sievers 1881, and have influenced the study of markedness hierarchies in general aissen 1999. In previous work on syllable contact within optimality theory, a constraint like syllcon has played a. Vowel harmony is a 5 phenomenon in which the vowels in a word or another domain show systematic agreement for 6 some property, such as rounding, backness, height, or atr quality.