The ATR/laryngeal connection and emergent features

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter (peer-reviewed)peer-review

Abstract

‘Substance-free’ theories of phonology take two different approaches to eliminating phonetic information from phonological computations, positing either that distinctive features have phonetic content but phonological rules can manipulate them in arbitrary ways (Hale & Reiss 2003, 2008) or that features are based on phonological patterning and need not have any identifiable phonetic content at all (Blaho 2008; Samuels 2009). This chapter argues that the key insights of substance-free phonology can be maintained in a system that allows a limited role for phonetic substance. Methodologically, requiring that features have phonetic content and rules be formally natural limits the generative power of the system, forcing analysts to look more closely at apparently unnatural rules and classes, and precluding analyses based on spurious generalizations. At the same time, the fact that phonetic content does not always determine phonological patterning can be explained through underspecification based on contrast.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationPrimitives of Phonological Structure
EditorsFlorian Breit, Bert Botma, Marijn van 't Veer, Marc van Oostendorp
PublisherOxford University Press
Chapter7
Pages161-208
Number of pages47
ISBN (Electronic)Fiosa9780191833632
ISBN (Print)9780198791126
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2023

Publication series

NameOxford Studies in Phonology and Phonetics
PublisherOxford University Press

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • contrast
  • distinctive features
  • natural classes
  • substance-free phonology
  • underspecification
  • unnatural rules

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