Dissimilation

9 Key excerpts on "Dissimilation"

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  The Synchronic and Diachronic Phonology of Ejectives

  • Paul D. Fallon(Author)
  • 2013(Publication Date)
  • Taylor & Francis

    (Publisher)

  CHAPTER 5 Dissimilation 5.1. Introduction

  Dissimilation, a phonological process which ensures that ‘differences between sounds are enhanced so that sounds become more auditorily distinct’ (Katamba 1989:94), often makes speech perception and, I might add, speech production easier. For example, common non-standard pronunciations of English words with liquids often change one of them, e.g. in library, the first rhotic is deleted. In the sequence of nasals in Latin hominem ‘man’ the alveolar nasal was ultimately changed in Spanish to a rhotic, with a preceding epenthetic stop: hombre. Such changes often give the impression that Dissimilation is chaotic and irregular, and it is true that many such changes are (Grammont 1933). However, Dissimilation is often rule governed, as seen in the liquid Dissimilations of Latin (Steriade 1987), Sundanese (Cohn 1992), and Georgian (Fallon 1993b). Laryngeal features are also subject to Dissimilation, e.g. for voiced consonants in Japanese (Lyman’s Law), voiceless consonants in Kikuyu (Dahl’s Law), aspirates in Sanskrit and Ancient Greek (Grassmann’s Law), and either pharyngealized consonants or ejectives (the so-called ‘emphatics’) in Akkadian (Geers’ Law). Although not graced with the names of laws, ejective Dissimilation is fairly common. Dissimilation of ejectives in a root or word typically results in deglottalization (Chapter 3 ), but can also result in voicing (Chapter 6 ). This chapter examines ejective Dissimilation and its phonological characterization.

  In this chapter I will examine the phonological effects of ejective Dissimilation from a variety of languages. I review some of the theoretical background of Dissimilation, including work on the Obligatory Contour Principle in §5.2 . From the synchronic data, discussed in §5.3 , I find that ejectives can dissimilate to both voiceless (aspirated) and voiced consonants. Dissimilations can be from contact with another ejective, or with intervening material. Dissimilation often takes place in the reduplicant, though rarely, the base can undergo Dissimilation with a reduplicant suffix. I then move on to examine diachronic data in §5.4 , including loanword adaptation, historical change, and sporadic instances of Dissimilation. Section 5.5

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  Trask's Historical Linguistics

  • Robert McColl Millar, Larry Trask(Authors)
  • 2015(Publication Date)
  • Routledge

    (Publisher)

  umlaut by specialists in Germanic. As far as possible, I’ll try to avoid using such additional terms.

  The opposite of assimilation is Dissimilation: making sounds more different than they were before. Given what I have said about the naturalness of assimilation, you might wonder why Dissimilation should ever occur at all. The explanation lies in what we might call the ‘tongue-twister effect’. One reason why a tongue-twister is hard to say is that our speech organs can get weary of making the same sound (or very similar sounds) repeatedly. This effect occasionally shows up in ordinary speech. For example, the Latin word arbor ‘tree’ has become árbol in Spanish (another modern form of Latin), in which the second of the two occurrences of [r] has been dissimilated to an [1]. On the other hand, Italian colonello ‘colonel’ appears in Spanish as coronelo: this time the first of the two occurrences of [1] has been dissimilated to [r]. (Note that English, bizarrely (but perhaps typically), uses the Italian-type spelling but the Spanish-type pronunciation.)

  This kind of phenomenon regularly crosses greater linguistic barriers. For instance, the ancestor of Modern German Herberge, ‘hostelry’, most readily known by most of us through Jugendherberge ‘Youth Hostel’, was borrowed into a number of Romance languages as a word for ‘inn’. In Italian, for instance, the word occurs as Albergo. It would, I imagine, need an historical linguist to see the connection. Like all the Romance languages, Italian has gone through periods where [h] has been lost entirely; unlike some of its sisters, however, [h] has not ‘returned’ through borrowing or internal sound development. We can also see that the initial [r] has been altered to [l], while the second has been maintained, possibly as a form of Dissimilation. The same thing happened in French. The problem is that the modern outcome of these changes – Auberge – has gone through an extra stage where the initial [l] – originally [r] – has been vocalized

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  Discovering Phonetics and Phonology

  • Lynne Cahill(Author)
  • 2019(Publication Date)
  • Bloomsbury Academic

    (Publisher)

  The voicing and manner of articulation have stayed the same. 13.1.2 Dissimilation Dissimilation is, as it sounds, when two sounds become more unlike each other. This is much more rare than assimilation. There are not really any obvious examples of Dissimilation that seem to happen in English today, but 196 DISCOVERING PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY there are examples that have happened over time. For example, the word military comes from the Latin militaris . This is a stem milit-with the suffix -aris . But in most words that use this suffix, it is -alis . In words, like milit-, which have a /l/ in the stem, the /l/ in the suffix is changed to /r/, to avoid having two laterals too close together. This is an example of Dissimilation. There is an example in another language that is synchronic. In fact, it happens in a whole family of languages, and it’s even got a special name: Dahl’s Law. The examples in table 13.2 are from Kikuria, a Tanzanian lan-guage (from Odden 1994). These are all words with a prefix, which is either [oko] or [ogo] (and one case of [ugu], but don’t worry about the vowels). Look at the consonant in the prefix of each word. In the first two lines, all of the words have the voice-less velar plosive, [k]. In the next two lines, the words all have the voiced velar plosive, [g]. Now look at the first consonant in the stem in each of the words. What do you notice about the voicing of these consonants? If you look at the consonant at the start of the stem in the top two lines, the consonants are [g], [r], [r] and [b]. In the bottom two lines the consonants are [t], [k], [s] and [k]. The first set are all voiced and the second set are all voiceless. So the words that have the voiceless sound [k] in the prefix all have a voiced sound at the start of their stem. The words that have the voiced sound [g] all have a voiceless sound at the start of their stem. This is known as voicing Dissimilation, and it happens in the Northeast Bantu languages.

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  Aspects of Language Production

  • Linda Wheeldon(Author)
  • 2013(Publication Date)
  • Psychology Press

    (Publisher)

  kaze from becoming voiced.

  (11)	Dissimilation and Lyman’s Law in Japanese

  Perhaps the most well-known example of Dissimilation comes from Ancient Greek and Sanskrit where two aspirates were not tolerated in adjacent syllables and the first consonant was deaspirated. This phenomenon is particularly noticeable in the reduplicated verbs.

  (12)	Dissimilation in Greek and Sanskrit
  		Greek		Sanskrit
  	(a)	dō sō	I shall give	adā t	he gave
  		didō mi	I give	dadā mi	I give
  	(b)	th ē sō	I shall put	adh ā t	he put
  		tith ē mi	I put	dadh ā mi	I put

  The initial consonant in the reduplicated prefix is retained from the verb stem in the examples in (12a). In (12b), when the stem initial consonant is an aspirate, the reduplicated consonant is deaspirated. In Modern Greek we find a similar Dissimilation process where a sequence of two stops or two fricatives tend to become a fricative plus stop cluster. The following examples are taken from Spencer (1996, p. 59).

  (13)	Dissimilation in modern Greek
  	fθinos	>	ftinos	cheap
  	sxolio	>	skolio	school
  	epta	>	efta	seven
  	okto	>	oxto	eight

  Dissimilations involve avoidance of adjacent similar segments. These segments are not necessarily contiguous, but the similar features that are dissimilated are arguably represented on the same tier. Assimilations, on the other hand, appear to make two contiguous segments similar. However, when we consider assimilation to be spreading, the result is a multiple linking of two segments to a feature or a set of features. This statement is reminiscent of a constraint which arose from tonal phonology called the obligatory contour principle or OCP (originally due to Leben, 1973). It was tonal phonology that inspired phonologists to assume that linguistic units like tones are not part and parcel of vocalic segments, but that they were represented on separate tiers or levels (Goldsmith, 1976; see also Yip, 1995; Odden, 1995, and references therein). Tones could therefore have a many-to-one linking (multiple linking) with tone bearing units like vowels. The nonlinear feature representations that we discussed earlier stem from priniciples developed within the confines of tonal phonology. The OCP states that adjacent identical tones are prohibited from the lexical representation of a morpheme. Thus, if adjacent identical tones occur, on the surface, they must have arisen from a multiply linked single tone representation. The consequences of multiple linking can be seen from the following example from Margi (Hoffman, 1963; the present set of data from Kenstowicz, 1994, pp. 321–322). (The two accent marks on the vowels (for example, á and à) are shorthand methods of indicating a high (H) tone and a low (L) tone respectively. The diacritic f indicates a sequence of a low and a high tone.)

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  The Phonology of Consonants

  • Wm G. Bennett(Author)
  • 2015(Publication Date)
  • Cambridge University Press

    (Publisher)

  This is also not the norm with dissimilatory alternations; clear counter-examples abound. Across numerous Berber languages, for instance, labial Dissimilation applies to /m. . .f/, but not to /m. . .w/, even though [m] shares features with [w] that are not shared with [f]. 12 Third, gradient co- occurrence restrictions overwhelmingly show avoidance based on major place 12 In Zulu as well, labial Dissimilation applies in /pʰ. . .-w/ sequences, but not /v. . .-w/ ones. 324 Typological survey of Dissimilation of articulation. By contrast, I have found no languages with active dissimi- lation of major place (i.e. where labials dissimilate from labials, coronals from coronals, and dorsals from dorsals). So, I consider gradient similarity avoid- ance a different empirical phenomenon than actual Dissimilation. They may ultimately be relatable, but this is a question for future work. 9.2.3.1.2 Treatment of segment-adjacent Dissimilation I have not attempted to survey a wide range of segment-adjacent cases of Dissimilation. Some cases were encountered incidentally in reports that did not note this locality restric- tion, but the list of segment-adjacent Dissimilation cases given in the online supplement is by no means an exhaustive list of those documented in the literature. 9.2.3.1.3 Diachronic Dissimilation Dissimilatory historical sound changes seem rather frequent, but such cases are usually sporadic. For instance, Lloret (1997) observes a wealth of Dissimilation among sonorants in Iberian Romance languages. These include alternations among liquids (e.g. coll. Catalan frare > flare ‘friar’), nasal-to-liquid alternations (e.g. So. Catalan monument > moli- ment ‘monument’), and various other interchanges (e.g. Lat. animalia > Port. alimária ‘vermin’). But, these patterns are entirely sporadic: none of them represent systematic sound changes, nor do they connect to static restrictions enforced synchronically.

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  Applied English Phonology

  • Mehmet Yavas(Author)
  • 2020(Publication Date)
  • Wiley-Blackwell

    (Publisher)

  With the phoneme symbols, we give a minimal pair to show the contrast. On the other side, the single phoneme of the language is placed. Underneath the display, we have more explicit statements regarding the phonetic similarity of the sounds (suspicious pair), and the type of process for the contextual variants (allophones) that are in complementary distribution. The processes that are responsible for the contextual variants are almost always assimilation processes. Simply defined, assimilation refers to the influence that one sound may have on another when they are contiguous in time. To exemplify this, let us look at the Korean triplet [s, z, ʃ] we discussed earlier. We saw that /s/ was realized phonetically as [ʃ] before /i/. The change shown here is that a voiceless alveolar fricative becomes a voiceless palato‐alveolar fricative. If we think about the area that is relevant for the articulation of [i], we realize that it corresponds to the same area where palato‐alveolars are made. In other words, the influence of [i] as a conditioning environment for [ʃ] is, phonetically, very plausible, and indeed not infrequent in languages. Since in this case, the conditioning sound, [i], is after the conditioned sound, the process is said to be an example of a regressive assimilation (the following sound influences the preceding sound; called anticipatory coarticulation in some books). If the influence comes from the preceding sound on to the following sound, it is termed a progressive assimilation. The other allophone of the Korean /s/ was [z], and the context it appeared in was always after a nasal. In other words, the voicing of the nasal seems to be the culprit in this change from a voiceless alveolar fricative to a voiced alveolar fricative

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  Foreign Accent

  The Ontogeny and Phylogeny of Second Language Phonology

  • Roy C. Major(Author)
  • 2001(Publication Date)
  • Routledge

    (Publisher)

  Numerous phonological studies emphasizing the importance of transfer continue to be undertaken. Among them are studies on the role of transfer on segmentals (Hancin-Bhatt, 1994; Zampini, 1996), syllable structure (Basson, 1986; Broselow, 1984; Eckman & Iverson, 1994; Flores & Rodrigues, 1994), metrical structure (Archibald, 1992), rhythm (Wenk, 1986), and general phonological phenomena (Singh & Ford, 1985). Loan phonology is often considered a prime example of transfer. Interest in this widespread phenomenon has reappeared (for example, Yip, 1996). Van Coetsem (1988) devoted a whole volume to this topic by discussing what he calls “the” two types of transfer: borrowing and imposition. Borrowing occurs if the agent is the recipient language, for example, a Japanese speaker using English words when speaking Japanese; imposition occurs if the agent is the source language, for example, a Japanese speaker having a Japanese accent when speaking English. These and other studies on transfer bring home the fact that our NL has an inescapable influence on our L2. In other words, the formative years of our language lives permanently affect the rest of our language lives.

  2.2 SIMILARITY AND DISSIMILARITY BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND LANGUAGE

  The moderate version of CA, which claims similar phenomena are harder to learn than dissimilar phenomena, has fostered a widespread research agenda in L2 phonology, more than for other linguistic levels. Perhaps part of the reason is that in phonology, the notions of similar and dissimilar are easier to define than at other levels, particularly in semantics and discourse. With acoustic, articulatory, perceptual, and structural descriptions there are many clear-cut cases for classifying sounds as similar or dissimilar. (There are problematic cases that I discuss later.) For example, on the basis of phonetic space (formant measurements), who would argue with the claim that French /ε/ is more similar to English /ε/ than it is to /æ/? On the basis of a structuralist description, that is, looking at the phoneme inventory of German and French, it is clear that French /p/ is more similar to German /p/ than it is to German /b/ (as both languages have a series of voiceless and voiced stops), even though phonetic details show that in word initial position German /b/ can actually be a devoiced stop

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  Word Frequency and Lexical Diffusion

  • B. Phillips(Author)
  • 2006(Publication Date)
  • Palgrave Macmillan

    (Publisher)

  This is because we cannot observe dynamic processes directly in abstract objects: we can observe the products of change, as historical linguists always have. The claim can 57 58 Word Frequency and Lexical Diffusion therefore be rephrased as a claim that we can detect change in progress in synchronic states by comparing outputs or products of variation in present-day states of language. So when we look below at data about phonetically gradual changes, we will actually be looking at the outputs of synchronic variation. And we will find that determining the phonetic environments which impact the change does not solve the actuation problem of why this change occurred when it did nor does it fully explain the implementation problem – what drives this change to be diffused through similar pho- netic environments, through the population of speakers, and through the lexicon. But it should shed some light on the paths through which a sound change is implemented in the lexicon. This chapter, then, looks closely at the lexical diffusion patterns of phonetically gradual changes and examines their implications for a usage-based theory of language. The chapter first considers pho- netically gradual changes that have affected the most frequent words first, starting with vowel and consonant reduction and deletion, since those processes have been most heavily investigated in this regard, and proceeding to assimilations and vowel shifts. The second half of the chapter reviews phonetically gradual sound changes that have affected the least frequent words first: /g/-deletion in Southern American English, the twelfth-century unrounding of English /À(8)/, and the late Old English lengthening of vowels before homorganic consonant clusters. 3.1 Gradual changes affecting the most frequent words first Gradual changes which affect the most frequent words first include vowel and consonant reductions and deletions, assimilations, and vowel shifts.

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  Linguistics for Everyone

  An Introduction

  • Kristin Denham, Anne Lobeck(Authors)
  • 2012(Publication Date)
  • Cengage Learning EMEA

    (Publisher)

  Dissimilation Rules Rules of Dissimilation cause two neighboring sounds to become less alike with respect to some feature. Dissimilation of Liquids and Nasal Sounds Historically, Latin turtur was borrowed into English, but the second /r/ changed to /l/. Latin purpura and Middle English purpre became purple in Present-Day English. turtur → turtle purpre → purple Consider a similar example of Dissimilation of liquid consonants that took place when the suffix -al attached to some Latin nouns to make adjectives. RPE 4.7 Dissimilation process causing two neighboring sounds to become less alike with respect to some feature Table 4.1 Consonant Phonemes of English with Sibilants voiceless voiced Bilabial Labiodental Interdental Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal Stop p b t d k g Fricative f v θ ð s z š ž Affricate č ǰ Nasal m n ŋ Glide ʍ w y h Liquid l r sibilants Copyright 2012 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s). Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it. 114 • CHAPTER 4 Phonology: The Sound Patterns of Language The regular suffixation process gives us pairs like the following: orbit/or-bital , person/personal , culture/cultural , electric/electrical . However, when an /l/ precedes the ending anywhere in the root, the ending is changed from -al to -ar as a result of Dissimilation: single/singular , module/modular , luna/lunar . Latin marmor became Present-Day English marble via two Dissimilations: the second r changed to l , then the second m changed to b , to dissimilate the two bilabial nasals, /m/.

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