<OT> New Posting: ROA-627

[roa at ruccs.rutgers.edu]

ROA 627-1003

The morphology and phonology of infixation

Alan Yu <aclyu at uchicago.edu>

Direct link: http://roa.rutgers.edu/view.php3?roa=627


Abstract:
The subject matter of this study is the formal properties
of infixes. This study begins with a catalogue of the placement
properties of infixation in Chapter 1, showing that there
is a bias for infixes to target edge constituents. This
edge bias is explained in Chapter 4 in terms of the Exogenesis
Theory of Infixation, which advocates the view that edge
infixes originate from historical prefixes and suffixes;
an infix’s original peripheral position is reflected in
its edge profile today. A synchronic theory of infixation,
Generalized Phonological Subcategorization (GPS), which
allows non-prosodic units to enter into subcategorization
relations, is proposed in Chapter 2 to encode the subcategorizati
on requirement of an infix. Past theories of infixation
are reviewed also in Chapter 2, with particular attention
focused on the Hybrid Models which account for the prominence-dri
ven infixes in terms of Prosodic Subcategorization while
promoting Displacement Theory (DT) as a mean to explain
the distribution of the edge-oriented infixes. Arguments
on both theoretical and empirical grounds are summoned against
DT’s view that edge infixes result from the movement of
an underlying prefix or suffix acquiescing to certain phonologica
l or morphological constraints. I advance the Subcategorization
Non-violability Hypothesis, epitomized in the universal
constraint ranking schema, M-ALIGN >> P, in Chapter 3 to
supplement GPS by restricting the way morphological subcategoriza
tion requirement interacts with phonological constraints
in the grammar; coerced affix movement (i.e. DT) is ruled
out by virtue of the fact that constraints on morphological
subcategorization must outrank all phonological constraints.
Other typological aspects of infixation are reviewed in
Chapter 5.

Comments: 
Keywords: Infixation, typology, morphological change, reduplication, Washo, English, Atayal
Areas: Morphology,Phonology,Historical Linguistics
Type: PhD Dissertation

Direct link: http://roa.rutgers.edu/view.php3?roa=627