<OT> New Posting: ROA-724

[roa at ruccs.rutgers.edu]

ROA 724-0305

Nankina Trochees

Awwad Al-Ahmadi Al-Harbi <Cawwad_2000 at yahoo.com>

Direct link: http://roa.rutgers.edu/view.php3?roa=724


Abstract:
This paper presents an analysis of the stress system in
Nankina (a language of Papua New Guinea) cast in the framework
of Optimality Theory (OT), initially set forth in Prince
and Smolensky (1993). This pattern reflects binary trochaic
feet constructed from the right edge leftward. A word-initial
stress clash is taken to indicate the presence of a degenerate
foot at the left edge of the word. It is argued that standard
OT can handle the stress facts without costs since it is
more conservative in its theoretical assumptions than are
grid-based analyses. Our analysis shows that exceptional
stress can be modeled by a grammar with standard constraints
and that catalexis is helpful in analyzing Nankina as a
trochaic system. The respective patterns provide evidence
against the claim that onset can contribute to syllable
weight and against HEAD DEPENDENCE, a positional faithfulness
constraint which bans epenthetic material in prosodic heads.

Comments: 
Keywords: trochees
Areas: Phonology
Type: Manuscript

Direct link: http://roa.rutgers.edu/view.php3?roa=724