Syllabic constraints in ekegusii borrowing: an optimality perspective

Edinah Gesare Mose

doi:10.21744/ijllc.v7n5.1911

Authors

Edinah Gesare Mose
gesaremose@gmail.com
Department of Linguistics, Literature and Foreign Languages, Kenyatta University, Kenya

Keywords:

coda, constraints, optimality, phonotactics, syllable

Abstract

A language’s syllabic structure is key in determining linguistic borrowing. Research on loanword phonology indicates that when languages borrow segments, these borrowed segments undergo systematic adaptations which involve phonological structures at various levels and one of these is the syllabic level. Because languages have varied syllabic structures which will range from very simple to complex, a language’s syllabic structure will trigger repair strategies that ensure that its language phonotactics are not violated. However, how the syllable in Ekegusii constrains borrowing from English has not been adequately explained. This article that was based on Optimality Theory’s constraint approach examined how Ekegusii’s syllable structure constrains borrowing from the English language. The data used in this article was extracted from Mose’s doctoral study. The findings revealed that the Ekegusii syllable structure imposed various constraints spread across the three patterns which are permissible in the language. The specific constraints included: prohibition of cluster consonants, diphthongs or triphthongs, no coda consonants, and complex onsets, as well as syllables, must have onsets that were lowly ranked in the language. The article concluded that syllabic constraints determined that whatever was mapped to Ekegusii adhered to its syllable structure.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Adriaans, F., & Kager, R. (2010). Adding generalization to statistical learning: The induction of phonotactics from continuous speech. Journal of Memory and Language, 62(3), 311-331. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jml.2009.11.007

Aichert, I., & Ziegler, W. (2004). Syllable frequency and syllable structure in apraxia of speech. Brain and language, 88(1), 148-159. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0093-934X(03)00296-7

Aljumah, A. (2008). The syllable shape of Al-Ahsa dialect: an OT perspective. Pozna? Studies in Contemporary Linguistics, 44(2), 155-177.

Azhari, A. S. (2018). Speech acts of classroom interaction. International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Culture (IJLLC), 4(2), 24-45.

Blevins, J., & Goldsmith, J. (1995). The syllable in phonological theory. 1995, 206-244.

Bowern, C. (2015). Linguistic fieldwork: A practical guide. Springer.

Btoosh, M. A. (2006). Constraint interactions in Jordanian Arabic phonotactics: An optimality-theoretic approach. Journal of Language and Linguistics, 5(2), 102-221.

Chelliah, S. L., & Willem, J. (2010). Handbook of descriptive linguistic fieldwork. Springer Science & Business Media.

Cholin, J., Levelt, W. J., & Schiller, N. O. (2006). Effects of syllable frequency in speech production. Cognition, 99(2), 205-235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2005.01.009

Clark, J., Yallop, C., & Fletcher, J. (2007). An introduction to phonetics and phonology. Wiley-Blackwell.

Edinah, M. G. (2020). A Morphophonological Analysis Of Borrowed Segments In Ekegusii Language: An Optimality Perspective (Doctoral dissertation, KENYATTA UNIVERSITY).

Goldrick, M. (2004). Phonological features and phonotactic constraints in speech production. Journal of Memory and Language, 51(4), 586-603. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jml.2004.07.004

Goldrick, M., & Larson, M. (2008). Phonotactic probability influences speech production. Cognition, 107(3), 1155-1164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2007.11.009

Green, A. D. (2003). Extrasyllabic consonants and onset well-formedness. The syllable in optimality theory, 238-253.

Greenberg, S., Carvey, H., Hitchcock, L., & Chang, S. (2003). Temporal properties of spontaneous speech—a syllable-centric perspective. Journal of Phonetics, 31(3-4), 465-485. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wocn.2003.09.005

Gussenhoven, C., & Jacobs, H. (2017). Understanding phonology. Routledge.

Guthrie, M. A. L. C. O. L. M. (1971). Comparative bantu: An introduction to the comparative linguistics and prehistory of the bantu languages. Part II, Volume 4, A catalogue of common Bantu with commentary.

Harb, M. A. (2016). An optimality-theoretic account of English loanwords in Hawaiian. Open Journal of Modern Linguistics, 6(03), 230.

Hoffer, B. L. (2005). Language borrowing and the indices of adaptability and receptivity. Intercultural communication studies, 14(2), 53.

Kadenge, M., & Mudzingwa, C. (2012). Comparing chiShona loanwords of monolingual and bilingual speakers: An Optimality Theory analysis. South African Journal of African Languages, 32(2), 141-151.

Kager, R. (1999). Optimality theory. Cambridge university press.

Kahn, D. (2015). Syllable-based generalizations in English phonology. Routledge.

Katamba, F. (2003). Bantu nominal morphology. The Bantu languages, 103, 120.

Kenya, G. (2010). Nairobi National Council for Law Reporting with the Authority of the Attorney General. Kenya: The Constitution of Kenya.

Kioko, A. N., & Muthwii, M. J. (2001). The demands of a changing society: English in education in Kenya today. Language Culture and Curriculum, 14(3), 201-213.

Ladefoged, P., & Johnson, K. (2011). A Course in Phonetics (Boston, MA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning).

McCarthy, J. J. (2002). A thematic guide to Optimality Theory. Cambridge University Press.

McCarthy, J. J. (2008). Optimality theory in phonology: A reader. John Wiley & Sons.

McCarthy, J. J., & Prince, A. S. (1995). Faithfulness and reduplicative identity.

Morelli, F. (2003). The Relative Harmony of/s+ Stop/Onsets Obstruent Cluslers and the Sonority Sequencing. The syllable in optimality theory, 356-371.

Moreton, E. (2012). Inter-and intra-dimensional dependencies in implicit phonotactic learning. Journal of Memory and Language, 67(1), 165-183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jml.2011.12.003

Mwangi, P. W., Njoroge, M. C., & Mose, E. G. (2013). Harmonizing the orthographies of Bantu languages: The case of Gikuyu and Ekegusii in Kenya.

Mwangi, S., & Ogechi, N. O. (Eds.). (2006). Language planning for development in Africa. Moi University Press.

Norris, D., McQueen, J. M., Cutler, A., & Butterfield, S. (1997). The possible-word constraint in the segmentation of continuous speech. Cognitive Psychology, 34(3), 191-243. https://doi.org/10.1006/cogp.1997.0671

Nyakundi, M. (2010). Motivation, morpho-phonological processes in Egesembesa Argot among Ekegusii-speaking males of western Kenya. Unpublished MA Thesis: Kenyatta University.

Prince, A., & Smolensky, P. (1993). Optimality theory: Constraint interaction in generative grammar. New Brunswick. NJ: Rutgers University Center for Cognitive Science. ROA-537 (version of 2002).

Prince, A., & Smolensky, P. (2004). Optimality theory: constraint interaction in generative grammar Malden. MA: Blackwell.

Recasens, D., & Rodríguez, C. (2018). An ultrasound study of contextual and syllabic effects in consonant sequences produced under heavy articulatory constraint conditions. Speech Communication, 105, 34-52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.specom.2018.10.007

Roach, P. (2009). English phonetics and phonology paperback with audio CDs (2): A practical course. Cambridge university press.

Romani, C., & Calabrese, A. (1998). Syllabic constraints in the phonological errors of an aphasic patient. Brain and language, 64(1), 83-121. https://doi.org/10.1006/brln.1998.1958

Widayati, D. (2016). Vocal and Consonant PAN Features in Nias and Sigulai Languages. International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Culture, 2(4), 86-96.