A Feature-based Interpretation of the Behavior of /a/ in Vowel Harmony Languages

In vowel harmony, all vowels in (roughly) a word agree with one another regarding one of their features. Vowels in such languages can harmonize with regard to backness, rounding, height, and tongue root position. Vowels can be described in terms of phonological features. Some feature combinations are ‘preferable’ to others, as Archangeli and Pulleyblank (1994) argue in Grounding Theory. Based on these feature relationships, the low vowel /a/ in particular may show interesting behavior in vowel harmony. This thesis therefor examined the following research question: How can a feature-based interpretation account for the behavior of /a/ in vowel harmony languages? In order to research this, data from Tuvan (backness), Kirghiz (rounding), C’lela (height), and Maasai (tongue root position) have been used. Findings show that a feature-based interpretation can account for the behavior of /a/ in vowel harmony languages. /a/ alternates in some languages, and fails to harmonize in others....Show moreIn vowel harmony, all vowels in (roughly) a word agree with one another regarding one of their features. Vowels in such languages can harmonize with regard to backness, rounding, height, and tongue root position. Vowels can be described in terms of phonological features. Some feature combinations are ‘preferable’ to others, as Archangeli and Pulleyblank (1994) argue in Grounding Theory. Based on these feature relationships, the low vowel /a/ in particular may show interesting behavior in vowel harmony. This thesis therefor examined the following research question: How can a feature-based interpretation account for the behavior of /a/ in vowel harmony languages? In order to research this, data from Tuvan (backness), Kirghiz (rounding), C’lela (height), and Maasai (tongue root position) have been used. Findings show that a feature-based interpretation can account for the behavior of /a/ in vowel harmony languages. /a/ alternates in some languages, and fails to harmonize in others. When /a/ participates in vowel harmony, it has to seek its counterpart slightly higher in the vowel triangle, as predicted by Grounding Theory. Feature relationships show that some combinations of features are preferable, and thus result in successful harmony, while others are avoided. These ‘poor’ combinations of features often result in failure to harmonize. All in all, a feature-based interpretation can account for the behavior of /a/ in vowel harmony languages. These findings suggest that the behavior of /a/ is predictable by a feature-based interpretation.Show less

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A Feature-based Interpretation of the Behavior of /a/ in Vowel Harmony Languages