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The s-Ø alternation in French: a morphological solution

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 November 2008

J. Durand  and
C. Lyche
J. Durand
Affiliation:
University of Essex and University of Oslo
C. Lyche
Affiliation:
University of Essex and University of Oslo
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Extract

Our aim in this paper is to study the s-ø alternation found in pairs like côtecostal. As far as we know, the phenomenon has not been studied in detail by any generative phonologist. We have found in the literature some passing references to the question but all the solutions seem to be based on scanty evidence. In contradistinction to previous approaches, we have based our analysis on an exhaustive list of all the alternations in question. The source of our material is the Petit Robert (Rey et al., 1972), which includes approximately 50,000 words. We are perfectly aware of the fact that no French person knows/uses all these alternations and are therefore dealing with an ‘idealized’ speaker. But, since the solution we propose is heavily based on the morphological marking of words, it would be no blow to our analysis if one were to discover (as is possibly the case) that in a particular dialect of French very few of these forms are actually related.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Linguistics , Volume 14 , Issue 2 , September 1978 , pp. 259 - 276
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1978

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References

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