Mid vowel fronting in Ukrainian
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 August 2005
Abstract
This article investigates the process of o-fronting in Ukrainian and claims that it should be analysed as an effect of PAL-e, a constraint mandating that the consonant and the vowel agree in backness. The operation of PAL-e is opaque, due to the interaction with a depalatalisation process applying before [ε]. The analysis establishes four points of theoretical interest. First, from a typological perspective, PAL-e parallels PAL-i, postulated by Rubach (2000a) for Russian, which strengthens the contention that PAL constraints should be stated as agreement constraints that bring under the same denominator the palatalisation of consonants and the fronting of vowels. Second, the opacity of o-fronting cannot be analysed by appealing to MAX[F] constraints. Third, sympathy theory cannot handle the data either. Fourth, Optimality Theory must be modified to admit derivational levels.
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- Research Article
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- Copyright
- 2005 Cambridge University Press
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