Browsing by Author "Pulleyblank, Douglas"

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    Harmonic scales as faithfulness
    (Canadian Journal of Linguistics, 2004-03) Howe, Darin M.; Pulleyblank, Douglas
    Optimality Theory predicts that harmonic scales (⟦α ≻ β⟧) can be encoded in grammar as markedness hierarchies (⟦*β ≫ *α⟧) or else as faithfulness hierarchies (⟦Faith(β) ≫ Faith(α)⟧ or ⟦Faith(α) ≫ Faith(β)⟧). Most research assumes that harmony is encoded as markedness (e.g., ⟦Cor ≻ Lab⟧ ∴ ⟦*Lab ≫ *Cor⟧), though many investigators have argued that some harmonic relations are better captured as faithfulness hierarchies which forestall deletion/insertion of less harmonic elements (e.g., ⟦Cor ≻ Lab⟧ ∴ ⟦Faith(Lab) ≫ Faith(Cor)⟧). We demonstrate in this paper that at least two perceptually-motivated harmonic scales — one concerning vowel quality, the other concerning glottalisation on consonants — need to be grammatically encoded as faithfulness hierarchies which ensure that more harmonic elements which are also more perceptible are more faithfully adhered to (⟦α ≻ β⟧, where |α| > |β| ∴ ⟦Faith(α) ≫ Faith(β)⟧).