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Old French nasalization and universals of sound change

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 October 2008

John Hajek
John Hajek
Affiliation:
Department of Linguistics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia.
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Abstract

Changing patterns of assonance in early Old French texts have traditionally provided the basis for the claim that vowel height has a universally predictable effect on the development of distinctive nasalization over time. However, the results of recent studies cannot be accounted for by such a hypothesis. Furthermore, an alternative hypothesis suggests that the same patterns of assonance reflect modifications in vowel quality rather than nasality. Additional cross-linguistic and phonetic data examined here further undermine the purportedly universal character of the development of distinctive nasalization in Old French.

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Articles
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Journal of French Language Studies , Volume 3 , Issue 2 , September 1993 , pp. 145 - 164
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1993

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