Open Accessevolution of sibilants in Polish and Russian
Author(s) -
Jaye Padgett,
Marzena Żygis
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
zas papers in linguistics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1435-9588
DOI - 10.21248/zaspil.32.2003.190
Subject(s) - optimal distinctiveness theory , perception , linguistics , sound change , class (philosophy) , psychology , history , computer science , artificial intelligence , philosophy , social psychology , neuroscience
In this paper we provide an account of the historical development of Polish and Russian sibilants. The arguments provided here are of theoretical interest because they show that (i) certain allophonic rules are driven by the need to keep contrasts perceptually distinct, (ii) (unconditioned) sound changes result from needs of perceptual distinctiveness, and (iii) perceptual distinctiveness can be extended to a class of consonants, i.e. the sibilants. The analysis is cast within Dispersion Theory by providing phonetic and typological data supporting the perceptual distinctiveness claims we make.