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On formal universals in phonology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 October 2009

Andrew Nevins
Andrew Nevins
Affiliation:
Department of Linguistics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02139. [email protected]/~nevins
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Abstract

Understanding the universal aspects of human language structure requires comparison at multiple levels of analysis. While Evans & Levinson (E&L) focus mostly on substantive variation in language, equally revealing insights can come from studying formal universals. I first discuss how Artificial Grammar Experiments can test universal preferences for certain types of abstract phonological generalizations over others. I then discuss moraic onsets in the language Arrernte, and how its apparent substantive variation ultimately rests on a formal universal regarding syllable-weight sensitivity.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 32 , Issue 5 , October 2009 , pp. 461 - 462
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

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