Hostname: page-component-7b9c58cd5d-6tpvb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-03-15T22:21:17.054Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Does Gokana really have no syllables? Or: what's so great about being universal?*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2011

Larry M. Hyman
Larry M. Hyman
Affiliation:
University of California, Berkeley
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This paper is concerned with syllable universals, especially the claim that all languages have syllables. Expanding beyond my earlier work, I take a new look at Gokana, the major counterexample to the universal syllable, and present overlooked (but ambiguous) evidence for a weight-insensitive bisyllabic trochee. After demonstrating the theory-dependent nature of absolute universals, and distinguishing between analytic vs. descriptive claims, I focus on the latter as a means of ‘normalising’ the discussion of what constitutes evidence for the syllable, both in Gokana and in general. A typological approach is argued for in which languages differ in the nature and extent of the ‘activation’ of phonological properties, with Gokana representing a language which only marginally activates the syllable, if at all. The paper ends by situating the issue within the context of recent discussions of universals and diversity (Evans & Levinson 2009), which have not dealt primarily with phonology.

Type
Articles
Information
Phonology , Volume 28 , Issue 1 , May 2011 , pp. 55 - 85
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Akinlabi, Akinbiyi & Urua, Eno E. (2003). Foot structure in the Ibibio verb. Journal of African Languages and Linguistics 24. 119–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Arekamhe, Dele (1972). Aspects of the phonology of Gokana. BA dissertation, University of Ibadan.Google Scholar
Asinyirimba, Josiah Obichere (1972). The phonology of Gokana. BA dissertation, University of Ibadan.Google Scholar
Bagemihl, Bruce (1991). Syllable structure in Bella Coola. LI 22. 589–646.Google Scholar
Beckman, Jill N. (1998). Positional faithfulness. PhD dissertation, University of Massachusetts, Amherst.Google Scholar
Bickel, Balthasar (2010). Absolute and statistical universals. In Hogan, Patrick Colm (ed.) The Cambridge encyclopedia of the language sciences. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 77–79.Google Scholar
Blevins, Juliette (1995). The syllable in phonological theory. In Goldsmith, (1995). 206–244.Google Scholar
Blevins, Juliette (2003). The independent nature of phonotactic constraints: an alternative to syllable-based approaches. In van de Vijver, Féry (2003). 375–403.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blevins, Juliette (2004). Evolutionary Phonology: the emergence of sound patterns. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blevins, Juliette (2009). Another universal bites the dust: Northwest Mekeo lacks coronal phonemes. Oceanic Linguistics 48. 264–273.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bloomfield, Leonard (1933). Language. New York: Holt.Google Scholar
Breen, Gavan & Pensalfini, Rob (1999). Arrernte: a language with no syllable onsets. LI 30. 1–25.Google Scholar
Broselow, Ellen (1995). Skeletal positions and moras. In Goldsmith, (1995). 175–205.Google Scholar
Brosnahan, L. F. (1964). Outlines of the phonology of the Gokana dialect of Ogoni. Journal of West African Languages 1. 43–48.Google Scholar
Bybee, Joan (2001). Phonology and language use. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cairns, Charles E. & Raimy, Eric (eds.) (2011). The handbook of the syllable. Leiden: Brill.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clements, G. N. (1986). Syllabification and epenthesis in the Barra dialect of Gaelic. In Bogers, Koen, van der Hulst, Harry & Mous, Maarten (eds.) The phonological representation of suprasegmentals. Dordrecht: Foris. 317–336.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clements, G. N. (2001). Representational economy in constraint-based phonology. In Hall, T. Alan (ed.) Distinctive feature theory. Berlin & New York: Mouton de Gruyter. 71–146.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Duanmu, San (2009). Syllable structure: the limits of variation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Evans, Nicholas & Levinson, Stephen C. (2009). The myth of language universals: language diversity and its importance for cognitive science. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 32. 429–448.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Caroline, Féry & van de Vijver, Ruben (eds.) (2003). The syllable in Optimality Theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Goldsmith, John A. (ed.) (1995). The handbook of phonological theory. Cambridge, Mass. & Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Harris, John (2004). Release the captive coda: the foot as a domain of phonetic interpretation. In Local, John, Ogden, Richard & Temple, Rosalind (eds.) Phonetic interpretation: papers in laboratory phonology VI. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 103–129.Google Scholar
Harris, John & Gussmann, Edmund (2002). Word-final onsets. UCL Working Papers in Linguistics 14. 1–42.Google Scholar
Hayes, Bruce (1989). Compensatory lengthening in moraic phonology. LI 20. 253–306.Google Scholar
Hayward, R. J. (1997). External sandhi in the Saho noun phrase. Afrikanistische Arbeitspapiere 50. 53–80.Google Scholar
Hoberman, Robert D. (1988). Emphasis harmony in a Modern Aramaic dialect. Lg 64. 1–26.Google Scholar
Hyman, Larry M. (1975). Phonology: theory and analysis. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.Google Scholar
Hyman, Larry M. (1983). Are there syllables in Gokana? In Kaye, Jonathan, Koopman, Hilda, Sportiche, Dominique & Dugas, André (eds.) Current approaches to African linguistics. Vol. 2. Dordrecht: Foris. 171–179.Google Scholar
Hyman, Larry M. (1985). A theory of phonological weight. Dordrecht: Foris. Reprinted 2003, Stanford: CSLI.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hyman, Larry M. (1990). Non-exhaustive syllabification: evidence from Nigeria and Cameroon. CLS 26:2. 175–195.Google Scholar
Hyman, Larry M. (1998). Positional prominence and the ‘prosodic trough’ in Yaka. Phonology 15. 41–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hyman, Larry M. (2008a). Directional asymmetries in the morphology and phonology of words, with special reference to Bantu. Linguistics 46. 309–350.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hyman, Larry M. (2008b). Universals in phonology. The Linguistic Review 25. 83–137.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ikoro, Suanu M. (1996). The Kana language. Leiden: Research School CNWS.Google Scholar
Inkelas, Sharon (1995). The consequences of optimization for underspecification. NELS 25:1. 287–302.Google Scholar
Kabak, Barış & Plank, Frans (2008). The role of phonology in word class distinction. Ms, University of Konstanz.Google Scholar
Kaye, Jonathan (1990). Coda licensing. Phonology 7. 301–330.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kenesei, István, Vago, Robert M. & Fenyvesi, Anna (1998). Hungarian. London & New York: Routledge.Google Scholar
Kenstowicz, Michael J. & Kisseberth, Charles W. (1979). Generative phonology: description and theory. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Kohler, K. J. (1966). Is the syllable a phonological universal? JL 2. 207–208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kubozono, Haruo (1999). Mora and syllable. In Tsujimura, Natsuko (ed.) The handbook of Japanese linguistics. Malden, Mass. & Oxford: Blackwell. 31–61.Google Scholar
Kubozono, Haruo (2003). The syllable as a unit of prosodic organization in Japanese. In van de Vijver, Féry (2003). 99–122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Leben, William R. (1980). Suprasegmental phonology. New York: Garland.Google Scholar
Levi, Susannah V. (2005). Acoustic correlates of lexical accent in Turkish. Journal of the International Phonetic Association 35. 73–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lin, Yen-Hwei (1997). Syllabic and moraic structures in Piro. Phonology 14. 403–436.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowenstamm, Jean (1996). CV as the only syllable type. In Durand, Jacques & Laks, Bernard (eds.) Current trends in phonology: models and methods. Salford: ESRI. 419–441.Google Scholar
McCarthy, John J. (2003). Comparative markedness. Theoretical Linguistics 29. 1–51.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maddieson, Ian & Precoda, Karen (1990). Updating UPSID. UCLA Working Papers in Phonetics 74. 104–111.Google Scholar
Michael, Lev (to appear). The interaction of stress and tone in the prosodic system of Iquito (Zaparoan). Amerindia.Google Scholar
Newman, Stanley (1947). Bella Coola I: phonology. IJAL 13. 129–134.Google Scholar
Newmeyer, Frederick J. (2007). Universals in syntax. The Linguistic Review 25. 35–82.Google Scholar
Okotie, Fred O. (1971–72). Phonemic analysis of Gokana. BA dissertation, University of Ibadan.Google Scholar
Piggott, Glyne L. (1999). At the right edge of words. The Linguistic Review 16. 143–185.Google Scholar
Rooryck, J., Smith, N. V., Liptak, A. & Blakemore, D. (eds.) (2010). The myth of language universals. (Special issue.) Lingua 120. 2651–2758.Google Scholar
Scheer, Tobias (2004). A lateral theory of phonology: what is CVCV, and why should it be? Berlin & New York: Mouton de Gruyter.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
SIL (2004). Organized phonology data: Gadsup (Ontena dialect) Language [GAJ]. (No author given). Available February 2011 at www.sil.org/pacific/png/pubs/0000101/Gadsup_Ontena.pdf.Google Scholar
Smith, Jennifer L. (2001). Lexical category and contrast. In Kirchner, Robert, Pater, Joe & Wikeley, Wolf (eds.) PETL 6: Proceedings of the Workshop on the Lexicon in Phonetics and Phonology. Edmonton: University of Alberta. 61–72.Google Scholar
Smith, Jennifer L. (2002). Phonological augmentation in prominent positions. PhD dissertation, University of Massachusetts, Amherst.Google Scholar
Steriade, Donca (1999). Alternatives to syllable-based accounts of consonantal phonotactics. In Fujimura, Osamu, Joseph, Brian & Palek, Bohumil (eds.) Item order in language and speech. Prague: Karolinum. 205–242.Google Scholar
Steriade, Donca (2009). Units of representation for linguistic rhythm. Edward Sapir Lecture presented at the 2009 Linguistics Institute, University of California, Berkeley.Google Scholar
Vennemann, Theo (1972). On the theory of syllabic phonology. Linguistische Berichte 18. 1–18.Google Scholar
Vopnu, Stephen Kanen (1991). Phonological processes and syllable structures in Gokana. MA thesis, University of Port Harcourt.Google Scholar