Recent advances in Q Theory: Segment strength

Authors

  • Martha Schwarz University of California, Berkeley
  • Myriam Lapierre University of California, Berkeley
  • Karee Garvin University of California, Berkeley
  • Sharon Inkelas University of California, Berkeley

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3765/plsa.v4i1.4550

Keywords:

segments, subsegments, Q Theory, quantity-sensitive stress, vowel length

Abstract

Using Q Theory, in which canonical segments are represented as a sequence of three subsegments, this paper develops a scale of vowel quantity, ranging from 'superlight' single v subsegments to 'heavy' or geminate vowels consisting of four subsegments. An Optimality-Theoretic analysis of quantity-sensitive stress assignment is developed, in which stress is preferred on vowels with more subsegments. A case study of the Jê language Panãra demonstrates that a single language can draw a four-way vowel quantity contrast, to which the stress system is sensitive.

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Published

2019-03-15

How to Cite

Schwarz, Martha, Myriam Lapierre, Karee Garvin, and Sharon Inkelas. 2019. “Recent Advances in Q Theory: Segment Strength”. Proceedings of the Linguistic Society of America 4 (1): 51:1–14. https://doi.org/10.3765/plsa.v4i1.4550.