Feeding rule order: Astudy of vowel deletion and consonant insertion in Astam language
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Date
2014
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Linguistic Association, Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife Nigeria
Abstract
This paper examines the feeding relationship that exists between deletion and insertion in Atsam, a Benue-Congo language spoken in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Specifically, we discuss the operation of the processes involving numeral formation. It is observed that insertion of /n/ is motivated by vowel deletion. From the data on deletion and insertion in Atsam, feeding relation is observed. For example, V1 deletion (i.e. the first vowel at morpheme boundary), necessitates the introduction of /n/ in the formation of ten plus any number (i.e.10+n, where n is 1-9). The conceptual frameworks used are deletion and insertion. The two processes are innovatively employed in forming new words in the language under study. The study concludes that though phonological rules do not operate in a vacuum, when they are used, some are motivated by the other in a particular order as observed in Atsam language. This process is influenced by a similar process in Hausa which is also spoken in the study area.
Keywords: phonological process, deletion, insertion, rule, feeding relation.
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Keywords
Phonological process, deletion, insertion, rule, feeding order
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