Phonetic and phonological considerations on the moraic status of pre-NC vowels in Bemba

Silke Hamann,Nancy Kula

doi:10.5842/62-0-899

Abstract

The pre-NC vowel in many Bantu languages, among which Bemba, is generally understood to be long. In Bemba, where there is also a vowel length contrast, this raises the question whether the pre-NC vowel is phonetically as long as lexical long vowels and how phonologized this length might be. This paper presents an evaluation of whether the pre-NC vowel is monomoraic or bimoraic by considering both phonetic and phonological evidence. The findings are mixed but lean towards a monomoraic treatment of the pre-NC vowel based on some segmental and tonal evidence. One set of tonal data, however, show variation in moraicity, presenting a mixed picture that we conclude emanates from the intermediate length of the pre-NC vowel and the nuanced interpretation this entails in phonology.

Highlights

IntroductionHomorganic sequences of a nasal and an obstruent (NC) are a common feature amongst Bantu languages
Homorganic sequences of a nasal and an obstruent (NC) are a common feature amongst Bantu languages. The vowels preceding these NC sequences are often longer than vowels that occur before single consonants, and a process of pre-NC vowel lengthening has been reported for many Bantu languages
Our investigation of the moraic status of the pre-NC vowel in Bemba has yielded contrasting evidence, but is strongly skewed towards the vowel being monomoraic based on both phonological – hiatus resolution and reduplication – and phonetic evidence with respect to tone contrast

Summary

Introduction

Homorganic sequences of a nasal and an obstruent (NC) are a common feature amongst Bantu languages. The vowels preceding these NC sequences are often longer than vowels that occur before single consonants, and a process of pre-NC vowel lengthening has been reported for many Bantu languages (see Miti 2006 for an overview). Chichewa falls in the latter category (see the description by Downing and Mtenje 2017, supported by acoustic measurements in Hubbard 1994: 155)

Objectives

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion