Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of Borneo
A hallmark of any good scientific theory is its ability to derive two or more superficially unconnected phenomena from a single unifying principle. A classic example is Newton’s gravitation theory, in which Kepler’s laws of motion for the planets orbiting the sun and Galileo’s laws of motion for obj...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
University of Hawaii Press
2018-06-01
|
| Series: | Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10524/52424 |
| _version_ | 1811277959883915264 |
|---|---|
| author | Robert Blust |
| author_facet | Robert Blust |
| author_sort | Robert Blust |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | A hallmark of any good scientific theory is its ability to derive two or more superficially unconnected phenomena from a single unifying principle. A classic example is Newton’s gravitation theory, in which Kepler’s laws of motion for the planets orbiting the sun and Galileo’s laws of motion for objects falling on the earth, both of which had previously been recognized as valid but unconnected statements about physical processes, were shown to reflect the same fundamental force (gravity). This paper draws attention to the identity of a basic phonological process that has taken divergent paths in the history of particular languages or language groups. In particular, it is argued that the historical development of true voiced aspirates [bph], [dth], [gkh] in the Kelabit-Lun Dayeh languages of Borneo, and the replacement of word-final voiced stops by the homorganic nasals in a number of languages in Borneo are outcomes of the same phonetic limitation, namely the aerodynamic voicing constraint (AVC). |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T00:27:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-de992af5ecd642e9a76099acb687b125 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1836-6821 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T00:27:17Z |
| publishDate | 2018-06-01 |
| publisher | University of Hawaii Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society |
| spelling | doaj.art-de992af5ecd642e9a76099acb687b1252022-12-22T03:10:35ZengUniversity of Hawaii PressJournal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society1836-68212018-06-01112118Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of BorneoRobert Blust0University of Hawai'iA hallmark of any good scientific theory is its ability to derive two or more superficially unconnected phenomena from a single unifying principle. A classic example is Newton’s gravitation theory, in which Kepler’s laws of motion for the planets orbiting the sun and Galileo’s laws of motion for objects falling on the earth, both of which had previously been recognized as valid but unconnected statements about physical processes, were shown to reflect the same fundamental force (gravity). This paper draws attention to the identity of a basic phonological process that has taken divergent paths in the history of particular languages or language groups. In particular, it is argued that the historical development of true voiced aspirates [bph], [dth], [gkh] in the Kelabit-Lun Dayeh languages of Borneo, and the replacement of word-final voiced stops by the homorganic nasals in a number of languages in Borneo are outcomes of the same phonetic limitation, namely the aerodynamic voicing constraint (AVC).http://hdl.handle.net/10524/52424languages of Borneasound changephonetic principlesphonological typology |
| spellingShingle | Robert Blust Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of Borneo Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society languages of Bornea sound change phonetic principles phonological typology |
| title | Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of Borneo |
| title_full | Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of Borneo |
| title_fullStr | Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of Borneo |
| title_full_unstemmed | Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of Borneo |
| title_short | Two Birds with One Stone: The Aerodynamic Voicing Constraint and the Languages of Borneo |
| title_sort | two birds with one stone the aerodynamic voicing constraint and the languages of borneo |
| topic | languages of Bornea sound change phonetic principles phonological typology |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/10524/52424 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT robertblust twobirdswithonestonetheaerodynamicvoicingconstraintandthelanguagesofborneo |