Re: Phonology Problem: Nasalization Spreading

On 9/23/05, David J. Peterson <dedalvs@...> wrote:
> [snip]
> What it said is that, essentially, for nasalization to spread, the
> velum should be (or be allowed to be) lowered.  Thus, voiceless
> stops should be the biggest block to the spread of nasalization,
> voiceless fricatives less so, voiced stops less so, nasals not at all,
> and back consonants (that is, those that don't involve the velum
> at all, like /?\/ and /h/) should allow nasalization spreading
> very easily.
>
> So here's my question.  First, do those who've read stuff (or seen
> stuff) on nasalization spreading agree with the logic of this article?
> And if so (or if not), should I change what I've gotten?  That is, is
> what I have currently happening impossible, or an extreme
> phonological improbability?
I think that the logic of it is sound, but only if /q/ and other
uvulars are excluded. This has been called "laryngeal transparency"
and was used IIRC as an argument for a particular version of
underspecification in the late 80s.

Dirk
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