R: Re: palato-alveolar affricate

Dirk wrote:

> On Mon, 22 Jan 2001, David Stokes wrote:
>
> > Hi.
> >
> > Can someone tell me, what is the sound of a voiced palato-alveolar
> > affricate ? Is this what English speakers think of as a "j" sound, as in
> > "jelly jar" ?
>
> Yes.
>
> > Also, does it seem a reasonable sound change to have a palatalized g
> > become this sound ? And a palatalized k --> voiceless palato-alveolar
> > affricate ?
>
> Not only reasonable, but actually attested.
>
And common, especially before front vowels.... Italian does it even today:
the plural of 'scientifico' (/Sen'tifiko/ scientific, male sing. adj.) is
'scientifici' (/SentifitSi/). 'Leggo' (/lEggo/ 'I read') becomes 'leggi'
(/lEddZi/ 'you read') and 'legge' (/lEddZe/ 'he/she/it reads').

Luca