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SUMMARY:Move in the Right Direction: What phonetic variation can tell us a
 bout phonological representations - Christian Uffmann (University of Susse
 x)
DTSTART:20130131T170000Z
DTEND:20130131T183000Z
UID:TALK42747@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Alison Biggs
DESCRIPTION:Empirically\, this talk will present new data on variation and
  ongoing change in Standard Southern British English (SSBE)\, where one fi
 nds a profound vowel shift\, involving the counter-clockwise rotation of t
 he majority of monophthongs\, causing several near-mergers in the most adv
 anced speakers and giving rise to novel phonological alternations. The dat
 a will feed into several questions that are central to phonological theory
 \, and for which the data provide a fresh angle. The questions are the fol
 lowing:\n\n• What is the nature of phonological representations\, here\,
  distinctive features? The focus\non phonological operations (especially t
 he rules vs constraints debate) has led to a relative\nneglect of the ques
 tion what kinds of representations rules or constraints operate on. Of\nsp
 ecial interest here is also the question how the phonetic variation found 
 in the data can\ntranslate into a small number of featural categories\, or
  how near mergers can be represented.\n\n• This leads to more fundamenta
 l questions about the phonetics-phonology interface. What is\nthe relation
  between observable phonetic variation and the discrete units of phonology
 ? An\nincreasing number of scholars is suggesting to incorporate phonetic 
 detail into phonology\,\nor argues against formal phonology per se in ligh
 t of actual phonetic data. In contrast\, we\nwill explore the possibility 
 of reduced phonological representations and a more autonomous\nphonetic im
 plementation module\, which is more than the mechanistic transducer as whi
 ch it is seen in classic generative phonology.\n\n• Finally\, the observ
 able variation raises the question when and how phonetically gradual varia
 tion and change becomes phonological change\, and how we can find out. Var
 iationist sociolinguistics has uncovered a bewildering array of variation\
 , raising the question of when two systems are phonologically equivalent a
 nd when they are not (especially in the absence of splits and mergers).\n\
 nIn this talk\, I will make the case for a theory of impoverished (contras
 tive) specifications with privative features that only define the main art
 iculatory targets. Underspecification opens the possibility of phonologica
 lly irrelevant variation\, which can ultimately lead to phonological restr
 ucturing\, though. I will show how SSBE is currently undergoing such restr
 ucturing\, developing from a system with a two-way backness/rounding disti
 nction to a ‘more Germanic’ system with a three-way distinction\, with
  subsequent effects on the system of phonological alternations. I will arg
 ue that a theory of minimal specification can explain this restructuring b
 etter than theories assuming full (binary) feature specifications.
LOCATION:Bowett Room\, Queens' College
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