Ambridge's proposal cannot account for the most basic observations about phonological patterns in human languages. Outside of the earliest stages of phonological production by toddlers, the phonological systems of speakers/learners exhibit internal behaviours that point to the representation and processing of inter-related units ranging in size…

Reviews a collection of essays dedicated to MIT philosopher Sylvain Bromberger by his colleagues in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy. The prominent viewpoint emanating from these essays is one of nostalgia. (14 references) (CK)

Demonstrates the regularity of the structure of the present indicative in modern French. (AM)

There has been a consensus among linguists that laryngeal and superlaryngeal nodes are located under the root node and place node is under the superlaryngeal node. However, there is very little consensus on where manner of articulation features belong. A phonological analysis of the spreading and delinking process occurring in the educated Spanish…

In response to an earlier article (SLS 51) regarding duality of patterning in the evolution of language, it is suggested that all utterances of a language be coded into elementary units of meaning that could be manipulated into larger units of discourse. This method would attempt to systematize a language's constantly changing phonemic inventory.…

The size of linguistic elements (morphemes, words or word groups) varies proportionately with their frequency. Because word frequency is unstable, this balance can be disturbed. When elements become too long in relation to their frequency, they are reduced. Examples from Latin illustrate the theory. (PMJ)

Proposes a theory of stress patterns in English phonology based on the role of rhythm, or alternating weak and strong syllables, in determining stress shifts in words. (AM)

In the third of a series on the logic of European languages, phonological, morphological, and syntactic idiosyncracies of German are discussed as they relate to the language's cultural context and philosophical heritage. (MSE)

Argues that, in poetry where phonological patterning is dominant, some deviation from standard uses in the other linguistic systems (grammar, lexis) is inevitable. (Author/CK)

Early explanations of sound change were often sought in extralinguistic factors such as climate or the speakers' physiology. More recently, scholars have been reluctant to explain changes this way, but the most widely accepted extralinguistic explanation is the substratum theory. Other linguists, notably the Prague group, looked to the linguistic…

Certain apparently deviant, inverted forms of the French imperative (e.g. "pas touche!" for "ne touche pas!") are analyzed. A number of phonosyntactic explanations that focus on phonological order, rhythm, and intonation are examined. The strength of the imperative intention is also considered. (MSE)

Patterns in the Greek language that have endured over 3000 years, reflecting patterns in Greek thought and civilization, are examined. Phonology and grammatical constructions are emphasized. (MSE)

Considers the metrical foot in Diyari, a South Australian Language, and concludes that, on the basis of stress alone, an argument can be made for the constituency of the metrical stress foot under certain theoretical assumptions. This conclusion is reinforced by the occupance in Diyari of other less theory-dependant phenomena. (46 references) (JL)

Examines acculturation patterns in the language of Samoans in San Francisco. (AM)

Views the Dutch language as analogous to the polder typical of the Netherlands, an area of low-lying land reclaimed from a body of water and protected by dikes. Phonological, morphological, syntactic, semantic, and stylistic analyses are presented. (MSE)