Correspondence of Consonant Clustering with Particular Vowels in German Dialects
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Philipps-Universität Marburg
Abstract
Recent work found a correspondence between consonant clustering probability in monosyllabic
lexemes and the three vowel types, short and long monophthong and diphthong, in German
dialects. Furthermore, that correspondence was found to be bound to a North–South divide.
This paper explores the preferences in consonant clustering of particular vowels by analyzing the
PhonD2‑Corpus, a large database of phonotactic and morphological information. The clustering
probability of the diphthongs is positively correlated with frequency while the other vowels showed
particular preferences that are not positively correlated with frequency. However, all of them are determined
by a threefold pattern: short monophthongs prefer coda clusters, diphthongs onset clusters
and long monophthong are balanced. Furthermore, it was found that this threefold pattern seems to
have evolved from an originally twofold pattern (short monophthong prefers coda clusters and long
monophthong and diphthong prefer onset clusters) in Middle High and Low German. This result is
then further considered under the aspect of the compensation of the syllable weight and moraicity.
Furthermore, some interesting parallels with the syllable vs. word‑language typology framework
are noted.