Name: ______________________________

HW 3: Phonology (33 points total)

Zinacantec Tzotzil Look at the following data from Zinacantec Tzotzil, a Mayan language of Mexico. [p] is a voiceless bilabial oral stop, and [p] is a voiceless bilabial oral ejective stopremember that ejectives are a special kind of stop. [k] is a voiceless velar oral stop, and [k] is a voiceless velar oral ejective stop.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

[pim] [kok] [bikil] [ka] [nopol] [pus]

thick fire intestines particle nearby hunchback

7. [ka] 8. [pus] 9. [pin] 10. [kok] 11. [bikit] 12. [pol]

horse jail pot my leg small to multiply

a. Are [p] and [p] allophones of the same phoneme, or do they belong to different phonemes? (3 pts)

b. Are [k] and [k] allophones of the same phoneme, or do they belong to different phonemes? (3 pts)

c. If these pairs of sounds are in complementary distribution, list the environments where each allophone occurs and write a single rule (in prose and in formal notation) to explain the distribution. If they are in contrastive distribution, list the minimal pairs you used as evidence. (To be super clear: you are comparing [p] with [p]; separately, you are comparing [k] with [k].) (2 pts)

Southern Kongo (Dialect B) Examine the following data from Southern Kongo, a Bantu language spoken in Angola. Pay particular attention to [z] and [ ].

1. [kunezulu] 2. [ ima] 3. [nzwetu] 4. [zevo] 5. [a imola]

heaven to stretch our then alms

6. [zanu] 7. [ze a] 8. [lolon i] 9. [kezoka] 10. [ ko i]

five to cut fish to be cut lion

a. Determine whether [z] and [ ] are allophones of the same phoneme or allophones of two separate phonemes. Discuss the evidence you used to reach your conclusion. List either minimal pairs or sound environments. (10 pts)

b. If they are in complementary distribution, state the rule (in prose and in formal notation) that can be used to describe the distribution. If they are in contrastive distribution, identify the minimal pairs you used to identify them and explain, in prose, how you used them to make your deductions. (10 pts)

c. What is the feature which separates[z] and [ ]? Is this a distinctive feature or a nondistinctive feature in Dialect B of Southern Kongo? Why? (5 pts)