Hostname: page-component-76d6cb85b7-hqrjx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-07-16T12:43:13.581Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Sound change: Actuation and implementation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 March 2026

Matthew Y. Chen  and
William S-Y. Wang
Matthew Y. Chen
Affiliation:
University of California, San Diego
William S-Y. Wang
Affiliation:
University of California, Berkeley
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

In the present paper we address ourselves to two fundamental questions regarding sound change: (1) HOW does a sound change implement itself? and (2) WHY does a phonological process assume a particular form, and follow a particular pattern or schedule? In answer to the question of implementation, we propose the concept of LEXICAL DIFFUSION. We have amassed a sizable amount of evidence drawn from the history of Chinese, English, and Swedish, as well as from language acquisition, to substantiate the claim that a phonological change propagates itself gradually across the lexicon, from morpheme to morpheme. In partial answer to the second question, concerning the actuation of phonological processes, we propose that the principal determinants of sound change are to be sought in the inherent constraints of the physiological and perceptual apparatus of the language user. To illustrate the point, we have investigated the attrition of the consonantal endings in a large number of Chinese dialects, and have found significant parallels in the development of well-known Indo-European languages. We argue that the cross-linguistically prevalent pattern and schedule of the related processes are traceable to their PHONETIC ACTUATION. Experimental evidence, both perceptual and physiological, is produced in support.

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
Language , Volume 51 , Issue 2 , June 1975 , pp. 255 - 281
Copyright
Copyright © 1975 by Linguistic Society of America

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Aleshire, S., and Streeter, M. 1970. Homonyms from Middle Chinese. Monthly Internal Memorandum, Phonology Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, July issue, 1–26.Google Scholar
Andersen, H. 1969. A study in diachronic morphophonemics: the Ukrainian prefixes. Lg. 45.807–830.Google Scholar
Andersen, H. 1972. Diphthongization. Lg. 48.11–50.Google Scholar
Bloomfield, L. 1933. Language. New York: Holt.Google Scholar
Chen, M. 1970. Vowel length variation as a function of the voicing of the consonant environment. Phonetica 22.129–159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, M. 1972a. The time dimension: contribution toward a theory of sound change. Foundations of Language 8.457–498.Google Scholar
Chen, M. 1972b. Nasals and nasalization in Chinese: an essay in natural phonology. Berkeley: UC dissertation.Google Scholar
Chen, M. 1973a. Cross-dialectal comparison: a case study and some theoretical considerations. Journal of Chinese Linguistics 1.38–63.Google Scholar
Chen, M. 1973b. Metarules and universal constraints in phonological theory. Proceedings of the 11th International Congress of Linguists, Bologna, 1972, ed. by Heilmann, Luigi, 1152–67.Google Scholar
Chen, M. 1973c. On the formal expression of natural rules in phonology. Journal of Linguistics 9.223–249.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, M. 1973d. The attrition of consonantal endings in Chinese. Paper presented at the 6th International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Language and Linguistic Studies, San Diego.Google Scholar
Chen, M., and Hsieh, H-I. 1971. The time variable in phonological change. Journal of Linguistics 7.1–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cheng, C. C., and Wang, W. S-Y. 1972. Tone change in Cháozhōu Chinese: a study in lexical diffusion. Papers in linguistics in honor of Henry and Renée Kahane, ed. by Kachru, B. et al., 99–113. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.Google Scholar
Clumeck, H. 1973. An experiment using nasograph. MS.Google Scholar
Delattre, P. 1959. Rapports entre la durée vocalique, le timbre et la structure syllabique en français. French Review 32.547–552.Google Scholar
Delattre, P. 1967. Rapports entre la physiologie et la chronologie de la nasalité distinctive. Actes du 10e Congrès International de Linguistes 4.221–227.Google Scholar
Dixit, R. P. 1963. The segmental phonemes of contemporary standard Hindi. University of Texas master's thesis.Google Scholar
Dressler, W. 1971. An alleged case of non-chronological rule insertion: flōrālis. Linguistic Inquiry 2.597–598.Google Scholar
Fant, G. 1960. Acoustic theory of speech production. The Hague: Mouton.Google Scholar
Ferguson, C. and Farwell, B. 1975. Words and sounds in early language acquisition: English initial consonants in the first 50 words. Lg. 51.419–439.Google Scholar
Foley, J. 1967. Spanish plural formation. Lg. 43.486–493.Google Scholar
Fouché, P. 1958. Phonétique historique du français. 3 vols. Paris.Google Scholar
Halle, M., and Keyser, S. J. 1967. Les changements phonétiques conçus comme changements de règles. Langages 8.97–111.Google Scholar
Harris, J. 1970. A note on Spanish plural formation. Lg. 46.928–930.Google Scholar
Hiroto, I., Hirano, M.; and Umeno, M. 1964. A cineradiographic study on the movement of the soft palate during phonation of speech sounds. Studia Phonologica 3.35–46.Google Scholar
Hsieh, H-I. 1972. Lexical diffusion: evidence from child language acquisition. Glossa 6.89–104.Google Scholar
Hsieh, H-I. 1973. A new method of dialect subgrouping. Journal of Chinese Linguistics 1.64–92.Google Scholar
Janson, T. 1973. Reversed lexical diffusion and lexical split: loss of -d in Stockholm. MS.Google Scholar
Karlgren, B. 1954. Compendium of phonetics in Ancient Chinese. Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities, Stockholm, Bull. 26.211–367.Google Scholar
King, R. 1973. Rule insertion. Lg. 49.551–578.Google Scholar
Kiparsky, P. 1968. How abstract is phonology? Bloomington: Indiana University Linguistics Club. Now published in Three dimensions of linguistic theory, ed. by Fujimura, O., 5–56. Tokyo: TEC, 1973.Google Scholar
Kiparsky, P. 1971. Historical linguistics. A survey of linguistic science, ed. by Dingwall, W. O., 576–649. College Park: University of Maryland.Google Scholar
Labov, W., Yaeger, M.; and Steiner, R. 1972. A quantitative study of sound change in progress. (Report on contract NSF-GS-3287.) Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania.Google Scholar
Lehiste, I. (ed.) 1967. Readings in acoustic phonetics. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.Google Scholar
Lù, Zh-W. 1946. Shì Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn. [Elucidating Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn]. Yenching Journal 31.34–70.Google Scholar
Lù, Zh-W. 1947. Jīnnígé Xīrú Ěrmùzī su⊖ jì de yīn. [The pronunciation as recorded in Xīrù Ěrmùzī by Nicolas Trigault.] Yenching Journal 33.116–128.Google Scholar
Lù, Zh-W. 1948. Guóyū rùshēng yănbiàn xiăo zhù. [A brief note on the evolution of the ‘entering’ tone in the national language.] Yenching Journal 34.20–28.Google Scholar
Martinet, A. 1955. Économie des changements phonétiques. Berne: A. Francke.Google Scholar
Miller, G. A., and Nicely, P. E. 1955. An analysis of perceptual confusions among some English consonants. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 27.338–352. [Reprinted in Lehiste, 301–15.].CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Misra, B. G. 1967. Historical phonology of modern standard Hindi: Proto-Indo-European to the present. Cornell University dissertation.Google Scholar
Moskowitz, A. 1971. Acquisition of phonology. Berkeley dissertation.Google Scholar
Ohala, J. 1972. Physical models in phonology. Proceedings of the 7th International Congress of Phonetic Science, 1166–71. The Hague: Mouton.Google Scholar
Ohala, J. 1973b. Experimental historical phonology. Paper presented at the First International Conference on Historical Linguistics, Edinburgh.Google Scholar
Ohala, M. 1972. Topics in Hindi-Urdu phonology. UCLA dissertation.Google Scholar
Penzl, H. 1969. Geschichtliche deutsche Lautlehre. München: M. Hueber.Google Scholar
Postal, P. 1968. Aspects of phonological theory. New York: Harper & Row.Google Scholar
Prokosch, E. 1939. A comparative Germanic grammar. Philadelphia: LSA.Google Scholar
Richter, E. 1934. Chronologische Phonetik des Französischen bis zum Ende des 8. Jht. (=Zeitschrift für Romanische Philologie, Beiheft 82.) Halle.Google Scholar
Robinson, O. 1973. Rule re-ordering and lexical diffusion. MS.Google Scholar
Sapir, E. 1921. Language. New York: Harcourt Brace.Google Scholar
Saussure, F. de. 1916. Cours de linguistique générale. Paris.Google Scholar
Schane, S. A. 1972. On natural rules in phonology. Linguistic change and generative theory, ed. by Stockwell, R. & Macaulay, R., 199–229. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.Google Scholar
Schourup, L. 1972a. A cross-language study of vowel nasalization. Ohio State University master's thesis.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schourup, L. 1972b. Two aspects of vowel nasalization. Paper presented at the summer LSA meeting.Google Scholar
Sherman, D. 1973. Noun–verb stress alternation: an example of the lexical diffusion of sound change in English. POLA Reports, 2nd series, 17.46–82.Google Scholar
Shevelov, G. 1964. The prehistory of Slavic. Heidelberg: C. Winter.Google Scholar
Shibatani, M. 1973. The role of surface phonetic constraints in generative phonology. Lg. 49.87–106.Google Scholar
Sommerfelt, A. 1962. Diachronic and synchronic aspects of language. The Hague: Mouton.Google Scholar
Straka, G. 1955. Remarques sur les voyelles nasales, leur origine et leur évolution en français. Revue de Linguistique Romane 19.245–274.Google Scholar
Streeter, M. 1972. DOC, 1971: a Chinese dialect dictionary on computer. Computer and the Humanities 6.259–270.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Takahashi, H., et al. 1962. Studies on the movement of nasopharyngeal wall related to speech. Studia Phonologica 2.47–60.Google Scholar
Tarnóczy, T. 1948. Resonance data concerning nasals, laterals, and trills. Word 4.71–77. [Reprinted in Lehiste, 111–17.].CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vennemann, T. 1974. Phonological concreteness in natural generative grammar. Toward tomorrow's linguistics, ed. by Shuy, R. W. and Bailey, C.-J. N., 202–219. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press.Google Scholar
Wang, W. S-Y. 1959. Transition and release as perceptual cues for final plosives. J. of Speech and Hearing Research 2.66–73. [Reprinted in Lehiste, 343–50.].CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, W. S-Y. 1969. Competing changes as a cause of residue. Lg. 45.9–25.Google Scholar
Wang, W. S-Y. 1970. Project DOC: its methodological basis. J. of the American Oriental Society 90.57–66.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, W. S-Y., and Cheng, C. C. 1970. Implementation of phonological change: the Shuāng-fēng Chinese case. Papers from the 6th Regional Meeting, Chicago Linguistic Society, 552–559.Google Scholar
Wright, J. 1907. Historical German grammar, I. Oxford: University Press.Google Scholar