Old English phonologyheres a list of the rules which you need to know to be able to understand the historical transition

from Pgmc. to OE. The list looks long because Ive given all possible variants of each one. Learn the one which best suits YOU. You may wish to rewrite these either as linear rules using distinctive features or as autosegmental rules. Consonantsthe system looks almost like that of Modern English (cf. Figs. 53 and 2-2); some of you might be able to either give a full feature specification of them, or a radically underspecified version. Developments from PGmc. (diachronic phonological rules) 1) k-palatalization (k-pal) PGmc. [V back]

Translation: Proto-Germanic (PGmc.) became Old English (OE) in the neighbourhood of any non-back (i.e., front) vowel. Exx.: OE bargain, child; ditch, p{c thatch.

2) Lenition (Len) PGmc. / [V +back] [V +back] / {l,r} PGmc. became OE after a liquid (i.e., ). Exx.: OE saw; follow 3) g-palatalization (g-pal) PGmc. PGmc. vowel. Exx.: OE / [V back] became OE yet, in the neighbourhood of a front many either between two back vowels or barrow (cogn: Gm. Berg mountain),

year;

4) Assibilation (Assib) PGmc. The PGmc. consonant cluster Exx.: OE fish, wash, became the OE sibilant sharp .

5) Affrication (Affric) PGmc. OE became the OE affricate

The PGmc. geminate consonant . Exx.: OE bridge, sedge,

(Mostly) synchronic phonological rules 6) Fricative voicing (FV)

Fricatives became voiced between voiced sounds. Exx.: OE paths to rise, knives, p{pas

7) Nasal assimilation (NA) { } [+back] / [son +back] Alveolar nasal, i.e. , became velar nasal, i.e. consonant, i.e. . Exx.: OE 8) Distribution of to sink, (DX) , before a velar to sing

a) x-palatalization (XP) PGmc.

OE

became

after a front vowel.

b) x-glottalization (XG) PGmc. Elsewhere, became . hand,

Exx.: OE p sight; OE ladle, raven, to take a nap, white

Vowels We wont even consider Breaking and Back Mutation, because they had no lasting effect on the language. What she shows as i-umlaut is really several rules: 1) i-umlaut (IU) a) Short vowels { }

The short back vowels /u, o/ became the short FRONT vowels /i, e/ before a syllable containing either /i/ or /j/ (N.B.: /j/ is simply the semivowel counterpart of /i/; both are FRONT articulations). Exx.: Lat. olium oil:OE ele, cuman to come:cyme (< *kumi) arrival; old/elder (< *oldir) b) Long vowels { }

The long back vowels became the long FRONT vowels before a syllable containing either or (again, N.B.: /j/ is simply the semivowel counterpart of /i/; both are FRONT articulations). Exx.: OE to judge, deem. mouse: whole: mice, judgment: to heal; foot

c) Diphthongs { } { }

The (long or short) diphthongs became the FRONT monophthong (N.B.: long diphthong became long monophthong, etc.) before a syllable containing either or (again, N.B.: /j/ is simply the semivowel counterpart of /i/; both are FRONT articulations). Exx.: OE remove, large: larger, far: to offer: it offers to

2) Raising (Rais) a) Before { }

The vowels , respectively, were raised to the vowels , respectively before a syllable containing either or (N.B.: is simply the semivowel counterpart of ; both are HIGH articulations). Exx.: OE slain: bear: p (s)he/it bears b) Before N slaying, death, to

(PGmc.) Exx.: PGmc.

became OE

before a nasal consonant. to bind, PGmc.

to sink Prosody We know very little about it, except that one of the major features of early Germanic verse was that it was ALLITERATIVE; stressed words in a poetic line began with the same ONSET . By looking for the alliterations, we know at least where the stresses were in a line. Heres an example (remember this?): W anda the witch washed her wiry wig in a well on a windy winter W ednesday.