Both sonority, via the Sonority Sequencing Principle (SSP), and timing, via the coupled oscillator model advanced within Articulatory Phonology (AP), have been invoked to define the syllable as a unit. Georgian presents challenges for both definitions. The irrelevance of the SSP for Georgian phonotactics is well documented, while it is unclear whether Georgian displays the AP-predicted timing pattern of syllable onsets, i.e., the c-center effect. We investigate the relationship between sonority shape and global timing in complex onsets in Georgian by the means of a series of Electromagnetic Articulography (EMA) experiments. We use a direct measure of c-center stability relative to an anchor point in the vowel, and demonstrate that, contrary to predictions, the c-center is not an invariant point in the onset. Instead, our results suggest that Georgian syllables contain exclusively anti-phase coordination, even between the prevocalic consonant and the vowel. This coordination is not affected by sonority shape, although sonority is reflected in patterns of overlap. We discuss these results in relationship to the phonological and morphological profile of Georgian and suggest that syllable-wide anti-phase coordination is possible given Georgian’s permissive phonotactics, and aids in the formation of morphologically complex words. Typological extensions of this account are made.
Cite as: Crouch, C., Katsika, A., Chitoran, I. (2022) Georgian Syllables, Uncentered? . Proc. Speech Prosody 2022, 215-219, doi: 10.21437/SpeechProsody.2022-44
@inproceedings{crouch22_speechprosody,
author={Caroline Crouch and Argyro Katsika and Ioana Chitoran},
title={{Georgian Syllables, Uncentered? }},
year=2022,
booktitle={Proc. Speech Prosody 2022},
pages={215--219},
doi={10.21437/SpeechProsody.2022-44}
}