Underlying Representation Slidesx1

Underlying Representation

Generative Phonology

Robert Mannell

based on web based notes bybased on web-based notes byJonathan Harrington

Introduction (1)( )

We have already examined three levels ofWe have already examined three levels of abstraction in representing the sound structure of a language:of a language:-

a phonetic level (reasonably concrete)a phonemic levelphonological (distinctive) featuresphonological (distinctive) features

Ideally the phonetic level is concrete and measurable but we often use simplifications that are to some extent abstract For example we may say

2simplifications that are to some extent abstract. For example, we may say that a vowel is nasalised but there are, in reality, degrees of nasalisation.

Introduction (2)( )

In this lecture the terms “root word” or “rootIn this lecture the terms “root word” or “root form” may be used. The term “root” is equivalent to the alternative term “stem”equivalent to the alternative term “stem”.A “root word” or “stem” is a word without additional affixes (prefixes, infixes or suffixes)A “root form” is the “underlying” (or cognitive) phonemic form of a root word. eg. the root form in the word “dogs” is /dɔɡ/

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Introduction (3)( )

The idea of “underlying representations” isThe idea of “underlying representations” is an essential part of generative phonology. The underlying representation (or underlying form)underlying representation (or underlying form) of a root word or morpheme can be transformed into other forms (derived “surface”transformed into other forms (derived surface” forms) by rules. (Chomsky and Halle,1968)

fIndividual rules can be expressed in terms of phonemes or distinctive features (or both).

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Introduction (4)( )

An underlying representation is regarded inAn underlying representation is regarded, in generative phonology, as the underlying form of a word or morphemeform of a word or morpheme.Underlying forms are expressed in terms of phonemes.A surface form is the broad/phonemic transcription of how a word or morpheme is actually pronounced in a particular context.

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Introduction (5)( )

An underlying representation is transformedAn underlying representation is transformed into a surface realisation as a consequence of transformational rulesof transformational rules.These rules might cause a word, which has a single phonemic underlying form, to be actually pronounced using different phonemes.

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Introduction (6)( )

The underlying form of a word (in the mentalThe underlying form of a word (in the mental lexicon) is not just its underlying phonemic form but also the rules which transform thatform, but also the rules which transform that word into different surface forms (i.e. different phonemes) in different contextsphonemes) in different contexts.

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Introduction (7)( )

“Surface form” in generative phonology“Surface form”, in generative phonology, refers to the choice of phonemes used to actually pronounce a word or morphemeactually pronounce a word or morpheme, NOT to the allophones used.The underlying form of a morpheme is often written as follows:-{ } ti th d l i f ( ith{-s}, representing the underlying form (with phoneme /s/) of the plural morpheme.

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Plural morpheme in English (1)p g ( )

I di l t f E li h ( B iti h NZIn many dialects of English (e.g. British, NZ, Australian, American) the are three surface f f th l l h th t iforms for the plural morpheme that occur in different contexts (i.e. different word final

h i th di t d)

/-əz/ following /s z ʃ ʒ tʃ dʒ/phonemes in the preceding root word):-

/-əz/ following /s, z, ʃ, ʒ, tʃ, dʒ/Otherwise, /-z/ following voiced phonemesOOtherwise, /-s/ following voiceless phonemes

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For example we might say for morpheme { s}For example we might say, for morpheme {-s}(1) /s/ /əz/ / [+sib] _ which means that “/s/ becomes /@z/ in thewhich means that /s/ becomes /@z/ in the context of a preceding sibilant”. (nb. [+sib] = /s, z, ʃ, ʒ, tʃ, dʒ/)( [ ] , , ʃ, ʒ, ʃ, ʒ )

“ ” means “becomes”“/” means “in the context of”“_” means “place the morpheme here” and so, “[+ ib] ” “ ibil t d th h ”“[+sib] _” means “a sibilant precedes the morpheme”.

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Generative rules are often dependent uponGenerative rules are often dependent upon rule order and this required rule order is also part of the mental lexicon for a word orpart of the mental lexicon for a word or morpheme. I th { } l th [ ib] l ( l (1))In the {-s} example the [+sib] rule (rule (1)) needs to be applied first and then rule (2) can be applied:-(2) /s/ /z/ / [+voice] _

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Rule 2 works because in the [+sib] contextRule 2 works because in the [+sib] context /s/ has become /əz/ so the next rule can’t apply to it That is the output of rule (1) is theapply to it. That is, the output of rule (1) is the input to rule (2).As /s/ is the underlying form of the English plural morpheme {-s} we don’t need a rule f ffor that form as underlyingly it already has that form.

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If we had applied these two rules in theIf we had applied these two rules in the opposite order we would have ended up with /z/ following /z ʒ dʒ/ as those phonemes/z/ following /z, ʒ, dʒ/ as those phonemes are also [+voice].So, we didn’t need a rule to generate the underlying form (as its already there) and we needed to apply the rules in the correct order to get the correct answer.

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To summarise the mental lexicon in EnglishTo summarise, the mental lexicon in English contains, for the plural morpheme:-U d l i f i { } (i / /)1. Underlying form is {-s} (ie. /s/)

2. Plural morpheme attached to end of root word.3. Rule 1, applied first: /s/ /əz/ / [+sib] _4 Rule 2 applied second: /s/ /z/ / [+voice]4. Rule 2, applied second: /s/ /z/ / [+voice] _ 5. No rule required to obtain underlying /s/ as

this is what remains if rules 1 and 2 failthis is what remains if rules 1 and 2 fail.14

Singaporean English (1)g p g ( )

In Singapore English and some otherIn Singapore English, and some other dialects of English, talkers simplify word-final consonant clusters by deleting the final stopconsonant clusters by deleting the final stop. For example, words like 'task', 'lift', 'list' are produced as /tɑs/ /lɪf/ /lɪs/ i e without theproduced as /tɑs/, /lɪf/, /lɪs/, i.e. without the final /t/. This is a cluster simplification rule.

fWhat is the underlying representation of these words? (e.g. /tɑs/ or /tɑsk/)

15This section is based on Mohanan (1992) and Kenstowicz (1994) as well as the web based notes by Jonathan Harrington.


We can examine the underlying forms ofWe can examine the underlying forms of “task” and “list” by seeing how the plural morpheme interacts with themmorpheme interacts with them.If the last phoneme of these two words is

d l i l / / /k/ th { } / / thunderlyingly /t/ or /k/ then {-s} /s/ then we would end up with /ss/. Another common E li h l ld th i lif / / t / /English rule would then simplify /ss/ to /s/If the underlying last phoneme of these words is /s/ then {-s} /əz/.

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An assumption of the above rules is that theAn assumption of the above rules is that the morpheme is added BEFORE the final /k/ or /t/of the root word is deletedof the root word is deleted./tɑsk/ + /s/ /tɑsks/ (plural added)/tɑsks/ /tɑss/ (cluster simplification)/tɑsks/ /tɑss/ (cluster simplification)/tɑss/ /tɑs/ (geminate [double] reduction)If th d l i f f “t k” h d b / /If the underlying form of “task” had been /tɑs/then we would have ended up with /tɑsəz/. We know this because “bus” becomes “busses”

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Singaporean English speakers pronounceSingaporean English speakers pronounce these plurals as /tɑs/ and /lɪs/. So, we must assume that the underlying form of theseassume that the underlying form of these words includes the whole final fricative/stop cluster. (We might guess that the same is true ( g gfor “lift”, but this hasn’t been tested directly)When the plurals are produced, the plural p p , pmorpheme is added BEFORE the root word cluster is reduced to produce the final surface fform.

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Examples like this show us that the mentalExamples like this show us that the mental lexicon is not just a list of pronunciations.The mental lexicon is highly abstract and consists of underlying phonemic forms and sets of phonological rules that convert underlying forms into surface forms.

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Indonesian Prefixes (1)( )

The following example is from Halle andThe following example is from Halle and Clements (1983) In this example, we very conveniantly already know the underlying forms of the root words some of which have been modified in the prefixed surface form. We also have a prefix morpheme that varies significantly in its surface form.

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The goal of this exercise is to determine theThe goal of this exercise is to determine the underlying form of the prefix and the rules which transform the underlying forms of thewhich transform the underlying forms of the root word and prefix to the example surface formsforms.The meanings have been omitted from these

Gtables. Go to the associated web page to see the full table, including meanings.

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A quick examination of the list indicates thatA quick examination of the list indicates that a few root words appear to have had their first consonant deleted These words are:first consonant deleted. These words are:-/kirim/, /tulis/, /pukul/. In all other cases the root words are intactthe root words are intact. We can also see several surface forms for th fi / / / / / / / /the prefix:- /mə-/ /məŋ-/ /məɲ-/ /məm-/

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Another quick check shows that all of the rootAnother quick check shows that all of the root words that start with a voiceless oral stop /p t k/ have had that phoneme deleted/p, t, k/ have had that phoneme deleted. This proves that there is at least one rule that affects root word initial phonemesaffects root word initial phonemes. We will need to keep our eyes open for more rules that change the root word. There may be more, but so far we don’t know.

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You also need to be aware that /tʃ/ and /dʒ/You also need to be aware that /tʃ/ and /dʒ/usually represent postalveolar affricates but that they can behave phonologically as if theythat they can behave phonologically as if they are equivalent to the palatal stop consonants [ʈ] and [ɖ] (which they sound very similar to)[ʈ] and [ɖ] (which they sound very similar to). In such cases /tʃ/ and /dʒ/ behave as if they

fhave the same place of articulation as sounds like /ɲ/.

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If we look at the examples where there is aIf we look at the examples where there is a final consonant on the prefix and an initial consonant on the surface form of the rootconsonant on the surface form of the root word we have:-məŋhituŋ məŋɡambar məndəŋarŋ ŋ ŋɡ ŋməmbantu məɲdʒahit məɲtʃatatFive of these are homorganic pairs g p(i.e. oral stop/affricate and nasal stop have same place of articulation). The only

ti i hiexception is məŋhituŋ26


When we do a morphophonemic analysis weWhen we do a morphophonemic analysis we should always try to find patterns that can help to explain the surface formshelp to explain the surface forms.Assimilation to the same place of articulation is a very common rule in generative phonology. So we might consider this a possible hypothesis.

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If we look at the surface forms of the prefixIf we look at the surface forms of the prefix we find that three of them are nasal stops.Its easy to imagine a prefix underlying formIts easy to imagine a prefix underlying form that ends in a nasal stop and ONE assimilation and ONE deletion ruleassimilation and ONE deletion rule. Its more complex to imagine a prefix /m@-/ and several separate insertion rules some ofand several separate insertion rules some of which don’t make any sense in some contexts.

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For example if the prefix underlying form isFor example if the prefix underlying form is /mə-/ then how do we get the surface forms in the case of:in the case of:-/məŋ+hituŋ/ /məŋ+ambil/ /məŋ+isi/ /məŋ+undaŋ//məŋ+undaŋ/Why do we get /ŋ/ on these prefixes? There is no logical phonetic process here.

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So if we hypothesise that the prefix ends in aSo, if we hypothesise that the prefix ends in a nasal and that there is an assimilation rule that changes the final nasal to the samethat changes the final nasal to the same place of articulation as the first consonant of the following root word, how much of the g ,data does this account for?It accounts for all but seven of the examples pespecially if we also add a geminate simplification rule.

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məNmasak məmmasak məmasakməNmasak məmmasak məmasakməNnikah mənnikah mənikahməNŋaco məŋŋaco məŋacoməNɲaɲi məɲɲaɲi məɲaɲiɲ ɲ ɲɲ ɲ ɲ ɲməNdʒahit məɲdʒahitməNtʃatat məɲtʃatatməNtʃatat məɲtʃatat

(in the above “N” means any nasal stop)

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We have good evidence that assimilation toWe have good evidence that assimilation to place of articulation is at work here. S h d l i / bil/ / i i/So how do we explain /məŋambil/ /məŋisi/ and/məŋundaŋ/? (root words starting with a vowel)There’s no logical way that a vowel articulation can affect the place of articulation of a nasal stop so the easiest answer is that the underlying form of the prefix is /məŋ-/

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The root words that start with a voiceless oralThe root words that start with a voiceless oral stop can be explained by assuming that the prefix assimilation is applied first and then theprefix assimilation is applied first and then the root word initial /p t k/ is deleted./ ki i / / ki i / / i i //məŋkirim/ /məŋkirim/ /məŋirim//məŋtulis/ /məntulis/ /mənulis// k l/ / k l/ / k l//məŋpukul/ /məmpukul/ /məmukul/Why delete? It’s a convention for this language.

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An entirely different rule affects the additionAn entirely different rule affects the addition of this prefix to lempar, rasa, wakil and jakin. Its is a deletion rule that applies to the prefixIts is a deletion rule that applies to the prefix./məŋlempar/ /məlempar// / / //məŋrasa/ /mərasa//məŋwakil/ /məwakil// j ki / / j ki //məŋjakin/ /məjakin/

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The underlying form of the prefix is /məŋ /The underlying form of the prefix is /məŋ-/. The rules apply in the following order:-

1. If root word starts with an approximant delete /ŋ/ from the prefix. We do this first to prevent the assimilation rule from applying.

2. Assimilate the prefix /ŋ/ to the place of articulation of a following [-cont] consonant (i.e. oral stop, nasal stop or affricate)

3. Delete voiceless stop at start of root word.35


No other rules are required to explain thisNo other rules are required to explain this data.Th l b li d i hi dThe rules must be applied in this order.Knowledge of the underlying forms of the words and the morpheme PLUS the rules and the order in which the rules must be applied must be implicit knowledge for a linguistically competent speaker of Indonesian.

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Tagalog (1)g g ( )

On the web page associated with this topicOn the web page associated with this topic there is also a worked example for Tagalog.This data includes a vowel deletion rule, a vowel raising rule /o/ /u/ and a metathesis rule.A metathesis rule, most often applied to a pair of adjacent consonants, is the swapping of the order of the consonants. /tp/ /pt/

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Tagalog (2)g g ( )

An example of a metathesis rule is:An example of a metathesis rule is:-/atip/ /atp/ /apt//atip/ is the simple form /atp/ following a vowel deletion rule/ p/ g/apt/ following metathesis of the last two consonantsconsonants

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Tagalog (3)g g ( )

You should work through the TagalogYou should work through the Tagalog example on the web site.The main problem that people have with this example is with the meaning of the term “suffixed form”. It’s the form that the root takes when it’s followed by a suffix…i b k b k h ld b di.e. bukas buks should be read as …

bukas buks + an buksan

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Zoque (1)q ( )

For the Mexican language Zoque no obviousFor the Mexican language Zoque, no obvious simple form seems to have been supplied. We would normally expect a singular rather than awould normally expect a singular rather than a plural form to be a simple form. We have (for example) “clothes”, “my clothes” and “his clothes”. Plural is common to all forms. “ ” “ ”“my” or “his” morphemes are added to the plural “clothes” is simpler than “my clothes” and “his clothes”. (true for 5 out of 7 examples)

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Zoque (2)q ( )

plural my hisplural my hispama mbama pjama clothestatah ndatah t͡ʃatah fathertatah ndatah tʃatah fathertuwi nduwi t ͡ʃuwi dogk j j kj j horsekaju ŋɡaju kjaju horset͡sin nd ͡zin t ͡ʃin pine

k k j kmok mok mjok cornʔatsi ʔatsi ʔjatsi brother

In all cases the meanings are plural. e.g. dogs, my dogs, his dogs41

Zoque (3)q ( )

A quick look at the first two columns shows forA quick look at the first two columns shows, for the first five examples, that a nasal has been added to the front of the stem and the voicelessadded to the front of the stem and the voiceless stops and affricates have become voiced. e.g. pama mbama (the clothes my clothes)e.g. pama mbama (the clothes my clothes)This nasal prefix hasn’t got a clear place of articulation. We’ll call it /n/ for convenience.articulation. We ll call it /n/ for convenience./n/ assimilates to the place of assimilation of any following [-cont] (oral or nasal stop orany following [ cont] (oral or nasal stop or affricate)42

Zoque (4)q ( )

[ voice cont] voiceless stops and affricates[-voice -cont] voiceless stops and affricates become voiced i.e. [-voice] [+voice]e g pama mpama mbama (/p/ /b/)e.g. pama mpama mbama (/p/ /b/)resulting geminates simplify

k k ke.g. mok mmok moknasals delete before glottal stope.g. ʔatsi nʔatsi ʔatsi

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Zoque (5)q ( )

A quick glance at the third column suggestsA quick glance at the third column suggests that /j/ is inserted in many examplese g pama pjamae.g. pama pjamaIn the other 3 cases we get an affricate, but the affricate is post-alveolar. Post-alveolar can be considered to be a palatalised alveolar.

i j i ʃj i ʃ ie.g. tuwi tjuwi tʃjuwi tʃuwitsin tsjin tʃjin tʃin

i i il d linsert assimilate delete44

Conclusion (1)( )

In this lecture we have examined generativeIn this lecture we have examined generative phonology and have introduced the idea of underlying representations (UR) and surfaceunderlying representations (UR) and surface forms.We have also examined the rules that governWe have also examined the rules that govern the generation of surface forms from URs.Implicit knowledge of morpheme/word URsImplicit knowledge of morpheme/word URs and the rules that generate surface forms are essential for linguistic competence in a g planguage.

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Conclusion (2)( )

The URs of word stems (root words) andThe URs of word stems (root words) and affixes can be derived, with often some effort, via analysis of linguistic data This process isvia analysis of linguistic data. This process is greatly helped by knowledge of common generative rulesgenerative rules.Some generative rules follow common phonetic and phonological patterns, but some rules seem idiosyncratic to a particular l ( h i i )language (a speech community convention)

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Conclusion (3)( )

Common rules include:Common rules include:-assimilation (place and voicing)l t i lifi ti (i l di i t )cluster simplification (including geminates)

phoneme deletionphoneme pair metathesis (swapping)vowel rounding, spreading, raising, lowering, fronting, backingphoneme insertion

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Conclusion (4)( )

In many examples the determination of theIn many examples the determination of the URs of root words is easy and the main task is determining the URs of the suffixesis determining the URs of the suffixes, prefixes and infixes.Sometimes, however, neither are clear and the full picture must be built up gradually f ffrom a series of tested hypotheses.

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Further Readingg

You should read the topic web page at:You should read the topic web page at:-http://clas.mq.edu.au/speech/phonetics/phonology/generative/index.html

Also read the relevant chapter of Clark, Yallop and Fletcher.Clark, Yallop and Fletcher.

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References (Not required reading)( q g)

Chomsky N and Halle M 1968 The Sound Pattern ofChomsky, N., and Halle, M. 1968. The Sound Pattern of English. New York: Harper & Row.Halle, M. and Clements, G. 1983. Problem Book in Phonology, MIT Press.Kenstowicz, M. (1994) Phonology in Generative Grammar. Cambridge MA, Blackwell.Cambridge MA, Blackwell.Mohanan, K.P. (1992) “Describing the phonology of non-native varieties of a language”, World Englishes, 11, 111-128.

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