Romance lenition
Towards a formal account of a contrast maintaining
phonetically motivated sound change
This paper proposes an OT account of diachronic and synchronic Romance lenition
based on the theory of Comparative Markedness. The analysis, contrary to previous
analyses, allows for a straightforward description of synchronic allophonic lenition
processes where voicing and spirantization take place simultaneously without loss of
contrast. The comparative markedness analysis of lenition not only allows for a
parallel OT description of counter-feeding opacity in synchronic Gran Canarian,
Corsican and Sardinian lenition, but moreover makes understandable why sound
change should start out in a counter-feeding fashion.