Positional Neutralization - Linguistics - University of California ...

final open syllables as well. Final open syllables were then (either subsequently or from
the outset) subject to the type of phonetic attrition discussed above in connection with
devoicing.
That a combination of features affecting final vowels such as a tendency to total
or partial devoicing, a drastic amplitude drop, and various instantiations of non-modal
phonation types could lead to a reduction in the perception of vowel quality contrasts for
final vowels (while vowels in closed final syllables might be shielded somewhat from
these effects due to increased distance from the phrase-boundary) is not difficult to
conceive. Some combination of various of the above should easily be enough to obscure
vowel distinctions and cause reanalysis and collapse of contrasts. But why raising?
Certainly breathy phonation has been associated with raising in some languages (Gordon
and Ladefoged 2001: 400). Another possibility, however, one that would account for both
reduction through raising and laxing of phrase-final vowels suggests itself. Take the
following spectrogram, of the Russian word [blot], 'swamp', in phrase-final position.
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