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106 Bogus clusters, syllabic consonants and vowel syncope. . .ble, e.g. sudden [ ® s¿d«n]. Note that in the latter situation the sonorantis never syllabic. Thus, from what has been said above it follows thatthe disappearance of the schwa is intimately connected with the appearanceof the syllabic consonant. Since it is always the preceding schwawhich disappears, the representation in (3a) must be correct. The sonorantspreads to the left and docks on to the position originally occupiedby the schwa. This situation is depicted in the example of sudden[ ® s¿d ®n] in (4).(4)C|sV|¿C|dVCV|P«®nThere are two immediate questions which may occur to the reader. Firstly,is it possible to define the precise context of the phenomenon? Secondlyand more importantly, what is the trigger of the expansionist behaviour ofsonorants. In other words, why do syllabic consonants appear in the firstplace? In the remainder of this chapter we shall address both questionsand suggest a potential solution to the problem. However, before we startthe analysis proper, it seems justified to look at similar cases in closely relatedGerman.2.2. Syllabic consonants in GermanThe conditions under which syllabic consonants appear in German arealmost identical to those presented in the previous section. Thus in German,as in English, syllabic consonants are an extremely common phenomenon.It has been described by, among others, Hall (1992), Brockhaus(1995), W iese (1996), Scheer (2004). Furthermore, the phenomenonin question affects only sonorants, predominantly nasals and thelateral, which spread to the preceding nuclear position. The nuclear positioninvaded by a sonorant is occupied by a weak vowel, that is, schwa.There is a close relation between the schwa and a syllabic consonant inthat they are mutually exclusive. To put it differently, syllabicity goes handin hand with the absence of the schwa and vice versa, the appearance ofthe schwa precludes the existence of the syllabic consonant. It must benoted here that the absence of the schwa is not obligatory, which simplymeans that the form like Segel ‘sail’ can be pronounced either with the