Paper

Algebraic Reanalysis of Phonological Processes Described as Output-Oriented

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Abstract

Phonological processes such as local harmony, iterative spreading, and long-distance harmony patterns, have been shown to belong to the Output (Tier-based) Strictly Local (O(T)SL) functions. This article provides an algebraic analysis of these processes.  The algebraic approach to subregular pattern complexity is important because it unifies the computational characterizations of constraints and processes, while leveraging a wealth of results in theoretical computer science on the structural properties of these classes.  These structural properties are useful because they underlie algorithms for classifying and learning.

The first result shows that the O(T)SL class has no corresponding algebraic characterization.  The second result establishes that canonical examples of these processes belong to the definite and reverse definite classes, or their tier-based extensions, some of the simplest algebraic classes.  The third result provides a single learning algorithm for these classes which identifies them in the limit from positive data.

Keywords: phonological processes, output strictly local, definite functions, semigroups

How to Cite:

Lambert, D. & Heinz, J., (2024) “Algebraic Reanalysis of Phonological Processes Described as Output-Oriented”, Society for Computation in Linguistics 7(1), 129–138. doi: https://doi.org/10.7275/scil.2137