An Autosegmental Analysis of Venda Tonology

An Autosegmental Analysis ofVenda Tonology Farida Cassimjee GARLAND PUBLISHING, INC. New York • London 1992 CONTENTS ...

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An Autosegmental Analysis ofVenda Tonology Farida Cassimjee

GARLAND PUBLISHING, INC. New York • London 1992

CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 Introduction

3

CHAPTER 2 The Tonology of the Simple Noun

15

CHAPTER 3 Verbal Tonology (I)

87

CHAPTER 4 Verbal Tonology (II)

163

CHAPTER 5 (Mostly) Verbal Tonology (III)

257

REFERENCES

353

v

CHAPTER 1

Introduction 1.0. Introduction. This thesis represents a beginning rather than an ending. Specifically, it is an attempt to explore the tonology of Venda (more correctly, Tshivend4), a Bantu language spoken In the Zoutpansberg district of the Northern Transvaal in South Africa as well as in parts of Zimbabwe. It is a beginning, first of all, in the sense that it is by no means an exhaustive account of the facts of Venda tone. There are doubtless large and important parts of the grammar of Venda that have not been included (due in some cases to the lack of data, due in other cases to the limitations imposed by the great complexity of Venda morphology). It is a beginning also in that it represents the first attempt to look at Venda from the perspective afforded by the autosegmental framework for phonological analysis. We believe that this framework makes possible an insightful account of the complicated and (superficially) at times baffling facts of Venda tonology. Indeed, we would claim that the success that the framework has in illuminating Venda tone lends strong support to the most fundamental features of this framework. This result is perhaps somewhat surprising given that in many respects Venda appears not to be the sort 3

4

Introduction

of tone language for which the autosegmental approach Is specifically geared. While the principal theoretical concepts employed in this thesis are those of autosegmental phonology, we have also considered at times whether certain other theoretical notions could be resorted to in an attempt to get a better understanding of Venda tone. In particular, we have considered whether the theory of underspeciflcation could be used to advantage to account for the well-known asymmetry in Bantu languages (including Venda) between High and Low tones. And we have considered whether the theory of lexical phonology can contribute to a better understanding of problems relating to the domain of application of certain tonological rules in Venda. We conclude, however, that neither of these theories appears to contribute very significantly to the understanding of Venda tone, though some aspects of Venda are relevant for the elaboration of these particular theories. The present chapter will provide a brief introduction to the Venda language and to previous linguistic research dealing with Venda (cf. section 1.1.). a discussion of the data on which our analysis Is based (cf. section 1.2). and a sketch of the most relevant aspects of the theoretical frameworks employed or discussed in the development of the thesis (cf. section 1.3). 1.1. Previous linguistic research. Venda (called Tshivenda in the language itself) is spoken by the Vhavenda, who inhabit the areas around Louis Trichardt and Thohoyandou in the Zoutpansberg region of the Northern Transvaal, as well as in adjoining areas in Zimbabwe. In his dictionary of Venda, Van Warmelo describes the language as "very homogeneous" and says that "such dialectal differences as exist are not Important" (van Warmelo, 1937, p. 9). Zlervogel, Wentzel, and Makuya in A Handbook of the Venda Language likewise describe Venda as "linguistically fairly uniform" and claim that "one can hardly speak of dialects within this group, rather of variations" (Zlervogel et al.. 1972. p. 1). We have not had the opportunity to undertake any systematic study of the dialectal variation in Venda and thus are unable to add significantly to the above comments.

Introduction

5

However, we will have occasion in the course of the thesis to discuss some areas of tonal variation In the data available to u s (see particularly Chapter Five). Venda belongs to the South-Eastern Zone of Bantu languages. The similarity between Venda and the Karanga dialect of Shona has been much noted (cf. van Warmelo, 1937, p. 9; Zlervogel et al., 1972, p. 1), and the reader need only compare the present description of Venda tone with David Odden's (1981) description of the Karanga tone system to see that this deep similarity holds tonally as well as otherwise. The most significant work on the role of tone in Venda is undoubtedly E.O.J. Westphal's Venda: Tonal Structure and Intonation [1962). In that study. Westphal traces the history of Venda tonal studies, beginning with C. Melnhof s (1901) work. Westphal observes that "Melnhof illustrated the Importance of tone..., but did not describe it beyond giving a few examples" (Westphal. 1962, p. 51). Melnhof failed to recognize that Venda (and Bantu in general) could be analyzed In terms of two tones. High and Low. In 1904. Theodor and Paul Schwellnus (fluent speakers of Venda who were students of Melnhof and who had served as the sources of Melnhof s data) published Die Verba des Tsi-venda "a little vocabulary of Venda verbs. ..in which they Indicated, on the first syllable of each word, whether it was high or low" (Westphal, 1962, p. 51). In a later grammar written In Venda, Paul Schwellnus Indicated "tone only In those words where the difference between two similar words is not rendered by the vowels and the consonants they contain" (Westphal. 1962. p. 51). In 1937, Dr. N. J. van Warmelo published his Tshivenda Dictionary. This work is notable from a tonal point of view in that, for the first time, the tonal pattern of each word is indicated In terms of three tones: High, Low, and Falling. (As we will see in the course of the thesis, the Falling tone is derived from an underlying system with Just High and Low tones.) It is only the verb stems that are not transcribed fully for each syllable; the first vowel of the verb stem is simply indicated as being either High or Low. (As we will see later, this is a valid procedure since verb stems In Venda can readily be shown to fit into two tonal types: High stems and Low stems.)

6

Introduction

While van Warmelo's dictionary represented a substantial stride forward with respect to accounting for the tonal shape of Venda (non-verb) words In Isolation, it is deficient in the areas that a dictionary Is of necessity deficient. It does not provide a systematic account of the changes that words undergo in the sentence, nor does It provide a systematic description of the tonal aspects of the morphologically complex verbal system. It was Westphal's study that grappled with these matters for the first time. Westphal's study is the first description of Venda that deals with the tonal alternations displayed by linguistic units (affixes, stems, words) In Venda. These alternations are particularly pervasive in Venda. For example, every word in the language is subject to systematic alternations in tonal shape depending on the phrasal context in which It appears. Furthermore, the morphological elements that make up a verbal word (prefixes, verb stems, suffixes) are subject to extensive tonal variations depending upon the morphological and lexical make-up of the verbal word. These alternations are described in rich detail in Westphal's study. Westphal's analysis is not cast In any particular theoretical framework (It is certainly pre-generative), but it Is Insightful in many ways and does certainly recognize the need to view the tonal changes as deviations from, in effect, a "basic" (underlying) form. Specifically, Westphal argues that "It Is unnecessary to consider more than two categories of tone in Venda despite the fact that there Is a very great variety of tonal levels and a most complex system of tonal Intervals in the language" (1962, p. 53). Westphal recognizes, for example, the role of downdrlft In the language (whereby one or more Hightoned syllables separated from a preceding High tone by one or more Low-toned syllables Is pronounced at a somewhat lower pitch level than the earlier High). He also recognizes the occurrence of downstep in the language ~ i.e. a downward shift of the pitch level between two adjacent High-toned syllables. Westphal writes: "While in many cases the tone steps occur mechanically when a tone of the opposite kind intervenes (i.e. there is downdrlft In the language: FC1 there

Introduction

7

are other cases which cannot be described in this way [I.e. there Is downstepplng In the language: FC). These other cases have not been sufficiently investigated and it still remains to be seen whether they are not In fact variations of the mechanical step" (1962. p. 56). We will attempt to establish that all cases of downstep can in fact be strongly argued to simply follow from downdrift in the language. Besides recognizing that there are Just two tones in Venda, High and Low, and that It Is the phenomenon of downdrlft/downstep that Is responsible for the many variations In pitch level, Westphal also sees that Falling- toned syllables are In some way derived from Low-toned syllables (e.g. he gives the tonal shape of kh6kh01a 'ankle-bone' as HLH). Westphal also sees that the surface tonal shape of a syllable does not necessarily reflect Its underlying tone (of course, he does not employ this terminology). For example, he writes: "Most tones are what they seem to be and their Influence is direct, but there are a few cases where a tone, although high, may still have the same Influence that any ordinary low has. Usually such high-toned syllables are primarily or Inherently low but have only borrowed a high tone because of their tonetic environment" (1962, p. 57). Finally, Westphal clearly identifies the factor that is crucial to the changes that a word undergoes in sentences: a word will change Its tonal shape if the preceding word ends In a High tone; if there is no preceding word or if the preceding word ends In a Low tone, no change will occur. Westphal's description of Venda tonal shapes is an Important piece of work in that it provides a rather extensive documentation of the tonal facts of the language (without which the present thesis could not have been written), providing information not only about the pronunciation of words in Isolation but also information about the pervasive tonal changes that words undergo In phrases. Westphal's study provides a systematic account of data that Is not otherwise available In the published literature. It not only provides a systematic presentation of the tonal shapes of words. It does so In terms of a highly satisfactory analysis that

Introduction

8

reduces the superficially complex pitch facts to two underlying tones. There are. however, limitations on Westphal's study. It is basically an atheoretlcal description of Venda tone. As such. Its main goal Is to provide a description of the tonal alternations exhibited by Venda linguistic units. It does not attempt to evolve a set of rules which will predict these alternations. It rather lists the various alternations that occur, without any attempt to establish that there Is a pattern to these alternations. The following example will establish this point. Westphal shows that the following alternations occur in Venda nomlnals: (1) isolation or post-Low

post-High

mu-thu mu-ri mu-tuka mu-rathu mu-sadzi mu-selwa

mu-thu mu-ri mu-tuka mu-rathu mu-sadzi mu-sehva

mu-kalaha mu-tukana mu-tannga mu-kegulu mu-duhulu tshi-vhavhala mu-lambonl

mu-kalaha mu-tukana mu-ta!nnga mu-kegulu mu-duhulu tshi-vhavhala mu-lamb!6ni

and then says: "The rules governing these mutations are apparently the following: 1. A preceding H demands the noun prefix to be H. 2. The second syllable is L with monosyllabic stems; is always F with disyUables, and is always H with polysyllables.

Introduction

9

3. The third syllable Is always L unless it has the first H (in the basic pattern) e.g. murathu. In trisyllabic stems with a prefix the third syllable, if It contains the first H, Is always found with a tone step e.g. muthannga which becomes mfithatnnga. 4. The fourth syllable Is always L unless the basic tone pattern has Its first H on the third (cf. above) or fourth syllable. In either case there Is a tone step, this step being caused either by an Intervening L or by the step on the 3rd syllable." (1962, p. 61). An examination of the above "rules" shows that these are not rules at all (as this term is usually understood), but rather a series of descriptive statements about the tonal shape that each syllable of a noun will display In the post-High environment. To be precise, there Is no attempt to state the nature of the tonologlcal processes that determine what tonal shape a given syllable In the noun will manifest In the postHigh environment. We conclude, therefore, that as Important as Westphal's study is, there is nevertheless a need for a study of Venda tone that examines Venda tone from a theoreticallyoriented perspective and which seeks to discover the principles that underlie the complex tonal alternations that Venda exhibits. 1.2. The data base for the present study. Westphal (1962) provides the basic data source for this thesis, especially with reference to the post-High pronunciations of words. Westphal says that "the material on which this book is based was written down during the years that Chief [Walter R ] Maslkhwa spent In Johannesburg while I was a lecturer at the University of the Wltwatersrand" (p. 50), but notes that "the material contained in this book has not been checked with him or with any other Venda speaker and I take responsibility for any errors or omissions in it" (p. 50). While Westphal's data is Internally consistent, and for the most part in agreement with the other data sources used in this thesis, there Is one

10

Introduction

substantial problem: there appear to be numerous typographical errors in the published text. Wherever we have emended Westphal's data due to our conviction that a typographical error is Involved, we have added an endnote to that effect. We have Indicated examples taken from Westphal by the symbol [W] placed after them. In Jury of 1983, additional systematic material concerning the verbal system was elicited from Mr. Thomas Senganl, a native speaker of Venda and a lecturer in the Venda section of the Department of African Languages at the University of South Africa. While the material elicited from Mr. Senganl largely tallies with Westphal's data on the tonal patterns associated with the various verbal tenses, there is one clear and important difference that is readily noted — certain syllables that are Invariably High-toned in Westphal's data sometimes have a Low tone realization In Mr. Senganl's speech. This matter Is explored as far as the data currently available to us allows in Chapter Five. The material elicited from Mr. Senganl Is also extremely Interesting In suggesting that a tonal contrast may In fact exist In constructions where Westphal claims that all the subject prefixes are pronounced with the same tone (there being other constructions where there Is a contrast between Low-toned subject prefixes and High-toned subject prefixes). However, this aspect of the tonal structure of the verb can not be adequately explored without detailed work with native speakers and we did not have the opportunity to carry out such work. We have Indicated examples drawn from material elicited from Mr. Senganl by the symbol IS] placed after them. We have also consulted the Venda language course published by the University of South Africa fWentzel and Mulolwa, 1975). The tonal transcriptions in the printed text are often not accurate and thus could not be used, but the spoken material on the accompanying tapes afforded pertinent data. We have Indicated examples drawn from the UNISA course by the symbol [U]. We have consulted the dictionary of van Warmelo for information concerning the pronunciation of (particularly nonverbal) Items in isolation. However, since most of the problems dealt with in this thesis — the phrasal alternations In tone, the

Introduction

11

tonology of the verb ~ Involve kinds of data that are not contained In a dictionary entry, our use of van Warmelo has been fairly Incidental. A certain amount of data on the verbal system was elicited In January of 1986 for us by Mr. James M.S. Khumalo In South Africa from two other speakers of Venda. This material, labelled (N], primarily concerns the behavior of monosyllabic verb stems and was elicited In order to better sort out variations and/or inconsistencies in the data drawn from Westphal and Mr. Senganl. 1.3. The theoretical framework of the thesis. In this thesis we will adopt the basic framework of autosegmental phonology. The present section presents a sketch of the essential aspects of this approach to phonology, contrasting It with the standard generative theory. (For discussion of the autosegmental approach to phonology, see Goldsmith (1976). Clements and Goldsmith, eds. (1984). Clements (1977. 1980, 1981. 1985), Clements and Keyser (1983), McCarthy (1979). to mention Just a few of the many works dealing with this framework.) Autosegmental phonology and standard generative phonology differ In terms of the assumptions that they make concerning the nature of phonological representations. In standard generative phonology (or what we will henceforth refer to as "linear phonology"), phonological representations are regarded as a (uni)linear sequence of phonological segments, where a segment is a distinctive feature matrix. A segment Is a set of phonological properties ("distinctive features") such that (a) there Is no internal structure to this set of properties and (b) a segment can be specified only once for any given property and (c) a property cannot simultaneously be part of more than one segment, etc. Crucially, in this view, a phonological feature F, cannot exist independently of the other phonological features F r Fk, etc., which make up a given segment. As a result, one cannot delete a feature F, without deleting all the other features that make up the segment Similarly, a segment changes by altering Its feature composition, and this alteration Is necessarily independent of the segment that "triggers" the alteration.

12

Introduction

Autosegmental phonology, on the other hand, claims that phonological representations consist of a number of independent sequences of phonological features. For example, the tonal structure of an Item may be represented as a sequence of tonal specifications independent of any other phonological features. Each of these Independent "lines" in a phonological representation is referred to as a tier. We will be concerned in this thesis Just with the tonal tier. The multilinear view of phonology hypothesizes that the various tiers are ultimately co-ordinated In terms of a sequence of abstract "timing units". This sequence of abstract timing units Is (In different versions of multilinear phonology) referred to as the "core" or the "skeleton" or the "CV tier". The units in the skeleton are themselves organized into syllables and possibly other hierarchical units. The theory of autosegmental phonology represents the co-ordination of the tiers in terms of association lines. Taking the tonal tier as an example, the various tonal specifications are linked (associated) to the "tone-bearing units" (TBU's) by means of association lines. What the tone-bearing units are is in part a language-specific property. In some languages the TBU's may be vowel "slots" in the skeleton; In other languages TBU's may be vowels and certain consonants; in other languages TBU's may be syllables. What Is crucial In autosegmental phonology Is that the associations between the tonal tier and the TBU's is not oneto-one, but one-many and many-one. Specifically, a single tonal specification may be associated with a sequence of TBU's, and a single TBU may be associated with a sequence of tonal specifications. The only constraint is that association lines may not cross. Although postulatlon of multiple tiers of phonological features claims that these features are "Independent" of one another, the extent of this independence varies along one dimension: namely, are the feature specifications on a given tier associated underlyingly to the skeleton or not? In other words, the tiers are Indeed totally Independent If there is no lexical linkage of the feature specifications to the skeleton.

Introduction.

13

Where the features are linked lexically to the skeleton, the Independence is less. Since Venda turns out to be a language where the tonal specifications are lexically linked to the TBLTs, It Is Important to emphasize In what sense the tonal specifications are "Independent" even If lexically linked. The Independence comes In terms of the kinds of phonological rules and representations that are available in an autosegmental framework. Phonological rules can do any of the following things: (a) add association lines (e.g. operate on a High tone that Is lexically linked to one TBU and make it also associated with another TBU as well); (b) delete association lines (e.g. operate on a tone that Is lexically linked to one TBU by delinking it from that TBU. but still leave the tone in the tonal tier); (c) add. delete or change a tonal specification without otherwise affecting the segmental makeup of the word; (d) add, delete, or change segmental material without affecting the tonal specifications. Throughout the course of this thesis, we will have ample opportunity to see how the autosegmental framework allows for an insightful analysis of Venda tonology. At times we will make reference to two other theoretical approaches — underspeclflcatlon and lexical phonology. The main idea of underspecification theory is simply that in underlying structure a slot in the skeleton may be specified (in a given environment) for only one value of a feature. If it is not specified for that value ([aFD, then it Is left unspecified. A special kind of rule ~ referred to as a "default" rule — will later specify the unspecified slot with the value |-aF]. There are, of course, different varieties of underspecification theory (cf. Klparsky (1985), Pulleyblank (1983), and Archangeli (1984) which differ in terms of the basis for choosing which feature value Is specified in underlying representations and which differ in terms of at what point in the grammar the default rules are to apply, etc. We are not concerned here with these different variants of underspecification theory. Rather, we are Interested In this approach only to the extent of ascertaining whether — given the fact that we will claim that Venda has Just High and Low tones underlyingly ~ any insights into the tonal patterning of Venda can be obtained by assuming an underspecification approach to phonological representations.

14

Introduction

The theory of lexical phonology Is one that. In Its broadest outlines, hypothesizes that certain phonological rules (the so-called "lexical rules") operate "hand-ln-hand" with word-formation processes. It distinguishes these lexical rules (which are sensitive to the morphological makeup of words) from post-lexical rules (which are Insensitive to morphological structure and furthermore operate at a level where words have been combined to form sentences). There are, of course, many varieties to the lexical phonology framework (cf. Klparsky (1982a), (1982b). (1985); Mohanan (1982, 1985); Mohanan and Mohanan (1984); Halle and Mohanan (1985); Rubach (1984. 1985), etc. The Issue that we will be most concerned with here is the following one: the claim that post-lexical phonological rules (those that must apply at the level where words have been combined to form sentences) are insensitive to the internal morphological structure of words. We will identify certain places in the grammar of Venda where crucial appeal to this hypothesis must be made. But we will also show that there Is another place where the hypothesis appears to be Inconsistent with the data. 1.4. Outline of the thesis. Four chapters make up the body of the thesis. In Chapter Two, we examine the tonal alternations exhibited by Venda nomlnals. Chapter Three presents an analysis of a number of the major affirmative verb tenses. Chapters Four and Five primarily focus on further aspects of the verbal system, but with forays into other, tonally-related matters (various "inflected" forms of the noun, adjectives).

CHAPTER 2

The Tonology of the Simple Noun 2.0. Introduction. We begin our examination of the Venda tonal system by examining the tonal shapes of Venda nomlnals in the two contexts listed below: (1)

(2)

beginning of phrase or NOUN word that ends in a Low tone when It Is pronounced In Isolation word that ends in a High tone when It Is NOUN pronounced In Isolation

end of phrase

end of phrase

We will refer to the environment in (1) as the post-Low environment (though this environment includes the case where nothing precedes the noun as well a s the case where a Low tone-final word precedes) and the environment In (2) as the post-High environment. Each Venda 15

The Tonology of the Simple Noun

16

noun assumes a different tonal shape in the post-High e n v i r o n m e n t a s c o m p a r e d with t h e post-Low environment. These alternations are extremely diverse in nature, but we will demonstrate that, when viewed from the autosegmental perspective, they are the consequence of a very few, extremely general rules. The structure of simple nouns in Venda does not differ from other Bantu languages: essentially, each noun consists of a noun class prefix followed by the noun stem. The only complication is that in one noun class the characteristic prefix has a null phonological shape. Noun class prefixes regularly appear Low-toned in the post-Low environment. 2.1. Prefixed nouns. We will begin developing our analysis by examining disyllabic noun stems preceded by a prefix. Such Items exhibit—In the post-Low environment—the four possible tone patterns illustrated below. (In the transcriptions In this thesis, the absence of a diacritic Indicates Low tone, the acute accent Indicates a High tone, and a circumflex accent Indicates a Falling tone.) (3)

mu-sadzi mu-tuka mu-selwa mu-rathu

'woman' *youth' 'bride' 'brother'

cf. after a word ending in a Low tone: ndi-kho-u-vhona ndi-kho-u-vhona ndi-kho-u-vhona ndi-kho-u-vhona.

mu-sadzi mu-tuka mu-sehva mu-rathu

Our first task is to determine the nature of the underlying tonal representations of these items. If we were to assume that Venda has two underlying tones. High and Low (a not unreasonable assumption given that In the data in (3) Just two tones appear, namely H and L), then perhaps the most straightforward analysis would be one


17

where the prefixes are Inherently L-toned and each stem vowel Is either High or Low. According to this analysis, "woman' would have a HH stem, "youth' a LL stem, 'bride' a HL stem, and 'brother' a LH stem (where H=Hlgh and L=Low). Of course. If we were to assume some version of the theory of underspeclflcatlon, then we would presumably have only the High-toned syllables specified In underlying structure and leave the Low-toned syllables without any tonal specification, supplying their Low tones by a default rule that would say that any vowel lacking a tone Is automatically assigned a Low tone. Some such approach Is extremely attractive since the data in (3) clearly suggest that Venda is indeed a true tone language where each vowel independently selects a tone from the underlying tonal Inventory. In a true tone language. If the tonal inventory contains two tones, and If a stem has two vowels, one expects four possible combinations of tones: HH, LL, HL. LH. And indeed this Is what one finds in Venda. In order to see whether the above analysis of the tonal structure of Venda disyllabic nominal stems can be maintained (either In part or in totality) it is necessary for u s to consider the shape that items like those in (3) assume in the post-High environment. (4)

ndi-vh6na ndl-vhona ndi-vhona ndl-vhona


The pattern of alternation found in (3) and (4) is summarized in (5) below (where F=Falllng tone): (5)


LHH LLL LHL LLH


HFL HFL HFL HFH

Notice that three distinct tonal patterns In the post-Low environment are all merged Into the same HFL pattern in the post-High situation. Only the items like mu-rathH retain a

18


unique surface form—HFH. but even here the shape of the first two syllables Is the same as In the other three cases. It seems rather obvious that the post-Low environment must be taken as revealing (essentially) the underlying tone of the nominal. If we were to take the post-High shape as underlying, we would have no way of predicting that underlying mu-sadzi would adopt the form mu-sadzl in post-Low position whereas mu-tuka would adopt the shape mu-tuka and mu-sClwa would adopt the shape mu-selwa. The post-Low context provides the environment that maximally differentiates the noun stems Into four types and thus must be taken as the starting point from which the post-High pronunciations can be derived. What, then. Is going on In the post-High environment? Careful examination will reveal, of course, that more than one thing Is going on In the data in (4). In order to factor out some of the complications, we will concentrate at the beginning on those nouns that have a Low tone on the first vowel of the stem In the post-Low environment. Observing that an all Low word such as mu-tuka becomes HFL when preceded by a High, and that a LLH word such as mu-rathu becomes a HFH word, it seems clear that we are dealing with a case where a High at the end of one word Is affecting the tones of the following word; more specifically, we seem to be dealing with a case of assimilation whereby the tones of the second word are being raised under the Influence of the High tone of the first word. Within the theory of autosegmental phonology, tonal assimilation Is characteristically regarded as a spreading phenomenon—I.e. as a case where an element on the tonal tier associated with one tone-bearing unit (TBU) comes to be linked as well with an Immediately neighboring TBU. If the present case of assimilation Is to be treated in the prototypical way. then, what will be required Is that the High tone at the end of the first word come to be associated as well with the first and also the second TBU of the following word. If we were to follow the analysis Initially suggested for nomlnals like mu-tuka and mu-rathu, then for the post-High context we would have either the underlying representations

The Tonoiogy of the Simple Noun

19

in (6)—given fully-specified underlying forms, or the underlying representations In (7)—given an under-speclflcatlon approach. (6)

H L L L L

V (7)

mu-mutuka

H

V

H

mu-tuka

V

L

L

H

mu-rathu

H

H

V

mu-rathu

The underspeclflcatlon approach runs Immediately Into rather obvious difficulties If we were to assume that the High Tone Spread rule (which we are presently attempting to formulate) operates prior to the default rule making unspecified TBLTs Low-toned. Examination of the data In (4) shows that the High tone at the end of the first word spreads onto the first two vowels of the noun (the prefix and the first stem vowel). It would be necessary to formulate the High Tone Spread rule so that It spreads a High onto two vowels to the right of the High at the end of the first word. This would, for example, take a representation like

V mu-tuka

and convert It Into the form:

V

ritu-tuka

But that would leave u s with the pronunciation •mu-tuka, which Is Incorrect. Furthermore, a rule spreading a High two vowels to the right raises a rather nagging question: why Just two? why not three? If we were to assume that the default rule supplies Low tones to the unspecified vowels in (7) prior to the application of High Tone Spread, then the result would be representations that are the same as assumed In a theory where underlying

The ToTwbogy of the Simple Noun

20

forms are fully specified—namely, those In (6). But the representations In (6) are not Immediately any more useful than those in (7) as far as generating the correct surface forms for (prefixed) disyllabic noun stems In the post-High environment. Given a representation such as H

L

L L

I ' Jv1 V mu-tuka a rule that would spread a High tone to the right would create the following structure: H

L

L L

V mu-tuka Notice that the High from the first word would not be able to spread any further than to the first vowel to the right of that word due to the pervasive principle In autosegmental phonology that says that association lines may not cross. The result of applying High Tone Spread, given representations like those In (7), to mu-tuka would be the Incorrect shape miituka. As a matter of fact, a rule we will motivate later would predict that a Falling tone on a pre-penult vowel would simplify to Just High. But the result of applying that rule to mutuka would be mutuka, which is also Incorrect. Since the main problem In the case of the post-High pronunciation of mu-tuka Is how to let the High of the preceding word spread past the preflxal vowel onto the first stem vowel, we might consider whether we could allow High Tone Spread to be an Iterative rule that not only spreads the High to the right but also disassociates the vowel being spread onto from any other tone it might be associated with. In other words, the rule would look something like the following:

The Tonology of the Simple Noun (8)

H

L

X

X

I I

H

L

X

X

21

ts*

—»

(apply i t e r a t i v e l y ,

left-to-right)

While such a formulation of High Tone Spread would solve the problem of how a High tone is able to spread past the prefix and onto the first stem vowel. It would not explain why the High tone does not continue to spread onto the subsequent stem vowels. In other words. Instead of predicting the correct derivation shown in (9) the rule In (8) predicts the incorrect derivation given as (10). (9)

H L L L

H L L L

i i I(

V mu-tuka

NM —¥

i

V mu-tuka

H

LLL

ivj i

—* V mu-ttaka

(10)H

L L L

H L L L

H

'

III

N* M

J^ÔM

V

mu-tuka

V mu-tuka

- • V mti-Wka

-»

LLL

LH m"u-£t

The correct derivation shown as (9) requires that rule (8) applies Just twice rather than Iteratively, as in the incorrect derivation given In (10). But there is no way to get (8) to apply Just twice if It is an iterative rule. Of course, we could reformulate (8) as In (11): (11)

H L L

H

LL

(11) would be a non-iterative rule which, by brute force, spreads a High onto the immediately following vowel (delinking that vowel from Its original tone) and also onto the vowel after that (but not delinking that vowel from its original tone). While (11) ujorfcs, it suffers obvious drawbacks. Why should a High


22

tone spread Just two vowels to the right? and why should It delink the first vowel that It spreads onto from that vowel's original tone but not delink the second vowel that It spreads onto? There does not seem to be any plausible answer to these rather weird properties of (11); we conclude, therefore, that there Is good reason to seek a different solution to the problem at hand (I.e. why a High spreads both onto the noun prefix and onto the first stem vowel, but the prefix falls to reflect any trace of Its (presumed) Low whereas the first stem vowel retains Its Low). At this point, let us explore an alternative approach that Is based on a view of tonology that would allow vowels In Venda to underlylngly be associated either with a High or a Low or no tone at all. This approach Is Inconsistent with underspeclfication theory since that approach does not allow both High and Low In underlying structure, but Instead just High and toneless. The solution we have In mind here Is to say that the noun class prefix Is underlylngly toneless whereas Low-toned stem vowels are Inherently Low-toned. Let us see how this analysis would work. At the point where High Tone Spread would apply, we would have representations such as the following: H

L L

H

I JJ

L

H

A U

V mu-tuka V mu-rathu If we formulate High Tone Spread so that It spreads a High tone (Iteratively) to the right, subject only to the constraint that It may not cross an association line, then we will indeed generate the proper post-High pronunciations mu-tfika and mti-rathti. The derivations In (12) Illustrate this. (12)

H

L L

H

L H

V mu-tuka

V mu-rathu

H

H

L L

V mh-tuki

L H

V mu-rathu (1st appl.)

The Tonology of the Simple Noun H

L

V mu-tuka

L

23 H

L H

V mU-rathu

(2nd

appl.)

Clearly, the above approach is much superior to our previous attempts to account for the post-High pronunciations of mu-tuka and mu-rathu. Not only does it produce the forms desired, it does so without placing any arbitrary restrictions on High Tone Spread. Given a toneless prefix. High Tone Spread (=HTS) can be formulated in an entirely straight-forward fashion— spread a High tone to the right (subject only to the quite expected constraint that it may not cross a previously-existing association line). If we assume that the noun prefix is Indeed toneless in underlying structure, then it will be necessary to assign it a Low tone in the post-Low environment (which, recall, includes the case where the noun is in phrase-initial position). When the prefix is preceded by a word ending in a Low tone, it would be possible to claim that the prefix is 'picking up' its Low from the previous word. But when the prefix is not preceded by anything at all, it would not be possible to claim that the prefix is assimilating the tone of the preceding word. We are left, then, with the necessity of simply positing a rule that says that a toneless vowel is assigned a Low tone. This rule would, of course, be ordered after the High Tone Spread rule (otherwise prefixes in the post-High environment would incorrectly be assigned a Low tone that would block the spread of the previous word's High onto the first stem vowel). Such a rule would, of course. In essence be the same as a default rule that says that any unspecified vowel is automatically Low-toned. But it would be a default rule embedded in an approach that is inconsistent with the underspecification approach. We believe that the essential aspect of the solution sketched above is correct—namely, that the noun class prefix in mu-tuka and mu-rathu is toneless at the point where High Tone Spread operates. It Is because the prefix is toneless that the High of the preceding word can spread onto the first stem vowel. However, we will contend that the prefix is not underlyingly toneless in contrast with Low-toned stem

The TontAogy of the Simple Noun

24

vowels. Rather, we believe that the prefix and Low-toned stem vowels are in fact to be treated exactly alike In underlying structure (I.e. they are either Low-toned, given fully specified underlying representations, or they are toneless and assigned their Low tone by a default rule, given underspeclflcation theory). The prefix Low comes to be toneless, we suggest, by a rule that simply deletes a Low at the beginning of a word if that word is preceded by a High tone. Call this rule Low-Deletion (=LD). It can be formulated as in (13).

(13)

L-»07H##

As long as Low-Deletion is ordered before High Tone Spread, we will derive the correct post-High pronunciations for mu-tuka and mu-rathu. (14)

H L L L

H L L H

V mu-tuka

V mu-rathu

H

H

L L

L

H

V mu-tnka

v mu-rathu

H

H

L L

V nJu^Wika

L

LD

H

V mu^rlthu

HTS (twice)

Notice that this approach, which assumes that Low-Deletion is responsible for noun prefixes becoming toneless in the post-High environment, would be compatible with an underspeclflcation approach provided that all toneless vowels are assigned their Low tones prior to the application of Low-Deletion. In other words, the first line of the derivations In (14) would Itself be the output of the default rule applying to the representations given earlier as (7). Since Low-Deletion and High Tone Spread are obviously rules that operate at the phrasal level, it is perhaps only to be expected that the default rule making unspecified vowels Low-toned would apply earlier.


25

If we accept the Low-Deletion analysis, as opposed to the analysis whereby prefixes are underlylngly toneless in contrast to Low-toned stem vowels, then there will be no need to posit any special rule making the noun prefixes Low-toned In the post-Low environment. The fact that they are Low-toned In this environment is Just a reflex of their underlying structure. At this point in the exposition, we cannot demonstrate that Low-Deletion is to be preferred over positing toneless prefixes underlylngly In contrast with Low-toned stem vowels. The crucial data showing Low-Deletion to be correct will arise In conjunction with the prefbdess nouns discussed in 2.2 below. We will simply assume the correctness of the Low-Deletion analysis in the meantime. There is one aspect to the post-High pronunciation mu-rathu that we have so far ignored. In Venda: Tonal Structure and Intonation (1962). E.O.J. Westphal recognized that it was "unnecessary to consider more than two categories of tone (specifically. High and Low: FC] In Venda despite the fact there Is a very great variety of tone levels and a most complex system of tone Intervals In the language" (pp. 52-53). The cause of this "great variety of tone levels" and this "complex system of tone intervals" Is the phenomenon that Westphal refers to as "tone-stepping"; he describes the tone-stepping as follows: "when a low tone Intervenes between two high tones the second high tone, i.e. the one Immediately following the low tone, has a tone step (down: FC)...The same type of stepping occurs after a falling tone" (p. 56). Westphal labels this sort of stepping as "mechanical". In the general literature on tone, such mechanical tone-stepping is usually referred to as downdnft Downdrlft Is a phenomenon found In many languages (especially of Africa) whereby one or more successive High-toned elements are pronounced at a somewhat lower level of pitch than a preceding High-toned element If one or more Low-toned elements Intervene. Schematically, given a sequence like the following. Hn a

Ln

Hn

L n H' be

26


where H"=one or more High tones and Ln=one or more Low tones, the High tone(s) labelled (b) will be pronounced at a somewhat lower pitch level than those labelled (a), and the High tone(s) labelled (c) will be pronounced at a somewhat lower pitch level than those labelled (b). In the case of the postHigh pronunciation mft-rathfi, the High tone on the last vowel of the noun stem Is realized at a somewhat lower pitch level than the High tone associated with the noun class prefix and the first stem vowel. This lowering of the pitch level of the final stem vowel is the consequence of the principle of Downdrift operating In Venda. The Low part of the HL sequence on the penult vowel is responsible for the downdrifting of the final stem High. Throughout this thesis we will not specifically Indicate the effects of downdrift in these "mechanical" cases, nor will we Include Downdrift and Its application when we give derivations. We have now completed our account of the post-High pronunciation of disyllabic noun stems that begin with a Low tone (mu-tuka and mu-rathu). Before proceeding to look in detail at the post-High pronunciation of disyllabic noun stems that begin with a High, It Is necessary to note that we have so far silently glossed over one important point with respect to High Tone Spread. It Is clear that a High tone located at the end of one word spreads onto vowels In the next word. But what about High tones Internal to a word? Can such High tones spread onto a following vowel In the same word? At first glance, an example such as mu-s61wa would seem to suggest that High Tone Spread should be restricted to phrasal contexts. Otherwise, we would expect mu-s61wa to appear as *mu-s61wft. When we examine trisyllabic noun stems later in this section, we will find good reason to assume that High Tone Spread does indeed spread word-lntemal High tones onto following (Low-toned) vowels. Thus we cannot explain the occurrence of mu-silwa Instead of *mu-s61wa In terms of a restriction to the effect that High Tone Spread is triggered only by word-final High tones. Two approaches to the problem posed by mu-s61wa suggest themselves. The first solution would be to restrict High


27

Tone Spread so that it cannot spread a High tone to a word-final vowel. The second solution would be to allow High Tone Spread to apply generally (i.e. to let it spread a High onto any vowel), but then posit a subsequent rule that would simplify the resulting HL contour tone. Later, when we examine nouns in non-phrase final position, we will find that High tones can spread onto word-final vowels. In other words, it is only phrase-final vowels that do not phonetically reflect the results of the spreading of a High tone. It seems reasonable, therefore, to assume that a High tone spreads unconditionally to the right, but that a special rule disassociates the High of a HL sequence linked to a phrase-final vowel. This rule, call it Final Simplification (=FS). can be formulated as in (15). (15)

H L

V x

H L %

—»

V x

%

(% = e n d o f

phrase)

Given Final Simplification, then, a word like mu-s61wa will undergo the following derivation: (16)

L

H

1

L

I, I

mu-selwa inapplicable L

H

L

mu-selwa L

H

LD

HTS

L

1 L I mu-selwa

FS

At this point we can also suggest the final form that High Tone Spread will take. It is a rule (applied iteratively from left-to-right) that spreads a High anchored to one tone- bearing unit onto the immediately following tone-bearing unit (provided


28

that It does not cross an association line). We assume that the rule does not specify whether the TBU receiving the spreading High is itself toneless or linked to a tone. When the High spreads onto a toneless TBU, the result is a High-toned TBU. When the High spreads onto a Low TBU, the result is a Falling-toned TBU. When the High spreads onto a High TBU, there is in fact no change in pronunciation—two Highs associated with a single TBU is phonetically indistinguishable from one High. Since spreading a High onto a TBU already specified as High has no phonetic consequence, in the examples we will not Indicate this vacuous application of High Tone Spread. One could, of course, prevent vacuous High Tone Spreading onto High-toned TBU's by specifying that a High spreads only onto toneless or Low-toned TBU's. But since this represents an unnecessary complication in the formulation of High Tone Spread, we will keep the more general formulation of High Tone Spread shown in (17).

(17)

H

1

x

H x

'\

—> x

x

(iterative,

right-to-left)

So far we have limited our attention Just to the post-High pronunciations of disyllabic noun stems whose first vowel is underlylngly Low-toned (mu-tuka, mu-ratliu). The pronunciation In post-High position of disyllabic noun stems whose first vowel Is underlylngly High-toned (mu-sadzi, mu-sglwa) still remains to be accounted for. The analysis we have developed so far predicts the following derivations: (18)

H L H H

H L H L

I I I I

I I I I

V mu-sadzi H H H

V mu-selwa H H L

I V mu-sadzi

I

I

I

V mu-selwa

LD


H

H

V mu-sadzi

H

H

29 L

V mu-selwa

HTS

If we compare (18) with the correct pronunciation of'woman' and 'bride' in the post-High environment—mu-sSdzl and mu-seiwa, we see that the proposed analysis goes astray in that it falls to yield a Low tone on the final vowel of 'woman' and fails to yield a Falling tone on the penult vowel in both words. There is one fact about mu-sadzi and mu-selwa (whose post-High pronunciation is not yet correctly accounted for by our analysis) that serves to distinguish them from mu-tuka and mu-rathu (whose post-High pronunciation is correctly accounted for by our analysis)—namely, the first stem vowel is underlylngly High in the former case and Low in the latter case. But when we examine the post-High pronunciation of mu-sadzi and mu-s61wa we see that their first stem vowel has a Falling tone. So far we have seen that Falling tones are always the consequence of a High tone spreading onto a Low-toned TBU. In other words, in the post-High environment mu-sadzi and mu-sdlwa behave as though they have a Low tone on their first vowel rather than the High tone that they must be assumed to have underlylngly. This suggests, then, that there is a rule in Venda that changes a High tone to a Low tone. Since this change takes place only In the post-High position, it Is reasonable to assume that the conditioning factor governing the change of a High tone to a Low tone is a preceding High tone. (19) provides a formulation of the rule we are suggesting: (19)

H->L/H

Students of Bantu tonology will immediately recognize the rule given In (19)—it has come to be known In the literature as Meeussen's Rule (after the Belgian linguist whose contributions to Bantu tonal studies and Bantu linguistics in general was so enormous). Meeussen's Rule, whereby HH


30

sequences are replaced by HL sequences, has been shown to be operative in a number of Bantu languages (cf. Cheng and Kisseberth (1979, 1980); Goldsmith (1984a,b); Kisseberth (1984)). If we assume Meeussen's Rule (=MR) is operative in Venda, then the derivation of the post-High pronunciation of mu-s61wa is immediately accounted for. (20) shows the derivation: (20)

H L

H L

1 LII V mu-selwa H

H

L

V mu-selwa H

L

I

II

LD

L

V mu-selwa V mu-selwa

MR HTS

Notice that the derivation in (20) provides some evidence In favor of our earlier claim that the noun class prefix in the post-High environment is toneless (at the point where High Tone Spread applies). If Meeussen's Rule Is to be stated as a rule that converts a HH sequence to HL, then in order for Meeussen's Rule to apply in the derivation in (20), there must not be any Low tone in the tonal tier between the H of the preceding word and the High tone on the first stem vowel of mu-s61wa. Thus we must assume that the noun class prefix is toneless at the point where Meeussen's Rule applies—a proposition that is entirely in keeping with the claim that the noun class prefix is toneless at the point where High Tone Spread applies. If we were to assume that the noun class prefix's Low tone is still present in the tonal tier when Meeussen's Rule applies, it would be necessary to somehow reformulate Meeussen's Rule so that it can apply to a sequence


31

HLH. We will see later that HLH sequences are common in Venda and that they do not change to HLL--in other words, Meeussen's Rule can be shown to be a rule that operates on HH sequences and not on HLH sequences. We conclude that the ability of Meeussen's Rule to apply to the first stem vowel in mu-s61wa constitutes support for the claim that the noun class prefix is toneless (at the point where Meeussen's Rule and High Tone Spread apply). The ordering of the rules in (20) is in part crucial. Low-Deletion must precede Meeussen's Rule, since Low-Deletion brings the High of the noun stem into position after a High tone. We assume that Meeussen's Rule precedes High Tone Spread. This ordering would clearly be crucial If High Tone Spread had been formulated so as to spread a High only onto toneless and Low-toned TBU's. But since we formulated High Tone Spread more generally, allowing it to spread a High onto a High-toned TBU, It would be possible to have a derivation like that In (21): (21)

H

I

L

H

L

I I

V mu-selwa H

H

L

V mu-selwa

LD

V mU^>el

There are two somewhat problematic aspects to this derivation. First, it crucially assumes that High Tone Spread will spread a High vacuously onto a High-toned TBU. While we have adopted such a formulation of High Tone Spread, there is in fact no direct evidence that such vacuous spreading


32

should be posited. We have allowed vacuous spreadingjust in the Interest of letting High Tone Spread be formulated in a maximally general fashion. The second problematic aspect to (20) Is that it crucially requires that after High Tone Spread has derived a representation where two separate consecutive High tones are associated with the same vowel, this representation must be maintained until Meeussen's Rule has a chance to change the second High to Low. But it has sometimes been proposed that a representation where two consecutive identical tones are associated with the same vowel Is automatically converted into a representation where there is only one tone associated with that vowel. If High Tone Spread Is to precede Meeussen's Rule, such a convention must either be abandoned or reformulated so that It does not apply in cases like the above. (For example, the convention might be reformulated so as to reduce two consecutive identical tones linked to a single vowel to one tone Just In case neither tone is also linked to another vowel.) Since the derivation In (19) produces the correct results unproblematically, in the rest of the thesis we will simply assume that Meeussen's Rule does Indeed precede High Tone Spread. By positing Meeussen's Rule in Venda, we have succeeded in accounting for the post-High pronunciation of mu-s61wa. Let us turn now to a consideration of mu-sadzi. Recall that Initially we suggested that the underlying structure of this noun might be:

L

H

H

f

I, I mu-sadzi But notice that If this underlying structure Is assumed, we must somehow prevent Meeussen's Rule from applying to the second High In the noun stem. One might, for example, explain the Inapplicability of Meeussen's Rule to mu-sadzi in terms of the fact that the two High tones in this word are In what Is referred to as a non-derived environment (where a derived environment is one where the structural description of


33

a phonological rule Is satisfied as a result of the Juxtaposition of morphemes or as a result of the application of some other phonological rule). It has been suggested (Kiparsky 1973) that certain types of rules are restricted so that they may not apply in non-derived environments. If Meeussen's Rule Is such a rule, then there would be an explanation for why mu-sadzi escapes conversion to *mu-sadzi via the application of Meeussen's Rule. But while a representation such as L

H H

mu-sadzi

could perhaps be made to escape Meeussen's Rule through some appeal to the notion of derived environments, the fact remains that this representation does not In any straightforward way predict the post-High pronunciation of mu-sadzi. So far the following Incorrect derivation Is predicted: (22)

H

L

H

III'

H

V mu-sadzi

V mu-sadzi H

L

LD

H

V mu-sadzi

MR

inapplicable

FS

In the output of Low-Deletion in (22) we have a sequence of three High tones. If Meeussen's Rule were an iterative rule

34


working left-to-right (the way that High Tone Spread does), we clearly predict that the first High of the stem would lower but not the second. And if Meeussen's Rule were an iterative rule working from iight-to-left, we still predict that the first stem High would change to Low. Why? Because the second stem High would be immune from Meeussen's Rule for the same reason that it is immune In the isolation form mu-sadzi (e.g. because of being in a non-derived environment). Although the second stem High falls to undergo Meeussen's Rule, the first stem High will be susceptible since it stands after a High tone in a derived environment. Even If Meeussen's Rule is regarded as a non-iterative rule, the only vowel that meets the structural description of the rule is the first stem vowel. To salvage the situation, we would have to revise Meeussen's Rule as follows: (23)

H* -» L / H (where H* = maximal number of consecutive Highs)

(23) says that any number of consecutive High tones will all become Low after a High tone. If Meeussen's Rule is formulated in this fashion, then in the case under discussion, both of the stem vowels in mu-sadzi will lower in the post-High environment although the second High tone of mu-s&dzi will not Lower in the post-Low environment. This would be true because in the post-High environment both of the High tones in the stem would be part of a H* sequence preceded by another High (In a derived environment). Thus (23) would lower both. In the post-Low environment only the second stem High would be preceded by a High and these two High tones are in a non-derived environment. While the revised form of Meeussen's Rule given as (23) will enable us to derive the post-High pronunciation of mu-s&dzi, it is not without Its problematic aspects. First, (23) is a rule that operates on a group of (auto)segments and changes the value of each of these (auto)segments under the Influence of a preceding (auto)segment: the question naturally arises as to whether such an operation is well-motivated. The


35

phonological literature does not contain much In the way of evidence in favor of such rule types, whereas there is considerable evidence for rules that iterate from one end of a sequence of (auto)segments to the other end. If it turns out that rules like (23). which change sequences of autosegments as a group rather than iteratlvely, are not clearly motivated in the languages of the world, then it would be desirable to constrain the theory of phonology so that such rules cannot be formulated. If phonological theory is so constrained, we would need to seek another solution to the problem of accounting for the post-High form of mu-sadzi. A second problematic aspect to (23) Is whether in fact it will turn out to be consistent with a wider range of Venda data. (23) claims that in a sequence of three or more High tones (in a derived environment), all but the first High tone will be lowered. The only support for this so far would be the observation that both of the High tones in the stem of mu-sadzi lower when a High precedes. It would, however, be crucial to know what happens when a sequence of three (or more) High tones arise as a consequence of Juxtaposing three (or) more morphemes each of which contributes one of the High tones in the sequence. (23) claims that only the first High in the sequence would remain. If, however, an alternating pattern should arise (i.e. HHH -> HLH. HHHH -> HLHL, HHHHH -> HLHLH, etc.), then (23) would fall to account for the data and a left-to-right iterative application of the original form of Meeussen's Rule would be motivated. Data possibly bearing on this issue are dealt with later in the thesis, and they suggest that an "alternating" pattern may actually obtain (i.e. HHH is converted to HLH not HLL). It Is, perhaps of interest to note that in the Karanga dialect of Shona, which we have noted already is tonally clearly related to Venda, there is an analog of Meeussen's Rule which can be shown to operate in an alternating fashion as well. There are sufficient questions about the formulation of Meeussen's Rule given in (23) to Justify reconsidering the whole issue of the underlying representation of words like mu-sadzi. Recall that one of the basic propositions of autosegmental phonology is that one-to-many and


36

many-to-one mappings between the tonal tier and the CV-tier are as valid as one-to-one mappings. This being so, it is not by any means necessary that the representation of mu-sadzi be one where there is a High tone associated with each of the vowels of the noun stem. It is just as plausible that the representation be one where there is a single High tone associated with both of the vowels of the stem: L

H

mu-sadzi

If we were to assume such an underlying representation, then there would be no problem at all as to why the second vowel in mu-sadzi does not undergo Meeussen's Rule in the post-Low environment. Meeussen's Rule affects a sequence of two High tones in the tonal tier—but there would only be one High tone In the case of (post-Low) mu-sadzi. An underlying representation where there is just one High tone associated with the two stem vowels In mu-sadzi would also explain in a very simple fashion why both stem vowels lower in the post-High environment. The derivation in (24) shows how the correct surface shape will be produced. (24)

H

L

H

I I /\ V mu-sadzi H

I

H

/\

V mu-sadzi H

I

/\

V mu-sadzi H

LD

L MR

L

V mu-sadzi inapplicable

HTS FS


37

Both vowels of the noun stem In mu-sadzi will change to Low in the post-High environment since both of these vowels are associated with a single High tone that is subject to Meeussen's Rule in the case where a word precedes that ends in a High tone. We believe that the assumption that nouns like mu-sadzi have a single, multiply-linked High tone is the most straightforward way of explaining the tonal behavior of such words. In the remainder of this thesis we will assume such an analysis. It is perhaps of interest to note that a similar analysis of nouns In the Karanga dialect of Shona has been argued for in Odden (1981). We have already noted that Shona and Venda are tonally similar in many respects. A few additional comments about our analysis of nouns like mu-sadzi are in order. We assume that in all cases where there are successive (phonetic) High tones within the same morpheme, these phonetic tones are to be represented as a single High tone associated with successive vowels. In other words, we assume that a single morpheme may not have a sequence of two or more High tones in its tonal tier. The only cases where there may be two or more High tones associated with successive vowels is across morpheme or word boundaries. There will, then, be no underlying representations permitted in Venda of the form:

...n... Given the above analysis of mu-sadzi, it is natural to ask whether instances of successive Low-tones inside a noun stem are to be analyzed as a single Low tone associated with multiple vowels or whether each vowel has Its own Low tone. Later, when we discuss preflxless-nouns, we will demonstrate that Incorrect results would be produced if successive Low-toned vowels Inside a stem are represented as a multiply-linked, single Low tone. We will conclude, therefore, that each Low-toned vowel In a stem has its own Low tone. At first glance this assumption might seem counter-Intuitive. Why should successive High tones in a stem be represented as a


38

single, multiply-linked High whereas successive Low tones In a stem be analyzed as a series of singly- linked Low tones? Perhaps a certain plausibility to this difference is offered by underspeclfication theory. If only High tones are present In the underlying structure, whereas Low tones are simply assigned by a default rule to vowels that are not associated with High, then the asymmetry in the representation of High and Low tones correlates to their different sources (High tones are present In underlying structure, Low tones are generated by a default rule that specifies each unassociated vowel as Low-toned). We have now accounted for both the post-Low and post-High pronunciations of all the items in (3) — that is, disyllabic noun stems preceded by a (Low-toned) prefix. In addition to such disyllabic noun stems, Venda also has a few monosyUablc noun stems. There are Just two types of monosyllabic stems, which we illustrate In (25): (25)

mu-thu

'person'

mu-ri 'tree'

cf. in post-Low position: ndl-kho-u-vhona mu-thu ndi-amba mu-ri

'I see a person' 'I mean the tree'

Clearly, 'person' has a Low stem vowel and 'tree' has a High stem vowel. That there are j u s t two tonal types of monosyllabic noun stems is, of course. Just what we would expect if (a) Venda has two tones. High and Low, and (b) there is a constraint on (at least Venda nominal stems) that a vowel may be associated with at most one tone. When nouns like those in (25) are in the post-High context, we find the pronunciations shown In (26): (26)

mu-thu mu-ri cf.

The Tonology of the Simple Noun ndl-vhona mu-thu ndi-vhona mu-ri

39

'I see the person' 'I see the tree'

Notice that In the post-High environment, 'person' (a Low stem) and 'tree' (a High stem) merge tonologically on the surface: the stem In both cases Is pronounced Low, while the prefix is realized as High. We, of course, already have a potential explanation for this merger of High and Low monosyllabic stems—namely, Meeussen's Rule, which has the effect of changing a High to a Low and thus could conceivably account for the merger of two stems whose only difference is that one is Low and the other High. In fact, the analysis that we have developed so far accounts for the data in (26) without any difficulties whatsoever. The derivations In (27) illustrates. (27)

H

L

L

1 1 1

H L H 1 1 1 V mu- 1

V mu-thu H L 1 |

H 1

1 1 1

1

, 1

1 1 1

-ri H 1

1

V mu-thu H L I 1

V mu-• r i H 1

1

1

I

\

•ri

V mu-thu H L

V muH L

V mu-tliu

v mu-• r i

LD

MR

HTS

FS

These derivations In (27) are interesting In that not only do they show that the analysis we have developed generalizes effortlessly from disyllabic stems to monosyllabic stems, but in that they provide some independent support for postulating a rule of Final Simplification (or, alternatively, a limitation on


40

High Tone Spread that would bar it from spreading onto a phrase-final vowel). Recall that up to this point our only motivation for Final Simplification was the observation that the High tone in mu-selwa does not show up associated with the last vowel. But one interpretation of the failure of the high tone in mu-selwa to spread to the final vowel would be that a word-internal High tone does not spread (or that a High does not spread onto another vowel in the same morpheme). Later we will have evidence that such a limitation on High Tone Spread cannot be maintained. But the derivations in (27) also demonstrate that even if such a limitation on High Tone Spread could be invoked, we would still need Final Simplification (or alternatively a constraint that bars spreading onto a phrase-final vowel). For in (27) it is a High tone at the end of the preceding word that fails to show up on the final vowel of the noun (rather than a High tone that originates in the same word as the final vowel—cf. mu-selwa). Let us now turn to prefixed nouns whose stems have three tone-bearing units. The possible post-Low forms of such nouns are shown below: (28)

mu-kalaha mu-kegulu mu-duhulu mu-tukana mu-lamboni mu-tannga tshi-vhavhala madingwane

'old man' 'old woman' 'grandchild' 'boy' 'at the river' young man' "wild beast' (personal name)

The underlying representations for the items other than tshi-vhavh&la and madingwane are unproblematic (given the analysis we have developed so far). (29)

L

L L L

mu-kalaha

L

H

mu-kegulu

The Tonology of the Simple Noun L

H

L

mu-duhulu

L 1

1

41

L L H I I I

Ml

H L

mu-tukana L L H

• J J '•

mu-t_annga

L

L

I l/\

mu-lamboni

In the post-Low environment, no rules will be applicable in the case of mu-kalaha, mu-kegulu, mu-tukana, and mu-tannga. High Tone Spread and Final Simplification will be applicable to mu-duhulu and mu-lamb6ni, but since Final Simplification merely undoes the change specified by High Tone Spread in this case, the consequence is that the surface form is the same as the underlying form. The items tshi-vhavhala and madingwane exhibit a Falling tone on their penult vowel. The analysis of Venda nouns that we have been developing has been based on the assumption that there are two tones. High and Low, and that there may be at most one tone associated (underlyingly) with a given stem TBU. tshi-vhavhala and madingwane represent the first cases we have encountered where a Falling tone occurs in the post-Low pronunciation of a noun, but they obviously do not provide In any way a serious counterexample to the analysis we have developed. All that we need to assume is the underlying representations and derivations given In (30): (30)

L

H L H

I

III

tshi-vhavhala

LH

LL

I I

I|

madingwane

inapplicable inapplicable L

H L H

tshi-vhavhala inapplicable

LD MR LH

LL

madingwane

HTS FS

Notice that the preceding analysis of tshi-vhavhala and madingwane. which permits u s to retain the constraint that


42

noun stems have at most one tone associated with each TBU in underlying structure, depends on allowing all High tones to spread to the right, not Just High tones located at the end of a word. The analysis also requires us to permit a High tone to spread onto a vowel that originated in the same morpheme as the High tone. tshi-vhAvhfiM and madingwfine thus represent crucial evidence that High Tone Spread should be formulated as a general rule triggered by any High tone, regardless of the location of that High tone (of course, when the High tone is located on the final vowel of the phrase, there will be no vowel to the right for the High to spread onto). At this point we can turn to the matter of the post-High pronunciations of items such as those in (28): (31)

mu-kalaha mu-kegulu mu-duhulu mu-tukana mu-lamb!6ni mu-ta!nnga tshi-vhavhala madingwane

(The significance of the ! will be explained below.) Examination of the data in (31) quickly reveals that the preceding High tone has spread, as expected, onto the noun. Furthermore, the High spreads onto the first two vowels of the noun (the prefix and the first stem vowel)~agaln, as expected, given that the preflxal Low will have been lost as a consequence of being preceded by a word ending in a High tone. But It is at this point that we observe a difference between these trisyllabic stems and the disyllabic stems investigated earlier. In the case of the disyllabic stems, the High spreads onto the second vowel of the noun (the first stem vowel) and forms a Falling tone. But In the case of the trisyllabic nouns, we see that the second vowel of the noun (the first stem vowel) appears with a level High tone and not a Falling tone.


43

Consider, for example, the case of mu-kalaha (post-High pronunciation: mti-kalaha). Our analysis predicts the following derivation: (32)

H L

L LL

I I I LI V mu-kalaha

.r.r

H

L L

I

II.

V mu-kalaha

LD

inapplicable

MR

H

L L L

V mu-kalaha

HTS

FS We see inapplicable that the analysis provides an essentially appropriate derivation except that It ends up with a Falling tone on the antepenult vowel rather than the necessary level High tone. Clearly, the correct result can be obtained if we posit an additional rule that takes the Falling tone generated by High Tone Spread and simplifies it to High. What would the context for this decontourlng operation be? An answer is immediately suggested by the observation that Falling tones in Venda are restricted to the penult vowel of the phrase. There are no pre-penult TBU's that bear a Falling tone (and—as a consequence of Final Simplification—there are no phrase-final Falling tones either). We can thus identify the TBU's that undergo decontourlng as TBU's that are followed by at least two other TBU's In the phrase. We will refer to this decontourlng operation as Contour Simplification. There are two general strategies that Contour Simplification might follow to derive a level High tone from a Falling tone. These two strategies are shown as (33a) and (33b).


44 (33)

a. simplification by deletion L -»0/ H x xx

(where x=TBU)

b. simplification by delinking HL

\/

X X X

HL >

1/

X X X

In (33a), the Low part of a High-Low sequence associated with a pre-penult TBU is deleted, leaving that pre-penult TBU associated uniquely with a High tone. In (33b), the Low part of a High-Low sequence associated with a pre-penult TBU is delinked from that TBU, leaving the TBU in question uniquely associated with a High tone but also leaving the Low tone in the tonal tier (In contrast with (33a) where the Low tone is eliminated). While both of these approaches are possible ones within the autosegmental framework (since that framework permits rules that add, delete, or change autosegments as well as rules that add or delete association lines), we shall demonstrate shortly that (33b), the delinking approach, provides a better explanation of Venda tonology. Assuming, then, a rule of Contour Simplification (=CS) ordered after High Tone Spread (since the latter rule creates the contour tones that the former rule simplifies), the derivation in (32) will be successfully completed to yield mti-kalaha. The rule of Contour Simplification does not have to be ordered with respect to Final Simplification since they apply In mutually exclusive environments—Contour Simplification affects pre-penult vowels, Final Simplification affects (phrase) final vowels. At this point It should be noted that the fact that Falling tones occur only on penult vowels is doubtless connected to the fact that in Venda, while there is no long/short vowel contrast, the penult vowel in a phrase is


45

regularly lengthened. Thus If the rule lengthening penult vowels Is ordered before the decontouring rules, we could reformulate Contour Simplification and Final Simplification to say that a contour tone is simplified If it Is associated with a short vowel. But since we still have to distinguish between the pre-penult case (where the vowel is delinked from the Low part of the HL contour) and the final case (where the vowel is delinked from the High of the HL contour), it turns out that reference to short vowels cannot eliminate entirely the need to make some reference to position in the phrase in the statement of the decontouring processes. If one did introduce vowel length before the decontouring principles, then some simplification of the formulation of one of the rules would be possible. For example, if one ordered Contour Simplification before Final Simplification, then one could simplify the formulation of the latter rule. (34)

Contour Simplification HL \/ X

X

X

(N.B. Although one could specify the contour tone as being on a short vowel, such a specification is redundant here given that reference to pre-penult position is required in any case.)

Final Simplification HL \/ x [-long] Final Simplification would affect all the contour tones on short vowels not subject to Contour Simplification—In other words.


46

contour tones on final vowels. Alternatively, one could order Final Simplification before Contour Simplification and simplify the statement of Contour Simplification accordingly: (35)

Final Simplification

x %

(where %=end of phrase) (N.B. Again, the TBU could be specified as short, but such a specification would be redundant given that reference must in any case be made to phrase-final position.)

Contour Simplification HL \ / x [-long] In this approach. Final Simplification would simplify all phrase-final vowels bearing a contour tone, and then Contour Simplification would simplify all the remaining contour tones on short vowels (namely, those associated with pre-penult vowels). Bringing vowel length Into the picture provides, then, only a marginal simplification of the rules—and to achieve this marginal simplification it Is necessary to Introduce two ordering statements (one specifying that penult lengthening precedes whichever decontourlng rule is ordered first and a second specifying the ordering of the decontourlng rules). We see no particular reason, then, for altering our original formulations of Contour Simplification and Final Simplification (which required no ordering between these two rules).


47

We can now return to a consideration of the data in (31). Having accounted for the alternation between mu-kalaha and mu-kalaha, let u s turn now to the case mu-kegulu (post-Low) versus mu-kdgulu (post-High). The analysis we have developed will correctly derive the post-High pronunciation, as shown in (36). (36)

H L

H

I I/K V mu-kegulu H

H

V mu-kegulu H

LD

L

I

A\

V mu-kegulu H

MR

L

V mu^cegulu H

HTS

L

V mu^?egulu

CS

The case of mu-duhulu inapplicable FS (post-Low) versus mu-duhulu (post-High) is entirely parallel to the case of mu-k6gulu versus mu-kegulu, the only difference being that the last stem vowel is underlylngly associated with a High in the latter case but with a Low in the former case. (37)

H

L

H L

I I A I V mu-duhulu H

H L

I

AI

V mu-duhulu

LD


48 L

H

L

V mu-dvihulu H

L

MR

L

V mu-duhulu H

L

^

HTS

L

\ I

V mU-duhulu

CS

inapplicable

FS

The contrast between mu-tukana (post-Low) and mu-tukana (post-High) is readily accounted for by the proposed analysis, as (38) demonstrates. (38)

H

L

L L H

I I I II V mu-tukana H

L L H

V mu-tukana

LD MR

inapplicable H L L H V mu-tukana H

HTS

L L H

V mu-cukana

CS

inapplicable

FS

The reader should perhaps be reminded that an item such as mti-tlikana, where a Low (or series of Lows) intervenes between two (series of) Highs, the principle of Downdrift will be operative. The High tone on the last stem vowel of mti-ttikana Is not as high phonetically as the Highs on the prefix and first stem vowel.


49

Continuing with our survey of the data in (31), we consider next the alternation exhibited by tshi-vhivhalA (post-Low) and tshi-vhavhala (post-High). This alternation, at first glance, looks quite mysterious. Why should the Falling tone on the penult vowel In the post-Low environment be replaced by a level Low tone In the post-High environment given that In both cases the preceding vowel Is High-toned? It is certainly no small virtue of the analysis we have developed that it explains this mysterious alternation effortlessly. The Falling tone on the penult vowel in the post-Low form has already been explained as arising simply from the application of High Tone Spread (the stem has an underlying HLH shape, and the first H spreads onto the penult vowel, which is associated underlyingly with the L). The derivation of the post-High form Is shown in (39). (39)

H

L

H LH

I

I

I |I

V tshi-vhavhala H H L H

I

I

I

I

V tshi-vhavhala H L L H

1

LD

['I

V tshi-vhavhala

MR

inapplicable

FS

The first stem vowel here has a H associated with it underlyingly, but this H is subject to Meeussen's Rule in the post-High context (once Low-Deletion has operated) and is thus converted to Low. Since the first stem vowel is associated with a Low, the preceding High will be able to spread onto the


50

prefix and onto the first stem vowel, but no further. Ultimately, the Contour Simplification rule will disassociate the first stem vowel from its Low, leaving that vowel with a level High tone. The account of the alternation between madingwane (post-Low) and ma-dingwane (post-High) is entirely parallel, except that this word has a Low associated with the final stem vowel rather than a High, like tshi-vhavh&la. (40)

H

L H

L L

I II I| V madingwane H H L L

J

!M

V madingwane H

I

L

LD

L L

!M

v madingwane

MR

inapplicable

FS

We have now explained all but two of the post-High pronunciations cited in (31). The alternations that remain to be accounted for are mu-lambdnl (post-Low) versus mu-lambl6nl (post-High) and mu-tannga (post-Low) versus mfi-talnnga (post-High). In fact, our analysis will account for these data without any additions whatsoever, but before we can see that this is so, we must comment on the notion downstep (Indicated In the preceding transcriptions by the symbol"!"). Although the principle of downdrift accounts in large part for the complex surface realization of the underlying two tones of Venda as a "great variety of tone levels" organized into a "complex system of tone intervals", Westphal In his study of


51

Venda tonology recognized that there are many cases of "tone-stepping" which are not clearly of the "mechanical" sort covered by the notion of downdrift. Concerning these instances of non-mechanical tone-stepping, Westphal writes: "these other cases have not yet been sufficiently investigated and it still remains to be seen whether they are not in fact variations of the mechanical step" (p. 56). In the general literature on tone, such cases of non-mechanical tone-stepping are usually labelled as downstep. Downstep refers, then, to a situation where one or more elements that can, on independent grounds, be identified as High-toned are pronounced at a somewhat lower pitch level than an immediately preceding High-toned element. In effect, it is as though a Low tone were present at the point where downstep occurs, but no such Low tone is actually pronounced. The post-High pronunciations mti-lamb!6nl and mti-ta!iinga exhibit downstep between their antepenult TBU and their penult TBU. The issue that Westphal raises but leaves unresolved is whether in Venda all cases of downstep can at some level be seen to be "variations" of downdrift. (Westphal does not make explicit what is meant by "variation", but presumably the issue being raised is whether downstep in Venda is in some sense essentially the same thing as downdrift.) In the course of this thesis we will examine a variety of instances of downstep in Venda, and in each case we will argue that the theory of autosegmental phonology permits us to arrive at an insightful, well-motivated analysis where downstep is indeed Just downdrift. Within an autosegmental theory of phonology, one possible treatment of downstep (at least in a language that also has downdrift) is to claim that there is indeed a Low tone present in the tonal tier at the point where the downstep occurs, but that this Low tone is not associated with any tone-bearing unit. We will argue that Venda provides strong support for such a treatment of downstep. Let u s look now at the derivations that our analysis predicts for m(i-lamb!6ni and mti-talnnga.


52 (41)

H

L

L

H L

I 1,1 J V mu-lamboni H L

I

n

I .

H

L

L

H

i i iA

V mu-t_annga

I

\A

V mu-lamboni inapplicable

V mu-t_annga

H

WA

L

H L

V mu-lamboni

LD MR

HTS

V mu-t_annga H

L

H L

N

V mu-lambc

V mu-Cartnga

CS

inapplicable

FS

soni H

L

H

it

V mu-lamboni

Notice that In both of these examples, the first stem vowel Is associated underlyingly with a Low tone while the second stem vowel Is associated with a High. After the application of High Tone Spread, the first stem vowel Is associated both with a High and a Low. Contour Simplification leaves that first stem vowel associated j u s t with a High, the Low having been delinked from the first stem vowel. We have then a situation where both the first and second stem vowels are associated with (separate) High tones, with an unassociated Low tone in between. If we assume that in Venda the principle of Downdrift operates In terms of the tonal tier (without respect to whether these tones are associated to the CV-tier), and If we assume that the tonal representation at the end of (41) is the input to Downdrift, then that principle will automatically specify the second High in the representation (the one linked to the second stem vowel) as being somewhat lower In pitch than the first High (which extends as far as the first stem vowel) since there Is a Low tone in between these Highs. That Low tone is unassociated with any tone-bearing unit, and thus has no


53

direct phonetic manifestation, but it is responsible for the occurrence of downstep at the Juncture between the first two stem vowels. Recall that earlier we observed that there were two ways In which Contour Simplification could be formulated so as to eliminate Falling tones on pre-penult TBU's: the first way was to delete the Low part of a HL sequence associated with a pre-penult TBU, the second way was to delink the Low. We now see why the second approach, delinking, is preferred. If we deleted the Low, we would have no explanation for the downstep that follows the first stem vowel in mti-lamb!6ni and mti-ta!nnga. By delinking the Low, we permit the Low to remain In the tonal tier and thus play a role in the operation of Downdrift. It would perhaps be possible to salvage a formulation of Contour Simplification Involving deletion of a Low rather than delinking if we ordered Downdrift before Contour Simplification. Assuming such an ordering, then the Low tone associated with the first stem vowel in these examples would induce downdrift prior to being eliminated by Contour Simplification. We have two main reasons for rejecting such a solution. First, we will demonstrate in our analysis of verbal tonology that there are other cases of downstep which seem to involve the presence of an unassociated Low (but an unassociated Low not arising from Contour Simplification). Thus we will claim that on independent grounds Downdiift must operate on representations containing unassociated Low tones. Second, we accept the view that the Downdrift principle does not represent an ordinary phonological process like Meeussen's Rule or Contour Simplification, but rather is perhaps best viewed as part of what has been labelled the phonetic implementation component of the grammar (cf. Pulleyblank 1983). If we adopt this view of Downdrift, then we have to reject an approach that ordered Downdrift among the phonological processes. In what follows, then, we will assume that Contour Simplification involves delinking of a Low and that this Low manifests Itself in triggering downstep in mfi-lamb!6ni and mfi-ta!nnga. The ability of our proposed analysis to account


54

in a simple and elegant way for the occurrence of downstep in the above two examples (without invoking any new rules designed Just for these words) both lends support to that analysis and also lends support to the proposal that (in some cases at least) downstep is best represented in terms of an unassociated Low occurring in the tonal tier at the point where downstep occurs. The rule of Contour Simplification was motivated quite independently of the phenomenon of downstep (being required to explain why pre-penult vowels that would be expected to have a Falling tone have instead a level High tone), but can adequately explain these examples of downstep as well. We have now constructed an analysis of Venda tonology which will account for both the post-Low and post-High pronunciations of monosyllabic, disyllabic, and tri-syllabic noun stems when they are preceded by a prefix. We do not presently have data on longer (prefixed) noun stems. However, in addition to such prefixed noun stems, Venda has a large number of noun stems which can occur without an overt prefix in front of them. It is to these prefixless nouns that we turn now. 2.2. Prefixless nouns. We consider first stems with two TBU's. There are four possible tonal shapes for such stems in the post-Low context, as shown below: (42)

bofu tholi thuku ndemwa

'blind person' 'spy' 'scoundrel' 'neglected, naughty child'

On the basis of the above post-Low pronunciations, the most natural account of these items (given our analysis of disyllabic prefixed noun stems) would be to assign these words the following tonal shapes (whether underlyingly, or subsequent to a default rule filling in the Lows): (43)

L L

H

L H

H L

II

/\

II

II

bofu

tholi

thuku

ndemwa


55

The only one of these items that would undergo any tonological rule in the post-Low environment would be nd£mwa, which would be subject to High Tone Spread and then Contour Simplification (the combined effect of which is simply to restore the underlying form). The post-High environment produces pronunciations such as those in (44): (44)

bofu tholi thtiku ndemwa

The alternations exhibited by th61i and ndfimwa present no particular complication, but they do serve to confirm one aspect of the analysis that we have so far developed. Examine the derivations our analysis predicts for the post-High forms thOli and ndemwa: (45)

H

H

N

J /

H

H

L

I

II

V ndemwa V tholi inapplicable H

L

I

H

L

L

/\

I I [

V tholi H L

V ndemwa

V _t f r o l i

V ndeemwa

inapplicable inapplicable

LD

MR

HTS CS FS

In our earlier discussion of Meeussen's Rule we claimed that the structural description of the rule refers to successive High tones. But in fact, in all the examples involving the prefixed nouns, underlyingly there was a Low-toned TBU (the noun class prefix) located between the High on the first stem

56


vowel and the High of the preceding word. We claimed that this Low tone Is deleted by a rule of Low-Deletion (a more complete justification for this rule will emerge in this section). Suppose that we had claimed that Instead of actually deleting, the initial Low of the noun just delinks, remaining in the tonal tier. Such an analysis would have required a reformulation of Meeussen's Rule, since It could then no longer be stated in terms of successive High tones. A possible line of revision would be that a High becomes Low if preceded by a sequence of a High and a Low. This rule Is given as (46): (46)

Hypothetical Meeussen's Rule H -» L / H L

Such a formulation of Meeussen's Rule would be problematic for a number of reasons. First, there is a question of why a High should become Low just after a Low that is in turn preceded by a High. Second, HLH sequences do occur In Venda. We have seen this sequence in a post-Low environment in the case of tshl-vhavhala. Perhaps this could be explained by saying that Meeussen's Rule does not apply in a non-derived environment (therefore a HLH sequence is possible when It is present underlyingly within the same morpheme). Or, alternatively, we could claim that the Low in the structural description of (46) must be an unassociated Low (since we are assuming that in the post-High pronunciations of nouns like mu-sadzi, mu-selwa, mu-kegtilu, etc., the stem High, which undergoes Meeussen's Rule, is preceded by a prefix Low which gets delinked in the post-High context). By requiring the Low In the structural description of (46) to be unassociated, we would exclude tshi-vhavhala from undergoing the rule since the Low on the penult vowel of this word is associated. But even If we patch things up so that tshi-vhavh&la Is excluded from (46), there are still problematic aspects to such a reformulation of Meeussen's Rule. In the analysis of Venda verbal tonology we will encounter cases of HLH sequences across morpheme boundaries (where the Low may in some cases be associated at the point where Meeussen's


57

Rule applies, or where It may be unassoclated) and Meeussen's Rule fails to apply. (46) will in these cases make the wrong predictions. In any case, the post-High pronunciations of prefixless nouns like thdli and ndemwa show clearly that Meeussen's Rule does operate on HH sequences. These nouns begin with a High tone and when they follow a word that ends In a High tone, we have two successive Highs, the second of which is changed to Low. Meeussen's Rule must be formulated so as to affect a HH sequence. If we were to try to cling to the reformulation of Meeussen's Rule in (46), it would be necessary to make the Low in the structural description optional: (47)

H -> L / H (L)

By simply assuming that the Initial Low of a noun deletes rather than disassociates, we can keep Meeussen's Rule in the simple form that examples like thdlf and nd£mwa suggest It has—namely, HH -> HL. And If we do this, all the cases where HLH sequences are maintained (In tshl-vhavhfila, In the verbal system) are no longer relevant. Let us turn now to the other post-High pronunciations in (44)—namely, those for bofu and thuku. In the post-Low environment these words are pronounced with an Initial Low tone. The former word has a Low second vowel while the latter has a High second vowel. But in the post-High environment both words are realized with a High on their first vowel and a Low on their second. We claim that this apparently mysterious behavior Is entirely in accord with our analysis—I.e. no new rules are required at all. But these forms do serve to provide crucial evidence in favor of our decision to adopt a Low-Deletion rule to account for the behavior of the noun class prefixes in section 2.1 rather than an analysis where the prefixes are toneless. Suppose that we did not have a rule of Low-Deletion In Venda. Suppose furthermore t h a t the underlying representations for the noun stems bofu and thuku are as given in (43). We would then have the following (Incorrect) derivations for the post-High forms of bofu and thuku:


58 (48)

H

L L

H

L H

1 1 1 I VIthuku I

V bofu

inapplicable H

L L

V bofu

MR

H

L H HTS

V thuku


CS FS

That is, we would Incorrectly generate *bofu and *thuku In the post-High context where b6fu and thuku are the desired output. In order to achieve the correct phonetic representations It Is necessary that the first vowel of bofu and thuku either be or become toneless In the post-High environment. Assuming the existence of a rule of Low-Deletion, we will successfully generate the correct forms: (49)

L L

H

L H

1 1 1

1

1

1 1

H

1 1 1

V bofu H L 1 | V bofu

V thuku H H

1 1

V thuku H

LD L

inapplicable

1 1

H

L

V thuku H L

V bofu

V thuku

inapplicable H

L

V bofu

MR

HTS CS

H

L

l\ 1 V thuku

FS


59

If we posit a rule of Low-Deletion that affects the Initial Low of a noun (actually, we shall see that the rule is not restricted to nouns, although there are some differences in its operation depending on the word class of the item undergoing it), the first Low will be deleted regardless of whether that Low originates as part of a noun class prefix (as in the case of items like those discussed in section 2.1) or as part of a noun stem (as in cases like bofu and thuku). Thus a prefixless noun that begins with a Low tone will behave just like all prefixed nouns that begin with a Low prefix. The first Low of the word will delete in the post-High context; if the second vowel of the word is associated with a High, that High will change to Low by virtue of Meeussen's Rule. The High of the preceding word will spread as far as the second vowel of the (prefixless) noun, where it will form a contour tone with the Low of that vowel. The resulting contour tone is, of course, subject to simplification in the appropriate environments. Clearly, the parallelism in behavior in the post-High context between prefixless nouns that begin with a Low tone (like bofu) and prefixed nouns that begin with a Low-toned prefix (like mu-thu) needs a systematic explanation. This is what our analysis, Involving the rule of Low-Deletion, provides. Let us at this point reconsider the analysis of prefixed nouns which sought to explain their behavior by representing the prefix as toneless underlyingly. This analysis requires that in underlying structure there be High, Low, and toneless TBU's, and that the prefixes (of the words discussed in section 2.1) are toneless whereas the stem vowels are either High or Low. The rule of High Tone Spread would make the prefix vowel High when the preceding word ends in a High. Another rule, ordered after High Tone Spread, would make an unspecified TBU Low. Thus the prefix would be assigned a Low tone when the noun is used in isolation or after a word ending In a Low tone. Now, can such an analysis be extended to the prefixless nouns like bofu and thuku? We would have to claim that in underlying structure these noun stems have a toneless first TBU, while the second TBU of bofu Is Low and the second TBU of thuku is High. Prefixless nouns like th61i and nd6mwa on

60


the other hand would have an underlying High on their first stem vowel (In the case of th61i this High would also be associated with the second TBU, while in the case of ndimwa there would be a Low associated with the second TBU). There would be no preflxless nouns that would have an underlying Low on their first TBU In this analysis. On the other hand, there would be no toneless TBU's anywhere else In noun stems —i.e. the only place toneless vowels would be possible In a noun stem would be as the first vowel of a preflxless stem. This is, indeed, a rather inexplicable distribution of underlying units, if toneless vowels are Indeed to be postulated underlyingly for noun stems. There is an even worse problem with an analysis that would assume that the first vowel of bofu and thuku is underlyingly toneless. Noun stems that occur preflxless have a singular meaning; a plural meaning Is gotten by prefixing the stem in question with the prefix ma-. When these stems appear with a prefix in front of them, their first vowel will no longer behave as though toneless. In other words, the first vowel of bofu and thuku will be toneless Just In case that vowel Is Initial In the word, not when it is preceded by a prefix. When prefixed, the first vowel will behave no differently than any other Low-toned stem vowel. But If these stems were assumed to be underlyingly toneless on the first syllable, there would be no non-ad hoc way to account for why they behave as though they have a Low tone when preceded by a prefix. We conclude, then, that Low-Deletion Is to be preferred to an analysis where prefixes and the initial TBU's of preflxless nouns are toneless. The rule of Low-Deletion, If accepted, has some Implications with respect to the tonal representation of successive Low-toned TBU's. Recall that we have claimed that when a stem has successive High-toned TBU's, there is just a single High in the tonal tier associated with each of the TBU's that is realized on a high pitch. We noted earlier that one might consider claiming that successive Low-toned TBU's In a stem are also associated with a single Low in the tonal tier. We can now see, however, that such a representation would produce incorrect results.


61

Consider the case of bofu. If In underlying structure both of the vowels of this stem are associated with a single Low, then we would expect the following incorrect derivation in the post-High environment. (50) V bofu

bofu inapplicable

LD MR

H 7 M u

HTS


CS FS

This derivation predicts a post-High pronunciation *b6fu instead of the correct b6fu. To achieve the correct form, we must keep the second stem vowel associated with a Low (so that when the preceding High spreads onto this vowel to form a Falling tone, the rule of Final Simplification will be able to disassociate this vowel from the H and leave it associated with a Low). But given the representation of bofu as having a single Low tone, the effect of Low-Deletion is to make both vowels of the stem toneless. To salvage the derivation in (50). it would be necessary to reformulate Low-Deletion so that it doesn't delete a wordinitial Low in the post-High context, but rather dis-associates the Low from the first vowel (leaving It still associated with any other vowel that It might be associated with). But this revision, while it works in the case of (50), runs into problems when the word-Initial Low tone Is In fact associated with Just one vowel. For then the rule would disassociate the Low from that vowel, but leave the Low in the tonal tier. But such an


62

unassoclated Low would (a) Incorrectly block Meeussen's Rule and (b) Incorrectly predict the occurrence of downstep. For Instance, given a noun like mu-sadzi. If Low-Deletion simply disassociates the Low of the prefix In the post-High context, we would produce the following incorrect derivation: (51)

H

L

H

V mu-sadzi H

L

A.

V mu-sadzi

Low-Disassociation

inapplicable

MR

H

L

H

V mu-sadzi

HTS


CS FS

*mu-s!adzi would be generated rather than mu-sfidzi. We conclude then that Low-Deletion should not be reformulated as a dlsassoclatlon rule, but rather must be a deletion rule, and that therefore a word such as bofu Is best represented as having separate Low tones on each vowel rather than a single Low associated with each of the vowels. This conclusion leads to the general proposition that where successive Low tones occur underlyingly within a stem, each TBU has its own Low tone. So far we have examined j u s t disyllabic prefixless nouns. There are also trisyllabic prefixless nouns. The various tonal patterns possible In the post-Low environment are Illustrated in (52): (52)

thamaha danana phaphana dukana

'male beast with certain markings' 'fool' 'type of calabash* "monstrous boy'

The Tonology of the Simple Noun dakalo gong'ong'o khokhola Madzhie

'joy 'bumble-bee' 'ankle-bone' (name of a person)

These pronunciations representations: (53)

suggest the following

L L H

J ''

phaphana

dukana

danana

H

L H L

thamaha L

dakalo

g o n gH' o n g o

L

underlying

H

L L L

H

63

L H

khokhola

H

LL

Madzhie

The post-Low pronunciations shown in (52) are not problematic given the underlying representations in (53). In the case of danana and dakalo, the High associated with the penult vowel will spread onto the final vowel, but this association line will subsequently be eliminated by Final Simplification. In the case of kh6khdla and Madzhie, the High tone underlyingly associated with the first vowel will spread over onto the underlyingly Low-toned second vowel, creating a Falling tone. Since this Falling tone is on a penult TBU it is not subject to either of the simplification processes. In the remaining cases, no rules are applicable. But now consider the post-High pronunciation of such words: (54)

thamaha danana dakalo gong'ong'o phaphana khokhola dukana


64

(We have omitted the post-High pronunciation of Madzhle since this is a personal name and there seems to be a special phenomenon associated with personal names in the post-High environment.) We will examine first those nouns that have an Initial Low tone in the underlying representations given in (53)—i.e. thamaha, danana, phaphana, and dukana. In these cases, we predict that in post-High position the Initial Low will delete by virtue of Low-Deletion. Deletion of the Initial Low will set the stage for Meeussen's Rule to apply If the noun has a High associated with Its second vowel (danana and phaphana). In any case, deletion of the Low will also set the stage for High Tone Spread to extend the High of the preceding word onto the first and also second vowel of the noun. The derivations In (55) show that the above predictions correctly produce the post-High pronunciations for the four Low-initial nouns under discussion. (55)

H

L L L H L H L

I J IJ I J I ' V thamaha

V danana

H

H

L L

v thamaha

L L

V danana

inapplicable inapplicable L

H

__ H

1<M

V dukana

H

H

V phaphana

HTS CS FS

laphana V phaphi H

MR

v danana

V tnamaha

H

LD

V danana H

inapplic.

H L

L H

v dukana

LD

The Tonology

of the Simple

H

L

I

A

V phaphana H

65

Noun

inapplic.

L

H

MR

L H

v phaphana V dukana inapplicable inapplicable

HTS CS FS

Consider next the case of prefixless trisyllabic nouns whose first vowel is associated with a High tone in underlying representation (dakalo, g6ng'6ng'6, and khdkhOla). Since these nouns begin with a High, in the post-High environment they will not be subject to Low-Deletion, but they will be in the environment for Meeussen's Rule. As a consequence of Meeussen's Rule, their initial High will become Low. The High of the preceding word will spread onto the first vowel of the noun, but will be able to go no further since that first vowel is linked. The resulting Falling tone on the first vowel of the noun will subsequently simplify to High due to the operation of Contour Simplification. (56) shows the derivations for dakalo. g6ng'6ng'6, and kh6kh61a in post-High position. (56) H H L H H H H L H

I AI I / \ \

I I II

V dakalo

V gong'ongô

V khokhola

inapplic.

inapplic.

inapplic.

H

L

L

H

V dakalo H

L

H L L H

V gong'ong'o L

V dakalo H

L

L L H

H

LD

L

V khokhola H

V gong'ong'o L

L

L

MR

H

V khokhola

HTS

H L L H

V dakalo

V gong'ongô

V khokhola

CS

inapplic.

inapplic.

inapplic.

FS


66

The alternations that trisyllabic preflxless nouns exhibit—thamaha vs. thamaha, danana vs. danana, phaphana vs. phaphana, dukana vs. duk&na, dakalo vs. dakalo. g6ng'6ng'6 vs. gdng'ong'o, kh6khola vs. kh6khola—are varied and (at first glance) quite baffling. It is certainly a virtue of the analysis that we have developed that no additional rules or assumptions are required In order to be able to account for these complex alternations. We have some data on quadrisyllable preflxless nouns, examples of which are cited in (57). These examples do not represent all of the tone patterns possible (given two underlying tones and fourTBU's), but are sufficiently varied as to constitute a good test for the generality of our analysis. (57)

dabadaba bubusela bwerepwere bolongondo beletshedzo pfumelelo sudzungwlane bokoliiko dzingandevhe buvhikhomu

'fool' "woolen blanket' 'coward' 'heavy, thick pole' 'reparation' 'Intercession' 'sp. shrub' 'sp. bird' 'deaf person' 'sp. spider'

The analysis of these post-Low pronunciations is in part straightforward. Setting aside for the moment pfumilelo, stidzungw!ane\ andb6k61!iko, the underlying representations and derivations of the other Items in (57) are shown in (58). (58)

(a)

L L L L

I LI I dabadaba (no rules applicable) (b)

L L

H

bwerepwere (no rules applicable)

The Tonology of the Simple Noun (c)

H bolongondo

(d)

67

L

L

(no rules applicable)

L H

'Ml (e)

buvhikhomu L L H L

(no rules applicable) L L H L L L^ H L

bubusela —» bubus uselA HTS H

(f:

L

H

—»

bubusela FS L

H

L

b esletshedzo —> beletshedzo —> beletshedzo HTS FS (g)

L H L H

J. I J hl

d z i n g a n d e v h e —» HTS

L H L H

d

I

Ml

dzinganaevhe

The derivations of the post-Low pronunciations of the other three nouns in (57) require a little discussion. Take pfiim6Ielo first. At first blush it might seem that this noun should have the underlying representation: (59)

H

L L

pfumelelo

But this is incorrect. For if (59) were the underlying form, then High Tone Spread would assign an association line between the High and the penult vowel, a vowel that is already associated with a Low tone. The result would be a Falling tone on the penult vowel--a Falling tone that would not be subject to any simplification process. *pftun6161o is, however, the wrong pronunciation. (Cf. kh6kh61a from underlying /khokhola/ ordzing&nd£vh6from underlying /dzingandevhe/ — these examples show that High Tone Spread would be expected to extend a High from the antepenult TBU to the penult TBU of a word.)


68

2 We suggest that the correct underlying representation for pftimfilelo is one where there is a H associated with the first TBU and that the remaining TBU's are all Low-toned; given such a representation, we will have the derivation shown below (in the post-Low context): (60)

H L L L

H L L L

I 1I I pfumelelo

—> HTS

H L L L

Nil

KM

pfumelelo

—> p f u m e l e l o CS

By positing that pftim61elo is underlyingly a HLLL noun, we are making no very surprising claim. If Venda is a system where each stem vowel may be High or Low, then in a quadrisyllable noun stem one would expect instances of the pattern HLLL. However, the tonological rules of Venda will not permit such an underlying tone shape to manifest itself phonetically (in the post-Low context), since High Tone Spread necessarily extends the High associated with the first vowel onto the second vowel, producing a HFLL pattern. But, again, the tonological rules of Venda will not allow a HFLL pattern to be realized phonetically, since Contour Simplification will necessarily simplify the Fall to a level High. The result, then, is a surface tone pattern of HHLL—but where we know the second vowel is not basically High, since if it were it would spread onto the penult vowel. What we see in the case of pftim61elo is that due to the combined effects of High Tone Spread and Contour Simplification it is possible to find surface High tones that do not have the characteristics of underlying High tones. In deciding on the underlying form for any given word, then, it is not possible to take a surface High tone as being necessarily an underlying High tone. There are, of course, limits to when a surface High can be taken to be underlying Low—it must appear in a position in the phrase that precedes the penult syllable and it must be preceded by a High tone. Next let us look at the examples s(idztingwt&n6 and b6k61!iko. The striking fact about these nouns is that they exhibit downstep in their post-Low pronunciation (up until this


69

point we have encountered downstep Just in post-High forms —e.g. mu-ta!nnga from mu-tannga and mu-lamb!6ni from mu-lamb6ni). Given the explanation for downstep that emerged from section 2.1— namely, that it is the result of Downdrift being triggered by an unassoclated Low In the tonal tier, it is natural to ask whether these new cases of downstep are susceptible to a similar analysis. If downstep is to be seen as the consequence of an unassoclated Low, then in sudztingw!an6 and b6k61!iko it will be necessary to assume a (surface) representation like (61). (61)

HL

H

'H\

N

sudzungwane

H L H L

JJA 1

bokoliko

The question that arises is: what is the underlying source of these representations? In particular, is it necessary to assume underlying representations of noun stems containing "floating" (unassoclated) Low tones? Up until this point we have been able to describe the complex Venda nominal tone system utilizing an extremely constrained set of tonologlcal representations. If we assume an underspeclficatlon approach, then underlying representations of nouns contain only Highs and no Lows; the Highs may be associated with any number of successive TBU's, but two Highs on the tonal tier of a morpheme cannot be associated with successive TBU's. All unspecified vowels will be assigned Lows by a default rule. If we assume fully specified representations, then each TBU is associated with one and only one tone, and each tone is associated with at least one TBU (though in the case of High, the tone may be associated with any number of successive TBU's). Successive TBU's inside a stem may not be associated with separate Highs. If we were to assume underlying unassoclated Low tones for sudztingw!an6 and b6k61!iko, we would have to weaken this highly constrained theory of underlying tonal structure in Venda nominals. Low tones would be allowed to appear in the tonal tier even though not associated with any TBU; furthermore, successive vowels in a stem could be


70

associated with separate Highs as long as there is an unassoclated Low between the Highs (cf. the representations In (61)). Such a weakening of the constraints on underlying forms In Venda Is unmotivated. We shall see immediately below that another explanation for the unassoclated Lows in (61) Is available—it is not necessary to resort to underlying floating tones. Also a theory of Venda that would permit floating Low tones in the representation of noun stems would leave unexplained the fact that the location of these floating Lows would be highly constrained. There would never (to our knowledge) be a need to set up an underlying noun stem of the shape: (62)

H L

C....I, Such a representation would be motivated, for example, if there were a noun stem that ended in a High tone (in isolation) but when followed by a word beginning in a High tone caused that High to be downstepped (rather than causing Meeussen's Rule to apply, as would be expected If one word ends In a High and the next begins with a High). There would also never (to our knowledge) be a need to set up an underlying noun stem of the shape: (63)

LH

Such a representation would be motivated, for example. If there were a noun stem that began with a High tone when used in isolation but that High downstepped after a word ending in a High (rather than undergoing Meeussen's Rule as expected). Finally, there would never (to our knowledge) be a need to set up an underlying representation of a noun stem of the shape:


71

HLH

1I [...xx]

Such a representation would be motivated, for example, if there were a noun stem like sudzungw!6n6 and bdk61!iko except that the downstep appeared in front of the final vowel. We would argue that there is a very good reason for why the location of downstep in Venda nominals is so constrained—namely, downstep is caused by an unassociated Low that arises from an associated Low tone that was preceded by a High tone. This High tone spreads onto the Low-toned TBU, creating a contour tone which then undergoes Contour Simplification, leaving the originally Low-toned TBU phonetically High but with an unassociated Low following it in the tonal tier. This means that a downstepped High always occupies the position of the second High in the following schema prior to the application of High Tone Spread: (65)

H L H

I

I

X

X X

If this Is the only source for downstep in nominals, then we make certain predictions (that are in fact borne out by the data). We predict, first, that a noun stem cannot end in a High tone in isolation but at the same time cause an initial High in a following word to be downstepped. Why? Because if a noun ends in a High in isolation, its final vowel must be underlyingly High (there are no rules that create phrase-final High tones). And if a downstepped High arises only in position after a HL sequence, then a noun that ends in a High cannot cause a downstep after it. Consequently, we predict that there are no data in Venda nominals that motivate floating Low tones after a noun stem ending In a High (cf. (62)). Second, we predict that there are no noun stems that begin with a High tone in Isolation but which mysteriously undergo downstep after a word ending in a High. If a word begins In a High in the Isolation form, it must be underlyingly High (there are no rules in Venda that create a High in phrase-initial position). If a


72

downstepped High can only arise from a High preceded by a HL sequence, then a noun stem that begins in a High can never be downstepped after a word that ends in a High. Consequently, we predict that there are no data in Venda that motivate floating Low tones in front of a noun stem (cf. (63). Third, we predict that there are no noun stems with a downstep between the penultimate and final TBU of the stem. In order for a final High to be downstepped, the preceding (i.e. the penult) TBU would have to undergo Contour Simplification. But penult vowels do not undergo Contour Simplification. Therefore there can be no noun stems of the form [...H!H] (cf. (64)). We have shown in the preceding discussion that positing underlying unassociated Low tones in noun stems fails to explain why the distribution of these unassociated Lows would be so limited. On the other hand, by claiming that all downsteps associated with nominal stems arise as a consequence of Contour Simplification we explain the severe limitations on the occurrence of downstep in Venda nominals. We conclude therefore that in examples like s sudzungwane —> sudzungwane HTS CS H L H L HLHL H L H L H L H L

II lI

N N

KM

bokoliko —> bokoliko —> bokoliko HTS CS

N \\

bokoliko —> bokolikc FS

We have now shown that the post-Low pronunciations of the quadrisyllabic prefixless noun stems in (57) are all readily explainable in terms of the analysis that we have developed in this chapter. The post-High pronunciations of the nouns in (57) are given in (66) below:


dabadaba pfumelelo bubus!ela sudzungwane bwerepwlere bokoliko bolongondo dzingandevhe beletshedzo buvhikhomu

Once again, it is a virtue of the present analysis that all of the pronunciations of post-High quadrisyllable stems follow automatically, without need for any additional rules or assumptions. Consider first the derivations for those nouns that have an initial Low tone (dabadaba, bubusela, bwerepwere, buvhikhomu, dzingandevhe). (67)

H

L L L L

H

1 1

1 M 1 11 11

1 1 1 1 11 11 11

L L H L

V

dabadaba

V bubusela

H

L L L

H L H L 1 III V bubusela

J I!' v

1

Ml

dabadaba inappl:icable

H

L L L

V

dabadaba

H

L L L

V

dabadaba

H

MR L H L

V bbbTisela

HT:

V bubusela

CS

H

L H L

inapplicable

V bubusela

H

H

L L

H

A

U '' v bwerepwere

LD

L

L

L H

1 1 1 I( V buvhikhomu

FS

74


I

L

H

I A

V bwerepwere

H

L

L H

l

! I I

V buvhikhomu

inapplicable H

L

H

H

V bwerepwere H

i ^

L

H

A

V bwerepwere

MR L

L H

vhikhomu H

r*^

LD

L

HTS

L H

I]

V buvhikhomu inapplicable

CS FS

LD

MR

HTS

CS FS

These derivations are entirely unproblematlc and simply Illustrate the complete generality with which the rules we have postulated operate In Venda nominal tonology. 2.4. Conclusion. We have now concluded our account of the simple noun in Venda In both the post-Low and


75

post-High positions. We have shown that a very complex pattern of tonal alternation is elegantly explained by assuming a very constrained system of underlying representations and by assuming a small set of rules. We believe that this system of representation and that these rules are amply supported by the Venda data. In this section we examine briefly some theoretical aspects of this analysis. First, let us review the implications of this analysis for whether underlying representations are fully specified or underspecified as far as tone is concerned. The crucial point about the Venda data is that Low tones (which would be the tones assigned by a default rule in an underspecification approach) must be present at the point where the first rule, Low-Deletion, applies. The reason is obvious: Low-Deletion cannot delete the first Low of a word in the post-High environment if there are no Low tones available for deletion. Since the default rule assigning Low tones must precede the first tone rule in the small set of ordered tone rules we have so far unearthed for Venda, then the theory of underspecification does not appear to add much in terms of the rule system (in contrast to other cases—cf. Archangeli (1984)—where it has been argued that the proper ordering of default rules with respect to the phonological rules permits a simplification of the formulation of the rules and yields more insight into why phonological rules have the effects that they do in a particular language. The underspecification approach does, perhaps, suggest why there might be an asymmetry between High tones (which may be multiply linked to successive TBU's, but which may not occur themselves in succession linked to successive TBU's) and Low tones (which do not underlyingly occur multiply linked and which may occur in succession on successive TBU's). If the Low-tones are supplied by a default rule of the form, (73)

L

t I X -->

X


76

then It follows that each TBU will have Its own Low tone and no Low tone will (as a consequence of the default rule) be associated with more than one TBU. High tones, which are specified in underlying structure, are simply subject to a morpheme structure principle that disallows the following sequence: (74)

*

H H

I I

x x

but does not disallow multiple linking of a High to the segmental tier. (Alternatively, one could allow In underlying structure successive High tones on the tonal tier associated with successive TBU's, but then posit a tonological rule that collapses such successive High tones Into a single multiply-associated High.) The fact that the underspecification approach offers a basis for the asymmetry in the representation of High and Low tones in Venda is perhaps sufficient reason to continue to examine the Venda data with It In mind. It is also perhaps not surprising that the default rule for Low tones would have to precede the first tone rule we have in our grammar since all of the rules we have discussed so far are clearly phrase-level rules: Low- Deletion deletes a Low at the beginning of one word when the preceding word ends in a High (whether LowDeletion could conceivably apply within a word is an issue that we do not yet have data to explore; suffice It to say that it does not apply in position internal to the noun stem—i.e. a L is maintained after a H In such examples as khdkhOla, tshivh&vh&l&, Madingwfine), Meeussen's Rule lowers a High after a High, and it is clear that these Highs may be In separate words (it is not clear yet whether they must be In separate words); High Tone Spread extends a High from one TBU to the next TBU to the right—those TBU's may be in the same word or In different words; Contour Simplification operates on a HL sequence associated with a pre-penult vowel, but the H and the L of this sequence may either be in the same word or in separate words; Final Simplification operates on a HL


77

sequence associated with a final vowel, but again the H and the L may be in the same word or in separate words. Thus the fact that the default Low rule in Venda precedes all the tone rules discovered so far simply amounts to saying that the default rule applies before the phrase-level rules in question. The next theoretical point that we would like to review in conjunction with the Venda data is closely connected to the preceding point. In most of the cases where the autosegmental approach to tone has been strongly argued for, the tonal tier and the segmental tier have been underlyingly unassociated. That is, it has been claimed that generalizations about tonal structure in a number of languages are made possible by the assumption that the tones and the tone-bearing units are fundamentally independent and that the two tiers are unassociated prior to the operation of (a) universal principles of tone association and (b) languagespecific principles of tone association. The reader may have noted that while the autosegmental framework has made possible what we regard as an elegant account of a complex pattern of tonal alternation in Venda nominals, nowhere have we invoked (as our starting point) a representation where the tones are unassociated. In fact, the tones must be linked prior to the application of the first rule—namely, Low-Deletion. Why is this so? Suppose that the tones were underlyingly unlinked. It is clear that the basic mechanism for linking the tones to the segmental tier would be the universal principle of association that says that free tones and free TBU' are linked one-to-one left-to-right. But if Low-Deletion were to precede this principle of association, then that principle would incorrectly link what was originally the second tone of the noun (but is now first as a consequence of Low-Deletion) to the first TBU. Schematically (where T stands for any tone): (75) [...H]

[LTT...] -> [...H] [TT...] ->

[. .H] [TT. . . ]

I h ... X

XX . . .

. .X

LD

X X ...

. . X

XX . . .

association principle

78


But this is incorrect. It is necessary that Low-Deletion result in the first TBU of the noun being toneless. This will not be possible if Low-Deletion precedes the association principle that links tones one-to-one left-to-right. It is not just Low-Deletion that clearly must have an input where tones are linked. High Tone Spread, for example, extends a High tone to the right until the presence of an association line blocks any further spreading (due to the prohibition of the crossing of association lines). But that means thatTBU's must be linked at the point where High Tone Spread operates. Contour Simplification says that a H and L associated with a pre-penult vowel delinks from the L, but this clearly means that the tones and the TBU's must be associated at the point where Contour Simplification applies. Final Simplification affects a H and a L associated with a phrase-final TBU, delinking the H; again, the tiers must be linked at the point where Final Simplification applies. We have assumed, therefore, that the tones and the CV-tier are linked at the point where the first of our tone rules applies. But what about underlying structure? Are the tones linked there? If we adopt an underspeciflcation approach, the answer is obviously yes. Consider a noun such as bubusela. In an underspecification approach, there would Just be one specification for this word—a High tone (the Lows would be supplied by a default Low rule). But if this High tone were not linked to a particular TBU, we would have no way of predicting that it appears associated with the third TBU In this word (and not the first or the second or the last). For a word with a single High tone does not necessarily manifest that High on any particular vowel~cf. mu-rathfi where the H of the stem is on the last vowel, or mu-selwa where the H of the stem is on the first vowel, and so on). Similarly, If there are only Highs underlylngly, and if our argument is accepted that successive high-pitched vowels within a stem are all associated with a single High in the tonal tier, then the contrast between a word such as tholl and ndemwa could not be represented without underlying linkage of the tonal and the segmental tiers. th61i and ndemwa would both have just a single underlying High tone, so It would be necessary to encode in the underlying


79

tone, so it would be necessary to encode In the underlying form that the H of the first word is associated with both vowels while the H of the second word is associated Just with the first vowel. We have shown that underspecification theory requires that the tones and the segmental tier be underlyingly linked. What about fully specified representations—is linking required there? Consider a word like sudzungwlanfe. We claim that this form requires an underlying High on the first stem vowel, an underlying Low on the second stem vowel, and an underlying H associated with the last two stem vowels. In other words, there are three tones in the underlying representation: HLH, and fourTBU's. If the tones are unlinked, is there any way to predict that these three tones will hook up to the CV-tier in the way required? In this case, we could claim that the tones hook up one-to-one, left-to-right, yielding the following partial derivation: (76)

H L H

H L H

'H ' ' sudzungwane —» sudzungwane

All that would be required, then, would be a principle to hook up the free (final) vowel to the only tone possible (the H associated to the penult vowel). While this approach works for sudzuxigw!ane\ it predicts that one could not have a noun of the following shape in Venda: (77)

H

L H

^ 'I cvcvcvcv since there would be no way by the association principle for the first H in a HLH word to end up associated with the first two vowels. But in fact such words are entirely expected given the general observation that all combinations of High and Low are possible within a nominal stem. We cite some examples:

The TonoLogy of the Simple Noun

80 (78)

gokoshomba

'the creeper Rhoicissus capensis Planch' (v. Warmelo, 1937, p. 77)

dzhesixondo

'the sedge Cyperus immensus' (v. Warmelo, 1937, p. 57)

(Some of the quadrisyllable stems cited in the course of this chapter may, not surprisingly, be of compound origin. It is doubtful, however, whether such compounding should be regarded as a synchronic process in all cases.) There is, then, some problems of predicting the linking of tones and TBU's in a theory involving full specification underlyingly. But there is perhaps a more severe problem. Consider for instance a stem with two TBU's. If the tonal tier is unlinked to the segmental tier—if they are truly independent, why then is it the case in Venda that a stem with two TBU's will either have an underlying representation with a single H (since this associates with both vowels of the stem), or a H and a L, or a L and a H. Why will the stem never have a tonal melody of HLH or LHL or LLL or LLH or HLL, etc. That is, why are the underlying tonal melodies for a stem just those that end up after the tone association process with all the tones on the tonal tier linked to some TBU and all TBU's being linked to Just one tone? In a theory where tones and TBU's are unlinked, there is no natural way to state the constraints on the underlying tonal melodies possible for any given stem. We conclude, then, that whether we have underspecified underlyingly representations or fully specified underlying representations, the tones must be linked to the segmental tier in underlying structure. It is interesting to note, however, that this fact in no way affects the observation that it is the autosegmental framework (which regards tones and tone-bearing units to be represented on separate tiers) that allows for an insightful characterization of the tonal pattern of Venda. In what way does the autosegmental view of phonology make possible the insights of our analysis of Venda tone (given that we have not drawn at all upon what might be regarded as the essence of the theory—namely, that the choice of an underlying tonal structure of a morpheme is independent of


81

the number of TBU's In the morpheme)? An examination of the rules that we have postulated and the representations upon which these rules operate reveals that Indeed many features of autosegmental phonology are crucially utilized. We list these features below, and make reference to the aspect of our analysis that makes appeal to these features: (a)

a single tone may be associated with more than one TBU (cf. our representation of words like mu-sadzi and b6I6ng6nd6, where successive High-toned vowels are linked to a single High on the tonal tier, and also cf. our treatment of High Tone Spread);

(b)

a single tone-bearing unit may be associated with more than one tone (cf. our analysis of a word like dzingand€vh6, where the Falling tone on the penult vowel is accounted for In terms of that vowel being linked underlyingly to a Low but also coming to be linked to a preceding High as a consequence of High Tone Spread;

(c)

a tone-bearing unit may (at some point in the derivation) be unassociated with any tone (cf. our postulation of the rule of Low-Deletion, which eliminates the initial Low of a noun In the post-High environment and thus leaves the first vowel of the noun toneless until the rule of High Tone Spread operates);

(d)

a tone may (at some point In the derivation) be unassociated with any TBU (cf. our treatment of downstep as arising from the disassociation of a Low tone from a HL sequence on a pre-penult vowel);

(e)

a tone rule may add association lines without otherwise altering the tonal tier or segmental tier (cf. High Tone Spread);


82 (f)

a tone rule may delete association lines without otherwise altering the tonal tier or the CV-tier (cf. Contour Simplification and Final Simplification);

(g)

a tone rule may change an element T on the tonal tier and thereby affect all the TBU's associated with T; cf. Meeussen's Rule, which changes a H to a L when a H precedes — the H that changes to a L may be associated with more than one vowel, in which case all the vowels become low-pitched;

(h)

a tone rule may delete an element T on the tonal tier (cf. Low-Deletion), leaving the segmental tier unaffected.

We have seen that our analysis of Venda does not require a principle of association to perform an initial linkage of the tonal tier and the segmental tier (since the tones are underlyingly linked). In Goldsmith's original version of the autosegmental theory (1976), he suggested not only is there an initial principle of association that links free tones and free vowels, but there is also a set of Luell-Jormedness conditions that phonological representations must satisfy. In addition to the condition that association lines may not cross. Goldsmith also proposed that every tone must be associated with at least one TBU and every TBU must be associated with at least one tone. Goldsmith suggested that if at any point in the derivation a representation arises that violates one or more of these well-formedness conditions, then this ill-formed representation must be converted into a representation obeying the well-formedness conditions. The principles by which an ill-formed representation would be rectified were in part straightforward (e.g. add association lines In accord with the Initial tone association principle; add a minimum number of lines) and in part open to debate (e.g. in cases where two equally simple emendations would make the representation


83

well-formed. Is there a universal principle that chooses which emendation to make?). At first glance one might think that something like Goldsmith's well-formedness conditions could be at work in Venda. For example, when a word-initial Low tone deletes in the post-High context, leaving the first TBU of a noun toneless, one could conceivably claim that toneless TBU becomes associated with the preceding High not by a language-particular rule of Venda but rather as a consequence of the well-formedness condition that requires that every TBU be associated with a tone. But even if one were to claim that the toneless initial vowel of the noun becomes High as a consequence of the well-formedness condition, there would still have to be a language-particular rule of Venda that spreads a High tone onto a following (Low-toned) TBU (cf. the Falling tone in examples like tshi-vhavhala, Madingwane, kh6khdla, Madzhie, mti-tfika (post-High form of mu-tuka), thamaha (post-High form of thamaha), etc.). There Is no way that a (universal) well-formedness condition would account for why a Low-toned TBU becomes Falling-toned after a High tone; this change must be due to the operation of a rule specific to Venda. However, if Venda must in any case have a rule that spreads a High tone to the right, the fact that a toneless TBU at the beginning of a noun (resulting from Low-Deletion) becomes High-toned after a word ending in a High tone can be accounted for by this same language-specific spread rule. The well-formedness condition requiring that unassociated TBU's must associate with some tone does not do any work that the independently motivated, language-specific spread rule doesn't already do. We have seen above that the well-formedness condition requiring that every unassociated TBU must associate to some tone is not required in order to account for the Venda data. Recent work in autosegmental phonology (cf. Pulleyblank 1983) has suggested that in fact the claim that an unassociated TBU must associate to the tone of a neighboring TBU is Incorrect. Pulleyblank suggests instead that unassociated TBU's may either become associated by virtue of a language-specific spread rule (that would spread the tone of a

84


neighboring TBU onto the free TBU) or receive a tonal specification as a result of a default rule. Unassociated TBU's would not. however, automatically be linked to the tone of a neighboring TBU as a result of a well-formedness condition. Our analysis of Venda does not so far provide any evidence to support Pulleyblank's position, but Venda is certainly consistent with the claim that all spreading is by language-particular rules rather than by virtue of the well-formedness condition. Venda does provide evidence to support another of Pulleyblank's suggestions—namely, there Is no well-formedness condition requiring every tone on the tonal tier to link to some TBU. Recall that our analysis of downstep in Venda depends on Low tones remaining in the tonal tier, unassociated with any TBU. This would not be possible if such a representation is affected by a well-formedness condition requiring every tone to associate. The analysis of Venda tonology that we have presented in this chapter, insofar as it is an insightful explanation of the complex pattern of tonal alternation exhibited by simple nouns, provides abundant evidence not only for the theory of autosegmental phonology but also for a theory that permits phonological rules to interact with one another (expressible In terms of sequencing the rules) and also permits a phonological rule to be postulated in the grammar even though surface structures in the language appear to violate the rule in question. The following rule Interactions are required by our analysis of Venda. Low Deletion must be applied before Meeussen's Rule. It is the application of Low Deletion to a noun that begins with the tonal sequence LH that creates the context for the H of the noun to undergo Meeussen's Rule (cf. H mtisfidzi, where the H of the stem /sadzi/ undergoes Meeussen's Rule after the L of the prefix / m u / is deleted). In other words. Low Deletion feeds Meeussen's Rule. High Tone Spread must follow Low Deletion. This is necessary so that High Tone Spread can extend a H past the toneless syllable onto a following syllable. If the Low had not yet deleted, then a H could not spread past that syllable. (Cf.


85

an example like H mutuka, where the H can spread onto the first syllable of / t u k a / only because the L of the prefix / m u / has been deleted.) Notice that Low Deletion does not create the context for High Tone Spread (since High Tone Spread will extend a H onto a Low-toned syllable as well as onto a toneless syllable), but rather simply allows that rule to extend one more syllable to the right. High Tone Spread must be applied prior to Contour and Final Simplification. This is necessary since It is the application of High Tone Spread that creates the Falling tones that undergo these simplification rule. These particular rule interactions are not especially opaque in the sense of Kiparsky (1973). A rule interaction is opaque If (a) the phonetic output of the rule interaction contains structures that in fact meet the structural description of one of the rules or (b) the phonetic output of the rule Interaction no longer contains the structural configuration that in fact triggered the application of one of the rules. There is, however, a certain amount of opacity. Consider, for example, pfumelelo. On the surface, this form meets the structural description for High Tone Spread, but the rule has not applied. In fact, however. High Tone Spread did apply In the course of the derivation, but the subsequent application of Contour Simplification has created a sequence where there is a H associated with one syllable and that H Is not also associated with the following syllable. There is, however, a more pervasive sort of opacity in the Venda system—an opacity that does not have its source in the rule interaction but in the representations. We have claimed that Meeussen's Rule operates In Venda to lower a High when another High precedes. But there are In fact many instances where there are successive High-pitched syllables. These successions of High-pitched syllables appear to be counterexamples to Meeussen's Rule. They are not, however. Rather we have claimed that the succession of High-pitched syllables are In fact instances of a single H multiply-linked. Meeussen's Rule affects only a H on the tonal tier that is preceded by another H. In other words, Meeussen's Rule operates In terms of the number of High tones on the tonal tier

86


and not in terms of the number of syllables that are realized phonetically on a High pitch. In the present chapter we have presented an analysis of the tonal structure of the Venda nominal system that accounts for the tonal complexities of this system in what we regard as a simple and insightful way. In the next chapter we turn to look at the verbal tonology of Venda. We will see that this system provides much additional support for the basic analysis we have developed here, but also raises some additional questions.

CHAPTER THREE

Verbal Tonology (I) 3.0. Introduction. In this chapter we will examine a significant fragment of the verbal tonology of Venda. The structure of the verb in Venda, as in most Bantu languages, is extremely complex and we do not claim to have provided an exhaustive account of all the verbal constructions in the language. We have, however, explored the tonal patterning of a sufficiently rich body of material to serve as an adequate test sample for the analysis of Venda tone developed in Chapter Two. Verb stems (a verb root plus, possibly, various derivational suffixes) in Venda fall into Just two tonal types. The infinitival form of these two types is illustrated in (1). (1)

Low verb stems u-d-a 'to come' [SI u-se-a 'to laugh' [SI u-gwadam-a to kneel' [SI u-vhanyuludz-a 'to force one's way through' [SI u-sinyutshelan-a 'to get angry at e.o.' [SI High verb stems u-l-a u-vhon-a

'to eat' [SI 'to see' [SI 87

88

Verbal Tonology (I) u-vhudzis-a 'to ask' [S] u-somb6161-a 'to unwind' [S] u-laisulul-a 'to unload' [SJ

The infinitive form of the verb consists of the prefix ufollowed by the verb stem (proper) followed by the final vowel -a. For convenience, we will refer to the verb stem proper plus the final vowel as the "verb stem". The first set of verb stems in (1) will be referred to as Low verb stems. They have no High tones associated with any of the vowels in the stem. The second set of verb stems in (1) will be referred to as High verb stems. When a High verb stem has one, two, or three vowels, all of the vowels are realized with a High tone. If the H stem has four or more vowels, then all of the vowels of the stem will be associated with a H tone except for the last vowel, which has a Low tone associated to it. Since there are only two tonal patterns for verbal stems, no matter how many vowels there may be in a stem, it seems clear that the vowels in a Venda verb stem do not independently select atone. Rather, the tonal configuration of the vowels in the stem depends on how the stem is specified. We will assume that verb stems In Venda are either specified with a H tone on the tonal tier, or no tone. If a verb stem is specified with no tone, then the Default Low rule will assign each vowel in the verb stem a Low tone. If a verb stem is specified with a H tone, then we assume that this High tone will associate with the first vowel of the verb stem by virtue of the principle that (within a given domain) free tones and free vowels are associated in a one-to-one, right-to-left fashion. Since in the case of High verb stems there Is Just one tone in the domain under consideration, that tone will associate with the leftmost vowel in the domain (the first stem vowel). The High tone associated with the first stem will then spread onto the following (toneless) vowels by virtue of the rule of High Tone Spread motivated In Chapter Two. The only problem with this analysis is created by the behavior of H verb stems that have four or more vowels. They have a Low tone associated with their last vowel. All the

Verbal Tonology (I)

89

preceding vowels In the verb stem are pronounced on a High tone. Verb stems that have three or less vowels do not exhibit this final Low tone. We will simply assume that there is a special rule that assigns a Low to the final vowel of verb stems that have four or more vowels. This rule must precede High Tone Spread. We will not consider this particular idlosyncracy of Venda verbal tones any further since it does not turn out to be relevant to any of the general issues of Venda tonology. The infinitive form of the verb Illustrated in (1) does not present any particular difficulty with respect to the tonal analysis. The Infinitive prefix u- is apparently Low-toned (i.e. in the underspeclfication approach, unspecified for tone). The underlying tonal character of the verb stem is manifested directly on the surface. The study of the tonology of the Venda verb becomes more complicated when we turn to the finite form of the verb. One particularly Interesting verb tense is examined In 3.1 below. fWe use the term "verb tense" in the traditional Bantu sense of a verbal form where a verbal stem appears with a particular array of morphological elements marking tense, aspect, mood, negation, etc.) 3.1. The Present Tense. In this section we will examine a verbal tense that we can refer to as the "present tense" form of the verb. We begin our exploration of the tonal structure of this verb form by citing examples of Low-toned verb stems with first person subject prefixes (either ndl- for a singular first person subject or rl- for a plural first person subject). (2a)

ndi-a-tuwa ndl-a-Iima ndl-a-sendela ndi-a-lindela ndi-a-adzulula ndi-a-fhihamelwa ri-a-sinyutshelana

'I am departing' [S] 'I am ploughing' (W, 156] 'I am approachlng'fS] 'I am waiting' [W, 157) 'I am rolling s.t. up' [S] 'I am getting short of breath'IS) "we are getting angry at one another' [SJ

Verbal Tonology (I)

90

Finite verb forms in Venda obligatorily contain a prefix marking the subject of the verb. The choice of the subject prefix is determined by the person, number, and/or noun class of the subject. The subject prefix, from a tonal point of view, contains a single tone-bearing unit. In the course of this thesis we will restrict our examples to just a few of the possible subject prefixes in the language. Tonally, the subject prefixes in the present tense (and in a number of other tenses as well) fall into two tonal types. We will be giving representative examples of both types. Subject prefixes are typically ordered initially in the finite verbal word and they are generally followed immediately by a tense/aspect prefix. In the present tense forms in (2a) the tense/aspect prefix is -a-. The tense/ aspect prefix in turn is followed by the verb stem (as we will see later, an object prefix may intervene between the tense/aspect prefix and the verb stem). All verbal forms end in a "final vowel"; in the present tense, this final vowel is -a. The fact that the items in (2a) are entirely Low-toned suggests strongly that all of the constituent elements are inherently Low-toned. We assume, then, in particular that the first person subject prefixes are underlyingly Low-toned as is the present tense prefix -a-. Consider next High-toned verb stems in the present tense with first person subject prefixes: (2b)

ndi-a-renga ndi-a-vhona ndi-a-swiela ndi-a-tshimbila ndi-a-shandvilula ndi-a-hanelela ri-a-laisulula ndi-a-fulufhedzisa

'I 'I 'I 'I 'I

am buying' [S] see' {W, 156] am sweeping' [S] am walking' [W, 156] am turning s.t. right side out* [S] 'I am narrating' [S] 'we are unloading' [S] 'I am promising' (SI

These data conflrm the claim that the first person subject prefixes and the present tense prefix -a- are basically Low-to-

Verbal Tonology (I)

91

ned. In (2b) the prefixes manifest themselves as Low-toned, while the High verb stems exhibit the tonal pattern that we observed in section 3.0--HH. HHH, HHHL, HHHHL. At this point let us consider representative examples from (2a) and (2b) in the post-High context. (3) illustrates: (3)

H ndi-a-llma [W, 156] H ndi-a-lindela [W, 157] H ndi-a-vh!6na [W, 157] H ndi-a-tsh!imbila [W, 156]

It is immediately apparent that the rule of High Tone Spread that we postulated on the basis of alternations In nouns when they appear in the post-High environment Is equally valid for verbs In post-High position. In order to account for the pronunciations In (3) it is not sufficient to assume Just that High Tone Spread can affect verbs~we must also assume that Low-Deletion is also applicable to verbs. Why Is this so? Notice that the High of the preceding word spreads not only onto the first TBU of the verb (namely, the subject prefix ndi-) but also onto the second TBU of the verb (namely, the present tense prefix -a-). If the subject prefix ndi- is underlylngly Low-toned (and it certainly appears to be), and If Low-Deletion were not applicable to verbs, then we would predict that the Low tone associated with ndi- would block the spreading of a High onto the -a- prefix. In order to permit spreading to reach the -apreflx, we must assume that ndi- is toneless at the point where High Tone Spread applies. While we might attempt to claim that ndi- is underlyingly toneless and acquires Its Low tone in the post-Low context (cf. ndi-a-llma, ndi-a-vh6na, etc.) by rule, such an analysis Is rendered unnecessary if we simply assume that Low-Deletion Is a general rule of the language, not at all specific to nouns. In order to give a complete account of the data In (3) we need to make Just one further assumption: namely, that Contour Simplification is also a general rule that operates on verbs as well as nouns. For it is the Contour Simplification rule that will explain why, when the High of the preceding

Verbal Tonology (I)

92

word spreads onto the Low-toned prefix -a-, the -a- surfaces associated just with a High and not with a Low (cf. H ndi-a-lima). It is also Contour Simplification which will explain the downstep that appears in front of High-toned verb stems (cf. H ndi-a-vh!6na)—the downstep being caused by the unassociated Low tone produced by Contour Simplification. The derivations of the items in (3) can be amply illustrated by choosing one Low verb (-lindela) and one High verb (-tshlmblla). (4)

L L

t H

L

L L

I I 1 I I ndi-a-lindela L

L

L L

I ndi-a-lindela

H

L L

H

V n d i - a --tshimbiTa H

L

H

I I V ndi-a-tshimbila

LD MR

HTS

v ndi-a-lindela inapplicable

V ndi-a-tshimbilc

CS FS

We have shown in (4) that the post-High pronunciations of first person High- and Low-toned verb stems in the present tense can be accounted for without any new rules if we simply assume that the rules postulated in Chapter 2 are in fact not special rules for nouns but are general rules of the language. The fact that our analysis of nouns immediately extends to the post-High pronunciations of verbs provides strong support for our analysis: at every point along the way (as we moved from shorter noun stems to longer ones, as we moved from prefixed nouns to prefixless nouns, now as we move from nouns to verbs) we find that an analysis based on

Verbal Tonology (I)

93

one set of data extends either automatically or naturally to new sets of data. We feel Justified that the rules so far postulated form the proper basis for an understanding of the entire Venda tonal system. Not all of the subject prefixes behave parallel to the first person subject prefixes. The third person subject prefixes

/ \ [ . . . x ] y [x. . . ] z

(where y and z are the conjoined morphological units that are subject to the obligatory contour principle). Suppose that we claim in Venda that the morphological conjoining of a verb stem with a preceding prefix is subject to the OCP. This means that when -nga- is conjoined with -vh6n-a, the two H tones In the tonal tier will collapse to a single H, associated both with the prefix and the verb stem. The result is that we have a single H tone multiply-linked. The environment for Meeussen's Rule is not satisfied since there are not two High tones In succession.

Verbal Tonology (I)

123

We will assume that it is indeed the OCP that accounts for the failure of Meeussen's Rule to affect a H verb stem after the prefix -nga-. Let us now turn to the second problem posed by the data in (29), namely, the fact that a High tone appears on the first stem vowel of an underlylngly Low-toned verb stem (a H tone that is able to spread onto the second stem vowel as well). This is shown by examples such as ri-nga-vhangisan-a and ndi-nga-lindfil-a. The solution to this problem is obvious. We have seen that when the L tone of-a- metathesizes in front of a H subject prefix, the H subject prefix is able to induce the metathesis/deletion of the initial L of the verb stem. If we assume that the prefix -nga- likewise can induce the metathesis/deletion of the initial L of a verb stem, then the derivation of the Low-toned verb stems in (29) is straightforward. (32) provides a sample derivation: (32)

L

H

I

I I I I

L

L

L

ndi-nga-1inde1-a L L H

L

L

II

II

ndi-nga-lindel-a

LM/DEL

inapplicable

MR

L L H

L

L

ndi-nga-1inde1-a

HTS

inapplicable

CS and FS

Let us turn now to the post-High pronunciation of the first person potential verb since these forms do shed some light on the application of Low Deletion to verbs. (33) provides relevant examples: (33) H ndi-ng!a-vhona [W, 159] H ndi-ng!a-tshimbila (W,159] H ndi-ng!a-lima [W.1591 H ndi-ng!a-lindela [W.159]

Verbal Tonology (I)

124

The derivation of these Items Is straightforward i/"we assume that Low-Deletion does not delete the Low of the first person subject prefix ndi-. If ndl- were to lose its Low tone, then we would Incorrectly generate *H ndi-nga-vhona and *H ndi-ngatshimbil-a. (34) shows the incorrect derivation that is predicted If Low Deletion were to apply, and (35) shows the correct derivation resulting from the failure of Low Deletion to apply. (34)

H

L

H

H

I I I x H

l\

ndi-nga-vhon-a L

H

x ndi-nga-vhon-a H

OCP

H

x ndi-nga-vhon-a

LM/DEL MR

x

ndi-nga-vhon-a

H

L

l^\ x

HTS

V\

CS

ndi-nga-vhon-a FS

(35)

H

1

L

J-

lH

H

J\

x ndi-nga-vhon-a H L H

I I

/V\

x ndi-nga-vhon-a

OCP

Verbal Tonology (I)

125

inapplicable inapplicable H

1

L

H

J- /h^

x ndi-nga-vhon-a H

L

LM/D MR

HTS

H

x ndi-nga-vhon-a

CS

inapplicable

FS

It Is clear from comparing (34) and (35) that the Low tone of the prefix ndl- must be retained (i.e. not undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion). There are three reasons It must be there. The Low must be present so as to prevent the previous word's High from lowering -nga- by Meeussen's Rule. The Low must be present so that the previous word's High can spread onto the ndl- but no further. Third, the Low must be there so that It can detach from ndl- (once ndl- has received a spread High) by Contour Simplification but still remain in the tonal tier to cause the downstepping of -nga-. The Issue then is simply: why does the Low of ndl- not metatheslze/delete in (35)? We propose that the explanation for this is that a word-Initial Low on a verb does not metatheslze/delete If it is immediately followed by a High. This constraint does not hold for nouns (recall that a noun such as mu-sdlwa will undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion in the post-High context, even though the Low prefix is followed immediately by a High). We will see in the course of this thesis, however, that it is just nouns that are exempt from the requirement that the Low to be metathesized/deleted must be followed by another Low. Let us assume, then, that the correct explanation for the failure of Low Metathesis/Deletion to apply In (35) is the condition that the L of ndl- Is followed by a H and the rule in question requires a L to follow. If this is so, we see clearly that we were correct in raising the issue of whether Low Metathesis and Low Deletion might not be the same rule. Low Deletion, as we originally conceived of it, deleted a word-initial L after a final H in the previous word. Low Metathesis, on the other

Verbal Tonology (I)

126

hand, metathesized a prefix L In front of a preflxal H. What we have now seen Is that (In verbs) Low Deletion (the operation that affects the L of ndi-in (35) above) is subject to the constraint that a L must follow. But we have also seen that Low Metathesis (the operation that affects the L of-a- in words like Iti-a-lindeia to place It In front of the verb) is subject to this same constraint—it operates only before a L verb stem, not a H verb stem. Thus, in verbs, both Low Deletion and Low Metathesis apply to a HLL sequence: the only difference is that when this sequence Is within a word, the post-H Low surfaces as an unassociated Low in front of the H; when the H is at the end of a word and the following L is at the beginning of the next word, we do not find the L surfacing at all. We have shown so far that the post-H forms like H nding!a-vh6n-a and H ndi-ng!a-tshimbil-a can be derived correctly by a derivation such as (35) where Low Metathesis/Deletion Is not permitted to affect the initial L of the subject prefix ndl-. The post-H forms of Low verbs—e.g., H ndi-ng!a-lind€l-a--can be derived fairly straightforwardly (see endnote 1, however). (36) illustrates. (36)

H

L

I

I I I I I

x

H

L

L

L

ndi-nga-lindel-a

inapplicable H I x

OCP

L H L L I | | | ndi-nga-lindel-a

inapplicable inapplicable H x

L

L

L

ndi-nga-lindel-a

H

L

| \ x

H^

lexical applic. of LM/D2 post-lexical applic. LM/D MR

H

L

^ |?

1 |

HTS

L

ndi-nga-lindel-a

CS

Verbal Tonology (I)

127

The potential form of the verb has an additional aspect to it that we will make note of here. Westphal states that "all subject prefixes are low in pitch" [W, 159; see also W.148] in the potential verbal form. In other words, the tonal shape of the subject prefixes is not independent of the morphological construction of the verb. Although there are many tenses where first and second person subject prefixes are Low while third person subject prefixes are High, in some tenses this situation is altered; the potential is one such case. The fact that the subject prefixes are uniformly Low-toned in the potential cannot be attributed to anything about the phonological environment. It is simply an aspect of the morphology. While the data that we collected is in agreement with Westphal in not showing on the prejix a tonal contrast for first/second person versus third person, our data does suggest that there may nevertheless be a tonal contrast at work. In the examples In (37), the third person forms of the verb are consistently pronounced on a somewhat higher pitch level throughout the word than are the first person forms. We have used the symbol T to mark this "upshifting" of third person forms. (37)

ndi-nga-bika* Ta-nga-bika* ri-nga-vhangisana*

'I may cook' [SI 'he may cook' [S] "we may quarrel with one another'[S] Tvha-nga-vhangisana* 'they may quarrel...'[S] ndl-nga-renga* "I may buy' [S] Ta-nga-renga* 'he may buy' [S] ndl-nga-laisulula* 'I may unload' [S] Ta-nga-laisulula* 'he may unload' [S]

Thus while ndl-nga-r6nga and Ta-nga-r6nga, for example, both have a subject prefix that is Low relative to the following Highs in the word, the Lows and Highs of the latter word are phonetically raised in comparison with the Lows and Highs of the former.

Verbal Tonology (I)

128

We have not had the opportunity to explore this upshlftlng of third person forms (In comparison with first and second person forms) In the potential. We will see later that there are other cases of a similar upshlftlng. At the present time we cannot see any way to account for this upshlftlng In terms of the underlying tonal shape of the third person potential verb versus the first and second person. Rather it seems that the device of upshifting is in response to the fact that the usual tonal contrast on the subject prefix is neutralized. We leave the problem of upshlftlng for future study. 3.4. The negative prefix -sd-. The negative marker -sarepresents another case of a prefix that has a High tone. (38) gives examples of the negative infinitive construction of High and Low verb stems. (38)

u-vhona u-sa-vhona u-tshimbila u-sa-tshimbila u-somb6161a u-sa-sombolola u-fulufhedzisa u-sa-fulufhedzisa u-amba u-sa-amba u-gldlma u-sa-gidima u-slnyutshela u-sa-sinyutshela u-slnyutshelana u-sa-sinyutshelana

'to see' 'not to see' [W.140] t o walk' 'not to walk' rw,140] 'to unwind' 'not to unwind' [W,1401 'to promise' 'not to promise' IS] 'to speak' 'not to speak' [W.140] 'to run' 'not to run' [W.140] 'to get angry at' 'not to get angry at' [W.140] 'to get angry at one another' 'not to get angry at one another'[SJ

Obviously, the behavior of the negative prefix -sA- In (38) Is precisely parallel to the behavior of the potential prefix -ngalllustrated In (29). The two cases can be given exactly analogous treatments. No further discussion is required.

Verbal Tonology (I)

129

We have no information available to us with respect to the post-H pronunciation of the forms In (38). What our analysis predicts about the pronunciation of these items depends on whether the negative infinitive form is treated In Venda as a nominal construction or as a verbal construction. If the infinitive Is nominal (as it is generally taken to be in other Bantu languages), then we expect the L of the Infinitive prefix to undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion In the post-High environment (even though it is followed by the H-toned -ngA-; recall nouns do not require that a L be followed by a L in order to undergo metathesis/deletion). If the infinitive L metathesizes/deletes, then the H of the preceding word will be able to trigger Meeussen's Rule on the negative prefix -sa-. The ultimate result will be that we will have forms like H fi-savhon-a and H ti-sa-lindel-a. If, on the other hand, the infinitive is treated as a verbal word, the L of the prefix will not be able to metathesize/ delete after a word that ends in a H (since the L of the infinitive prefix is followed by a H). The result will be forms such as H 6-s!a-vh6n-a and H u-s!alindei-a. Further data is required in order to determine which of these predictions is correct. 3.5. The past tense. The past tense of the verb in Venda Is formed by means of a prefix -6-, which appears regularly linked to a High tone. All of the subject prefixes appear in a "contracted" form when used in conjunction with the -6- prefix. The examples in (39) [W.1481 illustrate this point. (39) Subject prefix + 6 nd-6- T w-6- 'you (sg.)' 6- 'he/she' r-6- "we' n-6- 'you (pi.)' vh-6- 'they' w-6- cl.3 y-6- cl.4 1-6- cl.5

SubJ. prefix in -a-tense ndiuurinivhauili-

Verbal Tonology (I)

130 6- cl.6 tsh-6- cl.7 zw-6- cl.8 etc.

atshi zwietc.

(39) shows that in other environments the subject prefixes referring to human beings have the shape COV-, but before the -6- the vowel of the prefix either glides or deletes. The result of the contraction of the subject prefix and the -6- Is always a syllable with o as the vocalic nucleus; the syllable is High-toned. Westphal takes the past tense to be one where the subject prefix for all persons Is High-toned. But clearly he is making reference to the contracted syllable rather than to the underlying structure of the subject prefixes. However, because Westphal takes the tonal structure of the past tense verb to be identical for all subject prefixes, he confines his examples largely to the first person. As we go systematically through the past tense data we will explore the issue of the underlying tonal structure of the past tense subject prefixes. In (40) we give examples of High verb stems In the past tense with first and third person subject prefixes, and in (41) we give examples of Low verb stems. (40)

nd-6-vhona nd-6-xela 6-xela nd-6-tshimbila nd-6-tevhula 6-tevhula nd-6-somb6161a 6-somb616Ia nd-6-laisulula 6-laisulula

'I saw' [W, 158) 'I got lost' (SI 'he got lost' (SI 'I walked' [W.1591 'I poured out' [S] 'he poured out' (S) 'I unwound' [SI 'he unwound' (S] 'I unloaded' [S] 'he unloaded' (S)

(41)

nd-6-lima nd-6-amba nd-6-bika 6-bika

'I ploughed'[W. 158) 'I spoke' IU.441 'I cooked' [SJ 'he cooked' (Si

Verbal Tonology (I) nd-6-lindela nd-6-vuledza 6-vuledza nd-6-sukumedza 6-sukumedza r-6-sinyutshelana vh-6-sinyutshelana

131 'I waited" [W, 158] 'I finished' [SJ 'he finished' [S] 'I pushed It forward' [SJ 'he pushed it forward' [SI "we got angry at one another' [S] 'they got angry at one another' [SJ

The data in (40) and (41) demonstrate clearly that the -6- prefix behaves in a fashion entirely analogous to the potential prefix -ngA- and the negative prefix -s4- in that (a) it does not induce the lowering of a following High verb stem by Meeussen's Rule and (b) it does raise an initial Low of a verb stem to High. We assume, then, that whatever account is to be given of these phenomena for the other prefixes, -6- will be given the same treatment. Recall our analysis goes as follows: a H prefix and an adjacent High verb stem are subject to the obligatory contour principle: their (separate) High tones are merged into a single, multiply-linked High tone. It is this principle that explains why a High verb stem is not subject to Meeussen's Rule after a High prefix. Furthermore, we claim that a High prefix triggers Low Metathesis/Deletion on a following L at the beginning of a verb stem. Since the initial L of the verb stem is metathesized/deleted, then there Is nothing to block the spread of the preflxal H across the first vowel of the verb stem onto the second vowel. The only questions that immediately come to mind about the forms in (40) and (41) are: what is the tonal shape of the subject prefix in the past tense and what happens to the tone of the subject prefix when that prefix contracts with -6-? There are three (likely) possibilities with respect to the underlying tonal shape. The usual contrast between Low-toned first and second person subject prefixes compared with High-toned third person subject prefixes could be at work in the past tense. Or the past tense could be like the potential in that all subject prefixes have the same tone. If the subject prefixes have the same tone, that tone could either be Low or

Verbal Tonology (I)

132

High. Whatever the underlying tonal shape of the subject prefix might be, when the vowel of the subject prefix contracts with the -6- prefix, only a single tone-bearing unit emerges from the contraction process. Since the vowel that results from contraction Is always -6-, it seems safe to say that the contraction process does not in any way affect the -6- prefix (i.e. its vowel and its linked High tone remain unaltered). What does change is the tone-bearing status of the vowel of the subject prefix: that vowel either deletes or It glides, but in either case the result of contraction is that the subject prefix no longer contains a tone-bearing unit. The question then is: what happens to the tone that originally was linked to the vowel of the subject prefix? Is that tone simply left stranded in the tonal tier, or does it delete, or what? Before we turn to a consideration of these possible hypotheses for the underlying tonal shape of the past tense subject prefixes and the fate of the subject prefix tone under contraction, let us introduce some additional data that will help u s choose among the differing possible analyses. The relevant data involve the post-High pronunciation of past tense forms. Examine the data in (42): (42)

H nd- !6-vhona [W, 158J H nd-!6-tshimbila [W.159] H nd-!6-lima[W,158) Hnd-!6-lindela [W.159]

The examples In (42) show that High tone of the -6prefix is downstepped after a word ending in a High. Suppose that we were to assume that there is no tone In front of the H of the -6-(l.e. that the subject prefix either has no tone underlylngly In this construction or that if it has a tone, that tone is simply lost when the vowel of the subject prefix ceases to be tone-bearing). Given such an assumption, we predict the following derivations. (43)

H

H H

J

I |\

x nd-o-vhona

H

H L L L

I

Mil

x nd-o-lindela

Verbal Tonology (I) H

133

H

x nd-o-vhona

inapplicable H

H

OCP

L

L

inapplicable

x nd-o-lindel-a

H

H

L

l\

L

L

L

x nd-o-vhona

x nd-o-lindel-a

H

H

L

x nd-o-vhona

x

H

H

L

x nd-o-vhona

x

L

HTS

L L

nd-o-lindela

inapplicable

MR

L L

nd-o-lindela L

lexical applic. LM/DJ

CS FS

(43) generates the incorrect form *H nd-6-llndel-a, as well as the incorrect form *H !nd-6-vhona. Clearly, in order to derive the correct forms—e.g. H nd-!6-vh6na and H nd-!o-lindela, we must somehow create a situation where there is an unassociated Low tone between the preceding word's final H and the H of the -6- prefix. This Low cannot in any way be linked to the nature of the verb stem (since it occurs when -6is followed by either a L or a H verb stem). The most obvious candidate for explaining this downstep in front of the verb in (42) is a Low tone that has its source in the (missing) subject prefix vowel. But before we examine such an approach to the data in (42), which involve first person past tense forms in the post-High environment, we need to consider the third person past tense forms in this same post-High environment. The data in (44) show that these forms as well have a downstep in front of the verb.

Verbal Tonology (I)

134

(44) mu-sadzi !6-vhona mu-thu 'the woman saw s.o.' [W, 144) mu-sadzi !6-sola mu-thu 'the woman slande s.o.' [W, 144] [N.B. These examples happen to be phrase-medial post-High, but this is Irrelevant to the point at hand; the phrase-final post-High forms would be: H !6-vhona H !6-sola

(underlying High verb stem) (underlying Low verb stem)]

There Is, then, complete parallelism between first person and third person past tense forms in the post-High environment j u s t as there is complete parallelism in the post-Low environment. This lack of contrast must be explained. Let us at this point return to the analysis of the past tense subject prefixes. Suppose that we were to claim that the subject prefixes In the past tense (as in the -ng4-tense) are uniformly Low (i.e. there is no contrast between first/second and third person forms). Given this assumption, we will successfully generate the post-High pronunciations In (42) and (44) by simply assuming that when the Low-toned subject prefix ceases to be tone-bearing as a consequence of the contraction with -6-, the L tone associated with the subject prefix is simply left floating in the tonal tier. Derivations for H nd-!6-vh6n-6 and H I6-s61-a are shown in (45). (45)

H L H

I

H

H L H L L

I I J \

I I I LI

x ndi-o-vhon-a

x

a-o-sol-a

H

H

L H

L

L

1i

1

i

L H

H

1

1 x nd-o-vhon-a

i

1

H

1 X

L

K'

Contraction

o-sol-a

X

H

nd-o-vhon-a

inapplicable H

1

inapplicable X

OCP

LH

'V

L

1 -a

O-SO1•

lexical applic. LM/D

Verbal Tonology (I)

135 postinapplicable

LM/D

inapplicable

MR

H inapplicable

x

LH

L

o-sol-a

inapplicable H inapplicable

x

HTS CS

LH

L

o-sol-a

FS

We have Just seen that by assuming that the subject prefixes are uniformly Low-toned In the past tense, we can account for the downstep that separates the past tense form of the verb from a preceding H-final word. Suppose that we were to assume that the usual tonal contrasts on subject prefixes were in operation in the past tense. The first and second person subject prefixes would then be Low but the third person subject prefixes would be High. If the first and second person subject prefixes are Low, then for them we will have the same (correct) derivations as in (45). But what about the third person forms? If the underlying representation of the verb in examples like H !6-vh6n-a and H !6-s61-a are as in (46), (46) ( a . ) H H

H

I I l \

(b. )

H H

L L

II 1,1

a-o-vhon-a a-o-sol-a then the issue that we must address is: what we would expect to happen tonally to such forms and will these expected tonal changes yield the correct results? In our discussion, we will concentrate on (46a). Our reason for doing so is that (46b) has an additional parameter to it (namely, the fact that Low Metathesis/Deletion is applicable). This additional parameter adds a complexity to the

Verbal Tonology (I)

136

discussion that can be avoided by focusing on (46a). Since we are going to argue that (46a) cannot be accounted for under the assumption that the third person past tense subject prefix is High-toned, the issue of whether (46b) can be derived from such a representation is essentially irrelevant. Consider, then, what we might expect to happen to a representation such as (46a). First, we expect the OCP to collapse the H of the past tense -6- with the H verb stem. This produces the representation in (47): (47)

H

H

a-o-vhon-a It is not at present clear whether we would expect the H of the subject prefix to also be subject to the OCP as a result of being next to the H past tense prefix (later we will argue that the OCP must not affect a prefix next to another prefix). Notice that if the OCP did affect the H of the subject prefix, in (46a) it would derive a word with a single H tone associated to all the vowels of the word. This would clearly produce undesirable results in the post-High environment (where that single H tone would change to L, thus causing the verb stem vowels to incorrectly surface associated to a Low tone). So let us assume that OCP will not affect the H of the subject prefix in (46). We might expect the H of the subject prefix in (47) to cause the following H to change to L by Meeussen's Rule. If that were allowed to happen, we would again incorrectly derive a form where the verb stem vowels are associated to a Low tone. So clearly we must somehow prevent Meeussen's Rule from applying. Later we will argue that Meeussen's Rule does apply within a word, so It is not possible to claim that Meeussen's Rule falls to apply in (47) due to the fact that Meeussen's Rule operates only across word boundaries. Thus unless we can find some non ad hoc means of blocking Meeussen's Rule from applying, we have evidence against claiming that the third person subject prefix is High-toned. There is one possible means of preventing Meeussen's Rule from having a chance to apply. Suppose that we said (plausibly enough) that the contraction phenomenon precedes

Verbal Tonology (I)

137

Meeussen's Rule. Furthermore, suppose that we said that when the subject prefix vowel ceases to be a tone-bearing unit, its tone associates to the -6-. Now, since -6- is associated with a H tone, when the third person subject prefix deletes in front of -6-, we will produce an output where there are two successive High tones associated with -6- (the H that originated with the subject prefix and the H originally associated with -6-). It has often been suggested that a sequence of two identical tones associated with the same tonebearing unit is universally reduced to a single tone. (Clearly, a special case of the OCP.) If so, we will then have the following (partial) derivation: (48)

H

1

H

/^

H

l

H

/J\

H

/N

a-o-vnon-a —> o-vhon-a —» o-vhon-a contraction special case of OCP

While we have now gotten an explanation for the failure of Meeussen's Rule to apply to representations such as (47), we are unfortunately in a position where we cannot explain the presence of a downstep in front of this verb in the post-High environment. Rather, the form resulting from the partial derivation in (48) should undergo Meeussen's Rule when it follows a word that ends in a High. But this would be incorrect -cf. H !6-vh6n-a. We have now shown that to maintain that the subject prefixes In the past tense display their usual tone contrast (first and second person subject prefixes Low, third person subject prefixes High) fails to produce an explanation for the downstep that precedes all past tense verb forms (regardless of what subject prefix is employed). Assuming that the subject prefixes are uniformly Low-toned, on the other hand, produces the correct results. (Assuming that the subject prefixes are uniformly High-toned or toneless obviously fails to predict the downstep In (42) and (44); this point will not be demonstrated here.) There is one further point that suggests that we are correct In assuming that the subject prefixes have a uniform

Verbal Tonology (I)

138

tonal shape In the past tense. Just as they did In the -ngAtense. Recall that whereas Westphal's description claims that there are no pitch contrasts associated with the choice of subject prefix in the -ngi- tense, the data that we elicited suggested that the pitch range of third person forms were raised in comparison with the pitch range of first and second person forms. Westphal's description likewise suggests that there are no pitch differences associated with the choice of subject prefix in the -6- tense. Once again, the data that we elicited manifests a raised pitch range for third person forms as opposed to first and second person forms. This phenomenon seems to occur In our data Just when there is otherwise no tonal difference associated with the subject prefix. If this is indeed the case, then the fact that we find this range difference in the -6- tense suggests that the subject prefixes in this tense all have the same basic tone. Unfortunately, we have not been able to do any systematic exploration of the differences in pitch range that our data manifests. Furthermore, we must also acknowledge that while the contrast in pitch range was very apparent In many cases, In other Instances we could not easily detect a difference. Consequently the entire matter requires further study before these observations can be taken as strong evidence In support of our view that the subject prefixes In the past tense are uniformly Low-toned. We have so far illustrated the post-Low and post-High form of the past tense verb when It is phrase-final. The phrase-medial pronunciation of past tense forms does not present any surprises. What we see is that High verbs continue to behave as though they end in a High tone, whereas Low verbs will simply be subject to Contour Simplification on their second stem vowel in all cases. Examples: (49)

Low verb stems: nd-6-swika mu-lovha 'I arrived yesterday' [U.481 nd-6-tuwa mu-lovha 'I departed yesterday' [U.48I

Verbal Tonology (I)

139

High verb stems: r-6-vhona dokotela cf. dokotela

"we saw the doctor' [U,48] 'doctor' [U,19]

vh-6-lisa m-budzl mu-lovha 'they fed the goat yesterday' [U.48] cf. m-budzi 'goat' [U.29] Notice that on the surface both Low and High bisyllabic verb stems in the past tense end in a High tone in phrase-medial position. What we claim, of course, is that the Low verb stems have (prior to Contour Simplification) a Low tone associated with their second stem vowel (which in the case of bisyllabic verb stems is the final vowel), while High verb stems (with three or fewer syllables) have a H tone associated with all their vowels. That the Low verb stems In (49) have a Low tone associated with their second stem vowel (prior to Contour Simplification) is apparent from the fact that the H tone of the -6- prefix is not able to spread past the verb onto the following noun mu-lovha and also from the fact that the H of the -6- is not able to trigger Low Metathesis/Deletion on that noun. (If the Low verbs really did end in a High tone, the noun mulovha would have appeared as mu-ldvha after nd-6-swik-a...) We show in (50) the derivation of nd-6-swika mu-lovha: (50)

L H

L

L

L

L

L

I I I I I I

I

ndi-o-swik-a mu-lovha L H L L L L L

I

I I I I

I

nd-o-swik-a mu-lovha L H L L L L

I

Contraction

I I I I

nd-o-swik-a mu-lovha inapplicable inapplicable

lexical LM/D post-lexical LM/D MR

Verbal Tonoiogy (I)

140

nd-o-swik-a mu-lovha L

H

L

L

L

HTS

L

nd-o-swik-a mu-lovha

CS

inapplicable

FS

That the High verb stems in (49) have a High tone associated with their final vowel is apparent from the fact that when a Low-initial noun such as dokotela follows, that noun loses its initial L tone (via Low Metathesis/Deletion) and the H of the verb is able to spread past the first vowel of the noun onto the second vowel. A second piece of evidence that the High verb stems in the past tense end in a H is the fact that these verbs trigger Meeussen's Rule on a following word. Both of these arguments that High past tense verb stems end in a H are exemplified by the derivations in (51) for r-6-vh6na ddk6tela and vh-6-lisa m-budzi mu-lovha. (51)

L H

H

I I

L L L L

l \I I I I

ri-o-vhon-a dokotela L H L L L L

i /V^

I I II

ri-o-vhon-a dokotela L

H

L L L L

r-o-vhon-a dokotela L

OCP

H

Contraction

L L L

r-o-vhon-a dokotela

LM/D

inapplicable

MR

L

Hv

L L L

r-o-vhon-a dokotela

HTS

Verbal Tonology (I) L

141 /H:^.

L L L

r-o-vhon-a dbkotela

CS

inapplicable

FS

LH

H

vha-o-lis-a L

H

L

m-budzi

H

H

i y \

L

L

L

mu-lovha L

L

L

L

i i i i i

vha-o-lis-a m-budzi mu-lovha L

H

H

/ l \

L

L

H

L

_ /W

L

mu-lovha

L

L

L

J ' 1J J

H^

L

L

L

L

MR

L

i I i I

/r^\J vh-o-lis-a

L

Contr LM/D

vh-o-lis-a m-budzi mu-lovha L

OCP

L

1 1 i J 1

v h - o - l i s - a m-budzi inapplicable L

L

m-budzi mu-lovha

H \

/IVx

L

L

L

L

HTS

L

I I I I

vh-o-lis-a m-Budzi mu-lovha

CS

We have now shown that the analysis of Venda that we have developed will predict the correct past tense forms (and the correct effects on adjoining words) for both Low and High verb stems in both phrase-medial and phrase-final position. 3.6. Low prefixes. So far we have looked in detail at just one Low-toned tense aspect prefix—namely, the present tense marker -a-. In this section we identify some additional Low-toned prefixes and attempt to examine whether they provide additional motivation for the rule of Low

Verbal Tonology (I)

142

Metathesis/Deletion or evidence relevant to its proper formulation (one rule or two, etc.). The future tense in Venda is marked by the prefix -doinserted between the subject prefix and the verb stem. This prefix is clearly analogous to -a- in its tonal behavior and should be regarded as basically Low-toned. Examples appear in (52): (52)

Low verb stems ndi-do-vhal-a 'I will read' [S] u-do-vhal-a 'he will read' [SI ndi-do-vuledz-a 'I will finish' [SJ u-do-vuledz-a 'he will finish' [S] ndi-do-phuphuledz-a 'I will feel all over' [S] u-do-phuphuledz-a 'he will feel all over' [S] ri-do-sinyutshelan-a "we will get angry at one another' [S) vha-do-sinyutshelana 'they will get angry at one another' [S] High uerb stems ndi-do-lal-a 'I will lie down' [SI u-do-l!al-a 'he will lie down' [SJ ndi-do-tevhul-a 'I will pour out' (S] u-do-t!evhul-a 'he will pour out' [SI ndi-do-thomolol-a 'I will start again' [SI u-d6-th!6m6161-a 'he will start again' [S[ ndi-do-laisulul-a 'I will unload' [SI u-do-l!aisulul-a 'he will unload' [SI

The first person forms of both Low and High verb stems in the future demonstrate clearly that -do- must be regarded as Low-toned (since it surfaces as Low when it follows a Low subject prefix). The third person forms of High verbs again demonstrate that the -do- is basically Low: the High of the subject spreads onto the -do-, forming a HL sequence on the vowel of the prefix. This HL sequence is subject to Contour

Verbal Tonology (I)

143

Simplification and the L delinks. It is this unassoclated Low that accounts for the downstep between -do- and the verb stem In an example like fi-d6-t!6vhftl-4. (Notice, Incidentally, that forms such as u-d6-t!evhul-a provide further confirmation that Low Metathesis/Deletion must not affect a L after a H in a verb if that L Is itself followed by a High.) The third person forms of the Low verb stems can also be made consistent with the claim that -do- is Low-toned, provided we accept the existence of a rule of Low Metathesis. Low Metathesis/Deletion will take the Low of -do- (when it follows a High prefix and precedes a Low verb stem) and metatheslze the L in front of the subject prefix. This will put the Low verb stem after a High prefix and allow the initial Low of the stem to also undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion. The derivation of an example like u-d6-vul€dza will be entirely analogous to the derivation of present tense forms like u-a-lind€la discussed earlier. By appealing to Low Metathesis/Deletion to explain third person Low verbs In the future tense, we predict that there will be a downstep in front of the subject prefix In these forms. That this is correct can be seen from the examples in (53): (53)

Low verb stems H H H H H H

ndi-do-limamu... [W.157] !u-d6-limamu... [W.157) ndi-do-sola mu-thu (W.1431 ! u-do-s61a mu-thu [W.144) ndi-do-lindela mu... [W.157)4 ! u-do-lindelamu... [W.157]5

High verb stems H H H H

ndi-do-vh!6namu... [W.157] u-do-vhona mu... [W.157] ndi-do-tsh!imbila mu... [W.157] u-do-tshimbila mu... [W.157]

Verbal Tonology (I)

144

The data in (53) show both first and third person future tense verbs in a post-High, phrase-medial position. The data involving the first person subject prefix show clearly that the Low of the subject prefix deletes in the post-High environment by virtue of Low-Deletion. Since we have argued above that an initial Low in a verb deletes just in the event it precedes another Low tone, the fact that the Low of ndi- deletes in (53) provides a further argument that -do- is indeed Lowtoned. Once ndi- loses its Low, the High of the preceding word can spread both onto ndi- and also onto -do-, which has of course retained its Low tone. This produces a HL sequence on the vowel of -do-. Contour Simplification will disassociate the Low from this sequence. A following Low verb will simply remain Low-toned. A following High verb will be downstepped - cf. H ndi-d6-lima but H ndi-d6-vh!6na. The third person forms are more interesting. In the case of the High verbs, the sequence of a High subject prefix followed by the Low future tense marker will not undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion (since Low Metathesis/Deletion affects a HL sequence in front of a Low, not in front of a H). The High of the subject prefix will thus be in the environment for undergoing Meeussen's Rule when the preceding word ends in a High. But even though the subject prefix becomes Low by Meeussen's Rule, it naturally does not remain Low on the surface. The High of the preceding word spreads onto the (now) Low subject prefix, forming a HL sequence that ultimately undergoes Contour Simplification. As a result, the subject prefix is realized on a high pitch. The High of the preceding word did not spread as far as the prefix -do-, thus that syllable remains Low-toned: cf. H ti-do-vh6n&. Turning to Low-toned verb stems, we see that the prediction made above by the Low Metathesis/Deletion rule is in fact correct: there is a downstep between a preceding word ending in a High tone and the High-toned subject prefix. A sample derivation is shown in (54): (54)

H H L

LL

1

1 I II

x

u-do-lima

Verbal Tonology (I) H LH

II

145 L L

II

x u-do-lima H LH L x'

' d 1- ' u-do-lima

first lexical application of LM/D second lexical application of LM/D

inapplicable

post-lexical application of LM/D

inapplicable

MR

H L H^_

1

L

'YV'

HTS

x u-do-lima HL H ^ L

1

l^>

J

x

u-do-lima

FS

We have demonstrated that the future prefix -do- is basically Low-toned like the present marker -a- and that, also like -a-, the Low tone associated with this prefix undergoes Low Metathesis/Deletion when it follows a High subject prefix and precedes a Low verb stem. We turn now to examine another prefix that is basically Low-toned. Consider the following examples: (55)

Low verb stems: nd-6-no-lima 'I have already cultivated' [W.159] nd-6-no-shata 'I have already smeared' [SI nd-6-no-lindela 'I have already waited' [W.1591 nd-o-no-tomola 'I have already extracted' [S] nd-6-no-adzulula 'I have already rolled up' [S] r-o-no-pandamedzana \ve have already pursued one another' [S]

Verbal Tonology (I)

146 High verb stems:

nd-6-no-vh!6na 'I have already seen' [W,159] nd-6-no-n!anga 'I have already chosen' [S] nd-6-no-tsh!imbila'I have already gone'[W, 159] nd-6-no-t!evhula 'I have already poured out' [S] nd-6-no-tsh!etshekanya 'I have already cut into pieces' [S] nd-6-no-f.ulufhedzisa 'I've already promised' [S] [We cite just first person forms. Third person forms in the past tense have the same tonal shapes as first person forms—though, as noted earlier in our discussion of the past tense, in the data collected from Mr. Sengani the pitch range for third person forms was raised in comparison with first person forms. This is true not just of the simple past, but also of the -6no- tense illustrated here.] In the examples in (55), the prefix -no- occurs between the past tense marker -6- and the verb stem. We have already argued that the -6- prefix is basically High-toned. In the examples in (55), the -no- regularly appears in pronunciation associated with a High tone. But what is its underlying structure? The data involving High verb stems suggest clearly that -no- must be Low-toned. Notice that between the -noprefix and the verb stem there is a downstep in examples like nd-6-n6-vh!6na. This downstep is readily explained if we assume that -no- is basically Low-toned. The following derivation shows how our analysis will predict the observed downstep. (56)

L H d'

L

'

'

H h

A

ndi-o-no-vhona L H

L

H

nd-o-no-vhona

Contraction

Verbal Tonology (I)

147

inapplicable

LM/D

inapplicable

MR

L H

L

l\l

H

A

nd-o-no-vhona L

H

L

HTS

H

nd-o-no-vhona

CS

inapplicable

FS

We see from the preceding derivation that the Low tone associated with -no- underlyingly will disassociate as a consequence of Contour Simplification and produce the downstep between -no- and the verb stem. Given that the downstep in examples such as nd-6-n6-vh!6na motivates that -no- is Low-toned, how do we explain the behavior of Low-toned verbs, as in nd-6-n6lima? Well, it is clear that the initial Low of the verb stem undergoes Low Metathesis/Deletion in these forms (there is no other explanation available for why there is not still a Low tone associated with the first stem vowel in an example like nd-6no-lim-a). In order to undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion, the Low of the verb stem must be preceded by a High. But that means that the Low associated with -no- in underlying structure must not be present at the point where Low Metathesis/Deletion applies to the verb stem. Where could this Low have disappeared to? The answer is, of course, that Low Metathesis/Deletion must have put the Low of-no- in front of the preceding High. (57) shows the derivation of nd-6-n6-lima, under the assumption that Low Metathesis/Deletion is responsible for the metathesis/ deletion of the Low tone associated with -no-. (57)

L H L

LL

I I I II ndi-o-no-lima

Verbal Tonology (I)

148 L H

L

L L

I I I I nd-o-no-lima LL H L L I | I nd-o-no-lima LLLH^ L |\~\^ I nd-o-no-lima

second application of LM/D

inapplicable

MR

LLLH**,.

Contraction first application of LM/D

L

nd-o-no-lima

HTS

inapplicable

CS

nd-o-no-lima

FS

Notice that in the construction currently under discussion, there is an unassociated Low tone at the beginning of the verb word Independently of Low Metathesis. Thus the fact that a downstep shows up between such words and a preceding word ending in High does not constitute evidence for the Low Metathesis/Deletion solution to the tonelessness of -no- in examples like nd-6-n6-lima (since the metathesized Low is not needed In order to predict the downstep that occurs at the beginning of these words). Nevertheless, given that the present and future tenses present independent evidence for Low Metathesis, the fact that Low Metathesis can also explain the behavior of the -noprefix when It precedes a Low verb stem and follows the High prefix -6- counts as some additional support for Low Metathesis/Deletion as a rule of Venda grammar. J u s t as the Low prefix -no- may follow a High tense/aspect prefix like -6-, so may the prefix -do- discussed above. For example, -do- may follow the potential prefix -nga-. Examples are given in (58).

Verbal Tonology (I) (58)

149

Low verb stems: ndi-nga-do-lima 'I may yet plough' [W.159] ndi-nga-do-lindela 'I may yet wait' [W.159] ndi-nga-do-sinyutshela* 'I may yet get angry at' [S] ri-nga-do-pandarnedzana* Ve may yet pursue one another' [S] High verb stems: ndi-nga-do-vh!6na 'I may yet see' [W.159] ndi-nga-do-tsh!imbila 'I may yet go' [W.159] ndi-nga-do-vhofholola* 'I may yet loosen it' [S] ndi-nga-do-l!aisulula* 'I may yet unload it' [S]

No discussion of these data is needed, for a simple examination of the behavior of -do- in (58) reveals that it matches precisely the behavior of-no- when that prefix follows -6-. The data in (58) do establish clearly that a L after a H will metathesize in front of that H, provided the L in question is followed by a L. Notice that it is not necessary for the H that triggers metathesis to be a word-initial H. (In the present tense, the triggering H was word-initial, but in (58) the triggering H is itself preceded by the Low-toned subject prefix.) There are additional Low prefixes. For example, the prefix -TO- appears in such examples as: (59)

ndi-ro-vhona [W.152] ndi-ro-vhona mu-thu [W.142] H ndi-ro-vh!6na mu-thu [W, 144] nd-6-ro-vh!6na [W.151] ndi-ro-do-vhona [W.152] ndi-ro-fhura [W.146] ndi-ro-sola mu-thu [W.142] H ndi-ro-sola mu-thu [W, 144] u-ro-vh!6na [W.146] u-ro-vh!6na mu-thu [W.142] H u-ro-vhona mu-thu [W.144] u-ro-fhura [W.146] u-ro-sola mu-thu [W.142] H !u-ro-sola mu-thu [W.144]

150

Verbal Tonology (I)

We see that when -ro- is preceded by a Low prefix such as ndl-, -ro- Is realized on a low pitch (cf. ndi-ro-vh6na, ndi-ro-fhura). We take this to be evidence that it is basically Low-toned. When -ro- is preceded by an underlying High tone such as the past tense marker -6- or the third person subject prefix u-, then -ro- is pronounced on a high pitch. This comes about in two different ways. In thq case where -ro- precedes a High verb stem such as -vh6n4, the Low tone of -ro- is not metatheslzed In front of the preceding High. The preceding High spreads onto -ro- forming a HL sequence. As a result of Contour Simplification, -ro- is disassociated from the L part of the HL sequence. This leaves -ro- associated with a High tone, but followed by an unassociated Low tone. This Low tone accounts for the downstep after -ro- in such examples as nd-6-ro-vh!6n4, u-ro-vh!6na, and u-r6-m!u-vh6na. When-rofollows a High prefix and precedes a Low verb stem, then the Low associated with -ro- Is subject to Low Metathesis/Deletion and is placed In front of the High prefix. This leaves -rotoneless and puts the Low verb stem in the environment for Low Metathesis/ Deletion. High Tone Spread will associate the prefixal High with the (now) toneless -ro- as well as with the toneless first stem vowel and the Low-toned second stem vowel (cf. u-r6-fhura, u-ro-s61a mu-thu). Notice that the post-High pronunciation H !u-r6-s61a mu-thu provides crucial evidence that the Low of -ro- has indeed metathesized in front of the preceding High prefix. The data In (59) do not require further discussion other than to note that -ro- can combine with other Low prefixes (besides appearing in conjunction with the High-toned past tense marker -6-). ndi-ro-do-vh6nA shows -rofollowed by the Low-toned prefix -do- discussed earlier In this section. Such examples raise an interesting question. Suppose that a High-toned subject prefix precedes a sequence of two Low-toned prefixes—schematically, [H]sp [L]prel [LJpre2, what happens in front of a High verb stem? What happens in front of a Low verb stem? Our analysis predicts that In front of a H verb stem, the first prefixal Low will metatheslze/ delete but not the second; and in front of a Low verb stem, both prefixal Lows will metatheslze/delete (as will the first stem Low). We do

Verbal Tonology (I)

151

not have any relevant data concerning the sequence of -rofollowed by -do-, but later we will encounter pertinent data. 3.7. More Low prefixes. There are some verbal tenses where the subject prefix is always realized on a High tone (and where this High tone cannot, as in the -6- past tense, be seen as the result of the merger of the subject prefix and a High-toned tense/aspect prefix). Westphal refers to these tenses as "dependent" tenses. One of these dependent tenses involves the prefix -tshi-. The data in (60), containing examples of both Low- and High-toned verb stems, suggests that -tshi- is basically Low-toned. (60)

Low uerb stems: ndi-tshi-lima *I ploughing' [W.162] ndi-tshi-lindela 'I waiting'[W, 162) ndi-tshi-sinyutshela 'I getting angry at' [SI ri-tshi-sinyutshelana "we getting angry at one another' [S] High verb stems: ndi-tshi-vh!6na 'I seeing' [W.162] ndi-tshi-r!enga 'I buying' [SI ndi-tshi-tsh limbila 'I walking' [W, 1621 ndi-tshi-vh!6fh6161a 'I loosening' [SI ndi-tshi-l!aisulula 'I unloading' [S]

If we assume that -tshi- is Low-toned, we can explain a form such as ndi-tshi-tsh!imbila easily. The High tone of the subject prefix spreads onto the Low-toned -tshi-, creating a HL sequence on a pre-penult TBU. The L of the HL sequence will disassociate from the -tshi-, leaving that prefix High-toned on the surface. The floating Low will, however, explain the downstep between the -tshi- prefix and the High-toned verb stem.

Verbal Tonology (I)

152

The Low-toned verb stems are consistent with the claim that -tshi- is basically a Low-toned prefix preceded by High-toned subject prefixes. Here we simply need to assume that the Low associated with -tshi- undergoes Low Metathesis/ Deletion (as we would expect a Low prefix to do if it is located after a High prefix and before another Low). Once the Low of -tshi- metathesizes in front of the subject prefix, the Initial Low of the verb stem will be In the environment for Low Metathesis/Deletion and will thus metathesize/delete as well. The High on the subject prefix will, of course, spread onto the toneless vowel of -tshi- and the toneless first stem vowel as well as onto the Low-toned second stem vowel (with possible subsequent simplification, in the latter case). The post-High pronunciations of these forms support the above analysis of the data In (60). We predict that the Low-toned verb stems will be preceded by a floating Low, which will induce a downstep between the preceding High and the High of the subject prefix. We predict that the High subject prefix in the case of the High verb stems will undergo Meeussen's Rule (since it will not be separated from the preceding word-final High by an unassociated Low). These predictions are in fact correct. (61) Illustrates. (61)

H H H H

! ndi-tshi-lima [W.1621 ! ndi-tshi-lindela rw,162] ndi-tshi-vhona [W.162] ndi-tshi-tshimbila [W.162]

The derivation of H ndi-tshi-lindfila and H ndi-tshi-tshimbila is shown in (62) .6 (62)

H

II

H

L

L

L L

III

x ndi-tshi-lindela HL H L L L | | I | | x ndi-tshi-lindela

first lexical application LM/D

Verbal Tonology (I)

153

H L H

L L

1 1

M

x ndi-tshi-lindela inapplicable H L H^^^^

second lexical application LM/D MR

L L

x ndi-tshi-lindela

HTS


CS FS

H

H

| i

L

i

H

/W

x ndi-tshi-tshimbila inapplicable H

L

L

Hv

i

i

i

/V

LM/D

MR

x ndi-tshi-tshimbila H L L H

|\i

1

/K

HTS

x ndi-tshi-tshimbila H L L R

i\

i

/V

x ndi-tshi-tshimbila inapplicable

CS FS

The data In (60) and (61), then, support the rules of Low Metathesis/Deletion. We see that a "fixed" High subject prefix in a dependent tense will (a) induce the metathesis of a following Low prefix when that Low prefix is in turn followed by another Low, and will (b) then trigger the metathesis of the initial Low of the verb stem. We should comment that although Westphal simply notes that the subject prefix is High for all subject prefixes in the dependent tenses, our own data from Mr. Senganl consistently shows a pitch range difference for third person forms (higher register) as opposed to first and second person

Verbal Tonology (I)

154

forms (lower register). The phenomenon is the same as in the -6- past tense and the -ngA- potential verbal structures, both of which we have analyzed as having Low-toned subject prefixes for all persons. Thus this pitch range difference seems to be characteristic of all the verbal constructions where there is no distinction in the tone of the subject prefix for first/second as opposed to third person. The prefix -do- can be inserted after the -tshi- and in front of the verb stem. Examine the data In (63). (63)

Low verb stems: ndi-tshi-do-lima [W.163] ndi-tshi-do-shela 'I am about to pour' [S] ndi-tshi-do-lindela [W.163] ndi-tshi-do-pandela 'I am about to chase it away' [S] ndi-tshi-do-rembuluwa 'I am about to turn around' IS] ri-tshi-do-pandamedzana "we are about to pursue one another' [S] High verb stems: ndi-tshi-do-vh!6na [W.163) ndi-tshi-do-sh!uma 'I about to work' [SI ndi-tshi-do-tsh!imbila [W.163] ndi-tshi-d6-f!arisa 'I am about to help' [S] ndi-tshi-do-h!ungulula 'I am about to untie it' [S] ndi-tshi-do-l!aisulula 'I am about to unload it' [S]

We have seen earlier that the prefix -do- is basically Low-toned. This claim is clearly supported by the examples with High verb stems in (63). We see that -do- is followed by a downstep In an example like ndi-tshf-d6-f!arisa. This downstep will be easily explained If we assume that a preceding High has been able to spread onto the Low-toned -do-, creating a contour tone that undergoes Contour Simplification, leaving a floating Low between the -do- and the

Verbal Tonology (I)

155

verb stem. The question then becomes: what about the Low tone associated underlyingly with -tshi-? If we assume that the Low of -tshi- is subject to Low Metathesis/Deletion by virtue of being preceded by a High prefix and followed by a Low (the prefix -do-), then -tshi- will become toneless as a result of its basic Low being relocated in front of the subject prefix. What about the Low of -do-? It is now after a High (as a result of the metathesis of the L on tshi-), but it is followed by a High verb stem. Consequently, the Low will remain on -do- (since a L in verbs cannot metathesize/delete when it stands before a H). The High of the subject prefix will now spread onto the -tshi- prefixal vowel and also onto the vowel of -do-. The complete derivation of ndi-tshi-d6-flarisa is shown in (64): (64)

H

L

I

M

L

H

/i\

ndi-tshi-do-farisa L H

L

H

ndi-tshi-do-farisa

LM/D

inapplicable H\ L

MR

H

L ndi-tshi-db-farisa L

H

L

HTS

H

ndi-tshi-do-farisa

CS

inapplicable

FS

The preceding analysis predicts that the High verb stems in (63) will be preceded by a downstep in the post-High environment. This is confirmed by an example like ...nn6 ! ndi-tshi-d6-vh!6na '...(when) /will see' [W.163]. The High verb stems in (63) thus support the proposition that Low Metathesis/Deletion affects a Low prefix

Verbal Tonology (I)

156

between a High prefix and another Low prefix (just as Low Metathesis/ Deletion affects a Low prefix between a High prefix and a Low verb stem). The High verb stems in (63) also support the proposition that Low Metathesis/Deletion does not affect a Low prefix when it is preceded by a High prefix but followed by another High tone (since -do- does not metathesize/delete its Low tone when a High verb stem follows, even though -do- has come to be post-H as a result of the application of Low Metathesis/Deletion to the preceding tshi-). The Low verb stems in (63) provide additional crucial evidence regarding our analysis. Notice that in the case of a Low verb stem, the initial Low of the verb stem must undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion (cf. ndi-tshi-do-lind€la). But in order for the High-toned subject prefix to trigger Low Metathesis/ Deletion on the verb stem, there must not be any Low tones between the subject prefix and the verb stem. However, in underlying structure there are two Low tones intervening —namely, the Low tone associated with -tshi- and the Low tone associated with -do-. Why don't these Low tones remain in the tonal tier between the subject prefix and the verb stem? Clearly, the rule of Low Metathesis/Deletion is relevant. It says that a Low in the environment H L metathesizes in front of the High. Given the underlying form, (65)

H

L

L

L

L L

I

I I I I I

ndi-tshi-do-lmdela the Low of -tshi- satisfies the conditions for Low Metathesis/ Deletion and we predict the output: (66)

L H

I

L

L

L L

MM

ndi-tshi-do-lindela But now the Low of the prefix -do- is also in the environment for Low Metathesis/Deletion (it stands after a High and in front of a Low). Thus if we allow Low Metathesis to apply iteratlvely

Verbal Tonology (I)

157

from left-to-right, it can now apply again and create the output: (67)

LLH

I

L

L L

Ml

ndi-tshi-d_o-lindela

We have now arrived at a configuration where Low Metathesis/ Deletion can apply to the verb stem, correctly yielding: (68)

LLLH

L L

I

II

ndi-tshi-do-lindela

High Tone Spread will then produce ndi-tshi-d6-lind€la. By applying Low Metathesis iteratively, we can then account for why the Lows from two prefixes can metathesize in the case of a Low verb stem. This analysis predicts, of course, that the Low verb stems In (63) will be preceded by a downstep in the post-High environment. This prediction is confirmed by an example such as ...nne !ndi-tshi-d6-lima '...(when) /will plough' [W.163]. The prefix -ng&- can be inserted between -tshi- and the verb stem. Examples are given in (69). (69)

Low verb stems: ndi-tshi-ng!a-lima [W.163] ndi-tshi-ng!a-sea '(if) I may laugh' [N] ndi-tshi-ng!a-gwadama '(if) I may kneel' (N] ndi-tshi-ng!a-sinyutshela '(if) I may get angry at' [NJ ri-tshi-ng!a-sinyutshelana '(if) we may get angry at one another' [NJ High verb stems: ndi-tshi-ng!a-vhona [W, 163] ndi-tshi-ng!a-lala '(if) I may lay down' [Nl ndi-tshi-ng!a-shuma '(if) I may work' [S] ndi-tshi-ng!a-tshimbila [W. 163]

Verbal Tonology (I)

158

ndi-tshi-ng!a-farisa '(if) I may help' [SI ndi-tshi-ng!a-hungulula '(if) I may untie' [N) ndi-tshi-ng!a-thetshelesa '(if) I may listen' [S] ndi-tshi-ng!a-laisulula '(If) I may unload' (S] If we recall that the prefix -ngA- has been found to be High-toned elsewhere, then the data in (69) Is straightforward. The High tone associated with the subject prefix will spread onto the Low-toned -tshi- (the Low tone of -tshi- will not have metathesized/deleted here since It Is followed by a High-toned morpheme and metathesis/deletion occurs in verbs only when a Low follows), creating a HL sequence on the vowel of -tshi-. Contour Simplification will disassociate the Low, leaving it in the tonal tier, where It causes the downstepping of the -ngi-. The -nga-, of course, metathesizes/ deletes the initial Low of a Low verb stem, but does not affect a High verb stem (due to the application of the obligatory contour principle). Both -ngfi- and -do- may be used at the same time with the -tshi- prefix. The -ng§- prefix precedes -do-. Note the examples in (70). (70)

Low verb stems: ndi-tshi-ng!a-do-lima

[W.163J

High verb stems: ndi-tshi-ng!a-do-vh!6na

[W, 163]

We predict the following derivations: (71)

H

L

H L

LL

I

I

I I II

ndi-tshi-nga-do-lima H L LH L L I | ( | | ndi-tshi-nga-do-lima

first applic. LM/D

Verbal Tonology (I)

159

H

L

LH

'

1 1

L

1

n d i - t s h i - n g a - d o - -lima inapplicable H

L

L H \

L

LH

L

LH^

L I

H I

L I

^ 1 -lima

l\l

L

H

l\l

L

|\

FS

LM/D MR

H

l\

ndi-tshi-nga-do-vhona H L H L H

1^-

CS

H

1 I I I •vhona ndi-tshi-nga-doinapplicable inapplicable H

HTS

L

ndi-tshi-nga-do-

H 1

MR

L

n d i - t s h i - n g a - d o - -lima H

applic

L

n d i - t s h i - n g a - d o - -lima H^

second LM/D

HTS

|\

ndi-tshi-nga-d_o-vhona

CS

inapplicable

FS

In the derivation ofndi-tshi-ng!a-d6-vh!6na, Low Metathesis/ Deletion cannot be applied at all since both of the Lows that follow a H are in turn followed by a H (and thus not in the appropriate context for metathesis/deletion). In the derivation of ndl-tshi-ng!a-dd-lima. on the other hand, the initial Lows of -do- and -lima are able to undergo (iteratlvely) the rule of Low Metathesis/Deletion (though the L of -tshl- is again

160

Verbal Tonology (I)

prohibited from metathesizing/deletion due to the fact that it is followed by a H). 3.8. Conclusion. In this chapter we have shown that there are two types of verb stem in Venda—a H type and a L type. We have also identified two types of prefixes—those that have a H tone associated with them and those that have a L tone. We have shown that the tonal behavior of verbal words can be seen as a function of the interaction of sequences of H and L prefixes with H and L verb stems. The rules that govern the phonetic realization of these underlying tonal sequences have been shown to be essentially the same rules as we invoked in Chapter Two to explain the tonal alternations that nouns undergo in the post-High environment. The major revision that we have made is the recognition that (at least in some cases) Low Deletion may in fact take the form of a metathesis of a Low tone. The only significant addition to the analysis that we have made is invoking the Obligatory Contour Principle to explain the inability of High-tone prefixes to trigger Meeussen's Rule on a following High verb stem.

Verbal Tonology (I)

161

Notes 1. As we will discuss in detail in Chapter Five, in [S] certain vowels that are H in Westphal's data are pronounced on a Low tone. In the forms marked with an asterisk, we have transcribed data from [S] to match the pronunciation in [W]. 2. This derivation assumes that it is Low Deletion rather than Low Metathesis that affects the initial Low of the verb stem (i.e. that a stem-initial L is like a word-initial L in that it deletes rather than metathesizing). If we do not make this assumption, then the derivation would proceed somewhat differently, but the correct surface shape could still be derived (albeit with some technical questions arising in the process). 3. This derivation again assumes that the stem-initial L deletes rather than metathesizes. A different assumption might help give the correct form for the -Iindela example but not the -vhona example. 4. [W, 157] seems to contain a misprint, giving H ndf-ddlindela mu..., which is not at all in accord with the preceding data or analogous data involving the present tense. 5. [W, 157] seems to contain a misprint, giving H u-d6-lindela mu..., which is not at all consistent with the preceding data or analogous data involving the present tense. 6. Westphal (1962, p. 162) cites, in the case of High verb stems, an alternative pronunciation where the High subject prefix is separated from the preceding word-final High by a downstep: H !ndi-tshi-vh!6na. We have no well-motivated explanation for this alternative verb form. It requires that a disassociated Low appear at the beginning of all verbs in the -tshl- (dependent) tense.

CHAPTER FOUR

Verbal Tonology (II) 4.1.0. The negative in Venda. Westphal says of the negative verb In Venda: "Even a brief survey will turn up such a bewildering variety of negatives In Venda that It is not possible to do justice to this interesting word-group" (Westphal, 1962, p. 165). We do not pretend that the following discussion of certain aspects of the tonal structure of negative verbal forms in Venda is In any way exhaustive. We simply do not have sufficient material on this "bewildering variety" of negative tenses to enter into any totally comprehensive tonal analysis. On the other hand, a number of tonal features in the available material are pertinent to the principles of Venda tonology that we have examined In the past two chapters and thus deserve our attention, even if we cannot make a detailed study of the entire negative verbal system. In our discussion, we will concentrate primarily on the data that we have collected from [S]. Our reasons are several. In Westphal's study, many negative forms are Illustrated by a single example. Given this lack of systematic data. It is impossible to Judge the accuracy of the tonal marking of these examples or to arrive at a proper understanding of the significance of the tonal marking. Furthermore, in some cases where Westphal does give systematic examples, the data are internally inconsistent in that one form requires a certain tonal analytical Interpretation whereas a second form requires a 163

Verbal Tonology (II)

J 64

different tonal interpretation. Finally, In some cases where Westphal's data are systematic and internally consistent, his data varies from that in [S]. This raises the possibility that there may be dialectal variation. Given all of these problems with the Westphalian niaterial, we will generallyjust use it in those cases where it is in accord with the data from [SI. Where Westphal's data are different, we will ignore it. Where Westphal provides data that we did not elicit from [SI, we again will ignore it. We hope in the future to be able to pursue these matters in the detail that they merit. The reader who will take time to look at the data in Westphal will see that there is obviously much there that would be relevant to the concerns of this thesis. 4.1.1. The present negative. In (1) below we provide a sample paradigm for the negative present tense. (1)

a-thi-vhon-i a-u-vhon-1 ha-(a)-vhon-i a-ri-vhon-1 a-ni-vhon-i a-vha-vhon-1

'I don't see'[W, 164] you (sg.) don't see' rw,164] 'he doesn't see' [W, 164] Ve don't see' [W, 164] *you (pi.) don't see' [W.164] 'they don't see' [W.164]

The negative prefix in this construction is the vowel a- (ha- in the third person singular form). The subject prefix follows the negative prefix. The subject prefixes differ in form from the usual ones only in the case of the first person singular (where we find / t h i / rather than /ndl/). The final vowel of the verb stem is -1 rather than the usual -a. The negative prefix a- is consistently realized with a Low tone and we will regard it as being underlyingly Low (i.e. not associated with a H). All the subject prefixes in the negative present are realized on a High tone. We assume that the usual contrast between first/second and third person subject prefixes is inoperative in this negative construction and that all subject prefixes are simply associated with a High as part of the morphology of this construction.

Verbal Tonology (It)

165

Let us now turn to a consideration of the tonal shape of the verb stem in the negative present. Consider the examples in (2): (2)

High verb stems: a-thi-divh-i a-thi-lwal-i a-thi-sal-i a-thi-vhon-i a-thi-shum-i* a-thi-farisi* a-thi-tshimbill a-thi-tungufhadzi*

'I do not know' [U.24] 'I am not sick' [U.24] I do not remain behind' (U.24I 'I do not see' rw,l68J 'I do not work' [S] 'I do not help' IS] 'he does not walk* [W.168]] 'I do not grieve' [S]

Low verb stems: a-thi-koni a-thi-limi a-thi-livh!uhi a-thi-lind!eli a-thi-tom!61i* a-thi-tavh! anyl* a-thi-sinyutsh!eli* a-ri-sinyutsh!elani*

'I am not able' [U,24] 'I do not plough' [W.168] 'I do not thank' [U,24| 'I do not wait' [W.168] 'I do not extract' [SI 'I do not hurry' [S] 'I do not get angry at' [S] "we do not get angry at one another' [S]

The High stems In (2) are easily described. All we need to assume Is that (a) the H of the subject prefix and the H of the verb stem are subject to the obligatory contour principle and thus are collapsed Into a single, multiply-linked H, and that (b) there is a Low tone associated with the final vowel in the negative present form of a High verb stem. This final Low tone must be assigned to the verb as part of the negative morphology. As we shall see shortly, it is not an Invariant feature of all present negative forms, however. If we assume a Low tone associated with the final vowel, the stem High will spread onto that vowel, forming a HL sequence. In phrase-final position. Final Simplification will disassociate the High from


166

the final vowel. But If the negative verb should be in phrase-medial position, then Contour Simplification will disassociate the final vowel from the Low, leaving the final vowel realized on a High tone (though this High tone will be separated from the following word by a floating Low tone and thus will not behave like verb words that end in a "real" High tone). The examples In (3) from Westphal support this prediction. (3)

a-thi-vhoni mu... [W, 168J a-thi-tshimbidzimu... [W.168]

It perhaps should be noted that another solution to the problem of the Low at the end of the High verb stems in (2) would be to assume not that the negative morphology adds a L on the final vowel, but rather that it adds a H. All that would be necessary, then, would be to assume that the H added by the negative morphology and the lexical H of the verb stem are not subject to the OCP. Rather the H on the final vowel would undergo (a word-internal) application of Meeussen's Rule. At this point, such an approach might seem far-fetched, but it would be strengthened If it turns out that the negative morphology does add a H in other situations. Indeed, immediately below we argue that it does add a H in the case of Low verb stems. The Low verb stems In (2) are considerably more problematic than the High verb stems. First of all, it should be obvious that there is no possible way In which the tonal shape of the Low verb stems in (2) can follow simply from having an all Low verb stem following a H-toned subject prefix. If that were all that (2) involved, then we would have pronunciations such as *a-thi-lim-i, *a-thi-Iind€ll, *a-thi-sinyutshel-l, etc. But these forms are incorrect. There must be something more going on. Examination of the data in (2) shows that in order to account for the surface form of these verbs, we must assume the presence of a High tone Inside the verb stem that has somehow arisen as a consequence of the negative morphology rather than via a purely phonological process. (Recall that it


167

was possible to Interpret the final L of the negative High verbs as actually being an underlying H that has undergone Meeussen's Rule.) This High tone provided to Low verb stems by the negative morphology, unfortunately, is not anchored in a fixed position In the verb stem (as it would be in the case of High verb stems). It is associated with the final vowel when the stem is bisyllabic (cf. a-thi-lim-i), with the penult vowel when the stem is tri-syllabic (cf. a-thi-lind!el-l) or quadrisyllable (cf. a-thi-sinylitsh!el-i), and with both the penult and the antepenult when the stem has five syllables (cf. a-ri-sinytitsh!61an-l). What we are suggesting is that the High-toned vowels that we have underlined in (4) are associated with a High that arises morphologically: (4)

a-thi-lim-i a-thi-lindijel-i a-thi-sinyutsh!el-i a-thi-sinyutsh!elan-i

Let us not concern ourselves here with the (doubtless interesting) question as to how the H supplied by the negative morphology ends up on the final vowel for High verb stems but on the underlined vowels in (4). Rather, let us consider the remaining aspects of the pronunciations in (4). Notice that In every case there Is evidence that the first underlined vowel (which bears the morphological H tone supplied by the negative) Is preceded by a tone-bearing unit which must be (or have been) associated with a Low. In the case of the bisyllabic verb (a-thi-lim-i) the first stem vowel is actually realized associated to a Low tone. In the case of the other examples (e.g. a-thi-lind!61-i), the vowel that precedes the one bearing the morphological H is also realized on a High tone, but there is a downstep between it and the following High-toned vowel. We have evidence then that the Low verb stems must have at least one Low tone in front of the morphological H tone. We would like to propose that, in fact, all of the vowels before the vowel that bears the morphological


168

H are associated with a Low. That is, we suggest that the output of the morphology is the following: (5)

L

H L X 1 --

L

H L

I

I I I

I

I I | I

a-thi-lim-i L H L L H

I

H L

a-thi-lindel-i L L H L L

I I 1

I I

I

a-thi-sinyutshel-i

H

I I I

L

I I

a-thi-sinyutshelan-i

Since the subject prefixes are High-toned in the negative, it is possible that these subject prefixes might behave like other High prefixes when preceding a Low verb stem—i.e. it is possible that they trigger Low Metathesis/ Deletion. If we assume that Low Metathesis/Deletion is triggered by -thi-,

then

examples

like

a-thi-sinyutsh!fel-l

and

a-ri-sinyutsh!elan-i will follow automatically. (6)

L

H L L

I

ill

HL

L H L L

H L

MM

Ii

A I

a-thi-sinyutsheli a-ri-sinyutshelani L H L H L L H L HL

I

'

I

I I

a-thi-sinyutsheli

I I

I

/ II

a-ri-sinyutshelani

LM/D MR

L

H

L

H

L

a-ri-sinyutshelani H

I

1"^

L

H

L

|\l

L

H

| |'J

m u - r a t h u w-a m u - t u k a

then Meeussen's Rule would incorrectly apply to the H of the associative noun. This obviously produces incorrect results. If we have succeeded in assigning a default Low to the associative particle prior to the phrase-level application of Meeussen's Rule, as in (72), (72)

L

L

I II

H

L

H

L L

I l\l J

m u - r a t h u w-a m u - t u k a

then we can explain why the H of mu-rathti does not lower the following High tone. The H of mu-rathti will of course spread onto the Low-toned associative particle, creating a Falling tone that will simplify to a H followed by an unassociated Low. This unassociated Low accounts for the downstep between the associative particle and the following noun in (66). Notice, however, that If we have assigned the Low to the associative particle in (72) prior to the phrase-level application of Low Metathesis/Deletion, we need to explain why that rule does not metathesize/delete the L of the associative particle. The extratonal approach does not provide an explanation for the retention of the Low at the beginning of the associative noun in the post-H environment. We consider this to be a point in favor of the analysis of the associative that postulates a LH sequence on that morpheme. In (65) and (66) we Illustrated the phrase-final form of an associative noun In both post-Low and post-High position. The phrase-medial forms present no surprises. The contour tones created on the first vowel of the noun stem following the associative -a will undergo Contour Simplification when the noun Is non-final In the phrase. The unassociated Low resulting from Contour Simplification will cause a downstepping of a following High (as in the case of ...wa


232

mu-rathu). These observations are supported by the data in (73): (73)

mu-rathu w-a m!u-sadzi w-anga 'my wife's elder sister' [W.133] (cf. mu-rathu w-a m!u-sadzi) mu-rathu w-a m!u-rath!u w-anga 'brother of my brother, sister of my sister' [W.133] (cf. mu-rathu w-a m!u-rathu)

At this point we can turn to a consideration of the tonal shape of preflxless nouns preceded by the associative link -a. (74) contains examples of the associative noun preceded by a Low-final head noun and (75) contains the same examples preceded by a High-final head noun. (74)

mu-tuka w-a thukhu (cf. thukhu] [W.133] mu-tuka w-a bofu [cf. bofu] [W.133] mu-tuka w-a thung'wa [cf. thung'wa] [W.133] mu-tuka w-a bengo [cf. bengo] [W. 133] mu-selwa w-a thukhu [W.133] etc.

(75)

mu-rathu w-a thlukhu [W.133] mu-rathu w-a b!6fu [W.133] mu-rathu w-a thung'wa [W.133] mu-rathu w-a bengo [W.133] mu-sadzi w-a thlukhu [W.133] etc.

When the preflxless noun is Low-initial (cf. bofu and thukhu). the results of placing the associative particle in front of the noun are quite parallel to what we have Just seen for the prefixed nouns. (76) Illustrates. (For convenience, we assume a representation where a LH sequence is associated with the -a particle as the result of the syllabic merger of the agreement prefix and the -a.)

Verbal Tonology (II) (76)

233

L H L L w-a bofu LL H

L H

L

H

w-a thukhu

L

LLH

H

\/bofu bfl w-a

\l

1

LM/D

w-a thukhu inapplic.

LLH

LL H

L

LL H thukhu ^ L w-a

w-a bofu

w-a thukhu

LL H

LL H ^

L

w-a bofu

L

H

L

w-a thukhu

w-a bofu

LL

\

HTS

L

inappl:icable LL

MR

Rising Tone Simplif. CS

H

L

\ 1

FS

w-a thukhu

In the post-High environment, the derivation will precede as above except that the High tone of the head noun will (a) metatheslze/delete the initial L of the associative noun (but another L will remain to dock onto the associative particle) and will (b) spread onto the Low-toned associative particle, creating a contour tone. This contour tone will undergo Contour Simplification, and the resulting unassociated Low is responsible for the downstep in mu-rathti w-a b!6fu and mu-rathti w-a thiukhu. Let us now turn to the preflxless nouns that have a High on their initial vowel. Assuming that the underlying structure is as in (77), (77)

L H

H

Mil

L

L H

H

\l J\

w-a thung'wa w-a bengo it Is clear that the associative particle cannot trigger Low Metathesis/Deletion on the following noun (since that noun


234

does not have an initial Low tone). Consequently, an "extra" Low tone will not be relocated at the beginning of the associative noun. (This observation will play a critical role in the discussion to follow.) What we now expect to happen is that the H of the associative particle will trigger Meeussen's Rule, replacing the H at the beginning of thung'wa and b£ng6 with a L. The H of the -a will then spread onto the Low-toned initial syllable of the noun. We have now arrived at the following representations: (78)

L H

L

L

w-a thung'wa

L H

L

w-a bengo

In order to obtain the correct surface shapes, we cannot let the simple version of Rising Tone Simplification formulated earlier apply. Recall that we hypothesized earlier that when a LH occurs on a single vowel, the H disassociates. In order to derive the forms w-a thung'wa and w-a b£ngo, however, it is clear that we must disassociate the L part of the rising tone in (78). Examination of the data in (65) and (74) show that the rising tone simplifies to H when the next vowel is associated with a Low tone (assuming that Rising Tone Simplification applies before High Tone Spread) or, alternatively, with a HL sequence (assuming that Rising Tone Simplification follows High Tone Spread); If the rising tone Is followed by a vowel that is associated with a H (only), then the rising tone simplifies to L. We will assume that Rising Tone Simplification must, therefore, be modified so that the tone that is disassociated from a LH sequence on a single vowel is determined by the tonal shape of the following vowel. Notice If we assume that the associative particle has a LH sequence associated with it (after the syllabic merger of the agreement prefix and the -a vowel), then the fact that the associative -a sometimes appears L-toned and sometimes Htoned can be accounted for In terms of how this (disallowed) rising tone is simplified in different phonological contexts. If, on the other hand, we were to choose the extratonality solution to the behavior of -a, we would be forced to assume that -a is somehow not extratonal Just in case a High-Initial noun follows


235

it (since we want the -a to associate to the H that it contributes to the tonal tier when a noun such as thung'wa or b6ng6 follows). It seems ill-motivated to make the assignment of extratonality dependent on a phonological environment. Consequently, we will continue to assume the approach that recognizes a rising tone on the associative particle. We have so far limited our analysis of the associative nouns w-a thung'wa and w-a b£ngo to the case where they appear in a post-Low context. Consider now the post-High forms: mu-rathu w-a thung'wa and mu-rathu w-a bengo. These pronunciations suggest strongly that the High at the end of the head noun has succeeded in triggering Meeussen's Rule on the H associated with the associative particle (which itself has succeeded in triggering Meeussen's Rule on the noun). But this means that there must not be a rising tone on the associative particle when Meeussen's Rule applies between the head noun and the associative noun. If there were a rising tone, as in (79) below, the L on the associative particle would (incorrectly) block application of Meeussen's Rule. (79)

L

L

H LH

L

mu-rathu w-a bengo

(We are assuming In (79) that Meeussen's Rule has applied lexically between the associative particle and the following noun.) The problem then Is how to eliminate the Low tone at the beginning of the associative particle In (79). Of course, if we follow the extratonality solution, there would be no Low tone linked to the associative -a in these cases. Let u s briefly review the reason for this. The extratonality solution says that -a acquires a Low by default Just in situations where it is extratonal and cannot associate to the H tone that it contributes to the tonal tier. This approach would thus have to claim that -a is not extratonal in front of H-initial nouns such as thung'wa and bingd (since in this context -a does In fact associate to the H tone that it contributes to the tonal tier). Since -a Is not extratonal before thung'wa and b£ng6. it

236


will not acquire a Low by default and therefore there will be no Low that will have to be eliminated. The foregoing discussion can be Interpreted as providing support for the extratonal approach to -a. However, recall that this approach must assign extratonality to -a on the basis of the phonological structure of the following noun (-a would be extratonal when the noun begins with a L tone, but not when the noun begins with a H tone). We have seen that the analysis of the associative particle as having a rising tone allows the variation In the surface realization of the -a to be treated in terms of variation in the means of simplifying the disallowed LH sequence. It is worth asking whether the rising tone analysis can succeed in explaining the disappearance of the L tone at the beginning of the associative noun in examples like mu-rathfi wa bengo. We could, of course, handle the problem by saying that there is a special rule that deletes the L of the LH sequence associated with the -a link when the -a precedes a H. If we postulate this rule and order it before Rising Tone Simplification, then Rising Tone Simplification could be maintained in its general form (i.e. disassociate the H from a LH sequence linked to a single vowel). But this Is obviously a brute force solution. We have seen that the general pattern in Venda is that a contour tone simplifies by disassociation of one of the tones, not by the deletion of one of the tones. Fortunately, there is a totally different explanation for the deletion of the Low tone at the beginning of the associative noun in (79)—namely. Low Metathesis/Deletion. Notice in (79) that the initial Low of the associative noun will stand after a High tone. Thus we have the conditions for Low Metathesis/ Deletion to apply. Furthermore, assuming that the associative noun is a noun, we know that Low Metathesis/Deletion affects an initial Low on a noun regardless of the next tone. (Thus a LH noun such as mu-ri will undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion when preceded by a H-flnal word. A LH sequence in verbs, of course. Is not permitted to undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion.) Thus our rules in fact predict that the L of the associative particle will delete.


237

Let us now go through the derivation of mu-rathu w-i bengo. (80)

w o r d level LH w-a

phonology H

bengo

inapplicable LH

LM/D

L

w-a bengo

MR

post-lexical L

L

phonology H

' U

LH

L /X

\' H

mu-rathu w-a bengo L

L

H

H

L


L

H

L

L


L

H

L

inapplicable L

H

L

MR

L

mu-rathu w-a bengo

L

LM/D

HTS Rising Simplif.

L

mu-rathu w-a bengo

CS

inapplicable

FS

(We have shown High Tone Spread and all the simplification rules as being post-lexical. Certainly Contour Simplification and Final Simplification must be post-lexical, since their

238


application depends on the position of the HL contour tone in the phrase. High Tone Spread certainly must apply postlexically, since it extends a H from one word to the next, but it could conceivably be applied lexically as well. The status of Rising Simplification is not readily determinable since its only motivation so far comes from the associative construction. In the derivation in (80) it would certainly have been possible to apply Rising Tone Simplification in the lexical component.) The derivation in (80) depends on the L of the associative particle undergoing Low Metathesis/Deletion. When it metatheslzes/deletes, the H of the associative particle will be subject to Meeussen's Rule. Notice, however, that it seems that the initial Low of the associative particle must delete/metatheslze and thus pave the way for Meeussen's Rule just in the event the associative noun is a H-initial noun. Thus metathesis/deletion followed by Meeussen's rule occurs in murathti w-& bengo, but not In an example such as mu-rathu w& mHi-thuka. Let us at this point emphasize how we have explained this apparent peculiarity. What we have suggested is that when the associative particle precedes a Low-Initial noun, that Low tone undergoes Low Metathesis/Deletion and is placed In front of the H of the associative particle. This creates a structure where there are two Low tones at the beginning of the associative noun. The first of these Low tones will metathesize/delete after a word ending in a High, but there will still be a Low at the beginning of the associative noun. The H-flnal head noun will not be able to induce Meeussen's Rule on the H of the associative particle. But when the associative noun begins with a H, there will be no Low Metathesis/Deletion in operation, thus the associative H will have Just the one Low tone in front of it. This Low tone will be susceptible to Low Metathesis/Deletion in the post-H context and thus the environment for Meeussen's Rule will be created. We have now provided an analysis of the associative noun (both where the noun is L-initial and where it Is H-initial) in both the post-L and the post-H environments. This analysis is of some importance because there are other constructions that are quite parallel to the associative.


239

Consider, for example, the particle ha- 'to the place of. (81) shows both the post-Low and post-High pronunciation of ha- plus various nouns. (81)

Post-Low

Post-High

ha-mu-thu ha-mu-rwa

ha-m!u-thu ha-m!u-rwa

cf. mu-thu [W.136) cf. mu-rwa 'Bushman'[W.136J ha-thukhu ha-th!ukhu cf. thukhu [W.136] ha-bengo ha-bengo cf. bengo 'lunaUc' [W, 136] ha-ndemwa ha-ndemwa cf. ndemwa [W.136] ha-bofu cf. bofu [W.136] ha-b!6fu ha-mu-tuka ha-m!u-tuka cf. mu-tuka [W.136] ha-mu-rathu ha-m!u-rathu cf. mu-rathu [W.136] ha-mu-sadzi ha-m!u-sadzl cf. mu-sadzi [W,136] ha-mu-selwa ha-m!u-selwa cf. mu-selwa [W.136] The data In (81) can be treated exactly like the associative by regarding the ha- as being associated to a LH sequence underlyingly (or perhaps regarding ha- to be the coalescence of a Low-toned prefix ha- followed by the High-toned associative -a. There is no need to provide sample derivations since the data in (81) is precisely parallel to the post-L and post-H pronunciations of associative nouns. Similar particles include nga- (by means of, with, etc.), sa- (like), and na- (and, together with, even, etc.). A few examples: (82)

nga-duvha 'on the day, every day' [W.136] nga-ma-duvha ibid. [W, 136] (cf. duvha 'day', ma-duvha 'days') nga-tombo 'by a stone' [W,136] cf. tombo nga-ma-pfene 'by baboons' [W.136] cf. ma-pfene nga-vhu-siku 'in the night' [W.136] (cf. vhu-siku 'night')

Verbal Tonoiogy (II)

240

sa-mu-thu 'like the person' [W.62] cf. mu-thu sa-mu-ri 'like the tree' [W.62] cf. mu-ri sa-mu-sadzi [W.62] cf. mu-sadzi sa-mu-rathu [W.62] cf. mu-rathu sa-mu-selwa [W.62] cf. mu-selwa sa-mu-tuka [W,62] cf. mu-tuka sa-mu-kalaha [W.62I cf. mu-kalaha sa-mu-tukana [W.62] cf. mu-tukana sa-mu-tha!nnga [W.62] cf. mu-thannga sa-mu-kegulu [W,62] cf. mu-kegulu sa-mu-duhulu fW.62] cf. mu-duhulu sa-Madingwane [W.62] cf. Madingwane sa-tshi-vhavhala [W.62) cf. tshi-vhavhala sa-tombo [W.137] na-mu-thu na-tombo na-duvha na-ma-duvha na-vhu-siku na-ma-pfene

'with the person' [W.62] 'and a stone' [W.137] 'even the day' [W,137] 'even the day' [W.137I 'even the night'[W, 137] 'and the baboons' (W, 137]

The reader will note that these data parallel perfectly the behavior of the associative particle as well as ha- and thus require no additional commentary. There is one particle that Is related In its behavior but different—namely, kha- (on, from. etc.). (83)

kha-bengo [W.137] kha-ndemwa [W.137] kha-th!ukhu [W.137] kha-b!6fu [W, 137]

cf. cf. cf. cf.

bengo ndemwa thukhu bofu

kha-m!u-thu 6 [W.62] cf. mu-thu kha-m!u-ri [W.62] cf. mu-ri kha-m!u-rathu [W.137] cf. mu-rathu kha-m!u-tuka [W.137] cf. mu-tuka kha-m!u-sadzi [W.137] cf. mu-sadzi kha-m!u-selwa [W.137] cf. mu-selwa


241

kha-m!u-kalaha [W,62] kha-m!u-tukana [W,62] kha-m!utha!nnga [W.62] kha-m!u-kegulu [W,62] kha-M!adingwane [W.621 kha-tsh!i-vhavhala [W.62]

cf. mu-kalaha cf. mu-tukana cf. mu-thannga cf. mu-kegulu. cf. Madingwane cf. tshi-vhavhala

Examination of kha- In (83) shows that it is always associated with a H tone. But It Is not sufficient to simply claim that khais linked to a High tone. If that were all that Is going on. then we could not explain why appending kha- to a noun such as mu-tuka results In kha-m!u-tuka. We would rather expect kha-mu-tuka since the H of khawould trigger Low Metathesis/Deletion on the initial Low of mu-tuka and then the H of khawould spread past the (now toneless) prefix of mu-tuka onto the first stem vowel (which would also have a Low associated with it). The major problem with a form such as kha-m!u-tuka Is that kha- must (a) contribute the H that is associated with the prefix and first stem vowel of mu-tuka, and (b) Induce a Low in front of that H, so that this Low can be responsible for the downstep between kha- and the H on the noun, and (c) contribute the H that manifests itself on kha- itself. One means by which we could let kha- have all three of these effects Is to assume that there Is a HLH sequence associated (somehow) with kha-. If we make such an assumption, then we would derive kha-mlu-tuka as follows. (84)

HLH

L

L L

^ ' A1 kna-mu-tuka HLLH

L L

kha-mu-tuka

LM/D

inapplicable

MR

HLLH^ L L kna-mu-tuka lka

HTS

J


242 HLLH.

L L

\\ V \ l I lka kha-mu-ruka HLLH^

Rising Tone Simplif

L L

kha-mu-ruka

CS

inapplicable

FS

If we were to derive kha- by means of a contraction of some element kV- (the quality of the vowel may possibly be indeterminable) plus the associative -a, then we would presumably claim that the HL part of the melody derives from kV- while the final H derives from the associative particle -a. Although claiming that kha- contributes a HLH melody to the tonal tier is by no means an entirely satisfactory solution to the problem (in general we have been able to hypothesize Just one tone per vowel in Venda underlying structures, and to posit a HLH sequence for khawould seem to require that at least the kV- part have a HL contour tone), it does account for most of the data In (83) In a straightforward fashion. The derivation in (84) exemplifies the case of khaplus a Low-lnitlal noun whose initial Low Is followed by another Low. The derivation In (85) exemplifies the case of khaplus a Low-lnitlal noun whose Initial Low is followed by a High. (85)

HLH

L

H

^ I Lx kha-mu-sadzi HLLH

H

v\V ^ kna-mu-sadzi

w /\

HLLH

rM/n LM/D

L

kha-mu-sadzi Li

HbJ-iH^

kna-mu-sadzi

MR


243

HLLH \^ V ' X / N k h a --m m u - si 'aadd zz i

Rising Simpl

Tone

\ w\

HLLH

L

kha-mu-sadzi

CS

inapplicable

FS

There Is, however, a problem with claiming that khahas a HLH melody. Consider the case where kha- precedes a H-initial noun—e.g. kha-b€ngo and kha-ndemwa. In order to account for these data we would have to assume that kha-just has the shape LH (like ha- etc.). The H part of this shape would trigger Meeussen's Rule on a following H-initial noun such as ndimwa and would also spread onto the first (now Low-toned) vowel of such a noun; the L part would disassociate from kha- by the rule of Rising Tone Simplification. If Instead of a LH shape, kha- had the shape HLH, we would expect the incorrect pronunciations *khab!£ngo and *kha-nd!£mwa. But to claim that khahas the shape HLH before L-lnitial nouns and LH before H-initial nouns is clearly unsatisfactory. One alternative to positing a HLH sequence for khawould be to assume that the Low tone that we have been supposing is located as part of the kha- in fact has its origin in the Initial Low of the following noun. In other words, we might claim that khahas a HH tonal sequence (the first H presumably being contributed by a kV- element and the second H by the associative -a). Now, when the following noun begins with a Low, we might assume that this Low will undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion and be placed In front of the immediately preceding H. In other words, a representation such as (86) will be converted to (87). (86)

H H

L

L L

\ \ \ \ \ k h V - a - -mu-- t u k a


244 (87)

HLH

L L

\ \ \\ khV-a-mu-tuka The derivation from (87) to yield the surface form kha-m!utuka Is straightforward and does not require detailing. Perhaps we should note that another alternative exists. It is conceivable that our rule of HH-Avoldance, which Interchanges the last two tones of a HHL sequence, is applicable to (86) rather than Low Metathesis/Deletion. If so, (86) would be converted to (88) by that rule. (88)

H L

H

L L

\ \ \ \ \ khV-a-mu-tuka The remainder of the derivation is again straightforward and does not require discussion. The above analysis of khais a reasonably attractive one, since it explains the appearance of a Low between the two Highs contributed by this proclitic element as being due to the operation of an independently motivated rule (whether Low Metathesis/Deletion or HH-Avoidance). It also predicts that no such L will appear when kha- precedes a H-initial noun (since that noun does not start with a L that can undergo either Low Metathesis/Deletion or HH-Avoidance). This is a correct prediction. The only problem that remains is to explain how a representation such as (89) (89)

H H

H

\ \ / \ khV-a-bengo results In the surface form kha-b€ngo. It seems that b6ng6 must undergo Meeussen's Rule by virtue of standing after the H associative particle -a. But the H of the associative particle must not undergo Meeussen's Rule by virtue of standing after a H~lf It did, we would derive a pronunciation such as *kh4bengo. Rather, the H of khV- and the H of the associative appear to simply merge into a single H. However, If we assume


245

that the two H's of khV- and -a are Indeed merged into a single H (the OCP), we must guarantee that this does not occur until after the initial Low of the noun in cases like kha-mlu-tuka has had a chance to metatheslze. We suggest the following possible account. The associative -a and a following noun form one lexical unit. The H of the associative -a will trigger Low Metathesis/ Deletion on a following L-initial noun and will trigger Meeussen's Rule on a following H-initlal noun. It will also be able to spread onto the noun, though High Tone Spreading could be applied later at the sentence level. The next layer of structure will Involve adding the High-toned kV-. This H tone will undergo the OCP with a following H tone. The result is kha-b€ngo. The above analysis strikes us as a reasonably Interesting alternative to assuming that the khahas a HLH melody. Perhaps the post-H pronunciation of the items in (83) would shed further light on matters, but we have no data on such constructions. In this regard, Westphal states: 'The kha1s not susceptible to preceding H or L syllables" (p. 137). We interpret this to mean that kha- will be pronounced on a High tone no matter what type of word precedes. But it does not make it clear, for example, whether there might be a downstep separating kha- from a preceding H. Given our uncertainty about what the complete range of facts is, we will leave the analysis of kha- pending. There is another, quite important construction with tonal properties like the associative -a. This is the copular construction In the third person. In (90) we illustrate the third person copular particle ndl- In front of prefixed nouns, while (91) illustrates the same particle in front of prefixless nouns. (90)

ndi-mu-thu [W.1721 cf. mu-thu ndl-mu-ri [W.172] cf. mu-ri ndi-mu-landa [W.1721 cf. mu-landa ndi-mu-rathu [W.1721 cf. mu-rathu ndi-mu-selwa rw,172J cf. mu-selwa ndl-mu-kalaha [W.172J cf. mu-kalaha ndl-mu-tukana [W.1721 cf. mu-tukana ndi-mu-lamb!6ni [W.172) cf. mu-lamboni


246

ndi-mu-tha!nnga [W.172] cf. mu-thannga ndi-tshi-vhavhala [W.172] cf. tshi-vhavhala ndi-mu-duhulu [W.172] cf. duhulu ndi-mu-kegulu [W.172] cf. mu-kegulu (91)

ndi-bofu [W.172] cf. bofu ndl-thukhu [W.172] cf. thukhu ndi-ndemwa 7 [W.172] cf. ndemwa ndi-bengo [W.172] cf. bengo ndi-thamaha [W.172] cf. thamaha ndi-dukana [W.172] cf. dukana ndi-danana [W, 172] cf. danana ndi-phaphana [W.172] cf. phaphana ndi-khokhola [W.172] cf. khokhola ndi-dakalo [W.172] cf. dakalo ndi-gong'ong'o [W.172] cf. gong'ong'o

Examination of these data clearly reveal that the third person copular expression ndl- behaves tonologlcally in a fashion parallel to the associative particle and the elements like ha-. We assume, therefore, that it will also have a LH tonal sequence associated with it. The derivations of these forms will be entirely analogous to the derivations shown earlier for the associative. The post-High environment induces Just the expected changes: (92)

H ndi-m!u-thu [W.172] Hndi-m!u-ri [W.172] H ndi-m!u-landa [W.172] H ndi-m!u-rathu [W.172] H ndi-m!u-selwa [W.172] H ndi-m!u-sadzi [W.172] H ndi-m!u-kalaha [W.172] H ndi-m!u-tukana [W.172] H ndi-m!u-lamb!6ni [W.172] H ndi-m!u-tha!nnga [W.172] H ndi-tsh!i-"vhavhala [W.172]


247

H n d •m!u-duhulu [W.172] H n d m!u-kegulu [W.172] (93)

H nd -b!6fu [W.172] H nd -thlukhu [W.172] H nd -ndemwa [W.172] H nd -bengo [W.172] H nd -thlamaha [W.172] H n d -d.'ukana [W.172] H n d -dlanana [W.172] Hnd: -phlaphana [W.172] H nd: -khlokhola [W.172] H nd -dlakalo [W.172] H n d -glong'ong'o [W.172]

We will illustrate the derivation for a Low-initial noun in (94) and for a H-initial noun In (95). (94)

lexical

phonology LH

L L L

>! J U ndi-thamaha LLH L L

\/

1 1

ndi-thamaha inapplicable

post-lexical H

LM/D MR

phonology LLH

L L

x ndi-thamaha H

LH

L L

1 M

II

xinapplicable ndi-thamaha

LM/D MR

H, LH L L |NAf^. 11 x ndi-tnamaha

HTS

248

Verbal Tonology (II) H L H L L |\ J ^\| | x ndi-thamaha H

(95)

L H

Rising Tone Simplif.

L L

x ndi-thamaha

CS

inapplicable

FS

lexical

phonology LH

H

\i A ndi-bengo inapplicable LH

LM/D

L

V /\ ndi-bengo post-lexical H

MR

phonology LH

L

1

dX' b A x ndi-bengo H H L

I J /\ x ndi-bengo H L L

I

i A

x ndi-bengo H

L

fX!

MR

L

A

x ndi-bengo inapplicable x H inapplicable ndi-bengo L L

|\

LM/D

A

HTS Rising Tone Simplif. CS FS


249

Two points about the above derivations need to be made. In (94), we had to assume that after the post-lexical application of Low Metathesis/Deletion, there is still a Low associated with the copular particle ndi-. This is not an automatic consequence of our analysis, but it is not an Insurmountable problem. In order to achieve the correct output In (95), it is necessary to assume that the rule of Low Metathesis/Deletion affects the Initial Low of the copulative noun even though that L is in turn followed by a H. In other words, the copulative noun behaves like a noun as far as the conditions for Low Metathesis/Deletion are concerned. It is only third person copular particles that have the behavior described above. First and second person copular particles are themselves Low-toned and do not affect a following word. For example, ndi-mu-thu 'I am an African', u-mu-thu 'you (sg.) are an African', ri-va-thu 'we are Africans', ni-va-thu 'you (pi.) are Africans'. Notice that in these cases the copulative element is Identical segmentally to the subject prefixes. The third person copulative element ndi-, on the other hand, is not segmentally the same as the third person singular subject prefix. We assume that it is a conjunction of a Low-toned copulative element and a High-toned third person subject prefix. In other words, the H part of the LH sequence on third person ndi- is simply the H of third person subject prefixes. The first and second person copulative elements may likewise consist of this same Low-toned copulative element plus a Low-toned subject prefix. Westphal lists a number of other copular constructions but does not give details concerning their tonal pattern. We list these In (96): (96)

e-m!u-thu '(If) he Is an African' (W, 171 ] vh-e-vh!a-thu '(If) they are Africans' [W, 171] i-m!u-thu '(supposing) he is an African' [W.171] i-vh!a-thu '(supposing) they are Africans' [W.171] a-r!e-mu-thu '(he) who is an African' [W.172] vha-r!e-vha-thu '(they) who are Africans' [W, 172] a-si-mu-thu 'he is not an African' [W.171] a-si-vha-thu 'they are not Africans' [W, 171]

250

Verbal Tonology (II) a-si-mu-thu '(If) he is not an African' [W.171] vha-si-vha-thu '(if) they are not Africans' [W, 171] i-si-mu-thu 8 '(supposing) he is not an African' IW.171] i-si-vha-thu '(supposing) they are not Africans' [W.171) a-s!i-mu-thu '(he) who Is not an African' [W.172] vha-s!i-vha-thu '(they) who are not Africans' [W.1721

We will not attempt to provide an exhaustive analysis of these examples since (a) we lack extensive tonal data for them, (b) some of these constructions Involve morphological structures— e.g. the relative and dependent tenses—that we have omitted from consideration In this thesis (due both to space limitations and to lack of systematic data), and (c) some of these examples involve negative formations which again we have not explored in their entirety (recall Westphal's reference to the "bewildering variety" of negative constructions). Nevertheless, we will provide a quick tour of these forms. Some of these constructions appear to involve patterns comparable to that displayed by kha-. Compare, for example. e-m!fi-thu/vh-6-m!u-thu and i-m!u-thu/i-vh!a-thu with kha-m!u-thu. In order to see whether this parallelism is complete, it would be necessary to obtain data for these copular elements In front of a H-initial noun. If these copular particles are parallel, then we would have forms like 6-ndfimwa '(if) he is a naughty child' rather than 6-nd!£mwa. Further collection of data will be required to determine whether the parallelism Is in fact complete. Assuming that the parallelism exists, we would analyze these copulative elements in a fashion analogous to kha-, e.g. by claiming that they underlylngly consist of a sequence of vowel elements, each of which has a H tone. The disyllabic copular elements such as appear in ar!6-mti-thu/vha-rl6-vha-thu and a-s!l-m L / H

H % X

[

X %

(This rule might be formulated somewhat differently if the fact that the penult vowel of the phrase is lengthened is taken into

Verbal Tonology (in)

270

account. But such a revision does not materially alter the discussion above.) It Is crucial that Low-Insertion not apply to the examples In (l)--e.g. ndl-kho-fi-l-a and ndi-di-y-a. Following Final Simplification, there will be a High associated with the penult TBU and a Low associated with the final TBU In these examples. Deautosegmentallzation will not affect these representations since there is no multiply associated High. The conditions for (14) are not satisfied, and consequently no Low tone will be assigned to the penult vowel. We have restricted (14) so that it only applies before a monosyllabic root (this is indicated by the environment x [xj $). We do not want Low-Insertion to apply, for example, to words such as u-vh6n-a, which will (after deautosegmentali- zation) have Highs associated with the last two tone-bearing units). We have so far considered in detail just cases where monosyllabic roots are preceded by a High prefix (either one that causes Meeussen's Rule or one that triggers Low-Deletion and not Meeussen's Rule). We have established that for the most part the behavior of monosyllabic roots after these prefixes parallels the behavior of polysyllabic verb stems (the variable application of rule (14) being the only point of difference). Let us now look in detail at the case where a Low-toned prefix precedes a monosyllabic root. We have given just one case so far—namely, the Infinitive: u-pfa and u-bva. The infinitive shows that when a monosyllabic verb root is preceded by a single Low-toned prefix, the underlying tone of the verb root manifests itself without any complications. The data In (15) show that when two Low prefixes precede, a monosyllabic root is still unaffected: (15)

present tense, Jlrst person subject prefix ndi-a-pfa [W.S.N] ndi-a-nwa [S] ndi-a-bva [W] ndi-a-wa [S] ndi-a-ya 'N)

'I 'I 'I 'I 'I

hear' am drinking' am coming out' am falling' am going'

Verbal Tonology (III)

271

fixture tense, first person subject prefix ndl-do-pfa [W.N] ndi-do-nwa (S] ndi-do-ya [N] ndl-do-bva [W.S]

'I will hear" 'I will drink' 'I will go' 'I will come out'

Complications develop when a monosyllabic root Is preceded by a Low prefix which in turn Is preceded by a High prefix. Consider the following data from the third person form of the present tense and the third person form of the future tense: ( (16)

High monosyllabic roots u-a-pfa [W.S.N] vha-a-nwa [S]

'he hears' 'they are drinking'

u-do-pfa [N]

'he will hear'

u-do-nwa [S]

'he will drink'

Low monosyllabic roots u-a-ya [N] u-a-bva [W] u-a-bva [S] vha-a-wa [S] u-dd-bva IS] u-do-ya ]N]

'he is going' 'he is coming out of 'he is coming out of 'they are falling' 'he will come out of 'he will go'

The first thing to notice about the data In (16) is that when a monosyllabic root Is preceded by a Low prefix which is in turn preceded by a High prefix, the monosyllabic root appears with a High tone even when It Is underlylngly a Low verb root. The second thing to notice is that when the monosyllabic verb root is underlylngly High, the Immediately preceding prefix (which is basically Low-toned) appears regularly with a Falling tone. However, when the verb root is

Verbal Torwlogy (III)

272

underlyingly Low-toned, the Immediately preceding prefix alternates between a High tone and a Falling tone. The distribution of the High vs. Fall variant on the penultimate prefix does not reveal a clear pattern—rather it reminds us strongly of the similar variation In the pronunciation of a High prefix in front of a monosyllabic root, a variation that we explained in terms of the rule of Low-Insertion. The fact that the prefix before the root in (16) appears regularly with a Falling tone for High verb roots and variably for Low verb roots suggests that these Falling tones may have different origins. This possibility is strongly supported by the data that we have (admittedly rather skimpy) on phrase-medial position. Recall that Low-Insertion applies just In phrase-final position. No Low Is Inserted when the verb Is in medial position. Consider the data below: (17)

u-do-pf!amu... [W] u-do-bva mu... [W] u-do-ya zwino [NJ

*he will hear...' 'he will come out of...' 'he will go now*

The example u-d6-pf!a mti... suggests strongly that in the case of the High monosyllabic root, the Falling tone on the penult syllable in 1i-d6-pf& is not produced by Low-Insertion but rather represents a Falling tone derived by the spread of the High of the subject prefix onto the Low-toned prefix -do-. The HL sequence on -do- undergoes Contour Simpli- fication in phrase-medial position, leaving -do- High but with a floating Low following it. The example fi-d6-y-4 zwino, on the other hand, suggests that In the case of Low monosyllabic roots, the Falling tone on the penult vowel in u-dd-bvA must be produced by by Low-Insertion. fi-d6-y-4 zwino shows no evidence for a Low tone associated with the prefix -do-, in particular, there is no downstep between -do- and the H of the verb root. We propose, then, that the examples of High verb roots In (16) are derived by derivations such as (18a) whereas the Low verb roots In (16) are derived by derivations such as (18b), with (of course) the rule of Low-Insertion being a variably applied one.

Verbal Tonology (III) (18a)

273

H L

1 1 1'

H

.1 1

u-a-pf-a

inapplicable inapplicable H L

N

H

.1

u-a-pf-a inapplicable

(18b)

H L

LM/D MR

HTS CS/FS

L

1 1 1 11 1

i

u-a-y-a LH

L

u-a-y-a LH / u-a-y-a inapplicable

(first application) LM/D -«• (second application) LM/D MR

LH

/ \ \ u-a-y-a inapplicable LH H H // / u-a-y-a LH HL H

/// 1 u-a-y-a

HTS CS/FS

deautosegmentalizati

Low-Insertion

The preceding analysis Is. we believe, an attractive one. We must admit, however, that more exploration Is required If It Is to be fully supported. First, notice that the derivations In (18a,b) claim that all the forms in (16) end in a High tone, whether the verb root Is H or L underlylngly. Therefore, we


274

predict that these verbs will be able to trigger Low Metathesis/ Deletion and High Tone Spread on a following L-initial word. Westphal (p. 144) cites the example u-d6-pf-!a muthu, which clearly suggests that an underlylngly High monosyllabic root is able to affect a following Low-toned noun muthu. But Westphal also cites the example u-d6-bv-a mulambdnl (p. 144). which suggests that an underlyingly Low monosyllabic root does not end in a H since it does not affect the L-Initial noun mulambdnl. However, data that we elicted from [N] includes the example u-d6-y-a zwlno, where an underlyingly Low monosyllabic root does behave as though it ends in a H (changing zwlno to zwlno). We will assume that the data from [N] verifies our prediction that the data in (16) all end in a H tone, but further study is required. The derivation in (18a) predicts that in position after a word that ends in a H, the initial H of u-a-pf-a should undergo Meeussen's Rule. We expect the following derivation: H H 1 1

L

H

1 1 11 1 x u- 1- p f - a

-ai n a p p ] Lie.a b l e H L L | 1 1

H

L

H

1

il--a-1-pf- -a1 H L

M I x u--aH L L

1

-pf- -a

l\ 1 x u--a-

•pf-

H

1

-a

The following data mu-sadzi u-a-pf-a [N] and mu-sadzi u-dopf-a [N,W] confirm this prediction. The derivation in (19), on the other hand, predicts that there will be a downstep between a form such as u-a-y-a/u-fty-a and a preceding word that ends in a High. Westphal's

Verbal Torwlogy (III)

275

examples~H u-d!6-bvamu... (p. 157) and musadzi u-d6-bv-!a mulambdnl (p. 145) are Inconsistent. We collected the following data from [N]: musadzi u-d!6-y-a and musadzi ud!6-y-a zwino. These data are similar to the first example quoted from Westphal. We are unable to reconcile these forms with our analysis. If correct, they suggest that there Is a separate High on the subject prefix u- from the H on -do- and the verb stem (since the H of the subject prefix appears to undergo Meeussen's Rule followed by High Tone Spread and Contour Simplification) and there is no trace of either the L of do- or the L of the verb stem. It may be that these data require a radical revision of our analysis, but the lines that it would take are not clear and we feel ,that a much more detailed elicitation of data on monosyllabic verb roots is called for before rejecting the broad outlines of our analysis. In (16) we cited examples of third person present and future tense forms. These provided a configuration where a HL prefix sequence precedes a monosyllabic verb root. (16) showed that this prefix sequence triggers-a neutralization of H and L mono-syllabic verb roots—they both appear H on the surface. We also examined the phrase-medial forms for third person future tense forms. We did not cite the phrase-medial forms for third person present tense forms. We give these data now in (20). (20)

High monosyllabic verb roots u-pf-amu... [W.156] u-pf-a mu-thu [N] Low monosyllabic verb roots u-bv-amu... [W.156] u-y-a zwino (N)

Notice that there is no downstep between the subject prefix and an underlylngly High verb root in u-pf-a mu-thu. This contrasts with polysyllabic verb roots: u-vh!6n-a mu-thu [N]. The downstep in the latter example Is attributable to the


276

floating L that marks the present tense in phrase-medial position (recall that this L is anchored between the subject prefix and the verb stem). We thus must assume some rule that deletes the floating L of the present tense in front of monosyllabic roots. (Recall that we also noted earlier that the pre-verbal downstep associated with past tense forms was missing in forms with monosyllabic roots. It is not clear whether there is any connection between these two cases of a disappearing unassociated Low.) The Lverb roots in (20) are pronounced on a High tone. We can a s s u m e that their L tone h a s been metathesized/deleted due to the preceding High subject prefix (whose H has then spread onto the verb root). Whether the unassociated L of the present tense has metathesized in front of the subject prefix as well, or whether it has been deleted by the rule mentioned in the preceding paragraph, cannot be determined with any certainty. The data in (20) show the same difference between [W] and [Nl that we noted in (17)--namely, the underlyingly L verb root that has acquired a High (by Low Metathesis/ Deletion and High Tone Spread in our analysis) behaves in [N] as though it has a H as its last tone, whereas in [W] it does not behave as though it is simply H (since it does not cause the expected changes on a following word). The post-H pronunciations in (21), (21)

High monosyllabic verb roots musadzi u-pf-amu... [W.156] musadzi u-pf-a muthu (Nl Low monosyllabic verb roots H u-bv-amu... [W.156] musadzi u-y-a zwino [N]

are interesting though problematic. Consider the High roots first. We would expect that the H of the subject prefix would be able to undergo Meeussen's Rule because it follows a word that ends in a H. Assume that Meeussen's Rule does apply. Then


277

6- will become L by Meeussen's Rule, only to have the H of the preceding word spread onto It, producing a HL contour. This contour tone will simplify to H, and a floating L will follow the subject prefix. But no such floating L appears. However, we have already noted that even the floating L of the present tense is deleted In position before a monosyllabic root. So perhaps this absence of a predicted floating L after the subject prefix can be accounted for by the same rule. The only alternative Is to block Meeussen's Rule from affecting the subject prefix when it precedes a monosyllabic root. This seems like an unlikely restriction on Meeussen's Rule. Consider next the Low verb roots in (20). If we assume that the L of the verb root has metathesized In front of the subject prefix, then we would expect a downstep between the preceding word and a verb such as • 1

n d i - -nga-do- - l i m a L

LH

1""

(first applic.) Low-Spreading

L

1

ndi-nga-So-lima

(second applic.) Low-Spreading

On the basis, then, of the examples such as ndi-ngado-lima, we will assume that the rule of Low-Spreading is to be preferred over any version of Delink. One piece of data in (45) provides a further challenge to our analysis. Consider the example ndi-nga-d6-ya. Why hasn't the Low of -ndi- been able to spread onto (and delink) both of the prefixes -nga- and -do-? Why does it spread onto (and delink) just -nga-? One possibility would be to try to bar Low-Spreading from affecting a penultimate prefix—i.e. a prefix that immediately precedes a monosyllabic stem. That is, we might postulate a rule of Low-Spreading as in (35)'": (35)'"

Low-Spreading LLo H

IV. \ CT

o Ia a

where it is required that the prefix High be followed by two syllables. This revision of Low-Spreading would correctly allow -do- to undergo the rule in ndi-nga-do-lima while blocking it from undergoing the rule in ndi-nga-d6-ya. But unfortunately such a revision would also bar the rule from applying to the final vowel of -kho-u- in ndi-kho-u-pf-a ipfi discussed earlier in this section. At the present time we are not certain what the crucial difference between ndi-nga-d6-y-a and ndi-kho-u-pf-a ipfi is such that / d o / will not undergo Low-Spreading in the former case while / u / will. It could perhaps have to do with the fact that in ndi-nga-d6-y-a, the / d o / is in penult position


311

In the phrase and therefore lengthened. If so, we would predict that when another word follows, / d o / will delink from the High. We do not have relevant data to test this hypothesis, and thus must hold the matter in abeyance. When the H-toned prefix -nga- precedes the H-toned prefix -di-we find data such as those In (50): (50)

High verb stems ndi-nga-di-1-a 'I may quite likely eat' [S] ndl-nga-di-leng-a 'I may quite likely be late' [S] ndl-nga-di-tshimbil-a 'I may quite likely walk' [S] ndl-nga-dl-hungulul-a ',1 may quite likely untie (animals)' (SI Low verb stems ndi-nga-di-bv-a ndi-nga-di-lim-a ndi-nga-di-vuledz-a ndi-nga-dl-titllidz-a

'I may 'I may 'I may 'I may [S]

quite quite quite quite

likely likely lively likely

come out'(S] plow' [S] finish' [S] exaggerate'

Examination of (50) shows, first, that -di- triggers Meeussen's Rule on a following verb stem. This is possible only if -nga- has not triggered Meeussen's Rule on -dl-. We have seen earlier in this thesis that -di- does not undergo Meeussen's Rule when it is preceded by a High-toned subject prefix. Thus it is not at all surprising that -di- does not undergo Meeussen's Rule after -nga-. In effect what seems to happen is that the OCP unites the H of any preceding prefix and the H of -di- Into a single H. Thus, if It were not for Low-Spreading, we would expect pronunciations such as ndi-nga-di-tshimbila and ndi-nga-dilim-a. The next point to note about (50) is that In every case -nga- delinks from the H that it is associated with. The reason is clear: -nga- is preceded by a Low subject prefix and is the first of a sequence of syllables linked to the same H. The prefix -di- does not delink In the case of ndi-nga-di-I-a and ndi-ngadi-bv-a due to the fact that (after Final Simplification) -di- is

312


not followed by another TBU that Is linked to the same H as it Is. In the remaining cases, e.g. ndl-nga-di-tshimbila, -di- also is subject to Low-Spreading (and the resulting delinking) since it is followed by another TBU that is linked to the same H tone. The preceding data establish that Low-Spreading (and accompanying delinking) is a pervasive feature of the data in [S), for example. We will conclude this section by noting some additional problematic aspects to the phenomenon that require detailed study. First, there appear to be cases where an unassociated Low tone may spread and Induce delinking. In (51) we present the data that our analysis predicts for the construction where a High-toned subject prefix Is followed by the Low-tone prefix -tshi- which in turn is followed by the High-toned -nga-. (51)

High verb s terns ndi-tshi-ng!a-l-a '(If) I may eat' ndi-tshi-ng!a-shum-a '(If) I may work' ndi-tshi-ng!a-faris-a '(if) I may help' Low verb stems ndi-tshi-ng!a-y-a '(if) I may go' ndi-tshi-ng!a-bik-a "(If) I may cook' ndi-tshi-ng!a-fhindul-a '(if) I may answer'

We expect the H of the subject prefix to spread onto -tshi-. creating a HL contour on its vowel. Contour Simplification will disassociate the L part of that contour. This Low will appear in the form of a downstep between -tshi- and -nga-. In the data that we elicited from [SJ, the pronunciation cited in (51) was the only one used in the case of monosyllabic verb roots (ndi-tshi-ngla-1-a, ndi-tshi-ngta-y-a). The High polysyllabic verb stems on the other hand varied between the pronunciation cited in (51) and another pronunciation where -nga-appears with a Low tone. Furthermore, in the case of the Low polysllabic verb stems, In the data we elicited the -ngaregularly appeared with a Low tone. It seems clear that what


313

is going on is that Low-Spreading has applied (variably most likely) in those cases where -nga- is pronounced on a Low tone. Why does it never seem to be pronounced on a Low tone in the case of the monosyllabic roots? The answer is probably that the same principle bars Low-Spreading to a penult syllable In the case of ndi-tshi-ng!a-y-a as blocks it in the case of ndl-nga-do-y-a. This parallelism strongly supports the view that it is Low-Spreading that is at work in the variable data we collected from [S] for the construction cited in (51). Consider next the data in (52): (52)

High verb stems ndi-tshi-nga-do-1-a '(If) I may perhaps eat* (SJ ndi-tshi-nga-do-lal-a '(if) I may perhaps sleep' [S] ndi-tshi-nga-do-faris-a '(if) I may perhaps help' [S] Low verb stems ndi-tshi-nga-do-y-a '(if) I may perhaps go' [S] ndi-tshi-nga-do-vhal-a '(If) I may perhaps read' [S] ndi-tshi-nga-do-sumbedz-a '(if) I may perhaps show' [S]

This represents the same general construction as (51), but with the Low prefix -do- placed after -nga-. In every case, [SJ exhibits a Low tone on -nga-. In other words, the Low that was originally located on -tshl- but became disassociated as a result of Contour Simplification in every case spreads onto -nga- (with the accompanying delinking of -nga- from its H). The data in (52) are problematic, however, because the Low-Spreading triggered by the unassociated Low does not then seem to work iteratlvely across the word. In particular, we see that the prefix -do- remains associated with a H even though it is in turn followed by another TBU that is associated to the same H. Another example where an unassociated Low appears to induce Low-Spreading is found in the following data from (SJ:


314 (53)

High verb stems a-thi-nga-d!6-pf-a a-thi-nga-do-reng-a a-thi-nga-do-faris-a

'I am not likely to hear' 'I am not likely to buy' 'I am not likely to help'

Low verb stems a-thi-nga-d!6-d-a 'I am not likely to come' a-thi-nga-do-vhal-a 'I am not likely to read' a-thi-nga-do-vuledz-a 'I am not likely to finish' This construction Involves the Low-toned negative prefix a-, followed by a High-toned subject prefix, followed by the Hightoned -nga-, followed by the Low-toned prefix -do-. This represents the environment for HH-Avoldance. As a consequence, the HHL prefix sequence becomes HLH. The H on -do- is able to trigger Meeussen's Rule on the verb stem, which Is why underlying High verb stems appear In exactly the same tonal shape as underlying Low verb stems. Examination of (53) shows that the H of the subject prefix is able to spread onto the Low-toned form of -nga-, creating a HL contour. This contour simplifies, leaving -ngapronounced on a H but followed by an unassociated Low. This floating Low appears as downstep in the cases a-thi-nga-d!6pf-a and a-thi-nga-d!6-d-a. But in the remainder of the data, the unassociated L after -nga- is able to spread onto the prefix -do-, triggering its delinking from the H that It is associated with. The observant reader will perhaps have noted that the H associated with the subject prefix does not delink In (53). This failure of delinking leads us into the next point. The preceding examples dealt with cases where Low-Spreading is apparently triggered by an unassociated Low, even though we have motivated the claim that only associated Lows spread. The remaining problematic data involve cases where we would expect Low-Spreading, but do not seem to get It. Earlier in this section we noted that the High-toned subject prefix In the negative present Is subject to Low-


315

Spreading: e.g., we found the contrast in [SI between a-thi-1-i 'I don't eat' but a-thi-shum-i 'I don't work'. In fact, however, the subject prefix in the negative constructions is subject to Low-Spreading Just when It immediately precedes a verb stem (as above). If it precedes another prefix, it does not delink. This is shown by the data in (54): (54)

a-thi-nga-f!aris-i 'I may not help' [SI a-thi-no-sh!um-a 'I don't ever work' [S] a-thi-tsha-h!ungulul-a 'I no longer untie' [S]

We are by no means certain as to the reason for the failure of the L of a- to spread onto the subject prefix in these cases. It is perhaps of some interest to note that the subject prefix in the negative had another odd pattern of behavior: when it occurs immediately in front of a verb stem, it induces Low Metathesis/Deletion on that verb stem and it is subject to the OCP. But when the subject prefix in the negative precedes a prefix, it triggers Meeussen's Ruleând it cannot trigger Low Metathesis/Deletion. We do not know whether there is any connection between these facts and the fact that LowSpreading applies differently depending on whether the subject prefix is in front of the verb stem or in front of a prefix. The negative elements -sa- and -s6- are also problematic in that they do not appear to undergo delinking. (55) Illustrates the negative infinite: (55)

High verb stems u-sa-l-a u-sa-vhon-a u-sa-tshimbil-a

'not to eat' [SJ 'not to see' [S] 'not to walk' [S]

Low verb stems u-sa-bv-a u-sa-amb-a u-sa-gidlm-a u-sa-sinyutshel-a

'not 'not 'not 'not

to to to to

go out' [S] speak' [S] run' [S] get angry at' [S]


316

In each case we see that the negative prefix -sft- remains associated to Its High tone, even though It Is preceded by an associated Low tone and followed by a TBU that Is linked to the same H as the negative prefix. In (56) we show that In the construction involving -sdngo-, the H remains associated with the negative element -s6even though It appears to meet the conditions for LowSpreading: (56)

High verb stems ndi-so-ngo-1-a ndl-so-ngo-r!eng-a ndl-s6-ngo-f!aris-a

'I must not eat' [S] 'I must not buy' [S] 'I must not help' (S)

Low verb stems ndi-so-ngo-bik-a 'I must not cook' [S] ndi-so-ngo-sumbedz-a 'I must not show' IS) ndi-so-ngo-sinyutshel-a 'I must not get angry at' (S) Again, we see that the H remains associated with -s6- even though that H has spread onto the following element -ngo-. Let us at this point summarize this section. We have shown that In some varieties of Venda. there is a pervasive pattern whereby a Low (generally speaking, an associated Low) spreads onto a TBU that is associated with a H and causes that TBU to delink from the H. This occurs Just In case the H in question is also linked to a following TBU. The application of this rule makes Venda surface forms rather opaque In that a High-toned vowel that may have had a major tonal impact on Its environment (e.g. Inducing Meeussen's Rule, or Low Metathesis/Deletion, or High Tone Spread) will in fact often be pronouned on a Low tone. This rule is especially Interesting in that it seems to be a rule that is very close to the surface, applying late In the post-lexical phonology, but It is also In part grammatically-conditioned. There is no question that Low-Spreading is a significant rule of Venda tonology, but there remain a number of areas


317

that require extended study. Is there a principled way to explain when unassociated Lows can trigger Low-Spreading? is there a principled explanation for the failure of LowSpreading to occur in the negative forms cited above? 5.3. Object prefixes. There are a set of object prefixes In Venda which may appear in a verbal form Immediately In front of the verb stem. The segmental shape of the object prefix is determined by the person, number, and/or noun class membership of the object of the verb. In Venda (unlike many Bantu languages) the tonal shape of the object prefix Is the same for all the prefixes. The data In (57) suggest that the object prefix in Venda is High-toned. (57)

u-amb-a u-di-amb-a u-mu-amb-a

t o mean' 'to mean oneself [W. 140] 'to mean him' [W.140]

u-llmel-a u-di-limel-a u-mu-limel-a

'to plough for s.O!* 'to plough for oneself [W.140] 'to plough for him' [W.140]

u-sinyutshel-a u-di-sinyutshel-a u-mu-sinyutshel-a

'to get angry at s.o.' 'to be angry at oneself [W.140] 'to be angry at him' [W.140]

u-vhon-a u-di-vhon-a u-mu-vhon-a

'to see' 'to see oneself [W.140] 'to see him' [W.140]

u-vhudzis-a u-di-vhiidzis-a u-mu-vhudzis-a

'to ask' 'to ask oneself [W.140] 'to ask him' [W.140]

u-tshimbilel-a u-di-tshimbilel-a u-mu-tshimbilel-a

'to go, walk with/for' 'to go by oneself [W.140] 'to go for him' [W.140]

318


In each of these examples the object prefix Is realized with a High tone; since it Is preceded by the Low-toned Infinitive prefix in these examples, the object prefix cannot have gotten its High tone via High Tone Spread induced by a preceding High tone. Given that there Is no rule that would make the object prefix High, we assume that It must be underlyingly High. The data In (57) require close consideration. First, notice that the Low-toned verb stems change their tonal structure when an object prefix precedes them. In particular, the first vowel of the verb stem acquires a High, and this High also spreads onto the second stem vowel as well. Of course, we are already familiar with this behavior. This is exactly the same behavior as the Low verb stems display after High prefixes such as -6- and -ngfi-. In other words, it seems that the High object prefixes trigger Low Metathesis/Deletion on a following verb stem, and then the High of the object prefix spreads into the verb stem. The data in (57) show also that the object prefix H does not trigger Meeussen's Rule on a following High verb stem. This again is exactly parallel to the case of High prefixes such as -6- and -nga- when they stand in front of a High verb stem (at least in the affirmative tenses—recall the complications concerning the negative tenses). Thus the prefixing of a High object marker in examples like u-mii-vhudzisa Induces no change in the tonal realization of the High verb stem. We have suggested (in the case of -6- and -nga- that this failure of a High prefix to trigger Meeussen's Rule is to be explained In terms of the application of the OCP to the structure that results from appending a High prefix to the verb stem. Given that the object prefix is parallel to the High prefixes -6- and -ngA- in the effect that It has on a following verb stem, it would be highly desirable to treat all these prefixes in exactly the same manner. We should note here that the High object prefix is also subject to the rule of Low-Spreading (just as -nga- Is) in those dialects where Low-Spreading operates. We cite the following data from [S] to support this claim.

Verbal Tonology (IW (58)

319

u-gekh-a u-nn-gekh-a u-u-gekh-a u-mu-gekh-a u-ii-gekh-a u-nl-gekh-a u-vha-gekh-a

'to 'to 'to 'to 'to 'to 'to

hit, strike, knock against' hit me' hit you (sg.)' hit him/her' hit us' hit you (pi.)' hit them'

u-llmel-a u-nn-dimel-a u-u-limel-a u-mu-limel-a etc. u-ri-limel-a u-ni-limel-a u-vha-limel-a

'to plow for' 'to plow for me' 'to plow for you (sg.)'

u-slnyutshel-a 'to get angry at' u-n-tsinyutshel-a 'to get angry at me' u-u-sinyutshel-a etc. , where tfle Low-toned -nofollows the High-toned past tense prefix -6-. (60)

Low verb stems nd-6-n6-m!u-tod-a

'I have already looked for him' [S] nd-6-no-m!u-sumbedz-a 'I have already shown him' [S] nd-6-m!u-tutuwedz-a 'I have already encouraged him' [SI High verb stems nd-6-no-vh!u-l-a 'I have already eaten it' [S] nd-6-no-vh!u-reng-a 'I have already bought It' [SJ nd-6-no-m!u-rengel-a 'I have already bought for him' [S] Once again we see that (a) the object prefix raises a Low verb stem and (b) has no effect on a High verb stem. In [SI, the object prefixes do not undergo Delink since the preceding


322

vowel does not surface linked to a Low tone (due to the application of High Tone Spread and Contour Simplification). Notice, incidentally, that the L of -no- is not subject to Low Metathesis/Deletion in (60) even though it stands after a H tone. (We cannot let the Low of -no- be metathesized/ deleted, since we need it to remain on -no- so as to eventually surface as the downstep between -no- and the object prefix.) The reason that the Low of -no- resists Low Metathesis/ Deletion is straightforward—it is followed by a High tone located on the object prefix. The failure of-no- to undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion constitutes yet another motivation for claiming that the object prefixes are linked to a High tone. One last example illustrating the behavior of the object prefixes after a Low prefix is provided by the future construction exemplified in (61). (61)

Low verb stems ndi-do-mu-tod-a u-do-m!u-tod-a

'I will look for him' [S] 'he will look for him' [S]

ndi-do-mu-sumbedz-a 'I will show him' [S] u-dp-m!u-sumbedz-a 'he will show him' [SI High verb stems ndi-do-vhu-1-a u-do-vh!u-l-a ndi-do-vhu-reng-a u-do-vh!u-reng-a

'I will eat it' [SJ 'he will eat it' [SI 'I will buy it' [S] 'he will buy if [S]

Once again we see that the object prefix raises a Low verb stem and has no effect on a following High verb stem. In [S], the H of the object prefix will delink if the preceding vowel remains associated to a L (e.g. In the first person forms), provided that the following stem Is disyllabic. At this point let us turn to the cases where the object prefixes follow another High prefix. The data in (62) illustrate


323

the case where an object prefix follows the -6- past tense marker. (62)

Low verb stems nd-6-vha-fh!ura nd-6-mu-t!6da nd-6-mu-s!umbedz-a nd-6-mu-t!utuwedz-a

'I deceived them' [W.146] 'I looked for him' [S] 'I showed him' [S] "I encouraged him' [S]

High verb stems nd-6-vha-vh!6na nd-6-vhu-l-a nd-6-vhu-r!eng-a nd-6-mu-r!engel-a

'I 'I 'I 'I

saw them'rw, 146] ate it' [S] bought it' [S] bought for him' [S]

In (62) we have a sequence of High-toned -6- followed by a High-toned object prefix -vh4- followed b y ^ o t h a High verb stem (e.g. -vhona) or a Low verb stem (e.g. -fhura). The data in (62) are in fact rather puzzling in some significant ways. Let us take the case of the High verb stems first. If we examine a pronunciation such as nd-6-vha-vh!6n-a, it is immediately clear that the best account for an item such as this would be the following derivation: (63)

L H

H

H

nd-o-vha-vhon-a inapplicable inapplicable L H

L

OCP LM/D H

nd-o-vha-vhon-a L H

L

INJ

MR

H

/\

nd-o-vha-vhon-a

HTS


324 L H

L

H

nd-o-vha-vhon-a

CS

inapplicable

FS

This derivation produces the correct surface forms for the High verb stems In (62) without modifying any of our rules and without Invoking any new rules. The only problem with (63) is the following: why doesn't the OCP affect the sequence of a High object prefix and a High verb stem? We have seen that in other contexts (specifically, when a Low prefix precedes an object prefix) It is necessary to assume that the OCP does affect such sequences, since we do not want a H object prefix to induce Meeussen's Rule on the verb stem. The attentive reader will perhaps recall from Chapter Four that we had another case where the OCP needed to be suspended between a High prefix and a High verb stem. In the negative construction a-thl-nga-!r6ng-l we needed to prevent the H of -nga- and the H of the verb stem from undergoing the OCP. At the time we treated this phenomenon as a peculiarity of the negative construction (where we also found evidence that the rule of Low Metathesis/Deletion had to be suspended —cf. a-thi-nga-gldlm-i). But perhaps the phenomenon is more general. In particular, perhaps It has to do with the situation where a High that would undergo the OCP is in turn preceded by a High. In a-thi-nga-r!6ng-l, the H of -nga- is preceded by a H subject prefix; in nd-6-vha-vh!6n-a, the H of -vha- is preceded by the High past tense prefix -6-. The most natural means of accounting for these behavior patterns would be to apply Meeussen's Rule between the two prefixes before applying the OCP to a prefix plus a stem (since application of Meeuussen's Rule to -nga- In a-thinga-r!6ng-l and to -vha- in nd-6-vha-vh!6n-a will change them to Low and thus prevent the application of the OCP). But as we mentioned In Chapter Four, If we apply Meeussen's Rule between two prefixes before application of the OCP, how are we to prevent Meeussen's Rule from applying between a H prefix and a H verb stem? We know of no theory of the interaction of morphology and phonology that would let a rule operate


325

between prefixes before letting it try to apply between a prefix and a stem. Consequently, we seem to be forced to stipulate that the OCP does not affect a H prefix and a H verb stem in case the prefix is itself preceded by a H tone. We will see later that even this stipulation has a complication to it. Let us now turn to the Low verb stems in (62). If we simply assume that the H object prefix triggers Low Metathesis/Deletion on a following Low verb stem, and that Low Metathesis/Deletion is ordered before Meeussen's Rule (as we have shown it to be), then we will have the following incorrect derivation. (64)

L H H L

I

L

L

I I I I'

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a L H H L L

H'

'

JH

'

LM/D

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a L H L L L

II

II

MR

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a L H

L

L

L

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a L H

l\

L

L

HTS

L

I I

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a inapplicable

CS FS

(Presumably the first stem vowel would acquire a Low tone, presumably by a universal principle.) This derivation predicts a form *nd-6-mu-sumbedz-a, which is wrong (the verb must in fact be "raised," albeit with a downstep between the object prefix and the first stem vowel). Note that In (64) we assumed that Low Metathesis/ Deletion is carried out in this example by deletion rather than metathesis. If we metatheslzed the initial Low of the verb stem, rather than


326

deleting it. then we would also olDtain an incorr form: (65)

L H LH I I

L

1 1

L I I

II

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a inapplicable L H LH

L

( o u t p u t LM) MR

L

n„ d - o' - m u' -^s u>m'b d e d z - a'

HTS

inapplicable

CS/FS

This derivation predicts a form *nd-6-m!ti-s{iunbedz-a, which is incorrect: the correct form has no downstep in front of the object prefix but instead has one after the object prefix. What the data In (62) shows is that the verb stem is "raised" even though the object prefix comes to be Low-toned on the surface. If the raising of the verb stem in (62) Is to be accomplished via Low Metathesis/Deletion and High Tone Spread, we have a problem. That analysis says that there is a single H tone In the tonal tier, associated underlylngly with the prefix that induces Low Metathesis/Deletion on the verb stem but on the surface also associated with the following verb stem (as a consequence of High Tone Spread). This means that when the H prefix itself changes to L (via Meeussen's Rule), there is no way that a High tone can still be associated with the verb stem—that H tone has been changed to a L tone. It is perhaps possible to Interpret the examples in (62) as being evidence that we are just wrong to assume that Low verb stems are "raised" as a consequenc of the independently motivated rules of Low Metathesis/Deletion and High Tone Spread (even though we have seen from the discussion of the negative present that the "raising" of a Low verb stem is subject to the same conditions as Low Metathesis/Deletion— namely, the Initial Low of a verb stem cannot be "raised" If It Is immediately followed by a High tone). We would prefer to search for an explanation for these data that would permit our


327

independently motivated rules to be retained as the explanation for verb "raising". One line of attack suggests itself. Recall from Chapter Four that we have found evidence for a rule of HH-Avoidance. This rule says that in a sequence HHL, the final two tones interchange. The rule was clearly in evidence when we had three prefixes in a row of the shape HHL (the examples involved negative constructions). At that time we raised the issue of whether a HH prefix sequence followed by a Low in a verb stem might be susceptible to the rule of HH-Avoidance. Examples such as a-thi-ngft-sinyutsh61-i suggested not. However, the peculiar form a-thi-ng4-h!um-i had an explanation if one did allow HH-Avoidance to apply to a Low in a verb stem. The data in (62) wbuld likewise fall out if we assumed such a general form of HH-Avoidance, as the following derivation illustrates: (66)

L H

H

L

L

L «

1 1 ! 1J

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a L H 1

L, H L L 1 1 1 1 A ' ' ' JA ' nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a inapplicable

LM/D

inapplicable

MR

LH d

I X |

L

H

L

L

'^d

'

HH-Avoidance

HTS

nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a L H L H L L d I X '\'d ' nd-o-mu-sumbedz-a

CS

inapplicable

FS

The postulatlon of HH-Avoidance in the derivation of the Low verb stems in (62) means that Low verb stems can get "raised" in two different ways. The usual way is for a High prefix to trigger Low Metathesis/Deletion on the verb stem and then for


328

that High to spread rightwards; the less common way is for the second H of a HH sequence to metathesize with the initial L of the verb stem. By postulating HH-Avoidance, we can explain how a verb stem can "raise" even when the preceding (formerly High) prefix is not High. The same sorts of data as in (62) can be found when object prefixes follow the potential -ngA- (which we have earlier seen is tonologically similar to -6-). We Just cite two examples. (67)

ndl-nga-mu-vh!6na ndi-nga-mu-fh!ura

'I may see him' [W, 146] 'I may deceive him* [W.146]

No discussion of these data are required since they are perfectly parallel to the data discussed immediately above. Let us now consider the case where an object prefix follows -kho-ti-. (Recall that in (SI, the High tone that is associated to the infinitive prefix will be delinked from that prefix in most cases.) (68)

Low verb stems ndi-kho-u-mu-t!6d-a 'I am looking for him* [SI u-kho-u-mu-t!6d-a 'he is looking for him'[Sl ndi-kho-u-mu-s!umbedz-a 'I am showing him' (SJ u-kho-u-mu-s!umbedz-a 'he is showing him' [S] High verb stems ndi-kho-u-vhu-1-a 'I am eating It' [S] u-kho-u-vhu-1-a 'he Is eating It' [S] ndi-kho-u-vhu-r!eng-a 'I am buying it' u-kho-u-vhu-r!eng-a 'he is buying it*

These data demonstrate that In the -kho-ficonstructlon both Low and High verb stems behave exactly as they do in the cases where the object prefix is preceded by -6or -ng&-. What this means is that, if we are to maintain the analysis of the behavior of object prefixes presented above, then there must be a H tone associated with the -u- vowel of -

Verbal Torvology (III)

329

kho-fi- at the point where we determine the fate of the tonal sequence consisting of the object prefix and following verb stem. Take the case of High verb stems first. In these forms the object prefix must undergo Meeussen's Rule, thereby changing Its H to a L, and the OCP must not apply to the sequence of an object prefix and verb stem. (If it did, then both the object prefix and the verb stem would be associated to a Low following Meeussen's Rule, and there would be no way to account for why the verb stem in fact remains H.) We have suggested that the OCP is blocked from affecting a H prefix and a following H verb stem when the prefix is itself preceded by a H tone. Given our analysis of the -kho-ii- construction in Chapter Four, where we suggested that there is a LH sequence associated with the -kha- and a L associated with the infinitive prefix -u-, the H of the object prefix is not preceded by a High until after Low Metathesis/ Deletion removes the L from the infinitive prefix. Thus In order to maintain our account of when the OCP wotks, we would have to apply Low Metathesis/Deletion between the auxiliary element -kha- and a following infinitival prefix before applying the OCP to the sequence of object prefix plus verb stem. Let us now turn to the examples of Low verb stems in (68)—e.g. ndi-kho-u-mu-t!6d-a. This example is parallel to an example such as nd-6-mu-s!umbfedz-a. Recall how our analysis went: we suggested that when a Low verb stem is preceded by two High tones, the first L of the verb stem interchanges with the preceding H. This interchange is accomplished via HH-Avoidance. If we are to appeal to HHAvoidance in the derivation of ndl-kho-u-mu-t!6d-a, then we must have the H of the object prefix immediately preceded by a H. But this will not be the case until the Low of the Infinitive prefix has undergone Low Metathesis/Deletion by virtue of standing after -kha- (which, recall, we assume has a LH sequence associated to it underlyingly). We have now shown that, in order to account for the data in (68) in the same manner as we accounted for the data involving -6- and -nga-. Low Metathesis/Deletion must affect


330

the -u- vowel before anything else happens—in particular, before the OCP can do any work and before HH-Avoidance. We assume that the OCP must be ordered before Meeussen's Rule (since it is the OCP that explains why certain sequences of High tone do not undergo Meeussen's Rule). We know of no reason why it could not be ordered after Low Metathesis/ Deletion. Thus there is no problem in deriving ndl-kho-u-vhu-r!6ng-a. (69)

L

LH L

H

H

I MI

I

/\

ndi-kho#u-vhu-reng-a L LLH H H

I \|

I

/\

ndi-kho#u-vhu-reng-a L LLH L H

I \l

/\

I

ndi-kho#u-vhu-reng-a L LLH

L

L

I \ ^ \ l

/ \

LL H

I I \

L

Ri^ng Simplif.

/\

ndi-kho#u-vfiu-reng-a inapplicable L

HTS

H

ndi-kho#u-vhu-reng-a L LLH. L H

I \,^\

MR

H

ndi-kho#u-vhu-reng-a L LLH.

LM/D

CS FS

H

/\

ndi-kho#u-vhu-reng-a

Delink

But now let us consider the case of a Low verb stem. We would have an underlying representation such as the following:

Verbal Tonology (III) (70)

L

i

331 LH L

H

L

L

\ I M I I

ndi-kho#u-mu-t_od-a We want the L of the infinitive to metathesize/delete so that we can set up the environment for HH-Avoidance. But if Low Metathesis/Deletion can affect the infinitive u. why can't it also affect the initial L of the verb stem -tod-a? If it were to apply to the verb stem as well, we would not be able to generate the correct surface form ndi-kho-u-mfi-t!6d-a. Thus we are in the unfortunate situation of needing Low Metathesis/Deletion to remove the L of the u (to set up the environment for HH-Avoidance) but not to remove the L of the verb stem (so that we will in fact leave that L in a position to undergo HH-Avoidance). We have taken some pains to explain the problem posed by the data in (68), but we must admit that we are uncertain as to exactly what to make of the problem. Is our analysis of the object prefixes wrong? Perhaps^ but whatever our analysis of the object prefixes may be. the fact still remains that -kho-ti- patterns with -6- and -nga- and thus it seems that -kho-u- must end in a High tone at the point where the tonological behavior of the sequence consisting of an object prefix and a verb stem is determined. Is our analysis of -kho-u- wrong? Perhaps. Maybe the appearance of a H on the u vowel should Just be treated as an idiosyncratic feature of underlying structure and not accounted for in terms of postulating a LH sequence on -khaand a L on -u-. In other words, whatever the original (historical) reason might have been for a H appearing on the u in -kho-u-, it may be that speakers have simply reanalyzed this expression and thus treat the u as simply bearing a H tone. (Of course, this means that the H of u would have to be categorized like the H of -di-, in that it triggers Meeussen's Rule and does not trigger Low Metathesis/ Deletion, unlike the Highs on -nga-, -6-, and so on.) Or is the problem in the morphological analysis? Is there some fashion in which the infinitive prefix can be viewed as having morphologically coalesced with an "auxiliary" element (-kha-) in such a way that it would be natural for

332


rules to have access first to the complex consisting of kha-u and only later to the combination of this sequence with -vhutod-a? For the present, we must leave these issues unresolved. We turn now to a demonstration that the prefix -di-, which is like -kho-fi- in that it (a) triggers Meeussen's Rule on a verb stem and (b) does not trigger Low Metathesis/Deletion on a verb stem, affects object prefixes in a fashion entirely akin to 6-, -nga-. and -kho-fi-. (71)

Low verb stems ndi-di-mu-t!6d-a 'I usually look for him' [S] ndi-di-mu-s!umbedz-a 'I usually show him' [S] ndi-di-mu-t!utuwedz-a 'I usually encourage him' [S] High verb stems ndi-di-vhu-1-a ndi-di-vhu-r!eng-a ndi-di-mu-r!engel-a

'I usually eat it' [S) 'I usually buy it' [S] 'I usually buy for him [S]

(It is of some interest that the rule of Low-Spreading fails to apply to -di- here, even though we would expect it to be applicable. This obviously represents another aspect of LowSpreading that requires detailed study.) In the case of Low verb stems, the presence of two High-toned prefixes in front of the stem sets up the application of HH-Avoidance. As a result, the H of the object prefix and the initial L of the verb stem are interchanged. This interchange, together with High Tone Spread and the simplification rules, will account for the examples like ndi-di-mvj mu-sadzi mu--tuku L

H

L

L

L

H

L

H L

mu-rathu mu-tuku

' ^ -tuku mu-sadzi muL H L H L 1

HTS

H L

1

mu-rathu mu-_tuku

LM/D

^ •tuku mu-sadzi mu-

CS

FS

The Low tone that is disassociated from the agreement prefix on the adjective (as a result of Contour Simplification) is responsible for the downstep between the High on the agreement prefix (the result of High Tone Spread) and the High on the adjective stem. In order for this unassociated Low to exist In the tonal tier. It is necessary to assume that the Low of the agreement prefix did not undergo Low Metathesis/ Deletion. If it had undergone Low Metathesis/Deletion, then the High of the first stem vowel would have been in the environment for Meeussen's Rule. The application of Meeussen's Rule, in conjunction with High Tone Spread, would


339

yield the Incorrect forms *mu-rathu mu-tuku and *mu-sadzi mti-tOku. There Is, of course, a perfectly straightforward explanation for why Low Metathesis/Deletion does not affect the Low prefix of mu-tuku: namely, the preflxal L Is Immediately followed by a H. We have so far examined the behavior of adjective stems with a LL pattern, a LH pattern, and a HL pattern. The stem -lapfti (tall) is apparently a H stem (the H being associated with both vowels of the stem). Examples of this adjective are given In (79): (79)

mu-tuka mu-lapfu [W. 128J mu-selwa mu-lapfu [W.128] mu-rathu mu-l!apfu [W.128] mu-sadzi mu-l!apfu [W.128]

Clearly, these data confirm the proposition that a L does not metatheslze/delete in adjectives when the "following tone is High. Instead, the High of the first word spreads onto the Low-toned prefix, creating a HL sequence. The L of this sequence disassociates by virtue of Contour Simplification, producing a downstep between the High of the prefix and the High of the adjective stem. We have now examine disyllabic adjective stems of all four possible tonal shapes: LL, LH, HL, and H. There are also monosyllabic adjective stems with the two possible tonal shapes H and L. The data in (80) illustrate a High stem and (81) a Low stem. (80)

mu-thu mu-vhi [W.129] khomba m-mbi [W, 129] mu-tuka mu-vhi [W.129] mu-selwa mu-vhi [W.129) thung'wa m-mbi [W.129] mu-ri mu-vhi [W,129| thukhu m-mbi [W.129]


340 mu-rathu mu-vhi [W.129] mu-sadzi mu-vhi [W.129] thevhe m-mbi [W.129] (81)

mu-thu mu-ng'we mu-ri mu-nu

'another person' [W, 130] 'a green tree' [W, 130]

It should be immediately clear that these items follow directly from our analysis of the disyllabic stems without any modification whatsoever. Take the case of High stems first. In the post-Low environment provided by Low-final nouns (such as mu-thu, khomba, mu-tuka. mu-sdlwa, and thung'wa), mu-vhi and m-mbi will naturally be unchanged. In the post-High environment (after High-final nouns such as mu-ri. thukhu, mu-rathu. mu-sadzi. and th6vhd), the Low of the agreement prefix will not be subject to Low Metathesis/Deletion since it is not followed by a Low. The High of the preceding noun will spread onto the agreement prefix, forming a HL sequence on it. This Falling tone will not simplify since it is located on a penult TBU. We consequently derive mu-vhi and m-bi. The Low stems likewise are readily accounted for. Naturally, words like mu-ng'we and mu-nu will not be affected in the post-Low context. In the post-High environment, the Low of the prefix will delete by virtue of Low Metathesis/Deletion since it does stand in front of a Low. This will leave the prefix toneless at the point where High Tone Spread applies. The High at the end of the noun will spread onto the prefix and onto the (only) vowel of the stem. A HL sequence will thus arise on the final vowel of the adjective. The H of this sequence will disassociate by virtue of Final Simplification. The result will be post-High pronunciations like mu-nu. 5.4.2. Prejbdess adjective stems. In this section we examine the tonal behavior of adjective stems when they lack a prefix (due to modifying a noun that governs a 0 agreement prefix). First, consider a LL stem such as tshena.

Verbal Tonology (III) (82)

khomba tshena [W.130] thung'wa tshena [W.130] thukhu tshena [W.130] tholi tshena [W.130]

341 cf. khomba "maiden" cf. thung'wa "messenger" cf. thukhu "rogue"

These data follow directly from the preceding analysis. The adjective has two Low tones. In the post-Low environment (provided by Low-final nouns like khomba and thung'wa), the adjective will not be altered by any rule. In the post-High environment (provided by High-final words like thukhu and th61i), the first Low of the adjective will metatheslze/delete since It stands after a H and before a L. The second L of the stem, of course, cannot metatheslze/ delete since that rule affects only the initial L in a morphological unit. The H at the end of the noun will subsequently spread onto the first vowel of the adjective and also onto the second stem vowel. The second stem vowel, however, is also associated with a Low tone. The resulting HL sequence will undergo Final Simplification, yielding an output vvjiere the fttst stem vowel is High but the second is Low (cf. thukhu tshena). Next consider a LH stem such as tswuku (red). (83)

khomba tswuku [W.130] thung'wa tswuku [W.130] thukhu tswuku [W.130] tholi tswuku [W.130]

Again, our analysis accounts for these forms in a straightforward fashion. The post-Low environment naturally produces no changes in the adjective. In the post-High environment, the initial Low of the adjective cannot undergo Low Metathesis/Deletion since it is not followed by a Low. The High of the preceding word will spread onto the Low-toned first vowel of the adjective stem, forming a HL sequence on that vowel. Contour Simplification will not affect this HL sequence since It Is located on a penult vowel. The High tone on the last vowel of tswuku Is not subject to Meeussen's Rule in the post-High environment since it Is separated from the preceding High by the Low on the first stem vowel. (Recall that in


342

prefixless nouns, a LH like thukhu would be subject to Meeussen's Rule since the first Low would delete by virtue of Low Metathesis/Deletion (nouns do not require that a Low tone not be followed by a High tone in order to delete). The third stem we will consider is thuku, which has a HL tonal shape. (84)

khomba thuku [W, 130] thung'wa" Ithuku [W, 130] thukhu thuku [W.130] tholi thu'ku rw.130]

The post-Low forms are unproblematic. An all Low noun khomba naturally has no effect on the following HL stem. In the case where a HL noun like thung'wa precedes, the High on the first TBU of the noun will spread onto the second TBU (which is under-lyingly associated with a Low). This produces a HL sequence on the last vowel of the noun. Since the noun is in medial position due to being followed by an adjective, the HL sequence will undergo Contour Simplification. The L of the sequence will be disassociated, resulting in a floating Low tone at the end of the noun. This floating Low causes the downstep between the noun and the adjective in thung'wa Ithuku. The striking fact about (84) is that a prefixless adjective stem beginning with a High tone does not undergo Meeussen's Rule in the post-High environment. That is, we would expect the High on the first vowel of thuku to lower when preceded by either thukhu or th61i. Subsequent application of High Tone Spread would then yield *thuku. But this is incorrect. This failure of Meeussen's Rule to affect a prefixless adjective stem with an initial High is also observed in the case of a H stem such as pfufhi (short). Compare the data in (85). (85)

khomba pfufhi [W. 130] thung'wa Ipfufhi [W.130] thukhu pfufhi [W.130] thoU pfufhi [W.130]


343

In the post-Low environment, pfftfhi is naturally unaffected (it is downstepped In the case of thung'wa Ipfufhi due to the fact that the underlying Low of the last vowel of the noun has been disassociated as a result of the interaction of High Tone Spread and Contour Simplification). In the post-High environment, pftifhi Is again unaffected—surprisingly, since the context for Meeussen's Rule seems to exist. Recall that In verbal forms we saw that Meeussen's Rule does not affect a stem-initial High when a High prefix precedes (setting aside the case of -khou- and -di-). We attributed this pattern of behavior to the application of the OCP in that context. The failure of the adjective stem to undergo Meeussen's Rule can also be treated In parallel terms: i.e. we can invoke the OCP between a noun and a modifying adjective. But at the present time we do not have a good structural explanation for the applicability of the OCP In these two sets of cases as opposed to others. It will perhaps be useful to discuss a suggestion made in Westphal which (at first glance at least) looks like an appealing solution to the problem of the Inapplicability of Meeussen's Rule to a noun-adjective construction. Westphal writes: "In the disyllabic stems the prefixes disappear although their force [presumably: their Influence on the tonal shape of the stem:FC] remains...It seems probable...that these adjectives without prefixes show the same tones as the adjectives with prefixes but that the prefix and its tone are missing." [W, 130] He goes on to note: "When a prefixal low tone disappears between two H tones then the tone step caused by the L falls away and the two H tones follow each other normally." [W.131] Within an autosegmental framework, Westphal's suggestion could be expressed as follows. The prefixless adjectives do, after all, have a prefix which, minimally, consists of a Low tone (presumably, the fact that the initial consonant of the adjective stem changes in some cases and the fact that in the case of a monosyllabic stem, a syllabic nasal consonant emerges, would lead to an analysis where at a deeper level there may be segmental material as well). Since the prefix does not (either underlylngly or as a consequence of the operation


344

of phonological rules) have any TBU, this Low tone is left unassoclated in the tonal tier located infront of the stem. Now, if we assume that this Low tone can be deleted as part of the Low-Deletion process, it will disappear (correctly) when the stem begins with a Low. Thus representations such as (86)

H L x

LL ^-tshena

H L L H and

x

^-thuku

H

L H

x

p>-t_huku

would be converted to (87)

H x

L p-tshena

and

by (the iterative application of) Low Metathesis/Deletion, setting up the appropriate input for High Tone Spread to operate. In the case of adjective stems that have a High on their first TBU, the (unassoclated) preflxal Low would not be able to undergo Low-Deletion since in adjectives an initial Low is deleted only when not followed by a High. Since the preflxal Low remains, it blocks the application of Meeussen's Rule to the High of the adjective stem (since the High in the stem is separated from the High at the end of the noun) by an unassoclated Low tone. Subsequently, a special rule would be required to delete an unassoclated Low between a noun and an adjective (there is, of course, no general rule deleting unassoclated Low tones!). Thus we would explain the failure of Meeussen's Rule to apply to an example like thukhu pfufhi by saying that the unassoclated Low of the prefix blocks Meeussen's Rule but then deletes (rather than being manifested as downstep). This does not seem an unattractive solution. It is certainly the case that the so-called "prefixless" adjectives (and nouns) might well be analyzed as having a prefix underlyingly. And it is certainly reasonable to assume that this prefix would have a Low tone. And if the only special assumption one required in order to explain the data were a


345

rule deleting the Low of the unassociated prefix (subsequent to the application of Meeussen's Rule), then there would be some reason to think that the behavior of the "prefixless" High-initial adjective stems had been in some sense "understood". There is a problem, however. If we are going to say that prefixless adjectives in fact have an unassociated Low tone as a prefix (and perhaps, underlyingly, additional segmental material), it follows naturally that the same should be said for prefixless nouns. But such a proposal creates problems. Recall the facts about prefixless nouns. If the stem begins with a Low toned TBU, that Low tone deletes in the post-High context. If the stem begins with a High tone, then that High tone undergoes Meeussen's Rule. Suppose that we assume that prefixless nouns have an unassociated L prefix in front of them. If they did, we could explain why a H-initial prefixless noun undergoes Meeussen's Rule in the post-H context, but we could not explain why a Linitial prefixless noun does delete the L on its first vowel. In the case where the unassociated p r e f i x precedes a High noun stem, we would expect that (in the post-H environment) this unassociated L would metathesize/delete. Recall that nouns allow a L to metathesize/delete even if followed by a High. Once the unassociated L has metathesized/deleted, then the Initial H of the noun stem will be in the environment to undergo Meeussen's Rule. This is in fact what happens: th61i becomes thdll in the post-H environment. But now take the case where the unassociated L prefix precedes a Low-initial noun stem. In the post-H environment, we would expect the unassociated L to metathesize/delete, but we would not expect the initial L of the stem to metathesize/ delete as well. Recall that when a noun such mu-tuka is postH, only the prefix L is metathesized/deleted, not the first stem L as well. Thus mu-tuka appears as mu-tuka after a H, not as mu-tuka. But the facts are that a L-initial prefixless noun does delete its initial L in the post-H environment, bofu, for example, becomes b6fu in the post-H environment, not *b6fu. In order to obtain the right results for nouns, an unassociated Low prefix would have to be eliminated prior to

346


Low Metathesis/Deletion (at least In the case where the prefix Is In front of a Low-Initial stem) so that the latter rule can apply correctly to a Low on the first stem vowel. But if we have to delete the initial unassociated Low in front of Low-initial stems by a special rule ordered before Low Metathesis/ Deletion, and If we also have to have a special rule to delete the unassociated Low between a noun and an adjective (that begins with a High) ordered after Meeussen's Rule, and if, moreover, there is nothing about the behavior of this purported unassociated Low that matches the behavior of other unassociated Low tones in the language, it becomes quite dubious whether we have explained the failure of Meeussen's Rule to apply to prefixless adjectives by positing an u n a s s o c i a t e d Low tone in front of "prefixless" adjectives. Consequently, we will continue to assume that there is no tone in front of prefixless nouns or adjectives. We are left, then, without a phonological explanation for the failure of Meeussen's Rule to affect High-initial prefixless adjectives and must instead assume some essentially grammatically-based explanation. It is perhaps interesting to note in this connection the fact noted earlier that for some reason Low Metathesis/Deletion is able to operate iteratlvely between a noun and adjective, whereas it cannot so operate between a noun and a following verb for example. This suggests that there is something about the noun-adjective construction that binds these words together In a different way that, say, a noun-verb sequence. Perhaps these matters will be clarified when a more detailed examination can be carried out of the application of the tonal rules of Venda in different syntactic environments. 5.4.3. Adjective in medial position. A certain amount of data on the pronunciation of the adjective in medial position is provided by Westphal. In particular, he shows the pronunciation of adjectives in front of the H relative marker w6 ("who" with reference to nouns such as mu-tuka, mu-rathti, mu-s61wa, and mu-sadz!) where the adjective is itself preceded by a noun that in turn is preceded by a verb that ends either in a Low (ndl-kho-fi-vh6na) or a High (ndl-vh6na). Consider


347

the examples In (88) where the phrase cited is preceded by ndi-kho-u-vh6na and the examples in (89) where the phrase cited is preceded by ndi-vhdna (all examples from [W, 129]): (88)

...mu-tuka mu-tshena we... .the white youth who. ...mu-selwa mu-tshena we... etc. ...mu-rathu mu-tshena !we... ...mu-sadzi mu-tsh£na !we... .mu-tuka mu-thlhi we... ..one youth who. .mu-selwa mu-thlhi we... etc. .mu-rathu mu-thih!i we... .mu-sadzi mu-thih!i we... .mu-tuka mu-lapfu we... .mu-selwa mu-lapfu we., .mu-rathu mu-l!apfu we. .mu-sadzi mu-l!apfu we..

..the tall youth who' etc.

.mu-tuka mu-tuku !we... ...the small youth who. .mu-selwa mu-tuku !we... etc. .mu-rathu mu-tluku !we... .mu-sadzi mu-t!uku !we... (89)

...mu-tuka mu-tshena we... ...mu-selwa mu-tshena we... ...mu-rath!u mu-tshena !we. ...mu-sadzi mu-tshena we... ...mu-tuka mu-thlhi we... ...mu-selwa mu-thlhi we... ...mu-rathu mu-thihli we... ...mu-sadzi mu-thlhi we... .mu-tuka mu-lapfu we... .mu-selwa mu-lapfu we... .mu-rath!u mu-l!apfu we. .mu-sadzi mu-lapfu we...


348

...mu-tuka mu-tuku !we... ...mu-selwa mu-tuku !we... ...mu-rath!u mu-t!uku !we... ...mu-sadzi mu-tuku we... Examination of the adjectival shapes in (88) and (89) reveals no surprises. The analysis that we have proposed is confirmed. Consider, for example, the adjective mu-tshena. In a post-High, phrase-final position, this adjective assumes the shape mu-tshfina. We proposed to explain this pronunciation by saying that both the Low of the prefix and the Low of the first stem vowel are deleted by virtue of Low-Deletion. This allows the preceding High to spread all the way to the last vowel of the adjective. The HL sequence associated with the last vowel of the adjective simplifies, by Final Simplification, to Low when the adjective is In final position. The data In (88) and (89) show that in medial position, where the final vowel of the adjective is subject to Contour Simplification rather than Final Simplification, the last vowel of the adjective is manifested as High (as predicted) and that there Is an unassociated Low following that High (causing the downstep In an example like ...mu-rathu mu-tshena !w6...). The fact that we must assume that Contour Simplification affects the final vowel of the adjective in these examples supports both our claim that (at some intermediate level of structure) a HL sequence exists on the final vowel of the adjective mu-tshena when it is in a post-High environment and also our claim that Contour Simplification is determined by the phrasal position rather than the word position of a vowel. The adjective m u - t h i h i (post-High, final position: mu-thihi) has the medial pronunciations mu-thlhi (post-Low) and mu-thih!i (post-High). These data again merely confirm that whereas in final position, the HL sequence on the penult vowel in mu-thihi will escape Contour Simpli- fication, in the phrase — where it ceases to be penult — the penult vowel will disassociate from the L of the HL sequence. This unassociated Low is responsible for the downstep between the first and second vowels of the adjective stem In an example like ...mu-rathu mu-thih!i we...


349

The adjective m u - t t i k u ( p o s t - H i g h , final position: mti-t!uku) has the medial pronunciations mu-tuku! (post-Low) and mti-t!tiktil (post-High). These medial forms show that the High of the first stem vowel will spread onto the Low-toned second stem vowel (last In the word). When the adjective is phrase-final, the HL sequence on the last vowel will change to Low as a consequence of Final Simplification. When the adjective is in medial position, the HL sequence will instead be subject to Contour Simplification (as a result of being in a phrasal pre-penult environment) and simplify to High, but with an unassociated Low following the adjective. This unassociated Low is responsible for the downstep after the adjective in an example like ...mu-tuka mu-tukti !we\.. The adjective mu-lapfu (post-High, final position: mti-l!apfu) does not undergo any changes in medial as opposed to final position. 5.5. Conclusion. We do not pretend iff Chapters Three, Four, and Five to have given a complete description of the complex verbal tonology of Venda. Such an undertaking will require a detailed collection of data from the "bewildering variety" of negative tenses as well as from a number of tenses that we have not explored at all (the Imperative/ subjunctive, a narrative tense, certain dependent tenses—particularly, relative constructions, etc.). We have, however, dealt (as promised) with a significant fragment of the Venda verbal system, and we have seen that this fragment can be insightfully studied from within the tonal framework that we developed originally to account for the tonal alternations exhibited by nouns In post-High position (cf. Chapter Two). We believe that the essential structure of the Venda tonal system has been brought to light in this thesis, and that the core rules have been massively motivated: Low Metathesis/ Deletion, Meeussen's Rule, High Tone Spread. Contour Simplification, Final Simplification, Low-Spreading. Other rules are perhaps more tentative (Rising Simplification, HHAvoidance, the invocation of the OCP). Of the rules that have been massively motivated, all are fairly straightforward except

350


Low Metathesis/Deletion. And here the problem Is not whether the rule exists or not, but rather whether there Is one rule or two. If there are indeed separate rules, then there Is some question as to which Lows disappear by metathesis and which by deletion. We do not pretend that we have fully resolved these issues, and doubtless further data will cast additional light on the matter. We believe that this study has not only provided a substantial motivation for the core rules of Venda tonology mentioned above, but also for (a) the system of tonal representation that these rules assume and (b) the theory of phonology that they depend upon. The system of tonal representation that we have assumed is very simple. We have argued that any given vowel can be associated with a H tone on the tonal tier. Successive vowels within a single morpheme cannot be associated with separate High tones, but they can be associated with the same High tone. Any vowel that Is not associated with a High tone, is (possibly as a consequence of a default rule) associated with a Low tone. There are no underlying contour tones (a claim that would follow automatically if there are only High tones in underlying structure and all Low tones are assigned by default to vowels that are not associated to a H). In general, there are no "floating" tones in Venda—that is, it Is not necessary to assume that there are either H or L tones in underlying representation which exist unlinked to any vowel. Of course, if Low tones are claimed to arise only by default, it would follow that there are no floating "Low" tones. There Is one case where we have assumed a floating Low tone — namely. In the phrase-medial form of the present tense. Recall that in phrase-final position, the present tense is marked by a Low-toned prefix -a- (cf. u-a-vh!6n-a). But in phrase-medial position there Is no -a-, though there Is evidence of a Low tone (cf. ti-vh!6n-a). If we claim that there is no vowel In the underlying structure of the phrase-medial present tense form, we will have to allow a Low tone that has its origin other than by a default rule. Of course, since the phrase-final form does have a vowel In the representation, it would be possible to claim that this vowel is also present in


351

the phrase-medial form at the point where the default rule applies. If there is a rule of default Low assignment in Venda, we have shown that it must apply prior to all of the rules of Venda tonology that we have invoked in this thesis. There is no evidence that any of these rules can operate on representations where Lows are not yet present. It is for this reason that the default rule approach cannot be strongly motivated in Venda. Given the above system of rules and representations, the theory of autosegmental phonology makes possible an insightful characterization of the immensely complex tonal pattern of Venda. We showed at the end of Chapter Two the various aspects of the autosegmental framework that our analysis employs and will not repeat that summary. But it seems clear to us that without the power of this particular framework, we could not have explored Venda tonology with the same depth and understanding as in the present thesis. We do not claim to have understoooTVenda tonology. But we do believe that we have gone a good distance in that direction. Much remains to be done, but the basis for that future research has been laid.


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Notes 1. We have corrected what is clearly a misprint in [W.129] where the downstep is not indicated for this form. See the examples in (89) below where the downstep is correctly indicated in [W.129].

References Archangeli, Diana. 1984. Underspecification in Yawelmani Phonology and Morphology. Doctoral dissertation. MIT. Cheng, Chin-Chuan and Charles W. Kisseberth. 1979. "Ikorovere Makua tonology (part 1)," Studies in the Linguistic Sciences 9.1, 31-63. Cheng, Chin-Chuan and Charles W. Kisseberth. 1980. "Ikorovere Makua tonology (part 2)," Studies in the Linguistic Sciences 10.1, 15-44. Clements. George N. 1977. T h e autosegmental treatment of vowel harmony." in W.U. Dressier and O.E. Pfeiffer (eds.), Phonologica 1976. Innsbruck: Innsbrucker Beitrage zur Sprachwissenschaft. Clements, George N. 1980 (1976). "Vowel harmony in nonlinear generative phonology." Indiana University Linguistics Club. Clements, George N. 1981. "Akan vowel harmony: a nonlinear analysis," Harvard Studies in Phonology 2, 108-177. 353

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Clements, George N. 1985. "The geometry of phonological features." Phonology Yearbook 2, 225-252. Clements. George N. and John Goldsmith (eds.). 1984. Autosegmental Studies in Bantu Tone. Dordrecht: Foris Publications. Clements. George N. and Samuel J. Keyser (eds.). 1983. CV Phonology: a Generative Theory of the Syllable. Cambridge. Mass.: MIT Press. Goldsmith. John. 1976. Autosegmental Phonology. Doctoral dissertation. MIT. Distributed by Indiana University Linguistics Club. Also published in 1979 by Garland Press. New York. Goldsmith. John. 1984a. "Meeussen's Rule." in Mark Aronoff and Richard T. Oehrle (eds.). Language Sound Structure: Studies in Phonology presented to Morris Halle by his teacher and students. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. Goldsmith. John. 1984b. "Accent in Tonga." in G.N. Clements and J. Goldsmith (eds.), Autosegmental Studies in Bantu Tone. Dordrecht: Foris Publications. Halle, Morris and K.P. Mohanan. 1985. "Segmental phonology of Modem English," Linguistic Inquiry 16. 57-116. Klparsky. Paul. 1973. "Abstractness, opacity, and global rules," In O. Fujimura (ed.). Three Dimensions in Linguistic Theory. Tokyo: TEC. Klparsky, Paul. 1982a. "From cyclic phonology to lexical phonology," in Harry van der Hulst and Norval Smith (eds.). The Structure of Phonological Representations (part I). Dordrecht: Foris Publications.

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Kiparsky, Paul. 1982b. "Lexical morphology and phonology," in I.-S. Yang (ed.), Linguistics in the Morning Calm. Seoul: Hanshin, 3-91. Kiparsky, Paul. 1985. "Some consequences of Lexical Phonology," Phonology Yearbook 2, 85-138. Kisseberth, Charles W. 1984. "Digo tonology," in G.N. Clements and J. Goldsmith (eds.), Autosegmental Studies in Bantu Tone. Dordrecht: Foris Publications. McCarthy, John. 1979. Formal Problems in Semitic Phonology and Morphology. Doctoral dissertation. MIT. McCarthy, John. 1986. "OCP effects: gemination antigemination," Linguistic Inquiry 17, 207-263.

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Meinhof, Carl. 1901. Das Tsi-venda. Leipzig. Mohanan, K.P. 1982. Lexical Phonology. Doctoral dissertation. MIT. Distributed by Indiana University Linguistics Club. Mohanan, K.P. 1985. "Syllable structure and lexical strata in English," Phonology Yearbook 2, 139-155. Mohanan, K.P. and Tara Mohanan. 1984. "Lexical Phonology of the consonant system in Malayalam," Linguistic Inquiry 15, 575-602. Odden, David. 1981. Problems in Tone Assignment in Shona. Doctoral dissertation. University of Illinois. Pulleyblank, Douglas G. 1983. Tone in Lexical Phonology. Doctoral dissertation. MIT. Rubach, Jerzy. 1984. Cyclic and Lexical Phonology: the Structure of Polish. Dordrecht: Foris Publications.

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Rubach, Jerzy. 1985. "Lexical Phonology: lexical and postlexical derivations," Phonology Yearbook 2, 157-172. Schwellnus, Theodor and Paul. 1904. Die Verba des Tsi-venda. Berlin. van Warmelo, N.J. 1937. Tshivenda-English Dictionary. Ethnological Publications, vol. vi. Department of Native Affairs. Union of South Africa. Pretoria: Government Printer. Wentzel, P.J. and T.W. Muloiwa. 1975. University of South Africa (UNISA) Venda Course (study guides and tapes). Westphal, E.O.J. 1962. 'Venda: tonal structure and intonation," African Studies 21.2, 49-69; 21.3-4, 125173. Ziervogel, D., P.J. Wentzel, and T.N. Makuya. 1972. A handbook of the Venda Language. Pretoria: University of South Africa.

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