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44 M
2
-H on the final syllable of trisyllabic words Soyaltepec Mazatec
Gloss Tonal Pattern
a. ni˩ɲu˧ʔɲa˧˥
‘paca’ L M
2
M
2
-H b. s
ʔɛ˧hɲa˧ʔɲu˧˥ ‘tighten’
M
2
M
2
M
2
-H The Mid to High contour is not common and there are no examples in my database of it occurring
with all of the onset and vowel types; however, the absences do not fall into a regular pattern. The most startling absence is the absence of the co-occurrence with simple coronal and glottal stops which are
otherwise very pervasive in the language. In §4.3.8 I provide a comparison of the contour tones to rule out
any suspicion of complementary distribution.
4.3.4 Low to Mid Rising Tone Contour
˩˧
The Low to Mid rising contour is rare. The examples available are extremely limited. Phonetically, the rise begins at the lowest pitch of the speaker’s normal pitch range and rises to the
midpoint. Phonologically, the Low to Mid tonal contour results from a Low tone L l and a Mid L h tone being expressed on the same syllable 45a. Like the Mid to High tone discussed above, the Low to Mid
contour maintains its rising nature in various environments, never separating and spreading its final tone to the following syllable. Because the second tone associated to this syllable fails to re-associate, it must be
pre-linked in the lexicon rather than being linked according to the UAC. There is no data available at this time to confirm whether or not the initial Low tone is also linked in the Underlying Representation or if it
receives its association line at a later point. Again, when both tones are linked, an OCP violation occurs, in this case it is of the low tonal melody 45b, c, due to the fact that two identical melodies are associated to
the same TBU. Tonal melody merger is motivated. The two representations in 45b and 45c are equally valid alternative representations.
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45 Phonological representation of na
˩˧ ‘mother’ a. Two tones associate to one TBU
l h
L L
na b. OCP Melody Merger
with two TRNs c. OCP Melody Merger
with one TRN l
h l h
L L
na na
The difference between 45b and 45c is theoretical and beyond the scope of this work. The two registers exist in the same plane and are therefore linearly ordered, meaning they must be articulated in succession,
while the melody is in its own separate plane and not ordered with respect to the registers. Examples of the Low to Mid contour tone are listed in 46 and 47. The examples are arranged
according to onset type as has been demonstrated for each tonal category. Since only four unique types of onsets co-occur with the contour, listing all of the normally included categories highlights what does not
occur. 46
Examples of the L-M
2
rising contour with simple onsets
POA Manner
Transcription Gloss
a. Labial
none b.
Coronal stop
tõ˩˧ ‘money’
c. Coronal
fricative none
d. Coronal
affricate none
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e. Coronal
glide none
f. Coronal
nasal na˩˧
‘mother’ g.
Coronal nasal
ni˩˧ndɛ˧ndʒ︢a˦˥ ‘abode’
h. Dorsal
none i.
Glottal fricative
hao˩˧ ‘OK’
There are no examples of simple labial 46a or dorsal 46h onsets with a Low to Mid contour tone. The example in 47a is the only example of the Low to Mid rising tone that occurs with a complex onset. The
remaining categories of complex onsets are included to remind the reader which possibilities are unattested. 47
Examples of L-M
2
rising contour with complex onsets Type
Sub-type Transcription
Gloss a.
S-stopstop-stop ta˧ri˥sko˩˧
‘vulture’ b.
Contains ʔ
Obstruent none
c. Contains
ʔ Sonorant
none d.
Contains h
Obstruent none
e. Contains
h Sonorant
none f.
Begins with N none
In 46 and 47 the complete absence of labial fricatives and glides as well as coronal fricatives, affricates and glides and dorsal and glottal stops is demonstrated. There are also almost no complex onsets, only the
complex onset which ends in a dorsal stop is represented which is interesting since there were no simple dorsal onsets. Two simple nasals are included for two reasons: first, they have different vowels and second,
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the majority of syllables that host this contour have a nasal onset. There are examples of just four vowels and one diphthong:
• [i] - 46g
• [a] - 46f
• [o] - 47a
• [õ] - 46b
• [ao] - 46i
The two least common vowels [o] and [õ] and the least common diphthong [ao] each co-occur with this rare contour. All of the words that contain the contour are nouns.
In multisyllabic words, the contour can occur either on the first syllable of di– and trisyllabic words 48a, b or last syllable of trisyllabic words 48c.
48 L-M
2
on multisyllabic words Soyaltepec Mazatec
Gloss Tonal Pattern
a. na˩˧ti˦˥
‘louse’ L-M
2
M
1
-H b.
na˩˧ʃu˧hnu˦˩ ‘spike’
L-M
2
M
2
M
1
-L c. ta˧ri˥sko˩˧
‘vulture’ M
2
H L-M
2
While the contour is rare, several of the words that contain it are common, such as ‘mother,’ ‘money’ and ‘OK.’ It occurs with a limited set of onsets and vowels several of which are also rare, only
on nouns, and with a more limited syllable distribution within words than most tones; however, it is not in complementary distribution with any other tone or contour, as will be seen in
§4.3.8 below. It seems likely that it is an archaic form that was fossilized on certain common morphemes.
4.3.5 Low to Mid-high Rising Tone Contour
