Towards a dynamical account of inter-segmental coordination

Abstract

We offer an intrinsic timing account of durations widely used to characterize inter-segmental coarticulation or coproduction patterns cross-linguistically. In this account, measured durations are the result of dynamical properties of the coarticulated segments. Our account is developed on the basis of timing data, registered using Electromagnetic articulography (EMA), from stop-lateral clusters in three languages. In C1C2 stop-lateral consonant clusters from these languages, we show that the extent of the consonants’ coproduction (‘overlap’) is controlled by a synergy between the dynamical parameters of C1 opening and C2 closing stiffness, the two movements most relevant in the C1-to-C2 transition. The specific form of the overlap-stiffness relation is one where extent of coproduction is a linear function of the (reciprocal of the) mean of the two stiffness parameters. This result establishes a link between lag measures widely used to characterize inter-segmental coarticulation and the dynamical properties of the gestures of the segments whose co-production is at issue.