The Phonetics and Phonology of Rhotics in Modern Irish
Cormac Anderson & Sylwester Jaworski
Adam Mickiewicz University/Szczecin University
Abstract
This paper examines the phonology and phonetics of rhotics in Modern Irish. Descriptions of the Old Irish language posit four distinct rhotic phonemes, differentiated along the axes fortis-lenis and broad-slender, the same oppositions being relevant also for laterals and coronal nasals. However, descriptions of modern Goidelic dialects typically posit two or three distinct rhotic phenomes. While the distribution and nature of sonorant contrasts has featured strongly in discussions about sound change and phonological patterning in the Insular Celtic languages, there has been little empirical study into the synchronic status of sonorants in contemporary Irish, a point this paper aims to address.