Regressive Consonant Assimilation across Word Boundaries in Maliki Arabic: An Optimality-Theoretic Analysis
Abstract
This study adopts Optimality Theory (OT) to investigate regressive consonant assimilation across word boundaries in Maliki Arabic (MA), a Hijazi variety spoken in Bani Malik in the southern region of Saudi Arabia. The study employs a qualitative approach based on 60 unstructured interviews with native speakers of MA. The analysis reveals that assimilation in MA is governed by the dominance of markedness constraints, such as AGREE (F) and SHARE (F), over faithfulness constraints like IDENT (F). As a result, complete regressive assimilation occurs more frequently than partial assimilation, particularly between neighboring obstruents that share similar features. Moreover, coronal consonants are the most frequent triggers and targets of assimilation in MA. The study concludes that assimilation in MA is governed by the interaction of markedness and faithfulness constraints.
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