Morphologically Governed Accent in Optimality Theory

This book examines the influences of morphological factors on stress and pitch accent within Optimality Theory. It argues that two developments in the theory of faithfulness constraints define a typology of morpho-accentual processes. In one type of process, dubbed 'root-controlled accent', inherent accent in roots takes precedence over inherent affix accent. It is claimed that root-controlled accent follows from the privileged faithfulness status of roots. The second type, 'affix-controlled accent' is argued to be a consequence of a new type of constraint, anti-faithfulness, which evaluates a pair of words and requires an alteration in the shared stem. Languages considered: Japanese, Russian, Limburgh Dutch, Aguaruna (Jivaroan), and Cupeno (Uto-Aztecan).