Phrasal Phonology

The phrasal phonology of Chichewa is one of the most well-known aspects of the language, thanks to Kanerva’s (1990) widely cited dissertation. The first section of this chapter briefly reviews the phonological evidence for prosodic phrasing: namely, penultimate vowel lengthening and the tonal processes introduced in Chapter 6. The next section reviews the range of data (both simplex and complex sentences) illustrating prosodic phrasing found in the work of Kanerva and follow-up studies. This is followed by a critical evaluation of three theoretical approaches accounting for the phrasing. The question of whether or not focus conditions prosodic phrasing in Chichewa, as Kanerva (1990) claims, is reviewed in the light of follow-up studies of focus prosody in the language. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the contribution of studies of Chichewa prosodic phrasing to theoretical and typological issues in the phonology–syntax–focus interface.