| Abstract: | This paper investigates patterns of place and stricture assimilation of Argentine Spanish nasals in order to test two competing models of phonological representations of place and stricture features (or tract variables). Electropalatographic (EPG) data from four speakers of Buenos Aires Spanish revealed that nasal assimilation before coronals within words (e.g. in canta, cansa, ancha) involves changes in both place and stricture. While place assimilation was found to be overwhelmingly obligatory and categorical, stricture assimilation was optional and gradient, seemingly dependent on speaking rate and/or style. These results partly support the models that assume dependency between place and stricture features, while pointing to some problems with the traditional feature geometric and gestural representations. Building on the current results, the paper provides a preliminary analysis of Spanish nasal assimilation that employs modified gestural representations manipulated by faithfulness and gestural coordination constraints. |
