autosegmentales

Autosegmentales is a term used in phonology, a branch of linguistics that studies the sound systems of languages. It refers to a theoretical framework proposed by the linguist John Goldsmith in the 1970s. This framework aims to explain the structure of phonological representations and the rules that govern their behavior.

In autosegmentales, phonological features are represented as separate segments that can be associated with multiple segments of a syllable. This allows for a more flexible and detailed representation of phonological phenomena, such as tone, stress, and vowel harmony. For example, in a language with tone, the tone feature can be represented as an autosegment that is associated with the entire syllable, rather than being part of the individual vowel segment.

The autosegmentales framework has been influential in the development of other phonological theories, such as Optimality Theory and Feature Geometry. It has also been applied to the study of various linguistic phenomena, including tone, stress, and vowel harmony, providing a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of these processes.