DEFAULT VARIABILITY - THE CORONAL-VELAR RELATIONSHIP

Coronal consonants and velar consonants both exhibit special patternin g in terms of distribution, alternations, and markedness. In this pape r, I propose an account of these special properties of coronals and ve lars. I argue that, under most conditions, coronals and velars result from a single representation, a Place node with no dependent. The diff erent realizations are due to the interaction of a phonological redund ancy rule which supplies the unmarked place of articulation, coronal; with a distinct mechanism of phonetic interpretation which interprets a consonant lacking a phonological place of articulation as a velar. A phonologically unmarked place of articulation is thus realizable as e ither coronal or velar. Support for this claim comes from phonological domains (constraints on the occurrence of place of articulation in ce rtain positions, dissimilation effects, complexity constraints) and ph onetic realizations. The proposed approach reconciles claims that coro nal and velar consonants are both unmarked and offers an account of ap parent variability in markedness.