sound law

English

Alternative forms

• sound-law (archaic)

Etymology

Calque of German Lautgesetz.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈsaʊnd lɔː/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈsaʊnd lɔ/, (cot–caught merger) /ˈsaʊnd lɑ/

Noun

sound law (plural sound laws)

1. (phonology) A rule that describes historical sound change (the change in pronunciation of a given sound or cluster of sounds) in the development of a language. [from 19th c.]
   • 1877, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, page 118:

     Then, to oversimplify, if there are similarities in sound and meaning between two words that do not obey the sound laws that have been established, we conclude that they have resulted from borrowing.

   • 1940, Ainsley Maxwell Carlton, A Relative Chronology of Old Icelandic Sound Laws, Leland Stanford Junior University, page 114:

     In conclusion, we present the sound laws of Old Icelandic in the chronological order which represents the results of this dissertation.

   • 2000, Andrew L. Sihler, Language History, John Benjamins Publishing Company, page 50:

     For reasons that will become clear shortly, this limitation of sound laws to a specific time is an important trait.

Translations

rule that describes historical sound change in a language

• Armenian: հնչյունական օրենք (hy) (hnčʻyunakan ōrenkʻ)
• Dutch: klankwet (nl) f
• Finnish: äännelaki
• French: loi phonétique f
• German: Lautgesetz (de) n
• Greek: φωνητικός νόμος m (fonitikós nómos)
• Hungarian: hangtörvény (hu)
• Italian: please add this translation if you can
• Japanese: please add this translation if you can
• Polish: proces fonetyczny m, zjawisko fonetyczne n
• Portuguese: please add this translation if you can
• Russian: фонети́ческий зако́н m (fonetíčeskij zakón)
• Spanish: please add this translation if you can

See also

• aphaeresis, apheresis
• apocope
• assimilation
• dissimilation
• elision
• epenthesis
• haplology
• lenition
• metathesis
• nasalisation, nasalization
• phonological change
• prothesis
• tonogenesis
• sandhi
• syncope

Further reading

• Great Vowel Shift on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Canaanite shift on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Grimm's law on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• High German consonant shift on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• I-mutation on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Phonological change on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Verner's law on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• ould wans