An Optimality Theoretic Analysis of Stress Assignment in Arabic Loanwords in Saraiki: Implications for Learners of Arabic in Pakistani Religious Schools

Abstract

This paper highlights changes which occur in Saraiki loanwords of Arabic origin to satisfy the prosodic constraints of the L1 grammar. Saraiki is a quantity sensitive language, which always stresses the heaviest syllable in a word. If a word has two syllables of equal weight, stress falls on the left or penultimate syllable. Saraiki does not allow an unstressed heavy syllable on the left-edge of a word. These constraints trigger paradoxical changes, which result into insertion and/or deletion in the Arabic loanwords. The words of LH (Light-Heavy) syllables in Arabic change into HH in Saraiki. This is done by insertion of a consonant in the penultimate light syllable which results in gemination (Arabic /abu:/ àSaraiki /ˈəb.buː/). Contrary to this, sometimes Saraiki speakers delete a consonant or a mora in the penultimate syllable, if the ultimate syllable is super-heavy, to satisfy the constraint which demands stress on heavy syllable. This determines ranking between ‘Weight-to-Stress principle’ and ‘stress penultimate’ constraints. The result is vowel shortening in the penultimate syllables of bi-syllabic words. Similar deletion also targets consonants in tri-syllabic words which results into degemination. Following Optimality Theory (OT) paradigms, this paper provides evidence to support the ‘phonological approach’ in loanword phonology.