In this present paper, Autosegmental Phonology, one of themost productive developments in the phonological in the last decade, is researched into, based on the works of current phonologists. The theory was first developed to explain successfully the t...
In this present paper, Autosegmental Phonology, one of themost productive developments in the phonological in the last decade, is researched into, based on the works of current phonologists. The theory was first developed to explain successfully the tonal phenomena of the various African tone languages, which the Standard Rheory of SPE could not provide a satisfactory explaination.
The theory can be extended to explain some phenomena other than the tonal phenomena, such as complex segments and harmony. When, extended to the fields of syntax and semantics, the theory also gives significant insights into the problems which other theories cannot overcome. It is a promising linguistic theory, though more elaborate study on the subject is needed.