Phonological changes from Classical Latin to Proto-Romance

As Latin developed into Proto-Romance it experienced numerous sound changes, a rough summary of which is provided below.

General changes
  • /h/ is lost without a trace in all positions.[1]
    • If this results in a collision of identical short vowels, they simply form the corresponding long vowel. Cf. /koˈhorte/ > /ˈkoːrte/.[2]
  • Final /m/ is lost in polysyllabic words. Cf. /ˈnunkʷam/ > /ˈnunkʷa/.[3]
    • In monosyllables it tends to survive as /n/. Cf. /ˈkʷem/ > /ˈkʷen/ > Spanish quién.[4]
  • Clusters consisting of a stop followed by a liquid consonant draw the stress position forward. Cf. /ˈinteɡram/ > /inˈteɡra/.[5]
    • Two apparent counterexamples are /ˈpalpebraːs/ and /ˈpullitra/, judging by the Old French outcomes palpres and poltre.[6]
  • /n/ is lost before fricatives, resulting in compensatory lengthening of the preceding vowel. Cf. /ˈsponsa/ > /ˈspoːsa/.[7]
    • /n/ was often retained, or restored, if it belonged to a prefix (in- or con-) or to a word which had forms where a fricative did not follow /n/. Cf. /deːˈfensa/ > French défense, thanks to related forms such as the infinitive /deːˈfendere/ > French défendre.[8]
  • Sequences of two /i(ː)/ generally merge to a single long /iː/. Cf. /au̯ˈdiiː, konˈsiliiː/ > /au̯ˈdiː, koːˈsiliː/.[9]
  • In some outlying rural areas, the diphthongs /ae̯/ and /au̯/ reduce to /eː/ and /oː/ respectively in Classical times. Thanks to influence from such dialects, a number of Latin words acquire monophthongized variants early on; cf. /ˈfae̯ks~ˈfeːks/ or /ˈkau̯lis~ˈkoːlis/. Most words, however, remain unaffected by this.[10]
    • Later, 'mainstream' Latin experiences a general monophthongization of /ae̯/ to /ɛː/,[lower-alpha 1] and of /oe̯/ to /eː/, while /au̯/ remains intact in most cases. Cf. /'lae̯ta, 'poe̯na, 'au̯rum/ >/'lɛːta, 'peːna, 'au̯ru/.
  • Short vowels (other than /a/) become increasingly lax, with /i e o u/ trending towards [ɪ ɛ ɔ ʊ].[11]
  • /w/ turns to the fricative /β/, as does original /b/ in intervocalic position or before /r/. Cf. /ˈwiːwere, ˈtrabem/ > /ˈβiːβere, ˈtraβe/.[12]
    • Intervocalic /β/ in contact with a rounded vowel tends to disappear. Cf. /ˈriːwus/ > /ˈriːβus/ > /ˈriːus/.[13]
      • It is often restored if other forms of the word have a non-rounded vowel following /β/. In this case cf. the nominative plural /ˈriːβiː/.[14]
  • In hiatus, unstressed front vowels became /j/, while unstressed back vowels became /w/. Cf. /ˈfiːlius, ˈsapuiː/ > /ˈfiːljus, ˈsapwiː/.[15]
    • The same process also affected stressed front and back vowels in hiatus if they were antepenultimate (two syllables from the end of the word). When /j/ was produced, primary stress shifted to the following vowel, but when /w/ was produced, primary stress shifted instead to the preceding syllable. Cf. /fiːˈliolus, teˈnueram/ > /fiːˈljolus, ˈtenwera/.[16]
    • If /w/ was formed after a geminate consonant, it was subsequently deleted. Cf. /batˈtuere/ > /ˈbattwere/ > /ˈbattere/.[17]
    • /w/ was deleted before unstressed back vowels. Cf. /ˈkarduus, ˈunɡuoː/ > /ˈkardwus, ˈunɡwoː/ > /ˈkardus, ˈunɡoː/.[18]
      • /w/ was occasionally deleted before unstressed non-back vowels as well. Cf. /februˈaːrius/ > /feˈbrwaːrjus/ > /feˈbraːrjus/.
      • Similarly, /kʷ/ was delabialized to /k/ before back vowels, whether stressed or not. Cf. /ˈkʷoːmodo, ˈkokʷoː/ > /ˈkoːmodo, ˈkokoː/.
    • If these changes result in sequences of /je(ː)/ or /wo(ː)/, these merge to /eː/ and /oː/ respectively. Cf. /paˈrieteːs, duˈodekim/ > /paˈrjeteːs, ˈdwodeki/ > /paˈreːteːs, ˈdoːdeki/.[19]
    • If /j/ forms after /kʷ/, the resulting /kʷj/ simplifies to /kj/. Cf. /ˈlakʷeum/ > /ˈlakʷju/ > /ˈlakju/.[20]
    • Word-internal /j/ 'merges' into a preceding consonant, palatalizing it. Cf. /ˈkaːseum/ > /ˈkaːsju/ > /ˈkaːsʲu/ > Italian /ˈkatʃo/.[21]
      • /tʲ kʲ nʲ lʲ/ probably develop to [tsʲ c ɲ ʎ] respectively.[22]
        • [c ɲ ʎ] regularly geminate in intervocalic position.[23] [tsʲ] does so as well, but sporadically.[24]
      • Intervocalic /ɡʲ/ and /dʲ/ merge with /j/. Cf. /ˈfaːɡea, ˈradium/ > /ˈfaːɡʲa, ˈradʲu/ > /ˈfaːja, ˈraju/ > Spanish haya, rayo.[25] A counterexample is Romanian rază from Vulgar Latin *radia.
      • Intervocalic /βʲ/ occasionally merges with /j/. Cf. /kaˈweola, / > /kaˈβʲola/ > /kaˈjola/ > Old French jaiole.[26]
      • After /r/ and /n/, /dʲ/ variably yields [ɟ] or [dzʲ]. Cf. /ˈhordeum/ > /ˈordʲu/ > French orge, Italian orzo.[27]
      • The sequence /ndʲ/ sometimes assimilates to [ɲɲ]. Cf. /wereːˈkundia/ > /βereːˈkundʲa/ > Portuguese vergonha, Italian vergogna (but compare Spanish vergüenza, Old Portuguese vergonça).
  • Initial and intervocalic /j/ undergo fortition, perhaps to [ɟ] in the former case and [ɟ] or [ʝ~ɟɟ] in the latter.[28]
  • /u/ raises before /i(ː)/ or /j/. Cf. [ˈkʊi̯, ˈfʊiː] > [ˈkui̯ ˈfuiː]> Italian cui, fui (not *coi, *foi).[29]
  • /ɡ/ before /n/ apparently spirantizes to [ɣ], with subsequent developments varying by region.[30][lower-alpha 2]
  • /ɡ/ before /m/ vocalizes to /u̯/. Cf. /fraɡˈmenta, ˈsaɡma/ > /frau̯ˈmenta, ˈsau̯ma/.[31]
  • Before or after a consonant, and also word-finally, /ks/ reduces to /s/. Cf. /ˈkalks, ˈsekstus/ > /ˈkals, ˈsestus/.[32]
    • Intervocalically, it sometimes metathesizes to /sk/. Cf. /ˈwiːksit/ > /ˈβiːskit/.
  • Words beginning with /sC/ receive an initial supporting vowel [ɪ], unless preceded by a word ending in a vowel. Cf. [ˈskɔla] > [ɪsˈkɔla].[33]
    • Subsequently, any original /e/ or /ɪ/ before an /sC/ cluster is reinterpreted as a supporting vowel and treated accordingly. Cf. /ˈskala, eksˈkadere/ > *[ɪsˈkala, ɪsˈkadere] > Italian scala, scadere; French échelle, échoir.[34]
  • /eː/ and /oː/ before /stʲ/ are raised, respectively, to /iː/ and /uː/. Cf. /ˈbeːstia, ˈoːstium/ > /ˈbiːstʲa, ˈuːstʲa/ > Italian biscia, uscio.[35]
  • Compound verbs stressed on a prefix are usually reconstructed according to their prefixless equivalent, with stress moved accordingly. Cf. /ˈdispliket/[lower-alpha 3] > */disˈplaket/, by analogy with the simplex form /ˈplaket/.[36]
    • /ˈrekipit/ simply yields /reˈkipit/ (rather than */reˈkapit/), perhaps because the verb, while recognizable as a compound, was not easy to identify with the original capere.
    • Some words such as /ˈkolliɡoː/ 'fasten' were apparently not recognized as compounds at all and so remained unchanged.
  • Monosyllabic nouns ending in a consonant receive an epenthetic final /e/. Cf. /ˈrem/ > /ˈren/ > /ˈrene/ > French rien.[37]
  • Phonemic vowel length gradually collapses via the following changes (which only affect vowel length, not quality):[38]
    • Long vowels shorten in unstressed syllables.
    • Long vowels shorten in stressed closed syllables.
    • Short vowels lengthen in stressed open syllables.
  • On account of the above, the vowel inventory changes from /iː i eː e a aː o oː u uː/ to /i ɪ e ɛ a ɔ o ʊ u/, with pre-existing differences in vowel quality achieving phonemic status (and with no distinction between original /a/ and /aː/). Additionally:
    • Unstressed /ɛ/ and /ɔ/ merge with /e/ and /o/ respectively.[39]
    • In unstressed word-internal position, /i/ and /u/ merge with /ɪ/ and /ʊ/ respectively.[40]
    • Lengthened /ˈɛ/ and /ˈɔ/ perhaps already yield the incipient diphthongs [eɛ, oɔ] if followed by a syllable with a close vowel (/i/ or /u/).[lower-alpha 4]

Sporadic changes
  • Vowels other than /a/ are often syncopated in unstressed word-internal syllables, especially when in contact with liquid consonants or, to a lesser extent, nasal consonants or /s/. Cf. /ˈanɡulus, ˈkalida, ˈspekulum/ > /ˈanɡlʊs, ˈkalda, ˈspɛklu/.[41]
    • In a few words, unstressed initial syllables followed by /r/ experience syncope. Cf. /kʷiriːˈtaːre, diːˈreːktus/ > /kriˈtare, ˈdrektus/.[42]
    • If this results in /β/ being followed by a consonant, it may vocalize to /u̯/. Cf. /ˈfabula/ > /ˈfaβla/ > */ˈfau̯la/ > Italian fòla.[43]
    • If syncope results in /tl/, the cluster is generally replaced by /kl/. Cf. /ˈwetulus/ > /ˈβɛklʊs/.[44]
  • In cases where a long vowel precedes a geminate consonant, one of the elements often shortens unpredictably, sometimes leading to such doublets as /ˈkuppa~ˈkuːpa/ > /ˈkʊppa~ˈkupa/ > Spanish copa and cuba, French coupe and cuve.[45]
    • Long vowels sometimes shorten early on in closed syllables, even if followed by two different consonants, leading to variations such as /ˈuːndekim~ˈundekim/ > /ˈundekɪ~ˈʊndekɪ/ > Italian undici, Spanish onze.[46]
    • Conversely, the cluster [ŋk] may lengthen preceding vowels early on. Cf. [ˈkʷɪŋkʷɛ] > [ˈkʷiːŋkʷɛ] > [ˈkiŋkʷe].[47]
  • Pretonic vowels sporadically assimilate to, or dissimilate from, the stressed vowel of the following syllable.[48]
    • /a/ can dissimilate to /o/ before a following /a/. Cf. /naˈtaːre/ > /noˈtare/.
    • /iː/ can dissimilate to /e/ before a following /iː/. Cf. /diːˈwiːnus, wiːˈkiːnus/ > /deˈβinʊs, βeˈkinʊs/.
    • /au̯/ can dissimilate to /a/ before a following /u(ː)/. Cf. /au̯ˈɡustus, au̯skulˈtaːre/ > /aˈɡʊstʊs, askʊlˈtare/.
    • /o/ can dissimilate to /e/ before a following back vowel. Cf. /roˈtundus, soˈroːre/ > /reˈtʊndʊs, seˈrore/.
    • /i/ can assimilate to a following /a(ː)/. Cf. /silˈwaːtikus/ > /salˈβatɪkʊs/.
    • /eː/ can assimilate to a following /oː/. Cf. */reːniˈoːne/ > */roˈnʲone/.
    • /iː/ can assimilate to a following /eː/. Cf. /diːˈreːktus/ > */deˈrektʊs/.
  • /oː/ and /u/ may yield a low-mid vowel if followed by /β/. Cf. /ˈoːwum, ˈkolubra/ > /ˈɔβu, koˈlɔβra/ > Italian uovo, Sardinian colòra.[49]
  • /a/ may yield a mid-vowel if preceded by /j/. Cf. /jakˈtaːre/ > */jekˈtare/.[50]
  • /r/ assimilates to a following /s/ in a number of cases. Cf. /ˈdorsum/ > /ˈdɔssu/.[51]
    • After a long vowel, the resulting /ss/ reduces to /s/. Cf. /ˈsuːrsum/ > /ˈsusu/.
  • Initial /kr/ and /kV/ sometimes voice. Cf. /ˈkrassus/ > /ˈɡrassʊs/.[52]
  • There is occasional loss or assimilation of final /s/, but it is nowhere regular until a much later period.[55]
  • When two neighbouring syllables each contain /r/, one /r/ frequently dissimilates to /l/ or is deleted.[56]

See also

Notes
  1. Note that the result was an open-mid /ɛː/, distinct from the close-mid /eː/ that had resulted from the earlier rural monophthongization.
  2. Opinions differ on what happened next, but the ultimate result of /ɡn/ in most of Romance is /ɲ(ɲ)/. Exceptions include Balkan Romance and Vegliote, where it turned to /mn/; Sardinian, where it turned to /nn/; and various parts of mainland southern Italy, where it turned to /u̯m/ or /i̯m/.
  3. Etymologically dis- + placet, with the unstressed /a/ modified to /i/ in Archaic Latin. In the unprefixed form placet, the /a/ remained unchanged, since it was stressed.
  4. This is the view of Ferguson (1976: §7) as well as, grosso modo, that of Lausberg (1970: §§193–198). That diphthongization initially required the final syllable of the word to contain a high vowel was challenged by Loporcaro (2011), whose arguments have, in turn, been rebutted by Maiden (2016).

References
  1. Grandgent 1907: §§249–250; Pope 1934: §155.1
  2. Lausberg 1970: §251
  3. Pope 1934: §§205
  4. Hall 1976: 180; Lausberg 1970: §530
  5. Pope 1934: §§214.2; Lausberg 1970: §149.1
  6. Grandgent 1907: §134
  7. Allen 1965: 27–29
  8. Grandgent 1907: §31; Jensen 1972: 74
  9. Grandgent 1907: §227
  10. Allen 1965: 60–62; Lloyd 1987: 105–107. This citation covers the following bullet-point as well.
  11. Allen 1965: 47–48
  12. Pope 1934: §§186, 333; Gouvert 2016: 48
  13. Grandgent 1907: §324; Pope 1934: §§163.7
  14. Pope 1934: §§188
  15. Grandgent 1907: §224; Lausberg 1970: §251
  16. Grandgent 1907: §§136–137; Lausberg 1970: §149.2
  17. Lausberg 1970: §251
  18. Grandgent 1907: §226; Pope 1934: §§187.b
  19. Grandgent 1907: §225; Lausberg 1970: §251
  20. Lausberg 1970: §479
  21. Lausberg 1970: §451–466; Gouvert 2015: 83
  22. Gouvert 2015: 86, 92, 111, 115; Zampaulo 2019: 97–98
  23. Lausberg 1970: §§463–464, 468–469; Gouvert 2015: 95, 111, 115
  24. Lausberg 1970: §454; Wilkinson 1976: 11–14
  25. Gouvert 2016: 43; Zampaulo 2019: 87
  26. Pope 1934: §§187.c
  27. Lausberg 1970: §§457–458
  28. Gouvert 2015: 83–91; Zampaulo 2019: 83–88
  29. Lausberg 1970: §187.2
  30. Chambon 2013
  31. Grandgent 1907: §268; Pope 1934: §§156.3
  32. Grandgent 1907: §255. This citation covers the following bullet-point as well.
  33. Lloyd 1987: 148–150; Hall 1976: 128
  34. Lausberg 1970: §356
  35. Lausberg 1970: §204
  36. Grandgent 1907: §139; Lausberg 1970: §149.6. This citation covers the following two bullet-points as well.
  37. Lausberg 1970: §189
  38. Loporcaro 2015; Leppänen & Alho 2018
  39. Ferguson 1976: 78; Gouvert 2015: 73–76
  40. Gouvert 2015: 78–81
  41. Lloyd 1987: 113–114; Penny 2002: 59
  42. Grandgent 1907: §229; Lausberg 1970: §265
  43. Grandgent 1907: §325; Lausberg 1970: §245
  44. Grandgent 1907: §234; Pope 1934: §§156.5
  45. Grandgent 1907: §163; Lausberg 1970: 218
  46. Grandgent 1907: §166
  47. Grandgent 1907: §172
  48. Grandgent 1907: §229; Lausberg 1970: §§257–258. This citation covers the following seven bullet-points as well.
  49. Grandgent 1907: §217; Lausberg 1970: §238
  50. Grandgent 1907: §229.1; Lausberg 1970: §259
  51. Grandgent 1907: §291; Lausberg 1970: §410. This citation covers the following bullet-point as well.
  52. Grandgent 1907: §257; Pope 1934: §202
  53. Lausberg 1970: §321
  54. Elcock 1960: 33
  55. Politzer 1953: 34–35, 50
  56. Grandgent 1907: §292

Bibliography
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  • Adams, James Noel. 2013. Social variation and the Latin language. Cambridge University Press.
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  • Chambon, Jean-Pierre. 2013. Notes sur un problème de la reconstruction phonétique et phonologique du protoroman: Le groupe */ɡn/. Bulletin de la Société de linguistique de Paris. CVIII, 273–282.
  • Elcock, William Dennis. 1960. The Romance languages. London: Faber and Faber.
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  • Gouvert, Xavier. 2015. Reconstruction phonologique. In Buchi, Éva & Schweickard, Wolfgang (eds.), Dictionnaire étymologique roman 1, 61–128. Berlin: De Gruyter
  • Gouvert, Xavier. 2016. Du protoitalique au protoroman: Deux problèmes de reconstruction phonologique. In Buchi, Éva & Schweickard, Wolfgang (eds.), Dictionnaire étymologique roman 2, 27–51. Berlin: De Gruyter.
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  • Leppänen, V. & Alho, T. 2018. On the mergers of Latin close-mid vowels. Transactions of the Philological Society 116. 460–483.
  • Lloyd, Paul M. 1987. From Latin to Spanish. Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society.
  • Loporcaro, Michele. 2011. Phonological processes. In Maiden, Maiden & Smith, John Charles & Ledgeway, Adam (eds.), The Cambridge history of the Romance languages, vol. 1, 109–154. Cambridge University Press.
  • Loporcaro, Michele. 2015. Vowel length from Latin to Romance. Oxford University Press.
  • Maiden, Martin. 2016. Diphthongization. In Ledgeway, Adam & Maiden, Martin (eds.), The Oxford guide to the Romance languages, 647–57. Oxford University Press.
  • Penny, Ralph. 2002. A history of the Spanish language. Cambridge University Press.
  • Politzer, Robert L. 1953. Romance trends in 7th and 8th century Latin documents. Chapel hill: University of North Carolina Press.
  • Pope, Mildred K. 1934. From Latin to French. Manchester University Press.
  • Wilkinson, Hugh E. 1976. Notes on the development of -kj-, -tj- in Spanish and Portuguese. Ronshu 17. 19–36.
  • Zampaulo, André. 2019. Palatal sound change in the Romance languages. Oxford University Press.
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