Research Article
An Optimality Theory-Based Approach into the Phonotactic Constraints of English Spoken by Broadcasters in Nigeria
Abdulmalik Usman 
,
Aisha Abubakar Kagu
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Usman A, Kagu AA. An optimality theory-based approach into the phonotactic constraints of english spoken by broadcasters in nigeria. Eur J Eng Lang Ed. 2021;1(1):37-43. doi: 10.12973/ejels.1.1.37
Usman, A., & Kagu, A. A. (2021). An optimality theory-based approach into the phonotactic constraints of english spoken by broadcasters in nigeria. European Journal of English Language Studies, 1(1), 37-43. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejels.1.1.37
Usman Abdulmalik, and Aisha Abubakar Kagu. "An Optimality Theory-Based Approach into the Phonotactic Constraints of English Spoken by Broadcasters in Nigeria," European Journal of English Language Studies 1, no. 1 (2021): 37-43. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejels.1.1.37
Usman, A & Kagu, A 2021, 'An optimality theory-based approach into the phonotactic constraints of english spoken by broadcasters in nigeria', European Journal of English Language Studies, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 37-43. Usman, Abdulmalik, and Aisha Abubakar Kagu. "An Optimality Theory-Based Approach into the Phonotactic Constraints of English Spoken by Broadcasters in Nigeria." European Journal of English Language Studies, vol. 1, no. 1, 2021, pp. 37-43, https://doi.org/10.12973/ejels.1.1.37.
Abstract
One of the observations in the English spoken particularly in Nigeria is phonotactic constraints. The constraints pin down the generalization which guide the articulation of sequences of phonemes. The paper examines the patterns of English consonant clusters articulation of Nigerian broadcasters in the onset and coda positions against Received Pronunciation English. The study is conducted within the framework of Optimality Theory (henceforth OT). 20 radio and television broadcasters from 4 electronic media were selected as participants. Data were obtained by means of production test and OT was employed for the analysis. The findings revealed that the participants used epenthetic vowels to break-up consonants clusters in the onset and consonant deletion to simplify clusters in the coda. The subjects’ productions can be captured by ranking Markedness constraints higher than Faithfulness constraints.
Keywords: Broadcasters, constraints, deletion, epenthesis, optimality theory phonotactic.
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