Ojitlan Chinantec Phonology and Morphology

Abstract

This paper provides a preliminary sketch of Ojitlan Chinantec phonology and parts of its verbal morphology. Most Chinantec monomorphemic words are monosyllabic, and inflected words are often monosyllabic as well. There are numerous potential contrasts within the syllable: a large number of consonants, oral and nasal vowels, tone, and stress. Issues in the analysis of the consonants, tone, and stress system are considered, and compared to previous analyses of other Chinantec dialects. A brief description of verbal inflection is given, noting segmental, prosodic, and affixal alternations. Ojitlan Chinantec is largely undocumented and probably moribund, and so more work is urgently needed.