The Behavior of Noon Sakinah and Nunation in Quranic Recitation: An Optimality Account

Abstract

“Natural classes” refer to the set of sound patterns that go together in phonological processes. This paper provides an analysis of the phonological behavior of noon sakinah and nunation /n/ in Quranic recitation based on natural class generalization within the framework of Optimality Theory (OT). In some instances, the OT account may be accurate than traditional analysis. It provides evidence that natural classes derive from the nature of the set of markedness constraints, and that gutturals must constitute a natural class. The principal source of evidence for these proposals is that gutturals, unlike other places of articulation, do not induce nasal assimilation.