Prefix Allomorphy and the Phonologisation of s‐Deletion in Latin

Abstract

Latin s‐final prefixes show extensive allomorphy, which can be ascribed to different diachronic processes such as the drive to maintain contrast, analogical attraction and a sound change that deleted s before voiced consonants. We argue that the latter sound change led to three different phonologisation processes due to distributional imbalance in the relevant segments as well as a simultaneous sound change that also affected s. The evidence for the competing phonologisation processes is provided by the different alternations displayed by the s‐final prefixes.