When Features Are Not Deleted : Contextual Allomorphy in Sanskrit Noun Declension

Abstract

This paper is concerned with nominal inflection in Classical Sanskrit within the framework of Distributed Morphology. The complex nominal endings of Sanskrit are analysed into morphemes that are inserted into the functional heads n, Num, Gend and Case provided by the morphology. The Sanskrit data show that vocabulary insertion depends upon contextual features in such a way that a given morpheme is maximally sensitive both inwards and outwards. It is therefore argued that morphological features are not deleted completely once the vocabulary has been inserted. Furthermore, the analysis offers an account of grammatically driven phonological processes such as vowel lengthening and quantitative ablaut. These morpho-phonological phenomena are assumed to apply at vocabulary insertion and are dealt with by means of rules of exponence. 1.

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