Non-Linearity
Non-linear phonology, originally referred to as 'autosegmental phonology',
was developed by John A. Goldsmith and others in the late 1970s. It abandons the strict linear arrangement of segments and proposes a non-linear approach
to phonological representation that implies a 'horizontal' and a 'vertical' segmentation. The following notions are crucial to autosegmental phonology:
- the notion of tiers
- the definition of autosegments
- the principle of association
After an initial phase in the late 1970s, the autosegmental approach was extended to numerous 'non-tonal' phenomena.