On the nature of sC-clusters in European Portuguese

Abstract

Research on the nature of word-initial sC-clusters in different languages led scholars to propose several hypotheses on the syllabification of the segments involved in this sequence. Elaborating on the analyses available in the literature for Portuguese and for other languages, we will focus on the segmental and syllabic properties of the members of this cluster in European Portuguese (EP). We will provide empirical evidence from EP dialectal variation and from EP L1 acquisition to argue for the Coda status of the initial fricative and for the presence of a left-adjacent empty Nucleus