Laryngealized vowels and laryngealized consonants in the History of the Totonacan languages of Mexico

Journal of Language Relationship. 2019. Vol. 17. No. 3. P. 177–196.

Davletshin A.

The paper argues that Papantla Totonac has lost the original contrast between modal and
laryngealized vowels after sonorants and thus developed a system of plain and glottalized
stops, affricates and sibilants from the original system of modal and laryngealized vowels.
Similarly, Misantla Totonac lost the contrast between modal and laryngealized vowels after
sibilants, which resulted in a system of plain and glottalized stops, affricates and sonorants.
These sound changes can be explained as being due to different mechanisms of glottalization
regarding three classes of consonants — stops, sonorants and sibilants. Apapantilla Totonac
and Zapotitlán de Méndez Totonac remain conservative in their treatment of the original
Proto-Totonacan laryngealized vowels.

Keywords: фонация, phonation, Totonacan languages, тепеуа‑тотонакские языки, laryngealized vowels, glottalized consonants, ejective consonants, ларингализованные гласные, глоттализованные согласные, абруптивные согласные