Stress shifting suffixes

[David Sanchez]

>What tends to happen with the accent in modern dialects?

For example the Orizaba dialect seems to have just reversed hierarchical rules
of classical nahuatl. This reversed order explains that tonalli is pronounced [´tonaLLi]
in Orizaba dialect and [to´naLLi] in classical nahuatl (according to most grammars).
Informally:

A) Rule of epentesis: in final position the sequences -VCC# are not allowed and
thus an epenthetic -i is added: chan + ABS = chan + tl > chan-tl-i.
B) Rule of accent: the stress fall in the penultimate vowel.

Orizaba dialect present application in order B-A, thus for example <´tonalli> is
stressed in 3st vowell from the end (not the second; surface form: tonalli [´tonaLLi]
phonological form: tonaltl / tonal.tl /):

0) tonal.tl
1) Assimilation (tl > l / l__#): tonal.l
2) Rule B: ´tonal.l
3) Rule A: ´tonal.l.i  and thus is pronounced [´tonaLLi]

But in classical nahuatl (as described in most grammars):

0) tonal.tl
1) Assimilation (tl > l / l__#): tonal.l
2) Rule A: tonal.li
3) Rule B: to´nal.l.i and thus is pronounced [to´naLLi]

My uncertainity is if it is thrue that rule A precedes rule B in classical nahuatl.
In my opinion written documents are insufficient by themselves to contradict
this fact.

Ma ximopapactzino



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