Different /e/ phonemes in Siouan?

[Heike Bödeker]

At 11:38 15.08.03 -0600, Koontz John E wrote:
>I think that the "low next to uvular/pharyngeal" phenomenon is repeated in
>the Pacific Northwest languages,

In Southern Wakashan /i/ is lowered quite extremely to [E] because actually
these are epiglottals aka adyteals as also occuring e.g. in Cushitic or
Eastern Caucasian lgs., not pharyngeals as in Arabic.

Even though it is somewhat off-topic... but I never had the opportunity to
work with such a consultant, albeit having been curious as a lynx since
long whether Berber lgs. actually have pharyngeals or epiglottals -?

>and it is also essentially comparable to the basis of "tongue-root
>retraction vowel harmony" systems as exhibited
>in West Africa, Chukchee, Nez Perce, etc.

Yep.

>I believe that long vowels are another environment in which there tends to
>be lowering (and/or nasalization).

But also nasalization the other way round to lowering, just thinking of
French or Cayuga...

All the best,

Heike