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should be thought of as a reduplicated V, bearing the specification of the feature [low] of
the root, and underspecified for other place features. Then, leftward vowel spreading can
be formalized as in (4), with the restriction that if 4b or 4c apply, then 4a must also apply
if it can.
(4) Leftward vowel spreading (feature geometric formalism)
a. Dorsal Dorsal b. Dorsal Dorsal c. Labial Labial
C C C
[+high] [–back] [+round]
Leftward vowel spreading also occurs across morpheme and clitic boundaries.
This will be discussed in Section 7.2.1.
In the related language Langbasi (Moñino 1988), the corresponding subminimal
root augmentation process is clearly reduplicative. Roots cognate with those discussed
above for Mono undergo reduplication to satisfy the MC.
(5) Subminimal root augmentation in Langbasi
‘tooth’
@K @K@K @K @K ‘horn’
CK(CK( CK(CK( CK(CK( CK(CK( ‘water’
‘thing’
CC CC CC CC ‘hunger’
== == == == ‘mouth’
‘sun’
Kamanda (1998: 257-8) lists eleven nominals in Mono which he considers to have
a CV word shape. If true, this would be evidence against the MC for nouns. However,
none of these forms is solid evidence for a nominal CV word shape, and in fact some of
his examples support the MC analysis. Two of the words he lists, > > > > ‘2SG’ and A A A
A ‘3SG’
are pronouns given in their clitic form rather than their citation form. Their citation forms
are > > > > and A5A A5A, A5A respectively, which obey the MC. Three of the words, I( I( I( I( ‘existence’, J( J( J( J(
‘body’, and @( @( @( @( ‘place’ (his glosses), are given in their prepositional form. When used as
nouns, they are expanded to two syllables via SRA, yielding (I( (I(, (I( (I( (J( (J(, (J( (J( and (@( (@(. (@( (@( Three of
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