Computing Process-Specific Constraints

This squib demonstrates how process-specific constraints—in which related but distinct processes in a language can be subject to differing conditions—can be captured with Boolean monadic recursive schemes (BMRSs), a computational formalism for phonological analysis based in mathematical logic. We use the case study of pharyngeal harmony in Palestinian Arabic, which motivated a discussion between Davis (1995) and McCarthy (1997) about the relative advantages and drawbacks of rule-based and Optimality Theory frameworks. We show how BMRS grammars naturally capture process-specific constraints in a way comparable to OT, while still being more computationally restrictive.