Using Local Constraint Conjunction to Discover Constraints: the Case of Mandarin Chinese*

This paper, inspired by the collection of papers in Wang & Smith (1997), discusses a restriction in synchronic Mandarin Chinese which involves voiced stops, rising tone and nasal codas. The paper argues that this restriction can be described only as the result of the combined action of two constraints, i.e. a ‘local constraint conjunction’. We discuss the exact formulation of this conjunction and note that, in Optimality Theory, the two constraints in a conjunction should also be instantiated separately. In this way, local constraint conjunctions provide a novel way of discovering constraints. The paper is organized as follows. Section 2 will give some brief background information on the relevant phonology of Mandarin Chinese, illustrate the basic facts and describe the generalization. Section 3 will introduce local constraint conjunction, and show how the relevant generalization can be captured in Optimality Theory (Prince & Smolensky 1993 [2004]; OT). Section 4 discusses the implications of this strategy and concludes by identifying areas for further research.