Process of external vocalic sandhi in Cantigas de Santa Maria: diphthongization
Keywords:
sandhi processes, archaic Portuguese, medieval Galician-Portuguese cantigas, Cantigas de Santa Maria.Abstract
This study has as main aims the mapping and the analysis of diphthongization as a process of external vocalic sandhi in Afonso X (the Wise)’s Cantigas de Santa Maria - Galician
Portuguese religious cantigas (13th century). The sandhi processes under investigation are those that happen between words, i.e. elision, diphthongization, crasis (MASSINI-CAGLIARI, 2005, for Archaic Portuguese) and hiatus. We intend, by doing this study and from a non-explored corpus
(especially as for linguistic themes (SNOW, 1987, p. 478-480; MASSINI-CAGLIARI, 2005, p. 24-26)), to reach a deeper knowledge of Portuguese prosody in the period of its recognition as an “independent” language in relation to Latin. Therefore, the analysis of some linguistic characteristics of the past of Portuguese will be able to clarify facts of its current structure.