A government phonology analysis of assimilation in AnakỤ Igbo expressions: “ǹgịvụ” and “gbaa egbè”

Abstract

Assimilation, no doubt, is a major co-articulatory feature of human language involving two segments in binary asymmetric relation. In the Igbo language, there are vowel-vowel assimilation, vowel-syllable assimilation, syllabic nasal-consonant assimilation, vowel-consonant assimilation, and consonant-vowel assimilation. Using the Government Phonology framework, this paper analyses assimilation in Anakụ Igbo expressions, ǹgịvụ ‘you’ and gbaa egbè ‘shot gun’, which are examples of syllabic nasal-consonant assimilation and vowel-vowel assimilation respectively. The results reveal a relation of government existing between the sounds in the context of assimilation in the two words, whereby one of the sounds is the governor that has charmed the other sound as its governee. It is confirmed that assimilation in Anakụ Igbo variety adheres to the tenets of the Government Phonology.