SYSTEMIC ROLE OF PALATALISATIONS IN THE FORMATION OF THE PHONETIC-PHONOLOGICAL STRUCTURE OF UKRAINIAN AND POLISH LANGUAGES

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the study of systemic role of palatalization processes in the formation of the phonetic- phonological structure of Ukrainian and Polish languages. Palatalizations, originating in the Middle Proto-Slavic period, covered all dialects of the Proto-Slavic language and had a decisive influence on the formation of the consonantism of both languages. The article traces the evolution of soft consonants from their positional variants to phonemes with an independent semantic-distinguishing status. The analysis presents a comparative picture of consonant alternations that arose as a result of the interaction of consonants with front vowels, as well as “consonant+j” reflexes, and also covers the processes of phonologization of palatals in the conditions of the fragmentation of the Proto-Slavic language. Special attention is paid to the specificity of palatalizations on the Proto-Polish and Proto-Ukrainian background, which, despite the common base, demonstrate significant differences in the duration, depth and type of modifications. The emergence of microsystems of palatal phonemes, the transformation of their articulatory and functional role and the expansion of the phonemic opposition on the basis of hardness-softness are substantiated. The article emphasizes that the tendency towards syllabic synharmonism, which originated in the common Proto-Slavic period and defined palatality as one of the most important phonetic features that distinguish Slavic languages from non-Slavic ones, having reached its maximum during the period of the emergence of individual Slavic languages, ceased to operate, and with it the law of palatalization declined. It is emphasized that the results of palatalization became the basis for further changes, in particular depalatalization, which influenced the final formation of vocalism.The most important phonological results of palatalization include the emergence of consonant phonemes of a new quality, which had a softened character and caused the emergence of the palatal-nonpalatal opposition – a category that distinguishes Ukrainian and Polish from other European languages.