The variable palatalization of alveolar occlusives in speaking Brazilian Portuguese and its analysis by the Theory of Optimality

Analysis of the palatalization of dental stops in a dialect of Brazilian Portuguese in the OT (Optimality Theory, by PRINCE and SMOLENSKY, 1993/2004) framework. Implicational generalizations are used to construct a factorial typology with t-order (ANTTILA e ANDRUS, 2006) and five patterns of palatalization. The palatalization in Antnio Prado (Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil) follows two of these patterns. Palatalized candidates are selected by a set of markedness constraints related to the contexts of palatalization considered in the implicational generalizations. Two stochastic rankings (BOERSMA e HAYES, 1999) of these and faithfulness constraints explain the variation in the community under study. Keywords: Variable palatalization of dental stops; OT; Factorial typology;