This study tries to account for surface resemblances among paradigm members of nouns in the speech of majory Koreans. The data from the so-called s-neutralization and consonant cluster simplification(CCS) show that a four-part analogy is the basis on which inter- as well as intraparadigmatic relations are built. The phenomenon of s-neutralization, once restricted to a special case of Korean consonant alphabet names and loanwords ending in coronal obstruents, makes an example of interparadigmatic leveling by expanding into other nouns whose stems end in the same coronals. On the other hand, a seemingly overapplication of CCS makes a case of intraparadigmatic leveling by making all members of a paradigm share a uniform stem form. Both s-neutralization and CCS are attributed to fuctionalism: ease of articulation, perception, and learning. For a sequence of continuants resulting from s-neutralization and that of open syllables resulting from CCS are easier to pronounce, perceive, and remember. It is claimed in this study that the apparent opacity evinced in the data is only a reflection of lexical restructuring supported by Lexicon Optimization and that neither the base-priority effect nor the Optimal Paradigms model (McCarthy 2005) can be a better solution.
1. Introduction
2. Data
3. Paradigmatic Relations
4. Analysis in OT
5. Summary and Conclusion