[j]→[l]Certainty: 3/5Commonality: 3/5

Oceanic Austronesian Consonant Shift Place Assimilation Sonority Change

Voiced palatal approximant to Alveolar lateral approximant

The shift from the voiced palatal approximant /j/ to the alveolar lateral approximant /l/ is a documented historical phonetic change, particularly observed in Oceanic languages. This transformation involves a change in the place of articulation from palatal to alveolar, and a shift in the manner of articulation from a central approximant to a lateral approximant.

Phonetic Effects

Place Assimilation, Manner Change, Sonority Decrease

Language Examples

Motu Oceanic

/puqaja/→/huala/— Proto-Oceanic 'crocodile' to Motu 'crocodile'

/maja/→/mala/— Proto-Oceanic 'tongue' to Motu 'tongue'

More Consonant Shift Shifts

[tɕ] → [ʃ] — De-affrication [d] → [dʑ] — Palatalization [ɡʱ] → [h] — Debuccalization [ɡʲ] → [tɕ] — Palatalization [ɡʲ] → [dʑ] — Palatalization

Sources & References

Bermúdez-Otero, R. (2018). On the diachrony of lateral epenthesis. In The Oxford Handbook of Historical Phonology (pp. 739-756). Oxford University Press.

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