Anaptyxis or vowel epenthesis is the insertion of a vowel between two consonants. Cross-linguistically, anaptyctic vowels (also referred to by the Sanskrit term as svarabhakti vowels) develop between clusters of stop + sonorant (Skt. ratna ‘jewel’ > Pali ratana), sonorant + stop (Lat. argentum ‘silver’ > Osc. abl. sg. aragetud) and sibilant + stop (Eng. speed > Korean [sɨpʰidɨ]). Dissimilatory in nature, vowel epenthesis is due to a tendency to broaden the…