Encyclopedia of Ancient Greek Language and Linguistics

Get access

Compensatory Lengthening
(698 words)

Abstract

Compensatory lengthening (CL) occurs when a segment deletes and a neighboring segment lengthens to compensate for its loss. Ancient Greek CL occurred in three stages, with some inter-dialectal differences.

Compensatory lengthening (CL) is the process whereby a segment deletes and a neighboring (usually, adjacent) segment lengthens to compensate for its loss. Ancient Greek manifests three basic instances of CL named 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, owing to the chronological order of their appearance. Samuels (2006) argues that the 1st CL was a Pr…

Cite this page
Nina Topintzi, “Compensatory Lengthening”, in: Encyclopedia of Ancient Greek Language and Linguistics, General Editor: Georgios K. Giannakis. Consulted online on 27 March 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2214-448X_eagll_SIM_00000432>
First published online: 2013



▲   Back to top   ▲