Distinctive features, binarism and definition of phonemes: on Jakobson’s influence on Emilio Alarcos Llorach

Abstract

The aim of this article is to analyze the degree of influence of some revelant ideas by Roman Jakobson on Emilio Alarcos Llorach's Fonología Española, along the four editions that the book had (1950, 1954, 1961 y 1965). The Spanish linguist tries to harmonize the phonological guidelines of Trubetzkoy and Martinet, and the one of Jakobson. In effect, from 1939 Jakobson made a determined commitment to binarism in the explanation of distinctive features and definition of phonemes. It is worth noting that Alarcos pays close attention to Jakobsonian theoretical assumptions in the first and second editions, but he departs from binarist explanation in the third and fourth ones. On the contrary, passages in which Alarcos follows Trubetzkoy and Martinet remain unchanged over the years between 1950 and 1965.