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In
linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Ling ...
, syllable weight is the concept that syllables pattern together according to the number and/or duration of segments in the rime. In classical Indo-European verse, as developed in Greek,
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...
, and
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
, distinctions of syllable weight were fundamental to the meter of the line.


Linguistics

A heavy syllable is a
syllable A syllable is a unit of organization for a sequence of speech sounds typically made up of a syllable nucleus (most often a vowel) with optional initial and final margins (typically, consonants). Syllables are often considered the phonological ...
with a branching
nucleus Nucleus ( : nuclei) is a Latin word for the seed inside a fruit. It most often refers to: * Atomic nucleus, the very dense central region of an atom *Cell nucleus, a central organelle of a eukaryotic cell, containing most of the cell's DNA Nucl ...
or a branching rime, although not all such syllables are heavy in every language. A branching nucleus generally means the syllable has a
long vowel In linguistics, vowel length is the perceived length of a vowel sound: the corresponding physical measurement is duration. In some languages vowel length is an important phonemic factor, meaning vowel length can change the meaning of the word, ...
or a
diphthong A diphthong ( ; , ), also known as a gliding vowel, is a combination of two adjacent vowel sounds within the same syllable. Technically, a diphthong is a vowel with two different targets: that is, the tongue (and/or other parts of the speech ...
; this type of syllable is abbreviated as CVV. A syllable with a branching rime is a ''closed syllable'', that is, one with a
coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...
(one or more consonants at the end of the syllable); this type of syllable is abbreviated CVC. In some languages, both CVV and CVC syllables are heavy, while a syllable with a short
vowel A vowel is a syllabic speech sound pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract. Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness and also in quantity (len ...
as the nucleus and no coda (a CV syllable) is a light syllable. In other languages, only CVV syllables are heavy, while CVC and CV syllables are light. In yet other languages, CVV syllables are heavy and CV syllables are light, while some CVC syllables are heavy (for instance if the coda is a sonorant) and other CVC syllables are light (for instance if the coda is an obstruent). Some languages distinguish a third type, CVVC syllables (with both a branching nucleus and a coda) and/or CVCC syllables (with a coda consisting of two or more consonants) as superheavy syllables. In moraic theory, heavy syllables are analyzed as containing two morae, light syllables one, and superheavy syllables three. The distinction between heavy and light syllables plays an important role in the
phonology Phonology is the branch of linguistics that studies how languages or dialects systematically organize their sounds or, for sign languages, their constituent parts of signs. The term can also refer specifically to the sound or sign system of a ...
of some languages, especially with regard to the assignment of stress. For instance, in the Sezer stress pattern in Turkish observed in place names, the main stress occurs as an iamb (i.e. penultimate stress) one syllable to the left of the final syllable: (L'L)σ. However, when the foot contains a heavy syllable in the first syllable while the second syllable is light, the iamb shifts to a trochee (i.e. antepenultimate stress) because there is a requirement that main stress fall on a heavy syllable whenever possible: ('HL)σ, and not *(H'L)σ.


Classical poetry


Basic definition

In
Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...
hexameter poetry and
Latin literature Latin literature includes the essays, histories, poems, plays, and other writings written in the Latin language. The beginning of formal Latin literature dates to 240 BC, when the first stage play in Latin was performed in Rome. Latin literature ...
, lines followed certain metrical patterns, such as based on arrangements of heavy and light syllables. A heavy syllable was referred to as a and a light as a (and in the modern day, reflecting the ancient terms, a is often called a "long syllable" and a a "short syllable", potentially creating confusion between syllable length and
vowel length In linguistics, vowel length is the perceived length of a vowel sound: the corresponding physical measurement is duration. In some languages vowel length is an important phonemic factor, meaning vowel length can change the meaning of the word ...
). Similarly, in Classical Sanskrit meter, metrical patterns consisted of arrangements of syllable weight groups, called gaṇas (parallel to Greek metrical feet). A heavy syllable was named ''guru'', and a light syllable was ''laghu''. A syllable was considered heavy if it contained a
long vowel In linguistics, vowel length is the perceived length of a vowel sound: the corresponding physical measurement is duration. In some languages vowel length is an important phonemic factor, meaning vowel length can change the meaning of the word, ...
or a
diphthong A diphthong ( ; , ), also known as a gliding vowel, is a combination of two adjacent vowel sounds within the same syllable. Technically, a diphthong is a vowel with two different targets: that is, the tongue (and/or other parts of the speech ...
(and was therefore "long by nature"—it would be long no matter what) or if it contained a short vowel that was followed by more than one consonant ("long by position", long by virtue of its relationship to the consonants following). On the other hand, a syllable was light if it was an
open syllable A syllable is a unit of organization for a sequence of speech sounds typically made up of a syllable nucleus (most often a vowel) with optional initial and final margins (typically, consonants). Syllables are often considered the phonological " ...
and contained only a short vowel. An example in Latin: : : : (''
Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; la, Aenē̆is or ) is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of ...
'' 1.1-2) The first syllable of the first word (') is heavy ("long by position") because it contains a short vowel (the A) followed by more than one consonant (R and then M)—and if not for the consonants coming after it, it would be light. The second syllable is light because it contains a short vowel (an A) followed immediately by only one consonant (the V). The next syllable is light for the same reason. The next syllable, the second syllable of the word ', is heavy ("long by position") because it contains a short vowel followed by more than one consonant (the M and then the Q). But, for example, the first syllable of the word ' is heavy ("long by nature") because it contains a diphthong, regardless of the sounds coming after it. Likewise, the fifth syllable of the second line (the first of the word ') is heavy ("long by nature") because it contains a long vowel, and it will be heavy no matter what sounds come after. (The word "Italiam" is a special case, in that poets ''treat'' it as having a long-by-nature first syllable which it actually has not, in order to make it fit somehow.) Terming a syllable "long by position" is equivalent to noting that the syllable ends with a consonant (a closed syllable), because Latin and Greek speakers in the classical era pronounced a consonant as part of a preceding syllable only when it was followed by other consonants, due to the rules of Greek and Latin syllabification. In a consonant cluster, one consonant ends the preceding syllable and the rest start the following syllable. For example, Latin syllabifies ' as ' but ' as ' and ' as '.


Exceptions and additions

A few exceptions to and elaborations of the above rules of heavy and light syllables: * The Greek letters (
zeta Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; grc, ζῆτα, el, ζήτα, label= Demotic Greek, classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived f ...
, xi, and psi) and their Roman equivalents and (and ) were pronounced as two consonants, so they lengthen by position despite being represented by a single character. For example, the first syllable of ' is heavy, despite the short vowel followed only by one written consonant, because the Z was pronounced as two consonants and lengthens the syllable by position. *Sanskrit meter also treats the letters अं and अः (the
anusvara Anusvara (Sanskrit: ') is a symbol used in many Indic scripts to mark a type of nasal sound, typically transliterated . Depending on its location in the word and the language for which it is used, its exact pronunciation can vary. In the context ...
and
visarga Visarga ( sa, विसर्गः, translit=visargaḥ) means "sending forth, discharge". In Sanskrit phonology ('' ''), ' (also called, equivalently, ' by earlier grammarians) is the name of a phone voiceless glottal fricative, , written as ...
) as full consonants for purposes of syllable weight, despite being classified typically as vowels. * The combination stopliquid (usually) or stop–
nasal Nasal is an adjective referring to the nose, part of human or animal anatomy. It may also be shorthand for the following uses in combination: * With reference to the human nose: ** Nasal administration, a method of pharmaceutical drug delivery * ...
(sometimes) cohered in both Latin and Greek; that is, the two consonants were pronounced together with the speed of one consonant. As a result, they did not lengthen by position if the poet did not want them to (although they could if the poet chose). For example, the first syllable of ' is generally light, even though it has a short vowel followed by two consonants, because the consonants cohere (and the word is syllabified '). However, the combination aspirate-nasal or voiced consonant-nasal did not cohere and always lengthened by position. * In
Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
and his imitators, the
digamma Digamma or wau (uppercase: Ϝ, lowercase: ϝ, numeral: ϛ) is an archaic letter of the Greek alphabet. It originally stood for the sound but it has remained in use principally as a Greek numeral for 6. Whereas it was originally called ''wa ...
(), a sound defunct in the standard Ionic alphabet and lost from pronunciation by the classical period, was still felt enough to lengthen by position, even though it is normally not written in the Homeric poems. For example, in the line (''
Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Iliad'', ...
'', 9.3), the first syllable of is long, even though it has a short vowel followed by only one consonant, because the word was originally , and the digamma was still felt enough to lengthen the syllable by position. Since the digamma was being lost during the time when the Homeric poems were composed, recited, and written down, its effects are sometimes not felt, so that words that would have contained a digamma sometimes do not show its effects. As noted above, the number and order of heavy and light syllables in a line of poetry (together with word breaks) articulated the meter of the line, such as the most famous classical meter, the epic
dactylic hexameter Dactylic hexameter (also known as heroic hexameter and the meter of epic) is a form of meter or rhythmic scheme frequently used in Ancient Greek and Latin poetry. The scheme of the hexameter is usually as follows (writing – for a long syllable ...
.


See also

*
Meter (poetry) In poetry, metre ( Commonwealth spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) is the basic rhythmic structure of a verse or lines in verse. Many traditional verse forms prescribe a specific verse metre, or a certain set o ...
*
Stress (linguistics) In linguistics, and particularly phonology, stress or accent is the relative emphasis or prominence given to a certain syllable in a word or to a certain word in a phrase or sentence. That emphasis is typically caused by such properties as ...


References

{{reflist * Charles E. Bennett. ''New Latin Grammar''. Bolchazy-Carducci: Wauconda, IL, 2004. *
Vergil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...
. '' The Aeneid''. Edited by R. Deryck Williams. Bristol Classical Press: London, 2004. Phonology Poetic rhythm