Weight Factors in Weight-Sensitive Stress Systems
Sounds · one world map for each value
WALS codes 500 languages for this feature. The most frequent value, “No weight, or weight factor unknown”, covers 261 of them (52%); the least frequent, “Coda consonant: closed syllables are heavy for stress”, covers 18.
That value is most frequent in South America (69% of the 45 languages coded there) and least frequent in North America (35% of 79).
Among families with at least eight coded languages, Niger-Congo is the most uniform: 8 of 9 have “No weight, or weight factor unknown”.
Uto-Aztecan is the most divided, its largest group reaching only 4 of 12.
No weight, or weight factor unknown261 languages · 52%
Long vowel: long vowels are heavy for stress65 languages · 13%
Coda consonant: closed syllables are heavy for stress18 languages · 4%
Long vowel + Coda: long vowels or closed syllables35 languages · 7%
Prominence: other factors are heavy for stress41 languages · 8%
Lexical: lexical stress, diacritic weight38 languages · 8%
Combined: two of the above factors determine weight42 languages · 8%
One map per value; each dot is a language WALS codes with that value.
By macro-area
| Value | Africa | Eurasia | Papunesia | Australia | North America | South America |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No weight, or weight factor unknown | 14 | 50 | 93 | 45 | 28 | 31 |
| Long vowel: long vowels are heavy for stress | 1 | 19 | 16 | 15 | 12 | 2 |
| Coda consonant: closed syllables are heavy for stress | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| Long vowel + Coda: long vowels or closed syllables | 2 | 14 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 4 |
| Prominence: other factors are heavy for stress | 1 | 13 | 19 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| Lexical: lexical stress, diacritic weight | 3 | 15 | 11 | 0 | 8 | 1 |
| Combined: two of the above factors determine weight | 5 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 4 |
| All values | 26 | 129 | 155 | 66 | 79 | 45 |
Inside the largest families
| Family | Coded | Most frequent value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austronesian | 116 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 62% |
| Indo-European | 53 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 42% |
| Pama-Nyungan | 47 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 68% |
| Afro-Asiatic | 21 | Combined: two of the above factors determine weight | 38% |
| Trans-New Guinea | 15 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 60% |
| Uralic | 15 | Long vowel: long vowels are heavy for stress | 40% |
| Uto-Aztecan | 12 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 33% |
| Basque | 11 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 55% |
| Niger-Congo | 9 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 89% |
| Hokan | 8 | No weight, or weight factor unknown | 38% |
| Nakh-Daghestanian | 8 | Prominence: other factors are heavy for stress | 38% |
Languages to explore
The most fully coded languages with each value.
- No weight, or weight factor unknown: Finnish, Indonesian, Georgian, Persian, Malagasy, Supyire
- Long vowel: long vowels are heavy for stress: Hungarian, Evenki, Khalkha, Maori, Fijian, Ngiyambaa
- Coda consonant: closed syllables are heavy for stress: Lezgian, Amele, German, Chamorro, Shipibo-Konibo, Nenets
- Long vowel + Coda: long vowels or closed syllables: English, Hindi, Greenlandic (West), Hixkaryana, Yukaghir (Kolyma), Gooniyandi
- Prominence: other factors are heavy for stress: French, Krongo, Alamblak, Wichita, Armenian (Eastern), Khmer
- Lexical: lexical stress, diacritic weight: Russian, Turkish, Mandarin, Greek (Modern), Abkhaz, Tagalog
- Combined: two of the above factors determine weight: Spanish, Arabic (Egyptian), Yaqui, Kayardild, Pirahã, Iraqw