Feeding order

In phonology and historical linguistics, feeding order is a situation in which rule A creates new contexts in which rule B can apply; it would not have been possible for rule B to apply otherwise.

If there are two rules, rule A which looks like x → y and rule B which looks like y → z, then the following is a feeding order:

The opposite of feeding order, the situation in which rule A destroys a certain context so rule B can no longer apply, is called bleeding order.

A good example of feeding order can be seen in English, where preglottalization can be considered as rule B. As a consequence of this rule, all voiceless plosives which make part of a word-final consonant cluster are glottalized. This can be seen in the form looked, with the underlying representation /lʊkt/. It is pronounced [lʊʔkt]. Another rule in English which is called fortis stop insertion shall be considered here as rule A. This rule inserts a voiceless plosives for example in /prɪns/ (prince), so that the new form of the word becomes [prɪnts]. Because a new phonological context has been created in which rule B can take place, the final output form of prince is [prɪnʔts].

If the order of rules which are in feeding order is reversed, this is said to be a counterfeeding order.

If we have two rules, rule A which looks like x → y and rule B which looks like y → z the following is a counterfeeding order:

An example of this can be seen in French, where petite nièce ("little niece") is pronounced [pətit njɛs]. If the rule which deletes word-final /-ə/ in French had been applied before another rule which deletes word-final consonants before another consonant, this would have been an example of feeding order and the "final output" form (surface form) would have been [pəti njɛs] instead.

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