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STEPS JOURNAL for LINGUISTICS (ٍSJLING)
Volume 1, Issue 1, pp: 7-16
A Study of Assimilation in Daily Language
Hussein Hamid Kareem1,*
1,* Babylon Education. Iraq, Babylon.
* Correspondence Author
Received: 30 June2023 | Revised: 15 July 2023 | Accepted: 1 August 2023 | Published: 4 August 2023
This study deals with the assimilation in daily Iraq language. It aims to find out the ways in which assimilation is used in daily language. It shows how the Iraqi expressions are assimilated in connected speech. This study highlights the fact that there are four types of assimilation found in daily Iraqi language. The first one is Assimilation with Nasal (Idgham be ghna) or Assimilation without Nasal (Idgham bedon ghna). The second one is called Identical Assimilation (Idgham Mutamathel). The third one is called Approximate Assimilation (Idgham Mutaqarib). The fourth one is called Homogeneous Assimilation (Idham Mutajanis). This study depends on data taken from an Iraqi poet and analysed according to an eclectic model. It is concluded that these four types of assimilation are found in daily Iraqi language, but at different rate.
Keywords: phonology, assimilation, progressive, regressive, phoneme, Arabic language, and Idgham.
This study is concerned with the use of assimilation in Arabic language. Assimilation is considered as a very important phonological process that people use in their daily lives within a word or between the words for certain purposes. It can be defined as the process whereby some phonemes can become similar to those neighboring sounds. Assimilation occurs frequently in rapid speech.
This study aims to fulfill the following objective: Assimilation in daily Iraqi language is as important as that of the standard Arabic. It holds different kinds of assimilation within language’s daily use.
Phonology is a term that refers to the study of the systems of human speech sounds. It aims to establish a system of sound differences that are related to a specific language. It deals with abstractness of the sound systems in languages under investigation since it considers sounds as an abstract realty found in the mind of the speaker. So, Phonology is a discipline of linguistics concerned with the systematic organization of sounds in languages or dialects (or constituent parts of signs, in sign languages). The sound or sign system of any language variety is also referred to by this word (Crystal, 2008) Phonology was once thought to be solely concerned with the study of phonetic systems in spoken languages. It could now be linked to (a) any linguistic study at a level below the word (such as syllable, onset and rime, articulatory gestures, articulatory characteristics, and so on) or (b) all levels of language where sound or signs are arranged to communicate linguistic meaning (Lyons, (1968).
The suffix -logy (which originates from Greek o, lógos, “word, speech, subject of discussion”) is added to the word phonology, which is derived from Ancient Greek phn, “voice, and sound.” The phrase is defined in a variety of ways. In Grundzüge der Phonologie (1939), Nikolai Trubetzkoy defines phonology as “the study of sound pertaining to the system of language,” as opposed to phonetics, which is “the study of sound pertaining to the act of speech” (the distinction between langue and parole is essentially Saussure’s distinction between langue and parole). More recently, phonology is “the function, behavior, and organization of sounds as linguistic objects,” while “phonology proper” is “involved with the function, behavior, and organization of sounds as linguistic items (McGregor, 2009).” It refers to the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language, or the branch of linguistics that studies this usage (Bernard, 2021).
According to O’connor (1980), phonology is different from phonetics in the sense that phonetics deals with the way sounds are articulated. It attempts to focus on the mechanism followed by the speech organs in producing sounds. Phonetics is not an area restricted in the sense that it is applicable to all languages around the word since it is concerned with physiology of human organs employed in speech production. So, phonetics is a general study of vocal organs whereas phonology is a study of human sounds systematically within specific language (Burleigh, 2011).
Many linguists have defined the domains of phonetics and phonology as an attempt to explain their subject in a comprehensible manner (Nathan, 2008). Phonetics is the study of speech sounds in terms of their creation, perceptual qualities, and transmission. Phonetics and phonology are two sub-disciplines or domains of linguistics concerned with sound and pronunciation, according to Bernard (2021).Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that studies and characterizes speech from a distinct perspective. It’s a term that refers to the study of human language sounds. Phoneticians aim to come up with ways to describe and analyze how people employ sounds in speech in a normal fashion. Acoustic phonetics, articulatory phonetics, and auditory phonetics are three distinct areas of phonetics (Bernard, 2021).
Articulatory phonetics is the first branch of phonetics that studies or tests how distinct speech sounds are produced by the speakers’ organs and muscles. The origins of articulatory phonetics can be traced back several centuries to Indian scholars’ Sanskrit pronunciation descriptions. It characterizes and categorizes speech sounds based on the characteristics used in their generation. Lips, tongue, alveolar ridge (1), endnotes, teeth, hard palate (2), and volume (3) are the main categorization organs that are employed to make diverse sounds of speech. Another classification divides speech sounds into two categories: vowels and consonants. Consonants are considered closed production, whereas vowels are involved in open production with no restriction of articulation. The first sound in (in) and the second sound in (me) are examples of vowels, while the first sound in (in) and the second sound in (me) are examples of consonants (toe, so, row) (Crystal, 2008)
The second area of phonetics is Acoustic phonetics, which is concerned with engineering movement for speech sound in the context of voices’ route in the air between the beginning, which is the speaker’s mouth, and the end, which is the listener’s ear (Bernard, 2021). Professionals in this field have researched the strength, frequency, and duration of speech sounds in the form of sound waves. They accomplish it by analyzing the physical properties of spoken sound and determining the frequency and intensity components in a pretty objective manner. The high frequency components of certain spoken sounds, such as’s’ and ‘z,’ are relatively powerful. This is what gives them their distinct appearance (Burleigh, 2011).
Auditory phonetics focuses on the effects of sounds on the brain and the ear of the listener. It is the study of how the ear recognizes and perceives speech sound waves. In this section, pitch and loudness, rather than frequency and intensity, are terminology used to emphasize spoken sound perception in which frequency and pitch, or intensity and loudness, are the same.
Chomsky and Halle (1968) point out that in a given language, a phoneme is a sound unit that distinguishes one word from another. According to classical phonological theories, a phoneme is the smallest unit of a language’s sound system. The concept’s origins can be traced back to a desire to construct patterns of organization among the infinitely broad spectrum of sounds heard in languages. It was discovered that the phonetic specifications of the sounds (or phones) heard in speech include significantly more information than is required to explain how languages establish meaning distinctions (Bernard, 2021).
Linguists were able to group together sets of phonetically similar phones as varieties, or ‘members,’ of the same underlying unit, thanks to the concept of the phoneme. The Phones were described as realizations of phonemes, while variants were described as allophones of the phonemes are what they’re called. Each language may be demonstrated to use a small number of phonemes; some languages have as few as fifteen phonemes, while others have as many as eighty. The phonemic inventory, structure and system of a language can be seen by analyzing it in these words. There is no such thing as a phonemic system in two languages (Crystal, 2008).
Sounds are regarded part of the same phoneme if they are phonetically parallel and do not take place in the identical environment (i.e., complementary distribution), the replacement of one sound for the other does not result in a change in meaning (i.e. they are in free variation). On the other hand, a sound is deemed ‘phonemic’ if its substitution in a word results in a change in meaning (Chomsky& Halle, 1968).
Several approaches to phonemic analysis, or phonemics, have evolved based on this broad foundation. The phoneme was established by the Prague School as a collection of abstract distinguishing characteristics or oppositions between sounds (such as voicing and nasality), an approach that was further expanded by Jakobson and Halle and generative phonology. The British approach is Daniel Jones (1881–1967), a phonetician, saw the phoneme as a ‘family’ of linked sounds not as opposites, but as sounds.
In their efforts to establish processes of analysis, American linguists in the 1940s emphasized the phonetic actuality of phonemes, paying particular attention to the distribution of sounds in a speech. Apart from the issue of definition, if the belief is held that all components of a language’s sound system may be analyzed in terms of phonemes – that is, suprasegmental as well as segmental features then phonology (phonemic phonology) becomes synonymous with phonemics. Later advances of the American structuralist tradition of language analysis popularized this viewpoint, and linguists who adopted this ‘phonemic principle’ were dubbed phonemicists (Crytsal, 2008).
However, according to Burleigh (2011), many phonologists (especially in the British tradition) choose not to analyze suprasegmental properties in terms of phonemes, and have created methods that do away with the phoneme entirely. The phrase phonemic clause refers to a grammatical structure formed inside a single intonation contour and bounded by junctures, which has been employed mostly in psycholinguistic study into the distribution and function of pauses. The tier containing segments provided for the qualities that identify consonants and vowels is referred to as the phonemic tier in autosegmental phonology (Chomsky& Halle, 1968).
Crystal (2008) shows that assimilation is the process of making one sound seems more similar to another in the same or next word in a continuous utterance. Assimilation occurs when two sounds have similar characteristics in terms of location or method. Consonant assimilation happens when one consonant takes on the characteristics of another (Trask, 1996). In certain circumstances, for example, the sound /n/ becomes /m/; this will be explained in further detail later. However, it is thought that assimilation varies in degree depending on speaking tempo and style; it is more common in rapid, informal speech and less common in slow, deliberate speech (Hayes, 2009).
5.1. Manner of Assimilation
Assimilation can be progressive, regressive, and coalescent. Preservative assimilation is another name for progressive assimilation. When the features of a phoneme are affected by the features of the phoneme immediately before it, the assimilation is said to be preservative (Gimson, 2001). In other words, the assimilated sound comes before the conditioned sound. From left to right, such simulation is dealt with. Anticipatory assimilation is the polar opposite of progressive assimilation (Jolayemi, 2010). It’s defined as “a change in phoneme features as a result of the influence of a sound that occurs later in the word.” As a result, regressive assimilation occurs when the features of one phoneme are affected by the features of the next phoneme. The coalescent assimilation, which occurs when there is a fusion, is the third form of assimilation (Ladefoged, 2006). This procedure transforms a sound by combining two contiguous phonemes into a new phoneme that is distinct from the two consolidated sounds. When a morpheme’s penultimate alveolar plosive or fricative /t, d/ or /s, z/ is followed by [j], a palato – alveolar fricative arises, especially when the segment is followed by the suffix “-ion” in English. Televise + ion is a good example. The interaction of /s/ and /i/, which occurs when converting a verb to a noun form, leads in /3/, which yields /tɛlɪvɪʒn/ (Crystal, 2008).
5.2. Form of Assimilation
There are two forms of assimilation. They are:
a. Full Assimilation
Full assimilation is another term for full integration. As previously said, a sound can alter and sound like another. It’s possible that this conversion will be partial or total. Complete assimilation occurs when a sound is completely influenced by a nearby sound, resulting in both sounds becoming one, or identical. The sentence /ðæt pleɪs/ is assimilated into /ðæp pleɪs/. It’s apparent that the /t/ sound has been completely assimilated into the /p/ sound and has become similar to the one in the following word (Roach, 1998).
b. Partial Assimilation
It is not always possible to completely assimilate sounds. When sounds partially integrate with their surroundings, the influenced sound takes on some of the attributes of the other sounds. To put it another way, partial assimilation is when a segment only has one feature. “Most assimilations are partial assimilations in which the assimilated sound becomes merely more similar, but not identical, to the influencing sound,” according to the author. Contact assimilation, in which the two sounds involved are directly adjacent, is a type of partial assimilation. In everyday speech, the expression “ten pikes” is pronounced as /tembaiks/ rather than /ten baiks/. Under the influence of the bilabial sound /b/, the alveolar sound /n/ changes to /m/, which is a bilabial sound (Katamba, 1989).
5.3. Types of Assimilation
Three types of assimilation can be found. They are:
a. Assimilation of place:
It is concerned with the change that occurs in the place of articulation. This type of assimilation can alveolar stops assimilation which is a regressive assimilation in which sounds are affected by the following one such as alveolar stops /t, d, n/ are assimilated regressively into bilabial when the following consonant is a bilabial. There is also alveolar fricative assimilation in which the alveolar fricative /s/ is assimilated into post alveolar fricative. Finally, there is assimilation of alveolar syllabic nasal. It is a progressive one in which a nasal /n/ becomes /m/ if the preceding one is a bilabial (Crystal, 2008).
b. Assimilation of Manner
Assimilation of manner occurs when the articulation of two adjacent sounds becomes similar. When two neighboring sounds in connected speech are fused to generate a new sound, this is called coalescence (Roach, 1998).
c. Assimilation of Voice
The second consonant in a cluster of two consonants that differ in voicing must agree in voicing with the previous one. It can be across morpheme boundaries, This sort of assimilation is indicated by the noun plural marker, the possessive, and the singular present tense, all of which have the same voicing as the preceding obstruent consonant, and across word boundary, Only when a voiced word final consonant is followed by a voiceless word initial consonant is regressive assimilation detected across word boundaries (Crystal, 2008).
Arabic language has two types of sounds. They are consonants and verbs. They are totally different phonologically and morphologically. There are twenty-eight consonants in Arabic. There are three vowels in Arabic. They are (ا, و, ي) though there are three diacritics found accompanying letters which are (ـَ ـُ ـِ). And if words and letters have meaning and value in poetic construction, then diacritics are no less valuable than the value of the word. Almost always, letters are accompanied with diacritics to deliver a certain meaning that letters can’t give alone. So, one can notice that Arabic language is a language of divergent use throughout the context in which it is applied (Ibn Al Jezzry, 2008).
Assimilation “Idgham” can be defined as the process by which one letter is mixed into another. Such a process merges letters into each other.
The ancient Arabic linguists believed that the meaning of assimilation ‘Idgham’ is the convergence of two letters whose pronunciation is one, the first of which is a consonant and the second is vowel, and that there is no movement separating them, so by their overlapping they become like a single letter from which the tongue is lifted by one lift. It can also be defined as the process in which one connects a consonant letter with a vowel like it, without separating them with a movement, or a stop, and they become, because of the intensity of their connection, as one letter, and the tongue rises from them by one strong lift. So, the first letter becomes like a consumer, not on the reality of overlapping and merging (Ibn Al Jezzry, 2008).
The assimilation, according to Ibn Jinni, is the combination of two similar letters, the first of which is a consonant and is inserted into the second bringing the letters closer together (Ibn Al Jezzry, 2008).
So, assimilation is a form of phonological similarity, which is the complete reactionary analogy, where the first sound is completely affected by the second sound and is identical, and it is completely destroyed. In this case, the first sound does not have any effect on the pronunciation. According to the modernists, assimilation means the complete similarity between two adjacent and close voices in the exit, with common characteristics that help to merge one into the other (Ibn Al Jezzry, 2008).
In Arabic assimilation, there are three types. The first one is called Assimilation with Nasal (Idgham be ghna henceforth) which depends on the use of ‘Nun’ and the following letters or Assimilation without Nasal (Idgham bedon ghna henceforth) depending on the following ‘اللام’ or ‘الراء’. The second one is called Identical Assimilation (Idgham Mutamathel) which depends on the context in which two identical letters are found basically between two words. The third type is called Approximate Assimilation (Idgham Mutaqarib) in which the pronunciation of two adjacent letters is approximate. The fourth type is called Homogeneous Assimilation (Idham Mutajanis) in which two letters have similar place of articulation (Ibn Al Jezzry, 2008).
This study depends on the descriptive analysis of the data selected. The data will be analysed according to the process of assimilation as a model.
8.1 Data Collection
The data depends on the daily Iraqi Arabic language. It will be collected from the daily use of assimilated words or expressions from a famous Iraqi poet called Aryan Sayid Khalaf. The data will be highlighted in terms of the relation among the sounds existing between the two letters. The data is 75 quoted expressions from Aryan Sayid Khalaf’s classical poetry taken from an online resource (https://www.dorar-aliraq.net). This number of the quoted expressions helps achieve more objective results. They are chosen from 2015 to 2018 which is marked by the poet’s death.
8.2 Method of Analysis
Language is viewed as a system composing several linguistic units which are found in connected speech. The model adapted here is an eclectic one. It consists of Bloomer’s Assimilation (2005) and Ibn Al Jezzery’s Assimilation (2008). The former is an English model and the latter is an Arabic one. They are combined together so that the analysis will be consistent, to achieve more objective results and to be more applicable for the data. The way the data will be analysed depends on the process of assimilation itself. It means that the data will be applied to the manner, form, and place of assimilation that are previously introduced. Such a method is considered as a useful descriptive approach followed by scholars in identifying a linguistic unit.
As such, this assimilation -based method will be adopted by the researcher in analyzing the data of the assimilated daily Iraqi expressions. Throughout this model, the reason that lies behind assimilating that collected data will be justified. The procedure that will be adopted involves three stages. The first stage is represented by writing down the non-assimilated form. Then, the second stage involves applying the assimilation rules to the linguistic elements by writing them in the way they are pronounced with assimilation in Arabic language. Finally, the third stage involves the explanation for the reason the lies behind the use of the assimilated expression. The following sections are within a regressive assimilation.
Figure 1. Assimilation adapted model.
8.3. Data Analysis
This part deals with the analysis of the collected data. The collected data will be analysed according to the model of assimilation.
The analysis as follows:
1.”ابليل لو”
It is assimilated into “ابليلّو” by assimilating the “ل” with the second “ل” as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “سببّجفوفك” by assimilating the two “ب” together to produce a stressed “ب” which is a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “المايّضحك” by assimilating the two identical letters “ي” to produce only one letter with a stress as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “بالدمعاتّتوسم”, which is done by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one Arabic letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “المّشتاك”, which is also done by assimilating the two “م” to produce only one stressed letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “المايّعثر”. It is done by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one Arabic letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “ميّنبت”, which is also done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one Arabic letter as a kind of assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “اضربّه”, which is done by assimilating the two “ب” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “حدّاره”, which is also done by assimilating the two “د” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “ميّهاب”, which is done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “اغيومّطاره”, which is done by assimilating the two “م” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “يخشّالموت”, which is also done by assimilating the two “الألف” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “فهمّعناك”, which is done by assimilating the two “ب” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
14.”من روحي”
It is assimilated into “مرّوحي”, which is done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ر” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive approximate assimilation.
It is assimilated into “علّايفشلني”, which is also done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ل” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham bedon ghna).
It is assimilated into “انفضهنّفض”, which is done by assimilating the two “ن” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “ممّتت”, which is done by assimilating the “ن” with the “م” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “ميّذبل”. It is also done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “اتغيّرت”, which is done by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation. Such a type of assimilation is found within one word.
It is assimilated into “ميّنشف”. It is done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “ميّنشره”. It is also done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “شلويّرضى” which refers to assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “ميّاصفحة”. It is also done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “سكنّبض”, which is done by assimilating the two “ن” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “روحيّمك”, which is also done by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “علّايهم”, which is done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ل” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham bedon ghna).
It is assimilated into “الشامتّشمت”, which is also done by assimilating the two “ت” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “سهلّوعات”, which is done by assimilating the “م” with the “ل” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive approximate assimilation.
It is assimilated into “يمجّريبه”, which is also done by assimilating the two “ج” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “الحزمّهدي”. It is complete by assimilating the “ن” with the “م” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “اعلهّونك”, which is also done by assimilating the two “هـ” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “ميّهاب”. It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to create only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation termed in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “فهمّعناك”, which is done by assimilating the two “م” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “شتكلّلطاح”, which is also done by assimilating the two “ل” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “شكتّعب”, which is also done by assimilating the “د” with “ت”to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive homogeneous assimilation.
It is assimilated into “دموعّيني”, which is also done by assimilating the two “ع” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “شلويّنبره”. It is complete by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
38.”بعد تنشل”
It is assimilated into “بعتّنشل”, which is also done by assimilating the “د” with “ت”to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive homogeneous assimilation.
It is assimilated into “موّصلنه”. It is complete by assimilating the “ن” with the “و” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
40.”اشمجالب بيج”
It is assimilated into “اشمجالبّيج”, which is similarly achieved by assimilating the two “ب” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “بغيركّمر”, which is correspondingly prepared by assimilating the two “ك” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
42.”وحن محنة”
It is assimilated into “وحمّحنة”. It is complete by assimilating the “ن” with the “م” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
43.”باب بيته”
It is assimilated into “بابّيته”, which is respectively organized by assimilating the two “ب” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
44.”اشلون ما”
It is assimilated into “اشلومّا”. It is complete by assimilating the “ن” with the “م” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
45.”واكل للناس”
It is assimilated into “واكلّلناس”, which is respectively organized by assimilating the two “ل” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
46.”من نومتي”
It is assimilated into “منّومتي”, which is in turn structured by assimilating the two “ن” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
47.”من ليلكم”
It is assimilated into “ملّيلكم”, which is done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ل” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham bedon ghna).
It is assimilated into “بعتّنشل”, which is also done by assimilating the “د” with “ت”to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive homogeneous assimilation.
49.”عليمن يلكلت”
It is assimilated into “عليميّلكلت”. It is complete by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to produce only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
50.”بعد بالك”
It is assimilated into “بعبّالك”, which is in turn structured by assimilating the two “ب” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
51.”ايام ماضينه”
It is assimilated into “ايامّاضينه”, which is in turn structured by assimilating the two “م” to make only one letter. It is a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “اتريتّبرينه”, which is also done by assimilating the “د” with “ت”to create only one letter as a kind of a regressive homogeneous assimilation.
53.”لمن يحب”
It is assimilated into “لميّحب”. It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to make only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “يحبّالكيف”, which is in turn structured by assimilating the two “ب” to make only one letter. It is a regressive identical assimilation occurring between two identical letters.
It is assimilated into “تهبّالكيف”, which is done by assimilating the two “ب” to make only one letter. It is a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “هيّابو”, which is respectively ordered by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
57.”عين مشتني”
It is assimilated into “عيمّشتني”. It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “م” to make only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
58.”بكليبي يفتك”
It is assimilated into “بكليبيّتك”, which is in fact well-ordered or structured by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
It is assimilated into “الحنيّعود”. It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to make only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
60.”حالك كيف”
It is assimilated into “حالكّيف”, which is in fact structured by assimilating the two “ك” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
61.”انت دمع”
It is assimilated into “اندّمع”, which is also done by assimilating the “د” with “ت”to create only one letter as a kind of a regressive homogeneous assimilation.
62.”هموم مشتال”
It is assimilated into “همومّشتال”, which is done by assimilating the two “م” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
63.”حالين روحي”
It is assimilated into “حاليّروحي”. It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to make only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
64.”بعد تحمل”
It is assimilated into “بعتّحمل”, which is also done by assimilating the “د” with “ت”to create only one letter as a kind of a regressive homogeneous assimilation.
65.”ردت تجفل”
It is assimilated into “ردتّجفل”, which is in fact structured by assimilating the two “ت” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
66.”بي يطول”
It is assimilated into “بيّطول”, which is in fact structured by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
67.”من ينكظي”
It is assimilated into “ميّنكظي” . It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “ي” to make only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
68.”من وصل”
It is assimilated into “موّصل” . It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “و” to make only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
69.”من يمر”
It is assimilated into “ميّمر”. It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “م” to make only one letter. It is a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
It is assimilated into “المايّنشف”, which is in fact structured by assimilating the two “ي” to produce only one letter. It is a regressive identical assimilation.
71.”من نار”
It is assimilated into “منّار”, which is in fact structured by assimilating the two “ن” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
72.”المضت تشهد”
It is assimilated into “المضتّشهد”, which is in fact structured by assimilating the two “ت” to make only one letter. It is a regressive identical assimilation.
73.”غير روحي”
It is assimilated into “غيرّوحي”, which is in fact structured by assimilating the two “ر” to produce only one letter. It is called a regressive identical assimilation.
74.”لن روحي”
It is assimilated into “لرّوحي”, which is done by assimilating the “ن” with the “ر” to produce only one letter. It is a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham bedon ghna).
It is assimilated into “حسمّثلك”. It is completed by assimilating the “ن” with the “م” to make only one letter as a kind of a regressive assimilation called in Arabic as (Idgham be ghna).
Depending on the analysis of the data, the following is obtained:
Table 1. Assimilation frequency.
No. | Assimilation | Frequency | Percentage |
1 | Identical | 41 | 54.5 % |
2 | Approximate | 2 | 2.5 % |
3 | Homogeneous | 6 | 8 % |
4 | Idgham be ghna | 22 | 29 % |
5 | Idgham bedon ghna | 4 | 5 % |
It can be seen that the most frequent assimilation is the identical one with 54.5 % followed by Idgham be ghna with 29 %. After that, the homogeneous assimilation is more frequent than the rest with 8 % whereas the approximate assimilation is 2.5 % and Idgham bedon ghna with 5 %.
Assimilation is a process of harmony speakers tend to use in their daily life. It is of a great effect on the way people follow in their speech. Assimilation in daily Iraqi language is different from English in the sense that it has different application as far as the types are concerned. The most recurrent types of assimilation in daily Iraqi language are: identical, homogenous, approximate, and (Idgham be ghna / bedon ghna).
The use of these types is different in daily Iraqi language in the sense that some of the types have priority over others as far as frequency is concerned. The most frequent type is called identical assimilation (Idgham Mutamathel) which refers to the resemblance between two letters that would be assimilated into one letter in connected speech. The use of Nun (Nasal) assimilation is very common too with the priority of (Idgham beghna) over (Idgham bedon ghna). The term ‘priority’ indicates the more frequent use of that type.
The use of the other types of assimilation is found too, but very occasionally though the homogeneous assimilation (Idgham Mutajanis) is more frequent than approximate assimilation (Idgham Mutaqarib). As far as the manner of assimilation is concerned, it is found that the only one that is used in the data was the regressive assimilation. Such a thing people adhere to use may be for several reasons. Among them is to make their speech smoother and easier. Assimilating two letters together has a very profound role in making Iraqi speech seem more comfortable with more economy. Such a thing helps speakers go quickly in their speech with as less effort as possible.
So, it can be concluded that the use of assimilation in daily Iraqi language is of a great importance because of its role in facilitating speech among participants.
Cite: Kareem, H. H. (2023). A Study of Assimilation in Daily Language. STEPS JOURNAL for LINGUISTICS, 1(1), 7–16. https://doi.org/10.61706/sjling13002
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