Delateralization
Delateralization /ˌdiːlætᵊrələˈzeɪʃən/ DEE-lat(-ə)r-əl-ə-ZAYSH-ən is a replacement of a lateral consonant by a central consonant.[1]
Yeísmo
Arguably, the best known example of this sound change is yeísmo, which occurs in many Spanish and some Galician dialects.
In accents with yeísmo, the palatal lateral approximant /ʎ/ merges with the palatal approximant /ʝ/ which, phonetically, can be an affricate [ɟ͡ʝ] (word-initially and after /n/), an approximant [ʝ̞] (in other environments) or a fricative [ʝ] (in the same environments as the approximant, but only in carefuly speech).
In Romanian, the palatal lateral approximant /ʎ/ merged with /j/ centuries ago (the same happened to the historic palatal nasal /ɲ/, although that is an example of lenition).
Arabic Ḍād
Another known example of delateralization is the sound change that happened to the Arabic ḍād, which, historically, was a lateral consonant, either a pharyngealized voiced alveolar lateral fricative 
[ɮˤ] or a similar affricated sound [d͡ɮˤ] or [dˡˤ].[2][3] The affricated form is suggested by loans of ḍ into Akkadian as ld or lṭ and into Malaysian as dl.[4] However, some linguists, such as the French orientalist André Roman supposes that the letter was actually a pharyngealized voiced alveolo-palatal sibilant [ʑˤ], similar to the Polish ź,[2][3][5] which is not a lateral sound.
In modern Arabic, there are three possible realizations of this sound, all of which are central:[4]
- Pharyngealized voiced alveolar stop [dˤ]
- Pharyngealized voiced dental stop [d̪ˤ]
- Velarized voiced dental stop [d̪ˠ].
References
- ↑ "Delateralization | Definition of Delateralization by Merriam-Webster". Retrieved 11 July 2016.
- 1 2 Versteegh, Kees (1999). "Loanwords from Arabic and the merfer of ḍ/ḏ̣". In Arazi, Albert; Sadan, Joseph; Wasserstein, David J. Compilation and Creation in Adab and Luġa: Studies in Memory of Naphtali Kinberg (1948–1997). pp. 273–286.
- 1 2 Versteegh, Kees (2000). "Treatise on the pronunciation of the ḍād". In Kinberg, Leah; Versteegh, Kees. Studies in the Linguistic Structure of Classical Arabic. Brill. pp. 197–199. ISBN 9004117652.
- 1 2 Versteegh, Kees (2003) [1997]. The Arabic language (Repr. ed.). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 89. ISBN 9780748614363.
- ↑ Roman, André (1983). Étude de la phonologie et de la morphologie de la koiné arabe. 1. Aix-en-Provence: Université de Provence. pp. 162–206.
