This section addresses prosodic constituents that cover at least the domain of the sign. Prosodic constituents are “determined on the basis of their syntactic and/or semantic coherence together with the phonetic marking typically found at the relevant level of structure”. The smallest prosodic unit that fits this definition is the prosodic word (PHONOLOGY 2.2.1). Prosodic words make up phonological phrases (PHONOLOGY 2.2.2), which in turn are combined to form intonational phrases (PHONOLOGY2.2.3). The largest prosodic unit is the utterance phrase (PHONOLOGY 2.2.4). All units are characterized by manual or non-manual domain markers and/or boundary markers. Domain markers spread over several signs or even clauses. Boundary markers, on the other hand, are punctual. In Table 2.14, I provide an overview of the characteristic manual and non-manual domain and boundary markers for all prosodic levels, which will be described in more detail in the next sections.
Table 2.14. Manual and non-manual domain and boundary markers observed at different prosodic levels.
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Domain marker |
Boundary marker |
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Manual |
Non-manual |
Manual |
Non-manual |
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Prosodic Word |
One phonological specification per parameter (sometimes violated), cliticization, coalescence, movement reduction, handshape assimilation |
Spreading of mouthing |
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Phonological Phrase |
Spreading of non-dominant hand |
Spreading of mouthing |
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Intonational Phrase |
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Intonational contour (combination of non-manual markers, sometimes associated with a grammatical function) |
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Head nod, |
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Utterance Phrase |
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Start: repetition of signs End: hold, syllable repetition, lowering of the hands, insertion of dummy element, strong movements |
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