Haplology (from Greekἁπλόοςhaplóos "simple" and λόγοςlógos, "speech") is, in spoken language, the elision (elimination or deletion) of an entire syllable or a part of it through dissimilation (a differentiating shift that affects two neighboring similar sounds). The phenomenon was identified by American philologistMaurice Bloomfield in the 20th century.[1] Linguists sometimes jokingly refer to the phenomenon as "haplogy", an autology.[2] As a general rule, haplology occurs in English adverbs of adjectives ending in "le", for example gentlely → gently; ablely → ably.
German: Zaubererin → Zauberin (female 'wizard' or 'magician'; male: der Zauberer; female ending -in); this is a productive pattern applied to other words ending in (spelt) -erer.
^U. Pani Shad; et al. (1971). "Glossary of linguistic terminology". In Zwicky, Arnold M.; Salus, Peter H.; Binnick, Robert I.; Vanek, Anthony L. (eds.). Studies out in Left Field: Defamatory essays presented to James D. McCawley on his 33rd or 34th birthday. Linguistic Research. p. 125. Reprinted as: U. Pani Shad; et al. (1992). "Glossary of linguistic terminology". In Zwicky, Arnold M.; Salus, Peter H.; Binnick, Robert I.; Vanek, Anthony L. (eds.). Studies out in Left Field: Defamatory essays presented to James D. McCawley on his 33rd or 34th birthday. John Benjamins. p. 125. doi:10.1075/z.63. ISBN978-90-272-2111-7.
^Trubetskoy, N.S. (1969). "Appendix II: Thoughts on Morphonology". In Baltaxe (transl.), Christiane A. M. (ed.). Principles of Phonology. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 305. ISBN0-520-01535-5. By morphonology or morphophonology we understand, as is well known, the study of the utilization in morphology of the phonological means of language. Translated from the German (Grundzüge der Phonologie, Prague, 1939).
^Hock, Hans Henrich (1986). "Sound change: Dissimilation, haplology, metathesis". Principles of Historical Linguistics. De Gruyter. p. 109. ISBN3-11-010600-0.
