Towards a sociophonetic explanation of progressive and regressive assimilation in NC clusters

Different patterns of place and manner assimilation in nasal+stop clusters in terms of different timing relationships between segments are investigated. The existence of strict internal balance conditions within the cluster is hypothesized and evaluated with respect to Italo-Romance dialectological data. The role of speech rate variation is also analyzed. Drawing together laboratory research and geolinguistic analysis of nasal allophones distribution, the present study aims at shedding light on the determinants of anticipatory and perseverative assimilation processes in homorganic nasal+stop clusters