As estruturas silábicas e a redução vocálica no Português Europeu.

This paper discusses vowel behavior in relation to syllable structure in European Portuguese. The analysis is based on Government Phonology (Kaye, Lowenstamm and Vergnaud, 1985, 1990). We will argue that syllabic constituents in European Portuguese determine, to a great extent, vowel behavior. Branching nuclei and rhymes are the structures which most clearly determine the value of vowels in unstressed positions. As we will see throughout this paper, vowel reduction is clearly conditioned by syllable structures