Vowel Harmony

This chapter provides an overview of vowel harmony in Bantu languages, evaluating the different types of vowel-height harmony systems and the dominance of the root in triggering height harmony. Height harmony in five-vowel systems involving front-height harmony and usually asymmetric back-height harmony is the most predominant type of harmony found in Bantu languages. However, ATR harmony, more common outside Bantu, can also be found, particularly in those Bantu languages with larger vowel inventories, of seven to ten vowels. The chapter discusses the contrasts between the two types of vowel harmony, with vowel-height harmony restricted in its domain of application, targeting verbal bases, while ATR harmony usually has a wider span that covers the word. A wide range of languages is considered, and the variation in vowel harmony application is considered to highlight differences but also draw parallels between systems. Some consideration of possible analyses is also given.