{{Short description|Raising of the pitch of a second, same-tone syllable}} {{Infobox IPA | above = Upstep | ipa symbol = ꜛ◌ | ipa symbol2 = ꜞ◌ | ipa symbol3 = ꜟ◌ | ipa number = 518 | decimal1 = 42779 }} In linguistics, '''upstep''' is a phonemic or phonetic upward shift of tone between the syllables or words of a tonal language. It is best known in the tonal languages of Sub-Saharan Africa. Upstep is a much rarer phenomenon than its counterpart, downstep.

The symbol for upstep in the International Phonetic Alphabet is a superscript upward arrow [{{IPA|ꜛ}}] ([<sup>{{IPA|↑}}</sup>]). However, it is common, especially in the early research, to find a superscript (or sometimes subscript) inverted exclamation mark [{{IPA|ꜞ}}] ([<sup>{{IPA|¡}}</sup>]) or [<sub>{{IPA|¡}}</sub>], because of typographical constraints.

Hausa has upstep because of the interaction of tones when they are placed in context:{{Citation needed|date=January 2016}}

:{{IPA|[túránꜛtʃí nè]}} :''It's English.''

Upstep is superficially similar to pitch reset, which is nearly universal in the prosody of the world's languages. The most common prosodic contours occur in chunks with gradually declining pitch (here transcribed as a global fall, [↘]). Between such chunks, the pitch resets:

:Been there. Done that. :{{IPA|[ꜛbɪn ðɛɹ↘ ꜛdɐn ðæt↘ ]}}

== Occurrence == Upstep occurs in various Sub-Saharan African languages, for example:{{fix|text=are these phonetic or phonemic?}}

* Bokoto, an Ubangian language of the Central African Republic.{{Citation needed|date=January 2015}} * Duma and Wandji, Bantu B languages of Gabon.<ref>Puech, Gilbert (1990). Upstep in a Bantu tone language. Pholia 5.175-1186.</ref><ref>[http://www.ddl.ish-lyon.cnrs.fr/fulltext/Gabon/pholiapdf/pholia5/Puech_1990_bantu_phol5.pdf Puech 1990]</ref> * Engenni, an Edoid language of Nigeria.<ref>Snider, Keith Tonal 'upstep' in Engenni. Journal of West African Languages 27:1.3-15.</ref><ref>Hyman, Larry (1993). Register tones and tonal geometry. In ed. Harry van der Hulst & Keith L. Snider, The Phonology of Tone: The Representation of Tonal Register, 85-89. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.</ref><ref>Thomas, Elaine (1974). Engenni. In Ten Nigerian tone systems. Studies in Nigerian Languages, Vol. 4. (ed.) John Bendor-Samuel. Jos and Kano: Institute of Linguistics and Centre for the Study of Nigerian Languages.</ref><ref>Thomas, Elaine (1978). A grammatical description of the Engenni language. Arlington TX: University of Texas at Arlington and SIL.</ref> * Hausa, a Chadic language of Nigeria.{{Citation needed|date=January 2015}} * Kirimi, a Bantu F language of Tanzania.<ref>Hyman, Larry (1993). Register tones and tonal geometry. In ed. Harry van der Hulst & Keith L. Snider, The Phonology of Tone: The Representation of Tonal Register, 94-103. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.</ref> * Krachi, a Guang language of Ghana.<ref>Snider, Keith L. (1990). Tonal Upstep in Krachi: Evidence for a Register Tier. In The geometry and features of tone. Dallas: SIL and University of Texas at Arlington.</ref> * Mankon, a Grassfields language of Cameroon.<ref>Hyman, Larry (1993). Register tones and tonal geometry. In ed. Harry van der Hulst & Keith L. Snider, The Phonology of Tone: The Representation of Tonal Register, 89-94. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.</ref><ref>Leroy, Jacqueline (1977). Morphologie et classes nominales in mankon. Paris: Société d'Etudes Linguistiques et Anthropologiques de France.</ref><ref>Leroy, Jacqueline (1979). A la recherche de tons perdus: structure tonal du nom en ngemba. Journal of African Languages and Linguistics 1.31-54.</ref><ref>Hyman, Larry & Maurice Tadadjeu (1976). Floating tones in Mbam-Nkam. In ed. Larry Hyman, Studies in Bantu Tonology. University of Southern California: Occasional Papers in Linguistics.</ref> * Mbelime, a Gur language of Benin.<ref>Mellick, Christina (2012). Tone in the Mbelime verb system. Dallas, TX: Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics. Masters thesis, p. 82-84</ref> * Mbugwe, a Bantu F language of Tanzania.<ref>Wilhelmsen, Vera (2013). Upstep in Mbugwe: a description of upstep in Mbugwe verbs. Paper presented at the 5th International Conference on Bantu Languages, Paris.</ref><ref>[https://www.academia.edu/4179373/Handout_at_Bantu_5_Upstep_in_Mbugwe Wilhelmsen 2013]</ref> * Nupe, a Benue-Congo language of Nigeria.<ref>Jason Kandybowicz (2008). The Grammar of Repetition: Nupe grammar at the syntax–phonology interface. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.</ref>

Upstep also occurs in at least one Central American language:

* Peñoles Mixtec, an Oto-Manguean language of Mexico.<ref>Yip, Moira (2002). Tone. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp 217-219</ref>

== See also == * Downstep, which is more commonly phonemic.

== References == {{Reflist}} {{Suprasegmentals}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Upstep (Phonetics)}} Category:Phonetics