The development of moraicity as a basic prosodic feature in Japanese

Given that syllabic structure constitutes the fundamental unit in human speech-perception communication, the article foregrounds the mora as a core prosodic feature of Standard Jap­anese. In light of the limited phonetic evidence supporting the mora’s independent accentual or rhythmic function, the author turns to an analysis of the metrical properties of haiku, the classical Japanese poetic form, as well as various language games that underscore the psy­chological salience of the moraic unit. Taking into account the relatively simple phonolog­ical structure of Old Japanese–characterized by alternating consonants and vowels, thereby aligning with both syllables and moras–the article traces the diachronic development of the interwoven relationship between orthography, phonological change, and associated prosodic features. In doing so, it offers a theoretical grounding for the emergence of the mora as a pho­nologically salient unit in Japanese.