「#4621. モーラ --- 日本語からの一般音韻論への貢献」 ([2021-12-21-1]) で，日本語の音韻論上の単位としてモーラ (mora) の術語を導入した McCawley (1968) に触れた（Daniels, p. 63 を参照）．
McCawley は日本語の音韻論に mora の術語を導入した点でオリジナルだったものの，mora という概念を言語学に持ち込んだ最初の人ではない．OED の mora, NOUN1 によると，語義 3.b. が言語学用語としての mora であり，初出は1933年とある．以下にこの語義の項を引用する．
3.b. Linguistics. The smallest or basic unit of duration of a speech sound. 1933-
1933 In dealing with matters of quantity, it is often convenient to set up an arbitrary unit of relative duration, the mora. Thus, if we say that a short vowel lasts one mora, we may describe the long vowels of the same language as lasting, say, one and one-half morae or two morae. (L. Bloomfield, Language vii. 110)
1941 In many cases it will be found that an element smaller than the phonetic syllable functions as the accentual or prosodic unit; this unit may be called, following current practice, the mora... The term mora..is useful in avoiding confusion, even if it should turn out to mean merely phonemic syllable. (G. L. Trager in L. Spier et al., Language Culture & Personality 136)
1964 Each of the segments characterized by one of the successive punctual tones is called a mora. (E. Palmer, translation of A. Martinet, Elements of General Linguistics iii. 80)
1988 The terms 'bimoric' and 'trimoric' relate to the idea that these long vowels consist of two, respectively three, 'moras' or units of length, rather than the single 'mora' of short vowels. (Transactions of Philological Society vol. 86 137)
McCawley が引用されていないのが残念である．いずれにせよ，mora が，権威ある辞書であるとはいえ専門辞書ではない OED で単純に定義できるほど易しい概念ではないもののようだ．関連して以下の記事も参照．
・ 「#4624. 日本語のモーラ感覚」 ([2021-12-24-1])
・ 「#4853. 音節とモーラ」 ([2022-08-10-1])
・ Daniels, Peter T. "The History of Writing as a History of Linguistics." Chapter 2 of The Oxford Handbook of the History of Linguistics. Ed. Keith Allan. Oxford: OUP, 2013. 53--69.
・ McCawley, James D. The Phonological Component of a Grammar of Japanese. The Hague: Mouton, 1968.
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