This study seeks to provide a descriptive analysis of vowel lengthening in Standard Yoruba. It explores the phonological, morphological, and syntactic processes that condition Yoruba vowel lengthening. Vowel lengthening in Standard Yoruba can be shown to be a product of two interacting phonological processes, consonant deletion and vowel assimilation. These phonological processes are conditioned lexically and syntactically. Syntactic constructions determine the applicability of vowel lengthening or its inverse, vowel deletion. Tone is shown to operate independently of segmental assimilation, but not deletion Finally, this study examines the pedagogical implications of vowel lengthening to second language learners of Yoruba
