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The syllable is an important phonological unit that must be formally defined within generative phonology. Evidence from Spanish, German, and other languages shows that a syllable boundary is necessary to designate the domain of certain phonological rules. The syllable can be formally and universally defined by a rule which inserts such syllable boundaries between certain sequences of segments. This rule must apply persistently throughout the phonological component, changing the position of the syllable boundaries as the sequences of segments change.
Joan B. Hooper (Fri,) studied this question.