This book is the final version of the widely-circulated 1993 Technical Report that introduces a conception of grammar in which well-formedness is defined as optimality with respect to a ranked set of universal constraints.

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• Final version of the widely circulated 1993 Technical Report that was the seminal work in Optimality Theory, never before available in book format.
  
• Serves as an excellent introduction to the principles and practice of Optimality Theory.
  
• Offers proposals and analytic commentary that suggest many directions for further development for the professional.