Oliver Bond, Greville G. Corbett, Marina Chumakina, and Dunstan Brown (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- October 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780198747291
- eISBN:
- 9780191809705
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198747291.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology, Language Families
Imagine how the discipline of linguistics would be if expert practitioners of different theories met in a collaborative setting to tackle the same challenging data—to test the limits of their model’s ...
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Imagine how the discipline of linguistics would be if expert practitioners of different theories met in a collaborative setting to tackle the same challenging data—to test the limits of their model’s infrastructure and examine how the concrete predictions of their theories differ about the same data. This book represents the result of attempting to achieve this for syntactic theory, using data from Archi (Nakh–Daghestanian, Lezgic), an endangered language with an extremely complex agreement system. We undertake a controlled evaluation of three widely practised syntactic theories, through detailed examination of the theoretical principles underlying the mechanisms that model agreement. Our objective is to assess the tractability and predictive power of these leading models of syntax—Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar (HPSG), Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG), and Minimalism—using a complete set of data on an agreement system from a language that has not hitherto been analysed in these frameworks.Less
Imagine how the discipline of linguistics would be if expert practitioners of different theories met in a collaborative setting to tackle the same challenging data—to test the limits of their model’s infrastructure and examine how the concrete predictions of their theories differ about the same data. This book represents the result of attempting to achieve this for syntactic theory, using data from Archi (Nakh–Daghestanian, Lezgic), an endangered language with an extremely complex agreement system. We undertake a controlled evaluation of three widely practised syntactic theories, through detailed examination of the theoretical principles underlying the mechanisms that model agreement. Our objective is to assess the tractability and predictive power of these leading models of syntax—Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar (HPSG), Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG), and Minimalism—using a complete set of data on an agreement system from a language that has not hitherto been analysed in these frameworks.
Alexandra Y. Aikhenvald
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199683215
- eISBN:
- 9780191764912
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199683215.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Language Families, Syntax and Morphology
Linguistics is the science of language, similar to how mathematics is the science of numbers. A reference grammar is a scientific enterprise. It brings together a coherent treatment of each language ...
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Linguistics is the science of language, similar to how mathematics is the science of numbers. A reference grammar is a scientific enterprise. It brings together a coherent treatment of each language as a system where everything fits together, within the cultural, and historical, context of the language. This book introduces the principles and practice of writing a comprehensive reference grammar. The aim of this book is to offer a guide for creating a reference grammar based on empirical facts and combining description, interpretation, and analysis, spanning phonology, morphology, syntax, discourse, and semantics. The book consists of fifteen chapters and is accompanied by a Glossary of terms.Less
Linguistics is the science of language, similar to how mathematics is the science of numbers. A reference grammar is a scientific enterprise. It brings together a coherent treatment of each language as a system where everything fits together, within the cultural, and historical, context of the language. This book introduces the principles and practice of writing a comprehensive reference grammar. The aim of this book is to offer a guide for creating a reference grammar based on empirical facts and combining description, interpretation, and analysis, spanning phonology, morphology, syntax, discourse, and semantics. The book consists of fifteen chapters and is accompanied by a Glossary of terms.
Gregory D.S. Anderson
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199280315
- eISBN:
- 9780191707186
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199280315.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Language Families
This book presents findings from a long-term study of a range of complex predicate types subsumed under the heading, Auxiliary Verb Constructions (AVCs), drawing on a database of over 800 languages. ...
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This book presents findings from a long-term study of a range of complex predicate types subsumed under the heading, Auxiliary Verb Constructions (AVCs), drawing on a database of over 800 languages. Chapter 1 discusses how the terms auxiliary verb and auxiliary verb construction are understood, and then provides an overview of the kinds of functional categories that AVCs serve to encode. A cursory typology is offered of the patterns of encoding inflectional/morphosyntactic/ functional semantic categories in AVCs, and notions of functional and formal headedness within AVCs are introduced. Five macro-patterns of inflection emerge, each with several sub-patterns. Chapters 2 to 5 are dedicated to the presentation of the varied sub-types of inflectional patterns seen in AVCs. These are called the AUX-headed, LEX-headed, doubled, and the split and split/doubled patterns. Each of these is extensively exemplified. In the final two chapters, various aspects of the diachronic origins of AVCs are discussed. Chapter 6 discusses where AVCs go once they have been grammaticalized, offering a range of complex verb forms that have derived from each of the inflectional macro-patterns of AVCs. Chapter 7 discusses diachronic origins of AVCs. This includes a discussion of both typical lexical source semantics for the grammaticalization paths of individual functional subtypes of AVC as well as the syntactic source construction types for each of the five macro-patterns and some of their more common sub-patterns. These source constructions draw into the discussion of how auxiliary verb constructions fit within the broadest possible typology of complex predicate phenomena. It offers an analysis of not only AVCs, but also such related complex predicate phenomena as serial verb constructions, verb complement structures, coordinate and clause chaining constructions, ‘light’ verbs, etc.Less
This book presents findings from a long-term study of a range of complex predicate types subsumed under the heading, Auxiliary Verb Constructions (AVCs), drawing on a database of over 800 languages. Chapter 1 discusses how the terms auxiliary verb and auxiliary verb construction are understood, and then provides an overview of the kinds of functional categories that AVCs serve to encode. A cursory typology is offered of the patterns of encoding inflectional/morphosyntactic/ functional semantic categories in AVCs, and notions of functional and formal headedness within AVCs are introduced. Five macro-patterns of inflection emerge, each with several sub-patterns. Chapters 2 to 5 are dedicated to the presentation of the varied sub-types of inflectional patterns seen in AVCs. These are called the AUX-headed, LEX-headed, doubled, and the split and split/doubled patterns. Each of these is extensively exemplified. In the final two chapters, various aspects of the diachronic origins of AVCs are discussed. Chapter 6 discusses where AVCs go once they have been grammaticalized, offering a range of complex verb forms that have derived from each of the inflectional macro-patterns of AVCs. Chapter 7 discusses diachronic origins of AVCs. This includes a discussion of both typical lexical source semantics for the grammaticalization paths of individual functional subtypes of AVC as well as the syntactic source construction types for each of the five macro-patterns and some of their more common sub-patterns. These source constructions draw into the discussion of how auxiliary verb constructions fit within the broadest possible typology of complex predicate phenomena. It offers an analysis of not only AVCs, but also such related complex predicate phenomena as serial verb constructions, verb complement structures, coordinate and clause chaining constructions, ‘light’ verbs, etc.
Don Ringe and Ann Taylor
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199207848
- eISBN:
- 9780191779763
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199207848.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Historical Linguistics, Language Families
This volume traces the development of English phonology and morphology from Proto-Germanic to Old English of about the year 900 and describes Old English syntax in a modern framework from a ...
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This volume traces the development of English phonology and morphology from Proto-Germanic to Old English of about the year 900 and describes Old English syntax in a modern framework from a historical perspective. An introduction describing the linguistic state of early Old English in general terms is followed by two chapters detailing the changes that can be shown to have occurred from Proto-Germanic to Proto-Northwest Germanic and from the latter to Proto-West Germanic. The fourth chapter is a grammatical sketch of Proto-West Germanic. There follows a chapter on developments that occurred in the northern part of the West Germanic speech area. Chapter 6 describes the phonological changes that occurred in the separate development of Old English, with special attention to the recoverable relative chronology of the changes; Chapter 7 does the same for morphological changes. Finally, Chapter 8 is a comprehensive description of Old English syntax in a modern theoretical framework, with notes on changes that occurred during the attested Old English period and on what little can be recovered of the syntactic prehistory of the language. The discussion throughout is technical; it is meant to be accessible especially to linguists who do not specialize in Old English nor in historical linguistics, but it will also be of use to students who already have some background in linguistics.Less
This volume traces the development of English phonology and morphology from Proto-Germanic to Old English of about the year 900 and describes Old English syntax in a modern framework from a historical perspective. An introduction describing the linguistic state of early Old English in general terms is followed by two chapters detailing the changes that can be shown to have occurred from Proto-Germanic to Proto-Northwest Germanic and from the latter to Proto-West Germanic. The fourth chapter is a grammatical sketch of Proto-West Germanic. There follows a chapter on developments that occurred in the northern part of the West Germanic speech area. Chapter 6 describes the phonological changes that occurred in the separate development of Old English, with special attention to the recoverable relative chronology of the changes; Chapter 7 does the same for morphological changes. Finally, Chapter 8 is a comprehensive description of Old English syntax in a modern theoretical framework, with notes on changes that occurred during the attested Old English period and on what little can be recovered of the syntactic prehistory of the language. The discussion throughout is technical; it is meant to be accessible especially to linguists who do not specialize in Old English nor in historical linguistics, but it will also be of use to students who already have some background in linguistics.
Hilary M. Chappell (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780198723790
- eISBN:
- 9780191791130
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198723790.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Language Families, Syntax and Morphology
This book presents brand new research into the great structural diversity found in Sinitic languages. While many studies focus principally on Standard Mandarin, this work draws on extensive empirical ...
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This book presents brand new research into the great structural diversity found in Sinitic languages. While many studies focus principally on Standard Mandarin, this work draws on extensive empirical data from lesser-known languages, and seeks to dispel many recurrent linguistic myths about the Sinitic language family. Part I presents findings that show the important interplay of research into diachronic linguistics and typology in China, beginning with a discussion of how to tackle the issue of linguistic diversity in Sinitic languages. Chapters in Part II examine the Sinitic languages from a crosslinguistic perspective with pan-Sinitic explorations of demonstrative paradigms; bare classifier phrases in relation to the coding of definiteness; and of the diachronic development of two main structures for comparatives of inequality with respect to issues in language contact. Part III is devoted to individual studies of linguistic micro-areas in China: Pinghua and the Guangxi Autonomous Region in the far South of China; Shaowu Min in the northwestern corner of Fujian province; the Wu dialect of Fuyang; and the Hui’an Southern Min dialect in the South of Fujian province.Less
This book presents brand new research into the great structural diversity found in Sinitic languages. While many studies focus principally on Standard Mandarin, this work draws on extensive empirical data from lesser-known languages, and seeks to dispel many recurrent linguistic myths about the Sinitic language family. Part I presents findings that show the important interplay of research into diachronic linguistics and typology in China, beginning with a discussion of how to tackle the issue of linguistic diversity in Sinitic languages. Chapters in Part II examine the Sinitic languages from a crosslinguistic perspective with pan-Sinitic explorations of demonstrative paradigms; bare classifier phrases in relation to the coding of definiteness; and of the diachronic development of two main structures for comparatives of inequality with respect to issues in language contact. Part III is devoted to individual studies of linguistic micro-areas in China: Pinghua and the Guangxi Autonomous Region in the far South of China; Shaowu Min in the northwestern corner of Fujian province; the Wu dialect of Fuyang; and the Hui’an Southern Min dialect in the South of Fujian province.
R. M. W Dixon
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- August 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780198702900
- eISBN:
- 9780191772405
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198702900.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics, Language Families
This book studies the languages of Yidiñ, Warrgamay and Dyribal and the interrelations between them. The introductory chapter sets out the anthropological and linguistic background. In Part I there ...
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This book studies the languages of Yidiñ, Warrgamay and Dyribal and the interrelations between them. The introductory chapter sets out the anthropological and linguistic background. In Part I there is a through examination of, and comparison between, the gender system in Dyirbal and the set of nominal classifiers in Yidiñ. The chapters in Part II describe Dyirbal’s unusual kinship system and the ‘mother-in-law’ language style, and examines the origins of ‘mother-in-law’ vocabulary in Dyirbal and in Yidiñ. There are four grammatical studies in Part III, dealing with syntactic orientation, serial verb constructions, complementation strategies, and grammatical reanalysis. Part IV covers grammatical and lexical variation across the dialects of Dyirbal, compensatory phonological changes, and a study of language contact across the Cairns rainforest region. The two final chapters in Part V, recount the sad stories of how the Yidiñ and Dyirbal languages slowly slipped into oblivion.Less
This book studies the languages of Yidiñ, Warrgamay and Dyribal and the interrelations between them. The introductory chapter sets out the anthropological and linguistic background. In Part I there is a through examination of, and comparison between, the gender system in Dyirbal and the set of nominal classifiers in Yidiñ. The chapters in Part II describe Dyirbal’s unusual kinship system and the ‘mother-in-law’ language style, and examines the origins of ‘mother-in-law’ vocabulary in Dyirbal and in Yidiñ. There are four grammatical studies in Part III, dealing with syntactic orientation, serial verb constructions, complementation strategies, and grammatical reanalysis. Part IV covers grammatical and lexical variation across the dialects of Dyirbal, compensatory phonological changes, and a study of language contact across the Cairns rainforest region. The two final chapters in Part V, recount the sad stories of how the Yidiñ and Dyirbal languages slowly slipped into oblivion.
Jan Rijkhoff and Eva van Lier (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- September 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199668441
- eISBN:
- 9780191748707
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199668441.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology, Language Families
This book is the first major cross-linguistic study of ‘flexible words’, i.e. words that cannot be classified in terms of the traditional lexical categories Verb, Noun, Adjective or Adverb. This is ...
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This book is the first major cross-linguistic study of ‘flexible words’, i.e. words that cannot be classified in terms of the traditional lexical categories Verb, Noun, Adjective or Adverb. This is because flexible words can -without special morphosyntactic marking- serve in functions for which other languages must employ members of two or more of the four traditional, ‘specialised’ word classes. Thus, flexible words are underspecified for communicative functions like ‘predicating’ (verbal function), ‘referring’ (nominal function) or ‘modifying’ (a function typically associated with adjectives and e.g. manner adverbs). Even though languages with flexible word classes have been known to exist for more than a century, the phenomenon of lexical flexibility has not played a role in the development of linguistic typology or modern grammatical theory. The current volume aims to remedy this situation by offering ten detailed studies on lexical word classes, investigating their properties and what it means for the grammar of a language to have such a word class. Each contributor to this volume is an expert on lexical flexibility, either because the author has studied lexical flexibility in a particular language, or because (s)he has investigated flexible word classes across languages. Furthermore, this collection of articles provides a variety of theoretical perspectives on the phenomenon of lexical flexibility. The book shows that the recognition and study of flexible words adds significantly to our understanding of the nature of human language and its place in human cognition.Less
This book is the first major cross-linguistic study of ‘flexible words’, i.e. words that cannot be classified in terms of the traditional lexical categories Verb, Noun, Adjective or Adverb. This is because flexible words can -without special morphosyntactic marking- serve in functions for which other languages must employ members of two or more of the four traditional, ‘specialised’ word classes. Thus, flexible words are underspecified for communicative functions like ‘predicating’ (verbal function), ‘referring’ (nominal function) or ‘modifying’ (a function typically associated with adjectives and e.g. manner adverbs). Even though languages with flexible word classes have been known to exist for more than a century, the phenomenon of lexical flexibility has not played a role in the development of linguistic typology or modern grammatical theory. The current volume aims to remedy this situation by offering ten detailed studies on lexical word classes, investigating their properties and what it means for the grammar of a language to have such a word class. Each contributor to this volume is an expert on lexical flexibility, either because the author has studied lexical flexibility in a particular language, or because (s)he has investigated flexible word classes across languages. Furthermore, this collection of articles provides a variety of theoretical perspectives on the phenomenon of lexical flexibility. The book shows that the recognition and study of flexible words adds significantly to our understanding of the nature of human language and its place in human cognition.
Adam Ledgeway
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199584376
- eISBN:
- 9780191741463
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199584376.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Language Families
This book examines the grammatical changes that took place in the transition from Latin to the Romance languages. The emerging language underwent changes in three fundamental areas involving the noun ...
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This book examines the grammatical changes that took place in the transition from Latin to the Romance languages. The emerging language underwent changes in three fundamental areas involving the noun phrase, verb phrase, and the sentence. The impact of the changes can be seen in the reduction of the Latin case system; the appearance of auxiliary verb structures to mark such categories as tense, mood, and voice; and a shift towards greater rigidification of word order. The book considers how far these changes are interrelated and compares their various manifestations and pace of change across the different standard and non-standard varieties of Romance. It describes the historical background to the emergence of the Romance varieties and their Latin ancestry, considering in detail the richly documented diachronic variation exhibited by the Romance family. The book reviews the accounts and explanations that have been proposed within competing theoretical frameworks, and considers how far traditional ideas should be reinterpreted in light of recent theoretical developments. This account shows that the transition from Latin to Romance is not only of great intrinsic interest, but both provides a means of challenging linguistic orthodoxies and presents opportunities to shape new perspectives on language change, structure, and variation.Less
This book examines the grammatical changes that took place in the transition from Latin to the Romance languages. The emerging language underwent changes in three fundamental areas involving the noun phrase, verb phrase, and the sentence. The impact of the changes can be seen in the reduction of the Latin case system; the appearance of auxiliary verb structures to mark such categories as tense, mood, and voice; and a shift towards greater rigidification of word order. The book considers how far these changes are interrelated and compares their various manifestations and pace of change across the different standard and non-standard varieties of Romance. It describes the historical background to the emergence of the Romance varieties and their Latin ancestry, considering in detail the richly documented diachronic variation exhibited by the Romance family. The book reviews the accounts and explanations that have been proposed within competing theoretical frameworks, and considers how far traditional ideas should be reinterpreted in light of recent theoretical developments. This account shows that the transition from Latin to Romance is not only of great intrinsic interest, but both provides a means of challenging linguistic orthodoxies and presents opportunities to shape new perspectives on language change, structure, and variation.
Alexandra Y. Aikhenvald and R. M. W. Dixon (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- April 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780198701316
- eISBN:
- 9780191770593
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198701316.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics, Language Families
This book offers both a linguistic and anthropological perspective on the expression of information sources, as well as inferences, assumptions, probability and possibility, and gradations of doubt ...
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This book offers both a linguistic and anthropological perspective on the expression of information sources, as well as inferences, assumptions, probability and possibility, and gradations of doubt and beliefs in a range of languages. Twelve different languages are investigated, from families including Tibeto-Burman, Nakh-Dagestani, and Austronesian, all of which share the property of requiring the source of information to be specified in every sentence. In these languages, it may not be possible to say merely that ‘the man went fishing’. Instead, the source of evidence for the statement must also be specified, usually through the use of evidential markers. For example, it may be necessary to indicate whether the speaker saw the man go fishing; has simply assumed that the man went fishing; or was told that he went fishing by a third party. Some languages, such as Hinuq and Tatar, distinguish between first-hand and non first-hand information sources; others, such as Ersu, mark three distinct types of information – directly required, inferred or assumed, and reported. Some require an even greater level of specification: Ashéninka Perené, from South America, has a specific marker to express suspicions or misgivings.Less
This book offers both a linguistic and anthropological perspective on the expression of information sources, as well as inferences, assumptions, probability and possibility, and gradations of doubt and beliefs in a range of languages. Twelve different languages are investigated, from families including Tibeto-Burman, Nakh-Dagestani, and Austronesian, all of which share the property of requiring the source of information to be specified in every sentence. In these languages, it may not be possible to say merely that ‘the man went fishing’. Instead, the source of evidence for the statement must also be specified, usually through the use of evidential markers. For example, it may be necessary to indicate whether the speaker saw the man go fishing; has simply assumed that the man went fishing; or was told that he went fishing by a third party. Some languages, such as Hinuq and Tatar, distinguish between first-hand and non first-hand information sources; others, such as Ersu, mark three distinct types of information – directly required, inferred or assumed, and reported. Some require an even greater level of specification: Ashéninka Perené, from South America, has a specific marker to express suspicions or misgivings.
Steven N. Dworkin
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199541140
- eISBN:
- 9780191741395
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199541140.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Historical Linguistics, Language Families
This history of the Spanish lexicon is written from the interacting perspectives of linguistic and cultural change and in the light of advances in the study of language contact and lexical change. ...
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This history of the Spanish lexicon is written from the interacting perspectives of linguistic and cultural change and in the light of advances in the study of language contact and lexical change. The book describes the language inherited from spoken Latin in the Iberian Peninsula during six centuries of Roman occupation and examines the degree to which it imported words from the languages — of which only Basque survives — of pre-Roman Spain. It then shows how Germanic words were imported either indirectly through Latin or Old French or directly by contact with the Visigoths. The book describes the importation of Arabisms following the eighth-century Arab conquest of Spain, distinguishing those documented in medieval sources from those adopted for everyday use, many of which survive in modern Spanish. It considers the influence of Old French and Old Provençal and identifies late direct and indirect borrowings from Latin, including the Italian elements taken up during the Renaissance. After outlining minor influences from languages such as Flemish, Portuguese, and Catalan, the book examines the effects on the lexicon of contact between Spanish and the indigenous languages of South and Central America, and the impact of contact with English.Less
This history of the Spanish lexicon is written from the interacting perspectives of linguistic and cultural change and in the light of advances in the study of language contact and lexical change. The book describes the language inherited from spoken Latin in the Iberian Peninsula during six centuries of Roman occupation and examines the degree to which it imported words from the languages — of which only Basque survives — of pre-Roman Spain. It then shows how Germanic words were imported either indirectly through Latin or Old French or directly by contact with the Visigoths. The book describes the importation of Arabisms following the eighth-century Arab conquest of Spain, distinguishing those documented in medieval sources from those adopted for everyday use, many of which survive in modern Spanish. It considers the influence of Old French and Old Provençal and identifies late direct and indirect borrowings from Latin, including the Italian elements taken up during the Renaissance. After outlining minor influences from languages such as Flemish, Portuguese, and Catalan, the book examines the effects on the lexicon of contact between Spanish and the indigenous languages of South and Central America, and the impact of contact with English.
Justice and Legitimacy in Upbringing
Clausewitz's Puzzle
International Legitimacy and World Society
Levelling the Playing Field
Multicultural Nationalism
The Politics of Public Service Bargains
Corporate Governance, Competition, and Political Parties
The European Union and the People
Citizenship and the Environment
