Download or read book Reconstructing Grammar written by Spike Gildea and published by John Benjamins Publishing. This book was released on 2000 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Comparative linguistics and grammaticalization theory both belong to the broader category of historical linguistics, yet few linguists practice both. The methods and goals of each group seem largely distinct: comparative linguists have by and large avoided reconstructing grammar, while grammaticalization theoreticians have either focused on explaining attested historical change or used internal reconstruction to formulate hypotheses about processes of change. In this collection, some of the leading voices in grammaticalization theory apply their methods to comparative data (largely drawn from indigenous languages of the Americas), showing not only that grammar can be reconstructed, but that the process of reconstructing grammar can yield interesting theoretical and typological insights.
Download or read book Reconstructing Grammar written by Spike Gildea and published by John Benjamins Publishing. This book was released on 2000-07-15 with total page 283 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Comparative linguistics and grammaticalization theory both belong to the broader category of historical linguistics, yet few linguists practice both. The methods and goals of each group seem largely distinct: comparative linguists have by and large avoided reconstructing grammar, while grammaticalization theoreticians have either focused on explaining attested historical change or used internal reconstruction to formulate hypotheses about processes of change. In this collection, some of the leading voices in grammaticalization theory apply their methods to comparative data (largely drawn from indigenous languages of the Americas), showing not only that grammar can be reconstructed, but that the process of reconstructing grammar can yield interesting theoretical and typological insights.
Download or read book On Reconstructing Grammar written by Spike Gildea and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book shows how to combine grammaticalization theory with the comparative method to reconstruct the grammar of Proto-Languages. To showcase the methodology, seven morphosyntactically distinct verbal systems in the Cariban family--three ergative, three nominative, and one inverse--are reconstructed. Spike Gildea presents detailed data in his reconstruction of Proto-Carib verbal and nominal morphologies. The inverse verbal system reconstructs to Proto-Carib; the other six are innovative, and reconstruct to Proto-Carib nonfinite source-constructions.
Download or read book On reconstructing Proto Bantu grammar written by Koen Bostoen and published by Language Science Press. This book was released on 2023-03-15 with total page 862 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is about reconstructing the grammar of Proto-Bantu, the ancestral language at the origin of current-day Bantu languages. While Bantu is a low-level branch of Niger-Congo, the world’s biggest phylum, it is still Africa’s biggest language family. This edited volume attempts to retrieve the phonology, morphology and syntax used by the earliest Bantu speakers to communicate with each other, discusses methods to do so, and looks at issues raised by these academic endeavours. It is a collective effort involving a fine mix of junior and senior scholars representing several generations of expert historical-comparative Bantu research. It is the first systematic approach to Proto-Bantu grammar since Meeussen’s Bantu Grammatical Reconstructions (1967). Based on new bodies of evidence from the last five decades, most notably from northwestern Bantu languages, this book considerably transforms our understanding of Proto-Bantu grammar and offers new methodological approaches to Bantu grammatical reconstruction.
Download or read book Grammatical Reconstruction written by Don Daniels and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2020-03-09 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is still widespread disagreement among historical linguists about how, or whether, syntactic reconstruction can be done. This book presents a comprehensive methodology for syntactic reconstruction, grounded in a constructional understanding of language. The author then uses that methodology to reconstruct Proto-Sogeram, the ancestor to ten languages in Papua New Guinea. Chapters are devoted to phonology, lexicon, verbal morphosyntax, nominal morphosyntax, and syntactic constructions. The work culminates in a sketch of Proto-Sogeram grammar. Based largely on the author's original fieldwork, this is an innovative application of a novel methodology to new data, and the most complete reconstruction of a Papuan proto-language to date. It will be of interest to scholars of language change, language reconstruction, typology, and Papuan languages.
Download or read book Universal Grammar in the Reconstruction of Ancient Languages written by Katalin É. Kiss and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2011-12-22 with total page 533 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Philologists aiming to reconstruct the grammar of ancient languages face the problem that the available data always underdetermine grammar, and in the case of gaps, possible mistakes, and idiosyncracies there are no native speakers to consult. The authors of this volume overcome this difficulty by adopting the methodology that a child uses in the course of language acquisition: they interpret the data they have access to in terms of Universal Grammar (more precisely, in terms of a hypothetical model of UG). Their studies, discussing syntactic and morphosyntactic questions of Older Egyptian, Coptic, Sumerian, Akkadian, Biblical Hebrew, Classical Greek, Latin, and Classical Sanskrit, demonstrate that descriptive problems which have proved unsolvable for the traditional, inductive approach can be reduced to the interaction of regular operations and constraints of UG. The proposed analyses also bear on linguistic theory. They provide crucial new data and new generalizations concerning such basic questions of generative syntax as discourse-motivated movement operations, the correlation of movement and agreement, a shift from lexical case marking to structural case marking, the licensing of structural case in infinitival constructions, the structure of coordinate phrases, possessive constructions with an external possessor, and the role of event structure in syntax. In addition to confirming or refuting certain specific hypotheses, they also provide empirical evidence of the perhaps most basic tenet of generative theory, according to which UG is part of the genetic endowment of the human species - i.e., human languages do not "develop" parallel with the development of human civilization. Some of the languages examined in this volume were spoken as much as 5000 years old, still their grammars do not differ in any relevant respect from the grammars of languages spoken today.
Download or read book Reconstructing Syntax written by and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2020-06-15 with total page 389 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During several decades, syntactic reconstruction has been more or less regarded as a bootless and an unsuccessful venture, not least due to the heavy criticism in the 1970s from scholars like Watkins, Jeffers, Lightfoot, etc. This fallacious view culminated in Lightfoot’s (2002: 625) conclusion: “[i]f somebody thinks that they can reconstruct grammars more successfully and in more widespread fashion, let them tell us their methods and show us their results. Then we’ll eat the pudding.” This volume provides methods for the identification of i) cognates in syntax, and ii) the directionality of syntactic change, showcasing the results in the introduction and eight articles. These examples are offered as both tastier and also more nourishing than the pudding Lightfoot had in mind when discarding the viability of reconstructing syntax.
Download or read book Deconstructing and Reconstructing Sentences written by Joseph Gansrow and published by . This book was released on 2015-08-04 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Designed to target the deficiencies in students’ writing and reading abilities, this easy-to-use workbook and quick reference guide provides concise explanations and ample practice with core principles of grammar and style. Because it’s a workbook, it affords users the opportunity for targeted practice and enrichment; since it’s also a mini-reference manual, it serves as a vehicle for building a coherent writing and reading curriculum.
Download or read book The Genesis of Grammar written by Bernd Heine and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2007-10-04 with total page 437 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book reconstructs what the earliest grammars might have been and shows how they could have led to the languages of modern humankind. It considers whether these languages derive from a single ancestral language; what the structure of language was when it first evolved; and how the properties associated with modern human languages first arose.
Download or read book Principles of Syntactic Reconstruction written by Gisella Ferraresi and published by John Benjamins Publishing. This book was released on 2008 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a collection of state-of-the-art papers in the field of syntactic reconstruction. It treats a range of topics which are representative of current debates in historical syntax. The novelty and merit of the present book is, the editors believe, that, in contrast to most previous work on diachronic syntax, it combines the perspectives of the traditional philological research on syntactic reconstruction with the insights of modern syntactic theory, as it is emphasised in the Foreword by Giuseppe Longobardi. The volume includes articles by well-recognized researchers in historical linguistics with a focus on syntactic change. In the present volume syntactic reconstruction is discussed from a variety of angles, including historical linguistics, phenomena of language contact, generative approaches as well as typological and variationist research. In the articles, languages from a diverse range of families are discussed, including Indo-European, North and South Caucasian, Sino-Tibetan, and Turkic.
Download or read book Universal Grammar in the Reconstruction of Ancient Languages written by Katalin É Kiss and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2005 with total page 538 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The architecture of the human language faculty has been one of the main foci of the linguistic research of the last half century. This branch of linguistics, broadly known as Generative Grammar, is concerned with the formulation of explanatory formal accounts of linguistic phenomena with the ulterior goal of gaining insight into the properties of the 'language organ'. The series comprises high quality monographs and collected volumes that address such issues. The topics in this series range from phonology to semantics, from syntax to information structure, from mathematical linguistics to studies of the lexicon.
Download or read book Syntactic Reconstruction and Proto Germanic written by George Walkden and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2014-08-21 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers reconstructions of various syntactic properties of Proto-Germanic, including verb position in main clauses, the syntax of the wh-system, and the (non-)occurrence of null pronominal subjects and objects. Although previous studies have looked at the lexical and phonological reconstruction of Proto-Germanic, little is currently known about the syntax of the language, and it has even been argued that the reconstruction of syntax is impossible. Dr Walkden uses extensive evidence from the early Germanic languages - Old English, Old High German, Old Saxon, Old Norse, and Gothic - to show that syntactic reconstruction is not only possible but also profitable. He argues that while the reconstruction of syntax differs from lexical-phonological reconstruction due to the so-called 'correspondence problem', this is not insurmountable. In fact, the approach taken in current Minimalist theories, in which syntactic variation is attributed to the properties of lexical items, opens the door for syntactic reconstruction as lexical reconstruction. The book also discusses practical solutions for circumventing the correspondence problem, in particular the use of both distributional properties of lexical items and the phonological forms of such items in order to establish cognacy. The book will be of interest to historical linguists working on syntactic reconstruction and the Germanic languages, from graduate level upwards, as well as to advanced students of syntactic change more generally.
Download or read book A Concise Historical Grammar of the Albanian Language written by Vladimir Ė Orel and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2000 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book deals with the historical development of the Albanian language (its phonology, morphology and lexicon) from prehistoric times to our days. The main focus of the book is the reconstruction of Proto-Albanian in its relation to its ancestor, Indo-European, and to modern Albanian.
Download or read book Reconstructing Prehistorical Dialects written by Henning Andersen and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2011-07-21 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS is a series of books that open new perspectives in our understanding of language. The series publishes state-of-the-art work on core areas of linguistics across theoretical frameworks as well as studies that provide new insights by building bridges to neighbouring fields such as neuroscience and cognitive science. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS considers itself a forum for cutting-edge research based on solid empirical data on language in its various manifestations, including sign languages. It regards linguistic variation in its synchronic and diachronic dimensions as well as in its social contexts as important sources of insight for a better understanding of the design of linguistic systems and the ecology and evolution of language. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS publishes monographs and outstanding dissertations as well as edited volumes, which provide the opportunity to address controversial topics from different empirical and theoretical viewpoints. High quality standards are ensured through anonymous reviewing.
Download or read book Interfaces in Functional Discourse Grammar written by Lucia Contreras-García and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2021-08-23 with total page 457 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In grammar design, a basic distinction is made between derivational and modular architectures. This raises the question of which organization of grammar can deal with linguistic phenomena more appropriately. The studies contained in the present volume explore the interface relations between different levels of linguistic representation in Functional Discourse Grammar as presented in Hengeveld and Mackenzie (2008) and Keizer (2015). This theory analyses linguistic expressions at four linguistic levels: interpersonal, representational, morphosyntactic and phonological. The articles address issues such as the possible correspondences and mismatches between those levels as well as the conditions which constrain the combinations of levels in well-formed expressions. Additionally, the theory is tested by examining various grammatical phenomena with a focus both on the English language and on typological adequacy: anaphora, raising, phonological reduction, noun incorporation, reflexives and reciprocals, serial verbs, the passive voice, time measurement constructions, coordination, nominal modification, and connectives. Overall, the volume provides both theoretical and descriptive insights which are of relevance to linguistics in general.
Download or read book Case Typology and Grammar written by Anna Siewierska and published by John Benjamins Publishing. This book was released on 1998-05-15 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The present volume is a collection of fifteen original articles that include descriptive, typological and/or theoretical studies of a number of morphosyntactic phenomena, such as case, transitivity, grammaticalization, valency alternations, etc., in a variety of languages or language groups, and discussions concerning theoretical issues in specific grammatical frameworks. The collection, written in honor of the Australian linguist Barry J. Blake on his 60th birthday, thematically reflects the field that Professor Blake has worked in over the past three decades. The volume will be of special interest to researchers in morphosyntax, and linguistic typology. In addition, scholars in discourse grammar, historical linguistics, theoretical syntax, semantics, language acquisition, and language contact will find articles of interest in the book.
Download or read book A Grammar of Tariana from Northwest Amazonia written by Alexandra Y. Aikhenvald and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2003-08-07 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a comprehensive reference grammar of Tariana, an endangered Arawak language from a remote region in the northwest Amazonian jungle. Its speakers traditionally marry someone speaking a different language, and as a result most people are fluent in five or six languages. Because of this rampant multilingualism, Tariana combines a number of features inherited from the protolanguage with properties diffused from neighbouring but unrelated Tucanoan languages. Typologically unusual features of the language include: an array of classifiers independent of genders, complex serial verbs, case marking depending on the topicality of a noun, and double marking of case and of number. Tariana has obligatory evidentiality: every sentence contains a special element indicating whether the information was seen, heard, or inferred by the speaker, or whether the speaker acquired it from somebody else. This grammar will be a valuable source-book for linguists and others interested in natural languages.
