Nonfinite Structures in Theory and Change
Nonfinite Structures in Theory and Change

Author: D. Gary Miller

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 492

ISBN-13: 9780198299608

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This book seeks to answer the questions: why do grammars change, and why is the rate of such change so variable? A principal focus is on changes in English between the Anglo-Saxon and early modern periods. The author frames his analysis in a comparative framework with extended discussions of language change in a wide range of other Indo-European languages. He deploys Chomsky's minimalist framework in a fruitful marriage of comparative and theoretical linguistics within an argument that will be accessible to practitioners in both fields.

Language Contact, Continuity and Change in the Genesis of Modern Hebrew
Language Contact, Continuity and Change in the Genesis of Modern Hebrew

Author: Edit Doron

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2019-09-18

Total Pages: 402

ISBN-13: 9027262438

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The emergence of Modern Hebrew as a spoken language constitutes a unique event in modern history: a language which for generations only existed in the written mode underwent a process popularly called “revival”, acquiring native speakers and becoming a language spoken for everyday use. Despite the attention it has drawn, this particular case of language-shift, which differs from the better-documented cases of creoles and mixed languages, has not been discussed within the framework of the literature on contact-induced change. The linguistic properties of the process have not been systematically studied, and the status of the emergent language as a (dis)continuous stage of its historical sources has not been evaluated in the context of other known cases of language shift. The present collection presents detailed case studies of the syntactic evolution of Modern Hebrew, alongside general theoretical discussion, with the aim of bringing the case of Hebrew to the attention of language-contact scholars, while bringing the insights of the literature on language contact to help shed light on the case of Hebrew.

The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary English Pronunciation
The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary English Pronunciation

Author: Okim Kang

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2017-11-08

Total Pages: 821

ISBN-13: 1351383981

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The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary English Pronunciation provides a comprehensive survey of this field covering both theoretical and practical perspectives on pronunciation. In 35 chapters contributed by leading scholars from around the world, this Handbook examines: linguistic and historical background of sound systems and theoretical issues linked to sound changes; pronunciation acquisition and factors related to speech production; pronunciation research and applications to second language pronunciation; the link between pronunciation and other language skills including perception and other socio-cultural factors; pronunciation and its relation to World Englishes. The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary English Pronunciation will be essential reading for anyone with an interest in pronunciation.

Variable Properties in Language
Variable Properties in Language

Author: David W. Lightfoot

Publisher: Georgetown University Press

Published: 2019-07-01

Total Pages: 227

ISBN-13: 1626166641

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This edited volume, based on papers presented at the 2017 Georgetown University Round Table on Language and Linguistics (GURT), approaches the study of language variation from a variety of angles. Language variation research asks broad questions such as, "Why are languages' grammatical structures different from one another?" as well as more specific word-level questions such as, "Why are words that are pronounced differently still recognized to be the same words?" Too often, research on variation has been siloed based on the particular question—sociolinguists do not talk to historical linguists, who do not talk to phoneticians, and so on. This edited volume seeks to bring discussions from different subfields of linguistics together to explore language variation in a broader sense and acknowledge the complexity and interwoven nature of variation itself.

Late Modern English Syntax
Late Modern English Syntax

Author: Marianne Hundt

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2014-08-14

Total Pages: 409

ISBN-13: 1139992406

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The Late Modern period is the first in the history of English for which an unprecedented wealth of textual material exists. Using increasingly sophisticated databases, the contributions in this volume explore grammatical usage from the period, specifically morphological and syntactic change, in a broad context. Some chapters explore the socio-historical background of the period while others provide information on prescriptivism, newspaper language, language contact, and regional variation in British and American English. Internal processes of change are discussed against grammaticalisation theory and construction grammar and the rich body of textual evidence is used to draw inferences on the precise nature of historical change. Exposing readers to a wealth of data that informs the description of a broad range of syntactic phenomena, this book is ideal for graduate students and researchers interested in historical linguistics, corpus linguistics and language development.

Variation in Language: System- and Usage-based Approaches
Variation in Language: System- and Usage-based Approaches

Author: Aria Adli

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2015-07-24

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 3110346850

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Where is the locus of language variation? In the grammar, outside the grammar or somewhere in between? Taking up the debate between system- and usage-based approaches, this volume provides new discussions of fundamental issues of language variation. It includes several highly insightful theoretical contributions as well as innovative empirical studies considering different types of data, the role of priming in language change and rare phenomena.

Towards a Standard English
Towards a Standard English

Author: Dieter Stein

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter

Published: 2012-10-25

Total Pages: 332

ISBN-13: 3110864282

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The future of English linguistics as envisaged by the editors of Topics in English Linguistics lies in empirical studies which integrate work in English linguistics into general and theoretical linguistics on the one hand, and comparative linguistics on the other. The TiEL series features volumes that present interesting new data and analyses, and above all fresh approaches that contribute to the overall aim of the series, which is to further outstanding research in English linguistics.

The Structure of Creole Words
The Structure of Creole Words

Author: Parth Bhatt

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter

Published: 2012-02-13

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 3110891689

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This volume brings together articles that are focused on segmental, syllabic and morphological aspects of creole words, thus contributing to the ongoing debates about the nature of phonology and morphology and their role in emergence and development of these languages. The papers cover a wide range of creole languages with different lexifier languages and address empirical, typological, historical and theoretical issues, drawing our attention to hitherto unknown phenomena or offering interesting new analyses of established facts. With contributions from: Parth Bhatt, Alain Kihm, Thomas Klein, Emmanuel Nikiema, Ingo Plag, Marina Pucciarelli, Jean-Louis Rougé, Eric Russel-Webb, Shobha Satyanath, Emmanuel Schang, Mareile Schramm, Norval Smith, Marleen van de Vate and Tonjes Veenstra.