Give Constructions across Languages
Give Constructions across Languages

Author: Myriam Bouveret

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2021-03-15

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 902726015X

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This cognitive contrastive study of ten languages (Chinese, Dalabon, English, French, Spanish, Romanian, Kurdish, Khmer, Polish, Tibetan) focuses on the concept of giving from six main points of view, namely argument structure, lexical semantics and event structure, role marking in the three argument construction and in other constructions, lexicalization, grammaticalization and constructionalization of the verb from a cognitive construction grammar point of view, and central and extended meanings. It is proposed that a continuum approach to grammar and lexicon is needed in order to describe the typological and historical facts. The volume argues for a concrete and abstract transfer ‘cluster model’ involving coverage of lexical and grammatical extension or bleaching phenomena and that the semantic extensions (metaphorical and otherwise) exploit various portions of this schema. The volume is deeply anchored in the Cognitive Construction Grammar theoretical movement, and proposes analyses of constructional phenomena to illustrate a grammar to lexicon continuum, in synchrony and diachrony: language change, grammaticalization chains, constructionalization analysis, and an invariant hypothesis of giving as a basic activity in human cognition.

Constructions across Grammars
Constructions across Grammars

Author: Martin Hilpert

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2016-03-22

Total Pages: 206

ISBN-13: 9027267081

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Up to now, most research in Construction Grammar has focused on single languages, most notably English. This volume aims to broaden the scope of Construction Grammar towards issues in bi- and multilingualism, second language learning, and generalizations across different languages and language varieties. The contributions in this volume show that speakers entertain generalizations across their repertoire of languages, which holds important implications for a multilingual Construction Grammar. Originally published in Constructions and Frames 6:2 (2014).

Contrastive Studies in Construction Grammar
Contrastive Studies in Construction Grammar

Author: Hans Christian Boas

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 255

ISBN-13: 9027204322

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The papers in this volume provide a contrastive application of Construction Grammar. By referencing a well-described constructional phenomenon in English, each paper provides a solid foundation for describing and analyzing its constructional counterpart in another language. This approach shows that the semantic description (including discourse-pragmatic and functioanl factors) of an English construction can be regarded as a first step towards a "tertium comparationis" that can be employed for comparing and contrasting the formal properties of constructional counterparts in other languages. Thus, the meaning pole of constructions should be regarded as the primary basis for comparisons of constructions across languages - the form pole is only secondary. This volume shows that constructions are viable descriptive and analytical tools for cross-linguistic comparisons that make it possible to capture both language-specific (idiosyncratic) properties as well as cross-linguistic generalizations.

Existential Constructions across Languages
Existential Constructions across Languages

Author: Laure Sarda

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2023-07-15

Total Pages: 364

ISBN-13: 9027252882

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This volume reflects the centrality of the existential construction in current linguistic research and offers studies that both consolidate and challenge established research agendas. It addresses (i) a variety of constructions related to ‘prototypical’ existentials (including the have-possessive construction), and investigates (ii) the relationships between locative, existential, and information structure, (iii) the quantification of the pivot and (iv) the issue of negative existentials. It brings together different and complementary approaches (functional, cognitive, pragmatic, typological, comparative, diachronic, philosophical) based on a wide variety of data sources. The contributions illustrate how the so-called existential construction can take a variety of forms – more or less grammaticalized – and functions – ranging from the expression of literal existence to that of localization and discursive focus – in a wide range of languages. The book will be valuable for linguists, researchers or students, interested in the cross-linguistic manifestations of existential constructions at the interface between syntax, semantics and information structure.

The Linguistics of Giving
The Linguistics of Giving

Author: John Newman

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 1998-02-15

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 9027275580

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In this collection of papers twelve linguists explore a range of interesting properties of ‘give’ verbs. The volume offers an in-depth look at many morphological, syntactic, and semantic properties of ‘give’ verbs, including both literal and figurative senses, across languages. Topics include: an apparent zero-morpheme realisation of ‘give’ in a Papuan language; noun plus causative-like suffix expressing the ‘give’ concept in Nahuatl; ‘give’ and other ditransitive constructions in Zulu; the complex verbal morphologies associated with ‘give’ verbs in Chipewyan, Cora, and Sochiapan Chinantec; the elaborate classificatory system found with ‘give’ verbs in Chipewyan and Cora; ‘give’, ‘have’ and ‘take’ constructions in Slavic languages; the expression of ‘give’ in American Sign Language; the origin of the German es gibt construction; the extension of ‘give’ to an adverbial marker in Thai, Khmer, and Vietnamese; the syntax and semantics of Dutch ‘give’; first language acquisition of possession terms.

Ten Lectures on Construction Grammar and Typology
Ten Lectures on Construction Grammar and Typology

Author: William Croft

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2020-09-25

Total Pages: 321

ISBN-13: 900436353X

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In Ten Lectures on Construction Grammar and Typology, William Croft presents a unified theory of linguistic form and meaning that encompasses crosslinguistic diversity, verbalization and language change.

Applicative Constructions in the World’s Languages
Applicative Constructions in the World’s Languages

Author: Fernando Zuniga

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2024-01-29

Total Pages: 1100

ISBN-13: 3110730952

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This book presents a state-of-the-art cross-linguistic survey of applicative constructions in the functional-typological tradition. An introductory section sets the terminological and analytical stage, presents the methodology used by the different chapters, and provides a typological outlook. The individual contributions address the morphological, syntactic and semantic variation of applicatives, as well as their discourse-pragmatic function. They cover all major language families and some isolates that feature some illuminating version of the phenomenon, paying special attention to language-internal variation and unity. The phenomena surveyed range from those instances usually considered canonical (valency-increasing, syntactically and semantically predictable, productive, dedicated, and optional) to those occasionally understudied in descriptive works and frequently neglected in comparative studies (valency-neutral, rather unpredictable, lexicalized, syncretic, and/or obligatory).

Give
Give

Author: John Newman

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter

Published: 2010-12-14

Total Pages: 341

ISBN-13: 3110823713

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Give: A Cognitive Linguistic Study (Cognitive Linguistic Research).

The Ghanaian linguistics nexus
The Ghanaian linguistics nexus

Author: Christopher R. Green

Publisher: Language Science Press

Published: 2024-06-17

Total Pages: 314

ISBN-13: 3961104697

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There is a long and rich tradition of excellence in Ghanaian linguistics and the detailed study of Ghanaian languages. This tradition has expanded by leaps and bounds in recent years, thanks in part to a cadre of renowned and highly productive Ghanaian linguists conducting research at universities around the globe, as well as in Ghana itself. So too has the commitment to careful description, documentation, and theorizing underlying this tradition been extended to the students that these scholars have trained. The papers in this volume reflect the vast reach of this research tradition, grounded in but expanding beyond Ghanaian languages, ranging from experimental phonetics, to language description, to political discourse analysis.

Studies in Ditransitive Constructions
Studies in Ditransitive Constructions

Author: Andrej Malchukov

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter

Published: 2010-12-23

Total Pages: 793

ISBN-13: 3110220377

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This rich volume deals comprehensively with cross-linguistic variation in the morphosyntax of ditransitive constructions: constructions formed with verbs (like give) that take Agent, Theme and Recipient arguments. For the first time, a broadly cross-linguistic perspective is adopted. The present volume, consisting of an overview article and twenty-odd in-depth studies of ditransitive constructions in individual languages from different continents, arose from the conference on ditransitive constructions held at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (Leipzig) in 2007. It opens with the editors' survey article providing an overview of cross-linguistic variation in ditransitive constructions, followed by the questionnaire on ditransitive constructions, compiled by the editors in order to elicit various properties of these patterns. The editors' overview discusses formal properties of ditransitive constructions as well as behavioral (or syntactic) and lexical properties (i.e., the extension of ditransitive constructions across different verb classes). The volume includes 23 contributions describing properties of ditransitive constructions in languages from all over the world, written by leading experts. Care has been taken that the contributions to the volume will be representative of structural, geographic and genealogical diversity in the domain of ditransitive constructions. Thus the present volume provides a unique source of information on typological diversity of ditransitive constructions. It is expected that it will be of central interest to all scholars and advanced students of linguistics, especially to those working in the field of language typology and comparative syntax.