This textbook provides a user-friendly guide to the study of the phonological, morphological, and syntactic properties of Latin. It combines clear explanations with rich examples and offers a new approach to the study of Latin from the perspective of contemporary linguistics that will appeal to undergraduate students and researchers alike.
This textbook provides a detailed introduction to the study of Latin from the perspective of contemporary linguistics. It adopts some basic tenets of generative grammar in an in-depth analysis of the main phonological, morphological, and syntactic properties of Latin, and offers a step-by-step guide to the universal principles and specific parameters which shape the language, along with comparative data from English and other languages. Latin: A Linguistic Introduction is a user-friendly and essential guide to the synchronic study of Latin as a natural language. The clarity of exposition and the richness of the examples cited provide a new approach to Latin as a topic of linguistic research: although the general structure of the book is like that of a traditional Latin grammar, the discussion of grammatical rules is both more straightforward and more theoretically informed. This textbook is principally suitable for students of Latin and Romance linguistics at undergraduate level and above, but also for teachers and researchers interested in new ways of looking at the study of Latin. It differs from many other textbooks in the field by striking a valuable balance between the longstanding tradition of classical philology and the innovations of contemporary linguistics.
Introduction to Latin, Second Edition is an introductory Latin textbook designed with a streamlined flow that allows it to be completed in one year. Its concise and uncluttered approach gives students what they need to master the material. Grammar is integrated within the context of reading fluency. Innovative exercises provide translation practice as well as build “instinctive skills” that prepare students for reading authentic Latin works. Features: Concise, streamlined presentation focuses on what students need to know, allowing the material to be covered in a year, even for courses which meet only three days a week Innovative exercises that go beyond the usual translation practice, engaging students with the mechanisms of the language and developing “more instinctive” skills Succinct grammatical explanations that don’t overwhelm the students with superfluous detail while also providing help for students with little or no understanding of English grammar Latin readings from ancient sources in the form of both sentences and short passages allow for students to connect with authentic Latin Practical instructions often overlooked by other textbooks, including reading a dictionary entry, reading strategies, sentence patterns, gapping, and expectations New to the Second Edition Revised order of presentation that spreads material out more evenly between the first and second halves of the book Derivatives exercises added at the end of each chapter providing practice connecting English words with their Latin roots Bridge to next level: final three chapters provide review and include longer narrative readings with minimal editing to bridge students to the next level of Latin Revised selection of readings for more appropriate level of difficulty
This authoritative introduction to African American English (AAE) is the first textbook to look at the grammar as a whole. Clearly organised, it describes patterns in the sentence structure, sound system, word formation and word use in AAE. The textbook examines topics such as education, speech events in the secular and religious world, and the use of language in literature and the media to create black images. It includes exercises to accompany each chapter and will be essential reading for students in linguistics, education, anthropology, African American studies and literature.
The articles of this collection on Latin linguistics are representative of the kind of research that is currently carried out in the field of linguistics. Most deal with syntax or sentence structure, but they vary with respect to their emphasis on theory or description. They also vary with respect to the grammatical framework with which they are formulated, with some preponderance of transformational generative approaches. All papers are well-informed about the major developments in contemporary linguistics and make extensive use of recent methods and types of argumentation. In the introduction the volume editor briefly reviews the present state of Latin linguistics, starting with a section on the question whether it is possible to conduct up-to-date linguistic research for Latin at all. To be followed by a brief sketch of the impact of recent linguistic theories on Latin linguistics in general, and in a final third section an outline is presented of the possible interest the contributions to this volume may have for linguists working on languages other than Latin
Beginning in Rome around 600 BC, Latin became the language of the civilized world and remained so for more than two millennia. French, Spanish, Italian, and Romanian are among its progeny and it provides the international vocabulary of law and life science. No known language, including English - itself enriched by Latin words and phrases - has achieved such success and longevity. Tore Janson tells its history from origins to present. Brilliantly conceived and written with the same light touch as his bestselling history of languages, A Natural History of Latin is a masterpiece of adroit synthesis. The author charts the expansion of Latin in the classical world, its renewed importance in the Middle Ages, and its survival into modern times. He shows how spoken and written Latin evolved in different places and its central role in European history and culture. He ends with a concise Latin grammar and lists of Latin words and phrases still in common use. Considered elitist and irrelevant in the second half of the twentieth century and often even banned from schools, Latin is now enjoying a huge revival of interest across Europe, the UK, and the USA. Tore Janson offers persuasive arguments for its value and gives direct access to its fascinating worlds, past and present.
Since the 1980s, bilingualism has become one of the main themes of sociolinguistics - but there are as yet few large-scale treatments of the subject specific to the ancient world. This book is the first work to deal systematically with bilingualism during a period of antiquity (the Roman period, down to about the fourth century AD) in the light of sociolinguistic discussions of bilingual issues. The general theme of the work is the nature of the contact between Latin and numerous other languages spoken in the Roman world. Among the many issues discussed three are prominent: code-switching (the practice of switching between two languages in the course of a single utterance) and its motivation, language contact as a cause of change in one or both of the languages in contact, and the part played by language choice and language switching in the establishment of personal and group identities.