Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Reversing Language Shift: Can Kwak'wala Be Revived?, Stan J. Anonby

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis deals with the subject of reversing language shift, which comes under the rubric of language rivival. The particular situation and problems encountered by the endangered Kwak'wala language will be described in chapter one. Each community in which the language is spoken will be examined and individual language revival efforts will be discussed. The second chapter will look at different methods and procedures used in various language projects thoughout the world. In particular, it will examine some language projects which are (or were ) in a similar situation to Kwak'wala. It will also come to some conclusions regarding what …

A Comparative Study Of The Sounds Of Kuo-Yu And Taiwanese, Chia-Jung Fan

Theses and Dissertations

This study was made to explore the pronunciation rules between Taiwanese and Kuo-yu, which are the two major languages used in Taiwan today, by comparing selected features of their phonological systems. The purpose was to provide the future researchers and Taiwanese learners more information on sounds, which will be helpful in the maintenance and future development of the Taiwanese language.

In the introduction, there is a brief description of the background and formation of Taiwanese and Kuo-yu. In chapter two, the syllable structure and phonetic systems of Taiwanese and Kuo-yu are introduced. The following three chapters are about the three …

Noun Classification Or Spatial Categorization: Damana Orientation Verbs, Larry P. Williams

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis argues against a nominal classification analysis of orientation verbs in Damana, A Chibchan language of northern Colombia. As shown through a careful analysis of eleven verbs, the verbal system of Damana primarily encodes spatial relations and does not classify objects by shape.

The evidence for this conclusion proceeds from several areas. First, I show that Damana does not meet the requirement for a noun class system. Secondly, I show that the same object can be freely associated with various verb stems depending on the object's orientation. Thirdly, in metaphorical extensions involving these 'noun class' verbs, it is a …

An Introduction To The Verbal System Of Central Dangaleat, Lawrence R. Burke

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an analysis of the verbal system of Central Dangaleat, an Eastern Chadic language spoken in central Chad. Following the general introduction in chapter 1, the second chapter provides a basic introduction to the phonological system of the Central Dangaleat verbal system, focusing especially on syllable structure and epenthesis, vowel harmony and the tone system. Special attention is given to the relationship between consonant quality and tone in the language. Chapters 3 through 7 attempt to relate the Central Dangaleat tense, aspect and mood system to the proposals concerning the development of aspectual categories in Chadic as a …

Who's Speaking Whose Language? A Study Of Contact Signing Between Deaf And Hearing Co-Workers, Marilyn K. Plumlee

Theses and Dissertations

This study documents signed communication between a deaf woman and five hearing co-workers who have worked together for periods ranging from two and a half to twenty-three years.

The study has two primary foci:

(1) to describe the linguistic features observed during contact signing between deaf and hearing interlocutors, all fluent in English, who communicate in a manual, visual channel, and

(2) to identify the dynamics affecting the linguistic choices made by both the hearing and deaf signers during contact signing.

The primary data base for this study were videotaped recordings of conversational dyads consisting of the deaf woman and …

Relative Clauses In Southern Uzbek, Benjamin Unseth

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the structure of both finite and nonfinite relative clauses in Southern Uzbek. As such, it represents the first linguistic analysis of a topic in Southern Uzbek published in English. English research on Standard Uzbek establishes the existence of nonfinite relative clauses but does not examine them thoroughly, nor does it even sketch Standard Uzbek's uncommon finite relative clauses. In Southern Uzbek, finite relative clauses are more common than in Standard Uzbek. This research is based on texts collected from three men from Andkhuy, Afghanistan, and on elicited sentences.

A few characteristics of Southern Uzbek's relative clauses emerge …

The Great Tone Split And Central Karen, William G. Kauffman

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a comparative reconstruction of the tones and initial consonants of Proto-Central Karen based on the languages Eastern Kayah, Western Kayah, Geba, and Padaung. Other Karen languages are referred to but not studied to the same detail.

The study focuses on the great tone split that affected nearly all the languages of Southeast Asia, including Central Karen. I show that an understanding of the great tone split is crucial if one is to discover the phonological characteristics of Proto-Central Karen syllable-initial consonants.

In agreement with Haudricourt's (1946) analysis of Proto-Karen, I conclude that Proto-Central Karen had three proto-tones …

Imyan Tehit Phonology, Ronald Gerhard Hesse

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a description of the phonology of Imyan Tehit, a West Papuan language of Irian Jaya, Indonesia, couched in the framework of templatic syllable theory espoused by Junko Itô. It is based on 18 months (1989-1991) of linguistic fieldwork, in which the author and his family lived among the Tehit of Haha village, learning their language and culture.

Imyan Tehit has a maximal syllable template [CCVVC], obligatory onsets except word-initially, and a rare liquid coda. Syllable onset, nucleus, and coda are shown to be equally autonomous sub-syllabic structures. If they are complex or branching, they attract syllable stress. …

Interrogatives In Yanomám, Richard A. Thiele

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a general linguistic description of yes-no and information questions in Yanomám (a member of the Yanomami language family of Brazil and Venezuela) in the descriptive/typological tradition, including morphosyntax and semantics, appropriate responses, certain discourse-pragmatic conditions of their use (such as bias and focus), and intonation patterns.

Some things in the Yanomám language that are typologically unusual are an information question system that utilizes just one interrogative word, interaction of temporal-evidential particles with questions, and the occurrence of hortative constructions in questions.

My sources of information include the limited published works and articles on the language, previously unpublished …

A Grammar Sketch Of Dəməna, Cindy S. Williams

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides a description of the morphology and syntax of Dəməna, a Chibchan language of northern Colombia. Dəməna is an SOV language with postpositions and genitive-nominal, noun-adjective word orders.

Unusual features of Dəməna include: case marking suffixes which occur as phrasal affixes, a fusion of person marking and deixis in verbal suffixes, and interaction of temporal and special deixis on question suffixes.

Dəməna exhibits more agreement than would be expected. Causative constructions may contain two different direct object person agreement prefixes side by side on a single verb. In cases of advancement to direct object, the same argument may …

A Morphophonology Of Komo: Non-Tonal Phenomena, John Paul Thomas

Theses and Dissertations

Komo, a sub-Bantu language spoken in northeastern Zaire, exhibits a number of interesting interactions between the morphology and phonology during the process of word derivation. A framework using parametric rule description, underrepresentation of morphemes, and lexical phonology is used in describing non-tonal phenomena of the language. Use of this framework results in optimalizing the description of lexical entries and simplifying the derivation of forms exhibiting complex phonological alternations. Complete paradigms of verbs in a number of tense-aspect-mood configurations are included, even though they may go beyond the requirements of the analysis. This brings to light a language that has not …

Affixes Of Salasca Quichua With Special Attention To Derivational Affixes Which Attach To Verbs, Kristine E. Waskosky

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a synchronic description of the morphology of Salasaca Quichua (SQ) with extensive examples in interlinear texts. The meaning of each suffix and its order relative to other suffixes is described. A more expanded description is given for each of the deverbalizers (suffixes which create non-finite verbs), especially their use in subordinate clauses.

SQ is a member of the family of languages called Quechua A or Quechua II. It is an agglutinating language with up to six suffixes possible on a single root. Derivational suffixes, of which there are 15 possible for verb formation and 16 for noun …

The Tone System Of Foodo Nouns, Gray C. Plunkett

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents an autosegmental analysis of the tone system of the nouns of Foodo, a Guang language of Benin. The goal is to give an analysis of the tone system of nouns that will account for all the surface tonal phenomena by positing two underlying tones. Foodo nouns consist of a stem together with its class prefix and/or suffix; while tonal alternations in prefixes are easily explained by two tone rules, the suffixes exhibit rather complex alternations. Many of the theoretical assumptions of lexical phonology, (especially the view that most lexical rules are cyclic and Kiparsky's Elsewhere Condition) allow …

The Phonology Of Salasaca Quichua, Sheldon Peter Waskosky

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a description of the phonology of Salasaca Quichua (SQ), a member of the Quechua II or A language family. There are 26 phonemes which include three aspirated voiceless stops and three voiced stops.

Voiced stops have fricative allophones in intervocalic environments. There are two underspecified segments (/G/ and /N/) whose phonological realization depends on the environment which follows. The /G/ may be realized as [g], [ǥ], [k], or [x]. The /N/ may be realized as a bilabial, alveolar, alveopalatal, palatal or velar nasal.

The syllable structure of SQ has a maximal syllable template of [CCVC]. I analyze …

Language Use In The Epena District Of Northern Congo, William L. Gardner

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis, based on two language surveys conducted in 1988 and 1989, addresses the question “What language do you speak?” for the people of the district of Epena in the Likouala Region of the People’s Republic of the Congo. The goals of the study were to: 1) inventory all the languages and dialects spoken in the district; 2) clarify their relationships with each other and neighboring languages; 3) measure the degree of intelligibility between speakers of different language varieties, specifically among the Bomitaba people; 4) investigate in what situations the people use which languages; and 5) provide bases for making …

Distinctives Of Corongo Quechua: Historical And Synchronic Perspectives, Daniel J. Hintz

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents the structure of Corongo Quechua from four distinct but complementary perspectives. One, it describes the segmental sound system both historically and synchronically. Two, it provides a substantial amount of data in the form of glossed texts in a variety of genres. Three, it provides a brief description of the morphological structure and a complete list of suffixes with examples. Four, it includes a brief glossary of commonly occurring roots.

The description of the sound system has a comparative focus, examining those aspects of the phonological structure that are distinct from other Quecha dialects. It specifically examines Corongo …

Data Base Design For Research In Comparative Zapotec, Anita C. Bickford

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the nature and content of a comparative data base for the Zapotec languages of Mexico that may be produced. Many questions are discussed: how to sub-divide and list the Zapotec languages and dialects; what data format will be most accessible to researchers as well as to field workers with data to add; computer software considerations (designing computational tools); how to handle non-cognates with shared meanings, non-overlap of glosses (i.e., one Zapotec gloss covers several Spanish words, or vice versa), semantic shifts and secondary meanings, and other problems such as special characters, free variation, elisions, etc.; whether to …

Relative Clauses In Koine Greek: A Transformational Approach, Martin M. Culy

Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis I consider the unique set of facts presented by relative clauses in Koine Greek. I give a thorough overview of relativization in Koine including idiomatic usages of the relative pronoun. In particular, I examine the phenomena of internally-headed relative clauses, attraction and inverse attraction.

I give a basic overview of the Greek language, discussing both the historical context as well as the facts of Koine syntax and morphology that are pertinent to the understanding of this thesis.

I provide a basic typology of Koine relative clauses discussing relativization strategy, examples where a relative pronoun is used for …

The Michif Technique: Code-Switch Cue, Carol Starzer Wildeman

Theses and Dissertations

The Michif technique is a method of language modification which encourages code-switching by introducing a third language as a cue. The method targets syntax modification and does not apply to phonetic modification.

The technique derives its name from the Michif Language which is the cue language used in the study. The learning of Michif is not a long-range goal of this study, but rather through the use of Michif code-switching can be fun and nonthreatening.

The Michif technique follows the bidialectical view which encourages the use of code-switching in formal environments and the use of the vernacular while in informal …

Basic Clause Structure In Veracruz Huastec, Peter G. Constable

Theses and Dissertations

Huastec is a Mayan language spoken in east-central Mexico. It is considered important in Mayan studies since it alone represents a distinct branch within the Mayan family of languages; however, there is, in fact, relatively little published work on Huastec, especially on Huastec syntax. This thesis fills in some of this lacuna with a description of several aspects of Huastec clause structure.

A general overview of Huastec grammar is presented in chapter 2, followed by several chapters each of which focuses on a separate topic of Huastec clause structure. The analyses in these chapters are presented within the theoretical frameworks …

Phonological Processes And Syllable Structure In Tainae, Terry Bruce Carlson

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this thesis is to present the phonological processes generating surface forms from underlying segments in Tainae, a Non-Austronesian language of Papua New Guinea.

All phonetically occurring segments in the language are examined in varying environments, e.g., in word-initial position, word-medial position, and word-final position. Chapter Two, Consonants in Tainae, concentrates on the consonants on the language, separating them into classes such as bilabial stops, alveolar stops, velar stops, fricatives, etc. Within each of these classes the various consonants which appear on the surface are compared with one another in scope of distribution and regarding which possible phonological …

Tabaru Phonology And Morphology, Edward A. Kotynski

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents an analysis of the phonology and an overview of the morphology of the Tabaru language. The phonology is analyzed in light of recent theory and the merits of metrical, CV and lexical phonology are discussed as they relate to some inadequacies of earlier generative theory.

The Structure Of Reflexive Clauses In Michif: A Relational Grammar Approach, Larry Lee Lovell

Theses and Dissertations

Work in Relational Grammar has made possible the characterization of such notions as 'passive' and 'reflexive' in terms of grammatical relations and relational changes. More recent work in Italian has revealed evidence supporting the notions of retroherent advancement and cancellation.

This study examines reflexive clauses in Michif, a language with Algonquian verb morphology. It shows (1) that the conditions for the occurrence of the reflexive morpheme and the passive morpheme may be formulated simply using concepts available in RG, (2) that the structure of reflexive Passive clauses involves retroherent advancement, and (3) that there exist initially unaccusative clauses in Michif …

Argumentation In Romans 1-11, Mary Margaret Walker

Theses and Dissertations

This study addresses some of the problems of the Book of Romans in Koine Greek as a source text for a translation, particularly into non-Indo-European languages which do not share common cultural, grammatical or rhetorical conventions with the original audience for which Romans was written. A basic question broached was, "What is argumentation - as a discourse genre, as an act, as a pattern of grammatical reflexes?"

The discourse grammar model of Dr. R. E. Longacre was the main point of departure. Important secondary sources were the work of Teun A. van Dijk on macrostructure; the semantic structure analysis method …

The Structure And Rhetorical Effect Of Seven Questions In Koine Greek, Peter E. Unseth

Theses and Dissertations

Most of the latest work in understanding Koine Greek questions has concerned itself with taxonomies based on the dichotomy between real and rhetorical questions, as epitomized by John Beekman and John Callow (1974). However, some are now pointing out that other factors, beyond the grasp of this taxonomy, enter into questions within conversations.

In an effort to look at these questions in more depth, this paper applies two analytical models to seven questions in Koine Greek. The first is the illocutionary force model, particularly as formalized by John Searle (1977). The second is the rules of Repartee as formulated by …

Word-Shortening In Southeastern Tepehuan, Elizabeth R. Willett

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a technical description of the phonological rules and processes of Tepehuan, with many examples in the practical orthography. By taking the position that vowel length and open syllables are underlying in SET, I predict accent placement on all forms. In addition, phonetic forms of stems are predicted by a set of rules coordinating with accent. This phonological system has the result of reducing the length of words and highlighting their accent centers.

All final single vowels drop; this reduces the length of the word by one syllable, and makes the penultimate syllable into a closed final syllable. …

Marking Grammatical Relations In Southeastern Tepehuan, Thomas L. Willett

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes, from a Relational Grammar point of view, the usages of several verb suffixes of Southeastern Tepehuan that deal with the relationships among the central arguments of the predicate of a clause. The verb word in Southeastern Tepehuan contains all the information of tense, aspect, and mode, and is modified by adverbial elements of time, manner, and location. Nouns and pronouns can be used to identify one of the arguments; and conjunctions coordinate the resulting clause with, or subordinate it to, other clauses.

Only two affixes are used to denote person and number of the central arguments (terms) …

The French Of The French Cree (Michif) Language, Mary J. Peske

Theses and Dissertations

French Cree is a language with a verb system based primarily on a Plains Cree dialect and with noun phrases stemming almost entirely from a French dialect or dialects. This study focuses on the French portion of the language and its historical origins. To determine these origins, phonological and semantic features that distinguish French Cree French from standard French are presented and compared with modern French of France and of Canada, archaic French dialects of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and a few other North American French dialects. The considerable amount of literature dealing with the historical development of …

The Double Accusative In Koine Greek: A Syntactic Study, Terrell A. Malone

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents an analysis of the double accusative in Koine Greek within the framework of relational grammar theory as developed by Perlmutter and Postal. Monostratal and multistratal grammars are compared. Various kinds of evidence, including flagging of predicate dependents case function, passivization, gapping, question-word movement, indefinite relativization and parallel structures are used to argue that multistratal grammar more adequately and concisely accounts for the syntactic behaviour of the double accusative nominals than does a monostratal grammar. It is proposed that indirect object advancement, oblique advancement, subject ascension, and a combination of causative union plus indirect object advancement all can …

A Grammatical Sketch Of Berik, Peter N. Westrum

Theses and Dissertations

This paper is a grammatical sketch of the Berik language based on language data gathered while living with the Berik people in Irian Jaya, Indonesia. The levels of the grammatical hierarchy described are words, phrases, clauses, and sentences. The tagmemic model has been used as the model for analysis

Words, isolatable units which cannot be further divided into "free" forms, are divided into classes which are distinguished from one another according to principles of affixation.

Phrases consist of at least one obligatory tagmeme with one or more marginal tagmemes whose fillers are typically words. Several different phrase types are identified. …