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A Usage-Based Account Of Ongoing Structural Changes In Sanapaná: Grammar Sketch And Case Studies, Jens E. L. Van Gysel
A Usage-Based Account Of Ongoing Structural Changes In Sanapaná: Grammar Sketch And Case Studies, Jens E. L. Van Gysel
Linguistics ETDs
This dissertation presents three case studies on sociolinguistic variation in Sanapaná, an Enlhet-Enenlhet language spoken by around 1000 people in Paraguay. It investigates the impact of the process of language shift towards Paraguayan Guarani and Spanish that Sanapaná is undergoing. Specifically, it attempts to disentangle the effects of speakers’ multilingualism in Spanish and/or Guarani, their frequency of use of Sanapaná, and structural factors internal to Sanapaná on phonetic, morphological, and syntactic variation. It finds that Spanish/Guarani proficiency is correlated with L1-to-L2 convergence in Sanapaná vowel productions and use of different motion framing strategies, while frequency of Sanapaná usage is a …
The Variable Expression Of Transitive Subject And Possesor In Wayuunaiki (Guajiro), Andres M. Sabogal
The Variable Expression Of Transitive Subject And Possesor In Wayuunaiki (Guajiro), Andres M. Sabogal
Linguistics ETDs
In Wayuunaiki, verbal affixes cross-reference clausal arguments in various ways. Most notably, there are two ways to express transitive subjects, and two ways to express possessors. Much like voice alternatives, the variable expression of subject and possessor impart different perspectives on a situation type, but unlike traditional voice categories, syntactic valence remains equal. This dissertation characterizes these constructions with a specific question in mind: what do these two cross-referencing alternations communicate and what influences their usage? To answer these questions, I consider the linguistic properties observed in the usage of these constructions in narratives (Jusayú 1986, 1994), and informal conversations. …