DOCSLIB.ORG

Volume 7, G 1981-82

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Volume 7, G 1981-82 OSMANIA. PAPERS ... IN LINGUISTICS Volume 7, g 1981-82 DEPARTMENT OF LINGUISTICS OSMANIA UNIVERSITY ' HYDERARAD-500 007 (A. P.) INDIA . t' GOMMITTEE ON PUBLICATIONS Bh. KRISHNAMURTI H. S. ANANTHANARAYANA C. RAMARAO B. LAKSHMI BAI B. RAI\IAKHISHN A REDDY Editors B. LAKSHMI BAI B. RAMAKRISHNA REDDY O.smania Papers in Linguistics (OPiL) is an annual journal fer publishing research articles by the staff, students and visiting faculty of the Department of Linguistics, Osmania University. Articles may occasionally be invited from scholars outside Osmania on special topics. Articles will be in English. The views expressed in OPiL are exclusively those of the authors. This publication is supported by funds from the University Grants Commission and is supplied to institutions, societies and DPpartments of Linguistics in exchange for ~imilar publications. Individuals may order copies from the Editor at a nominal price of Rs. 10.00 or S 2.00 each (excluding postage.) All matters rela~ing to payments, exchange, and change of addre;-:;s should be addressed to the Editor, OPiL, Depart­ ment of Linguistics. Osmania University. Hyderabad-500 007, India. OPiL 7, 8. 1-21 (1981-82) CASE RELATIONS, PERSPECTIVE, AND PATIENT CEKTRALITYl STANLEY STAROSTA Department of Linguistics, University of Hawaii 1 . 0. INTRODUCTION The lexicase grammatical framework came into existence at the University of Hawaii in 1970. As indicated by its name, it is a lexicalist approach to case grammar. Not indicated by the name is the fact that it is 1ocalist in its approach to case, de­ pendency in its orientation to syntax, conservative in respect to the question of grammatical power (and thus adamant in its rejection of transformations as legitimate descriptive devices), and fanatic in its adherence to the requirements of formality and explicitness which constitute the defining eharacteristics of generative grammar. (See Starosta 1979b for an exhaustive listing of the papers and dissertations written in this framework to that date.) As a version of case grammar, lexicase recognizes that part of the speaker's knowledge of the grammatical properties of the sentences in his or her language includes a set of semantically contentful case relations which obtain between the head of a construction (the head N of a noun phrase as well as the head V of a sentence) and its nominal attributes. As a consequence, the model assumes that it is not enough to mark a verb (or noun) for the purely categorial environment in which it is allowed to occur, as was done in Chomskyan 'standard theory' transformational grammar, e.g. (1) put { +V +NP,......._PP} In addition to this kind of categorial environment feature (and ultimately instead of it), verbs (and nouns as well) must be provided with an environtment stated in terms of case relations. I .. This. pap_er is based on lectures given at Chula1ongkorn University, Osrnama Unrvers1ty, and the Central Institute of Indian LaPguage~. 2 STANLEY STAROSTA Fillmore's approach to case grammar represented case re­ lations as nodes in a tree and the environment for the lexical insertion of a verb such as put was stated in terms of these case relation nodes in the form of a ' case frame', e.g. (2) put { + V +Agent, Object, Location } Although the incorporation of case relations into the syntactic framework was an important and necessary stcp2, the way in which this was done had an important theoretical drawback: it lost the information that all prepositional phrases are cons­ tructions of the same type, and it introduced greater power and indeterminacy into the model, in that it increased the number of possible structural descriptions which could be assigned to a given string of words without providing a relatively non-arbi­ trary means for choosing between them. In the years since the beginning of Fillmorean case grammar in the late sixties, this trend toward increased power continued and accelerated, to the point where later case articles by Fillmore can be shown to share the assumptions and procedures of generative semantics thereby forfeiting any claim to empirical content. 2 . 0. CASE RELATIONS AKD PERSPECTIVE Lexicase is an attempt to retain the insights of case grammar without sliding into the empirical bankruptcy which befell its Fillmorean antecedent. The general strategy employed to this end is a strict adherence to the requirements of formality and explicitness and the ruthless rejection of all redundant power­ consuming machinery (see Starosta l979a). As has been repeatedly pointed out by various cnt1cs of Fillmorean case g·rammar, one of its chief weaknesses is the absence of any relatively objective means of establishing a finite and defensible set of case relations. They just seem to keep coming, and no one seems to know how to decide when enough is enough. The reason for this failing, it seems to me, is the 'silent movie' approach that has always been used in this framework to do case analyses of sentences. In this approach, a set of intuitively be­ lievable situationally defined case relations is assumed a priori. 2. I will notattemptto iustifv thatstatcmenthere. Thishasbeenamply demonstrated in thr cru;e grammar literature, and independent confirmation is nrovided bv the 'functin.,al relations' which ha:ve recently appeared within the Standard Theory tradition and some of its offshoots (cf. Bresnan 1978: 23-35, 49-'Yl, Brame I 978t 25-42). These relations can be seen as a primitive sv•tem of case relations. CASE RELATIONS, PERSPECTIVE, AND PATIENT CEJ\TRALITY 3 To assign case relations to any sentence of any language, then, we simply imagine a silent movie enactment of the event (or state) depicted by the sentence, decide which of the performers satisfies which one of the previously assumed a priori semantic definitions for the case relations, and assign that case relations to the cor­ respuading actant (nominal constituent) in tree sentence accor­ dingly, regardle~s ofthe way in which the actant is gra.mmatically coded, and in fact even regardless of what langmtge the sentence belongs to. If two grammatically distinct sentences correspond to the same silent movie representation, then they are assumed in Fil­ lmorean case grammar to share an underlying representation3, and the corresponding actants in the two sentences will have the same case relation. One of the sentences will then be taken as corresponding more or less directly to an underlying represen­ tation, and the other will be derived from the same representation by a transformational process which is assumed not to alter the original underlying case relations. This principle of analysis could be characterized in terms of the motto, " Once a case rela­ tion, always a case relation." It has the consequence that sen­ tences such as (3) and (4), for example (cf. Fillmore 1971 :49), will have their corresponding actants assigned identical case relations: (3) John hit his cane against the fence. AGT PAT GOAL (4) John hit the fence with his cane. AGT GOAL PAT The surface discrepancies exhibited by the grammatical marking of for example fence are regarded as superficial, and can be re­ conciled by means of transformations, be they ever so distant. As. in the case of generative semantics and similar frameworks, this emphasis on situational ('logical') criteria at the expense of grammatical ones in the establishment of an inventory of case relations not only makes it hard to decide how manv case relations there should be, but also contributes tremendously to the power of the .associated metathcory. A given situation may be enco­ dable m terms of widely differing grammatical structures, and very powerful rules such as 'clause conflation' (Fillmore 1971 :49) are often required to derive both from a single common abstract structure. 3 · . Es,entially the same orocedure is of course also adopted m gcncrative semantl:s and other semantically based grammatical frameworks such as categonal grammar and Montague gr·ammar. 4 STANLEY STAROSTA Those readers who subscribe to the proposition that 'a stronger theory makes a weaker claim' will recognize this added power as a serious metatheoretical problem. To cope with it, lexicase adopts a strategy exactly the opposite of the usual S.O.P. (Sub­ ject, Object, Predicate) in transformational grammar. Instead of assuming with Frege that "grammar is the handmaiden of semantics", it has put the whip in the other hand and placed the primary burden of identifying· case relations on grammatical criteria, correspondingly decreasing the weight of purely situa­ tional evidence. In this paper, I will illustrate this procedure by giving t~e currently hypothesized set of lexicase case relations and presenting some of the grammatical (as opposed to 'logical' - situational) evidence for postulating this particular limited set. The case relations I assume to be needed in a universal grammar are the following: (5) PAT Patient the perceived central parbc1pant in a state or event (obligatory with all verbs; formerly 'Object' or ' Theme') AGT Agent the perceived external instigator or initiator of an event or state INS Instrument the perceived immediate instigator of an event or state LOC Locus the perceived location, source, or goal of the Patient (formerly 'inner Locative') PLC Place the perceived abstract or concrete spatial setting of the action or state (formerly 'outer Locative') COR Correspondent the entity perceived as being in cor­ respondence with the Patient (formerly 'Dative ' or 'Experiencer ') REF Reference the perceived external frame of re­ ference or standard for the state or action (formerly 'Benefactive') MNS Means the abstract path by way of which an external influence impinges on the situa­ tion (formerly 'Manner') CASE RELATIONS, PERSPECTIVE, AND PATIENT CENTRALITY 5 NCR Increment the extent to which a Patient is affected by an external influence TIM Time the temporal setting of a state or event The semantic definitions given after each CR are secondary rather than criteria!.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • CONTENT K to 8
    CONTENT K to 8 HINDI 28. Saraswati Sanskrit Manjusha ........................ 22 (ICSE) 1. Nai Rangoli ................................................... 7 29. Saraswati Sanskrit Sudha ................... 23 (ICSE) 2. Rangoli Varnamala........................................ 8 30. Saraswati Deep Manika ..................... 24 31. Saraswati Sanskrit Manjusha (ICSE) ............. 25 3. Rangoli Sulekh Abhyas ................................ 8 32. Saraswati Sanskrit Vyakaran ......................... 26 4. Saraswati Sarika ............................................ 9 33. Saraswati Sanskrit Vyakaran Sudha .............. 26 5. Kalptaru ........................................................ 9 34. Saraswati Manika Sanskrit 6. Naveen Sankalp ............................................ 10 Vyakaran (REVISED) ..................................... 27 7. Sargam .......................................................... 11 35. Saraswati Ruchira Abhyas Pustika .............. 27 8. Nai Swati ...................................................... 12 9. Elementary Hindi Reader ............................. 12 URDU 10. Saras Hindi Pathmala (NEW) ....................... 13 36. Bazeecha ....................................................... 28 11. Saraswati Nai Sarika (ICSE) ........................ 13 PRE-SCHOOL 12. Rangoli (ICSE) .............................................. 14 37. Tippy Tippy Tap ............................................ 29 13. Sankalp Hindi Pathmala (ICSE) .................... 15 38. Junior Smart Kit ...........................................
    [Show full text]
  • GRAMMAR of OLD TAMIL for STUDENTS 1 St Edition Eva Wilden
    GRAMMAR OF OLD TAMIL FOR STUDENTS 1 st Edition Eva Wilden To cite this version: Eva Wilden. GRAMMAR OF OLD TAMIL FOR STUDENTS 1 st Edition. Eva Wilden. Institut français de Pondichéry; École française d’Extrême-Orient, 137, 2018, Collection Indologie. halshs- 01892342v2 HAL Id: halshs-01892342 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01892342v2 Submitted on 24 Jan 2020 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. GRAMMAR OF OLD TAMIL FOR STUDENTS 1st Edition L’Institut Français de Pondichéry (IFP), UMIFRE 21 CNRS-MAE, est un établissement à autonomie financière sous la double tutelle du Ministère des Affaires Etrangères (MAE) et du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS). Il est partie intégrante du réseau des 27 centres de recherche de ce Ministère. Avec le Centre de Sciences Humaines (CSH) à New Delhi, il forme l’USR 3330 du CNRS « Savoirs et Mondes Indiens ». Il remplit des missions de recherche, d’expertise et de formation en Sciences Humaines et Sociales et en Écologie dans le Sud et le Sud- est asiatiques. Il s’intéresse particulièrement aux savoirs et patrimoines culturels indiens (langue et littérature sanskrites, histoire des religions, études tamoules…), aux dynamiques sociales contemporaines, et aux ecosystèmes naturels de l’Inde du Sud.
    [Show full text]
  • A Dependency Treebank for Telugu Taraka Rama University of Oslo
    English Conference Papers, Posters and Proceedings English 1-2018 A Dependency Treebank for Telugu Taraka Rama University of Oslo Sowmya Vajjala Iowa State University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/engl_conf Part of the Communication Technology and New Media Commons Recommended Citation Rama, Taraka and Vajjala, Sowmya, "A Dependency Treebank for Telugu" (2018). English Conference Papers, Posters and Proceedings. 8. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/engl_conf/8 This Conference Proceeding is brought to you for free and open access by the English at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in English Conference Papers, Posters and Proceedings by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. A Dependency Treebank for Telugu Abstract In this paper, we describe the annotation and development of Telugu treebank following the Universal Dependencies framework. We manually annotated 1328 sentences from a Telugu grammar textbook and the treebank is freely available from Universal Dependencies version 2.1.1 In this paper, we discuss some language specific nnota ation issues and decisions; and report preliminary experiments with POS tagging and dependency parsing. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first freely accessible and open dependency treebank for Telugu. Keywords Telugu, Universal dependencies, adverbial clauses, relative clauses Disciplines Communication Technology and New Media Comments The following proceeding is published as Proceedings of the 16th International Workshop on Treebanks and Linguistic Theories (TLT16), pages 119–128, Prague, Czech Republic, January 23–24, 2018. Distributed under a CC-BY 4.0 licence.
    [Show full text]
  • Common Spoken Tamil Made Easy
    COMMON SPOKEN TAMIL MADE EASY Third Edition by T. V. ADIKESAVALU Digital Version CHRISTIAN MEDICAL COLLEGE VELLORE Adi’s Book. COMMON SPOKEN TAMIL MADE EASY Third Edition by T. V. ADIKESAVALU Digital Version 2007 This book was prepared for the staff and students of Christian Medical College Vellore, for use in the Tamil Study Programme. No part may be reproduced without permission of the General Superintendent. 2 Adi’s Book. CONTENTS FOREWORD. 6 PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION. 7 THIRD EDITION: UPDATE. 8 I. NOTES FOR PRONUNCIATION & KEY FOR ABBREVIATIONS. 9 II. GRAMMAR LESSONS: Lesson No. Page. 1. Greetings and Forms of Address. 10 2. Pronouns, Interrogative and Demonstrative. 12 3. Pronouns, Personal. 15 4. The Verb ‘to be’, implied. 17 5. Cardinal Numbers 1 to 10, and Verbs - introduction. 19 6. Verbs - Positive Imperatives. 21 7. Verbs - Negative Imperatives, Weak & Strong Verbs, & Medials. 23 8. Nouns - forming the plural. 28 9. Nouns and Personal Pronouns - Accusative (Object) case. 30 10. Nouns and Personal Pronouns - Genitive (Possessive) Case. 34 11. Review, (Revision) No.I. 38 12. Verbs - Infinitives. 40 13. Nouns and Personal Pronouns, Dative Case, ‘to’ or ‘for’ & Verbs - Defective. 43 14. Verbs - defective (continued). 47 15. Cardinal Numbers 11 to 1000 & Time. 50 16. Verbs - Present tense, Positive. 54 17. Adjectives and Adverbs. 58 18. Post-Positions. 61 19. Nouns - Locative Case, 'at' or 'in'. 64 20. Post positions, (Continued). 67 21. Verbs - Future Tense, Positive, and Ordinal Numbers. 70 3 Adi’s Book. 22. Verbs - Present and Past, Negative, Page. and Potential Form to express 'may' 75 23.
    [Show full text]
  • Clause Boundary Identification for Non-Restrictive Type Complex Sentences in Telugu Language
    Volume 7, No. 4, July-August 2016 International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer Science RESEARCH PAPER Available Online at www.ijarcs.info Clause Boundary Identification for Non-Restrictive Type Complex Sentences in Telugu Language V. Suresh M.S. Prasad Babu Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Department of Computer Science and Systems Engineering, Vignan’s Institute of Information Technology, Duvvada, Andhra University College of Engineering, Visakhapatnam, A.P., India Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, A.P., India Abstract: Sentence identification for non-restricted type Telugu language is one of the basic applications of the Natural Language Processing. A sentence composed of single independent clause is called a simple sentence. If a sentence contains a dependent clause along with independent clause then it is a complex sentence. Once the sentence is identified as complex sentence, the next step is to identify its pattern. After identification of patterns, various clauses present in the sentence are extracted and grammar checking is performed on them. For grammar checking of complex sentences, it is necessary to identify the structure of Clause Boundary for Non-Restrictive Type of Telugu Language Complex Sentences. In this paper we have explored the different types of sentences present in Telugu language. The structure of complex sentences can be identified on the basis of number of clauses and types of clauses present in them. We have also proposed an algorithm for identification of simple, compound and complex sentences. This study will be helpful in identifying and separating the complex sentences from Telugu language. We have also proposed an algorithm for identification of simple, compound and complex sentences.
    [Show full text]
  • A History of Telugu Literature
    THE HERITAGE OF INDIA SERIES lan A P ned by J . N . F R QUHAR , M . A D . Litt . D D . (Aberdeen) . Ri R V . H The ght everend . S AZ AR I A , LL . D a Bishop of Dorn kal . Joi nt K E . C . DEWI C , M . A . (Cantab . ) E ditors . AN LY M a J N C G GU , . A (Birmingh m) , - a Darsan S stri . Already pub li c/zed. f He ar o Bu ism . S . D .Litt . a a The t ddh K J AUNDERS , M A (C nt b . ) i 2 r o f a are se e ra e u P B . Hi o n L ur d ed . E . I A A st y K t t , . R CE , . S e . k a s ud ed . B I I H i . The sam hy y t m , z A ERR EDALE KE T , D . L tt ( Oxo n . ) 2 ed . S . MA AI L . Aso k a , ud JAME M CPH , M A M D in in . 2nd e d . rinc i a Y O u . Indian Pa t g P p l PE R C BR W N , Calc tta f a th S ai . i ra i n s NI O I O . Psalms o M t C L MACN C L , M A , D L tt . f in i i e a u e . r F E . Li . H o H L r . A isto ry d t t . KEAY , M A , D tt a B The Karm A .
    [Show full text]
  • A Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian Languages
    World Classical Tamil Conference- June 2010 51 A COMPARATIVE GRAMMAR OF THE DRAVIDIAN LANGUAGES Rt. Rev. R.Caldwell * Rev. Caldwell's Comparative Grammar is based on four decades of his deep study and research on the Dravidian languages. He observes that Tamil language contains a common repository of Dravidian forms and roots. His prefatory note to his voluminous work is reproduced here. Preface to the Second Edition It is now nearly nineteen years since the first edition of this book was published, and a second edition ought to have appeared long ere this. The first edition was, soon exhausted, and the desirableness of bringing out a second edition was often suggested to me. But as the book was a first attempt in a new field of research and necessarily very imperfect, I could not bring myself to allow a second edition to appear without a thorough revision. It was evident, however, that the preparation of a thoroughly revised edition, with the addition of new matter wherever it seemed to be necessary, would entail upon me more labour than I was likely for a long time to be able to undertake. .The duties devolving upon me in India left me very little leisure for extraneous work, and the exhaustion arising from long residence in a tropical climate left me very little surplus strength. For eleven years, in addition to my other duties, I took part in the Revision of the Tamil Bible, and after that great work had come to. an end, it fell to my lot to take part for one year more in the Revision of the Tamil Book of, * Source: A Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian or South-Indian Family of Languages , Rt.Rev.
    [Show full text]
  • Comparison Between the Grammar of Greek Sapphic and Tamil Seppal Songs
    Athens Journal of Philology - Volume 7, Issue 3, September 2020 – Pages 147-170 Comparison between the Grammar of Greek Sapphic and Tamil Seppal Songs By D Pugazhendhi* Sapphic stanza is a peculiar poetic form in Greek literary world. It gives more important to the structure. This form was tried in many languages; but this form was grammatically explained only at the later period. Resemblance with this format is also seen in Tamil literary world, and the grammar book also belongs to the same period as that of Sapphic stanza. So the grammar that is explained in this Tamil grammar book is compared with the grammar of Sapphic stanza. The comparison is made in different perspectives such as the letter count, light and heavy syllables, formats of the syllable, sequences between two syllables, syllable formation in a line, the length of each line and the lyric. It highlights that the Greek Sapphic stanza seems to resemble one type of seppal songs which are mentioned in the grammar book. Comparing the Greek literature with the grammar book of same era will lead to better understanding and clarify the concepts that were misunderstood and spread by the later critics. Keywords: comparison, grammar, Sapphic, seppal, structure. Introduction The Greek literature includes prose, poetry and dramas. In the Greek field of poetry comprises of various form of poems among which the Sappic stanza stands unique from others in its forms. This Sapphic stanza originated from the Greek poetess Sappho of Lesbos who lived sometime around 630 BC. It was written in vernacular form of Greek, the Lesbian-Aeolic dialect.
    [Show full text]
  • B E Aai 3Efi
    B E aai 3Efi rLBOROUQH-8 SELF-TAUGHT series [arT\U Grammar Self-Taught. (In Tamil and Roman Charaotebs.) Second Edition BY Don M. de ZILVA WICKREMASFNQHE, io Epigraphist the Ceylon Governvtent ; Librarian and Assisiatit Keeper of the Indian Institute^ Oxford. Author of " " Tamil Self-Taught," and Sinhalese Self-Taught."" Companion Volume; "Tamil Self-Taught. *» London : MARLBOROUGH & Co., 51, Old Bailey, E.G. 4. tAlt Rights Reserved.] TO Te^ Eev. G. U. pope, m.a., d.d., I DEDICATE THESE PAGES AS A TOKEN OF SINCERE GRATITUDE FOR ASSISTANCE RECEIVED IN MY TAMIL AND TELUGU STUDIES. M. DE Z. WiCKREMASINGHE. Pi Li^c;-^ PREFACE. )°l^h The present work is chiefly intended for the use of those who wish to acquire a knowledge of the grammar of colloquial Tamil within a comparatively short time, either Tor practical purposes or as the preliminary to a thorough study of the language. Particularly bearing in mind students who work without a teacher, I have devoted some pages wholly to the subject of pronunciation, and have given the transliteration of all the Tamil words occurring in the grammar, side by side with the native character. This will enable the beginner gradually to acquire the Tamil character as he proceeds with the study of the grammar itself, thereby avoiding a needless waste of time and trouble. The chapter on euphonic changes will specially appeal to those who ha\e a philological turn of mind ; for this gives the key to the solution of many difficulties that beset an ordinary student in the way of analysing Tamil words and sentences and of mastering their relationship to one another.
    [Show full text]
  • Maintaining the Heritage Language and Identity: the Case of the New Diaspora Telugus in London
    ANGLIA RUSKIN UNIVERSITY MAINTAINING THE HERITAGE LANGUAGE AND IDENTITY: THE CASE OF THE NEW DIASPORA TELUGUS IN LONDON ARUN YADLA A thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements of Anglia Ruskin University for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Submitted: October 2016 Acknowledgements This study and thesis have become reality with the kind support and help of many individuals, directly or indirectly. First and foremost, I express my gratitude to my supervisors, Dr. Sebastian Rasinger and Dr. Bettina Beinhoff. Your guidance, patience, invaluable input, timely feedback and constructive criticism helped me in my journey. Thank you for the kind words and encouragement when my chips were down. I would like to thank Mr. Rama Naidu Gāru for connecting me to the Telugu network and also for introducing me to key participants. Without your support, building a sample base would have been impossible. Many thanks for the invaluable support I received from Christine, Richard and Vernon from Cambridge, and Moushmi, Deepak, Dhruv, Dia, Aryaman, Anamika, Nana and Nani from London. I am very grateful for the love and kindness you have shown towards me. A special acknowledgement for the respondents and participants from the Telugu community for giving your time generously to accommodate me in your busy schedules. Thanks also for enduring my interview questions and discussions. I must also acknowledge the contribution of my students and module leaders for their positive and constructive feedback, which motivated me to give my best. I cannot forget to acknowledge my research room friends, who made my journey a memorable one with friendly banter, endless snacks, exchange of stories and ideas.
    [Show full text]
  • The Languages of South Asia
    THE LANGUAGES OF SOUTH ASIA a catalogue of rare books: dictionaries, grammars, manuals, & literature. with several important works on Tibetan Catalogue 31 John Randall (Books of Asia) John Randall (Books of Asia) [email protected] +44 (0)20 7636 2216 www.booksofasia.com VAT Number : GB 245 9117 54 Cover illustration taken from no. 4 (Colebrooke) in this catalogue; inside cover illustrations taken from no. 206 (Williams). © John Randall (Books of Asia) 2017 THE LANGUAGES OF SOUTH ASIA Catalogue 31 John Randall (Books of Asia) INTRODUCTION The conversion of the East India Company from trading concern to regional power South Asia, home to six distinct linguistic gave further impetus to the study of South families, remains one of the most Asian languages. Employees of the linguistically complex regions on earth. Company were charged with producing According to the 2001 Census of India, linguistic guides for official purposes. 1,721 languages and dialects were spoken as Military officers needed language skills to mother tongues. Of these, 29 had one issue commands to locally recruited troops. million or more speakers, and a further 31 And as the Company sought to perpetuate more than 100,000. the Mughal system of rule, knowledge of Persian as well as regional languages was The political implications of such dizzying essential for revenue collectors and diversity have been no less complex. Since administrators of justice. 1953, there have been many attempts to re- divide the country along linguistic lines. As All the while, some independent European recently as 2014, the new state of Telangana scholars demonstrated a genuine interest in was created as a homeland for Telugu and empathy for South Asian languages and speakers.
    [Show full text]
  • Télécharger Le PDF De Article
    Histoire Epistémologie Langage Available online at: 39/2 (2017), 45-63 www.hel-journal.org © SHESL/EDP Sciences https://doi.org/10.1051/hel/2017390203 APPROPRIATIONS AND INNOVATIONS IN METALINGUISTIC TERMINOLOGY IN AN INFLUENTIAL TELUGU GRAMMAR COMPOSED IN SANSKRIT★ Deven M. Patel University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA Abstract Résumé The various traditions of Sanskrit grammar Les diverses traditions de grammaire sanskrite have served as models, or as sources for ont fourni des modèles, ou des sources de metalinguistic description, for many other description métalinguistique, pour nombre de grammars composed to describe South Asian grammaires décrivant les langues littéraires classical or local literary languages. This classiques ou locales d’Asie du Sud. Cet article article investigates the contents of the first porte sur le contenu du premier chapitre chapter (on metalinguistic terms) of a remark- (consacré aux termes métalinguistiques) d’une able and influential medieval grammar of the grammaire médiévale remarquable et influente major Dravidian language Telugu, or Āndhra- de l’incontournable langue dravidienne télou- bhās.ā, known as the Āndhras´abdacintāman.i. goue (ouāndhra-bhās.ā), connue sous le nom de This grammar was composed with the same Āndhras´abdacintāman.i. Cette grammaire fut technical precision and a style similar to that composée avec la même précision technique et of Pān.ini’s As. ṭādhyāy¯ı. Hence, the purpose of un style similaire à ceux de l’As.ṭādhyāy¯ı de Pān. this article: to study the processes of adapta- ini. D’où l’objet du présent article : étudier les tion of metalanguage and of the Sanskrit processus d’adaptation de la métalangue et des metalinguistic technologies to describe Telugu technologies métalinguistiques sanskrites pour in Sanskrit, a language that has both profound décrire le télougou en sanskrit, une langue qui lexical affinities and striking phonological and présente à la fois des affinités lexicales morphological divergences from Telugu.
    [Show full text]