Minimal Languages in Action

“Minimal English is one of the most exciting developments in linguistics. It has an excellent academic pedigree, and it should make an enormous diference to the world. As this volume makes clear, while Minimal English is valuable to academic researchers, it is in solving very real communicative problems that it comes into its own. Covering everything from dictionaries to public health, from cancer to honorifcs, this is a work of great scope, clarity and relevance. Tis volume is both accessible and rigorous and should be read (and used) very widely.” —Annabelle Mooney, University of Roehampton, UK Cliff Goddard Editor Minimal Languages in Action Editor Clif Goddard Sch Humanities, Languages & Soc Sci Grifth University Brisbane, QLD, Australia

ISBN 978-3-030-64076-7 ISBN 978-3-030-64077-4 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64077-4

© Te Editor(s) (if applicable) and Te Author(s) 2021 Tis work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifcally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microflms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Te use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specifc statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. Te publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Te publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional afliations.

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Tis Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG. Te registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Contents

1 In Praise of Minimal Languages 1 Clif Goddard 1.1 What Is a “Minimal Language”? What Are Minimal Languages Good For? 1 1.2 Issues, Terms, and Labels 4 1.3 Design of a Minimal Language 6 1.4 Minimal Language Vignettes 16 1.5 Review of Chapters 21 1.6 Where to from here? 23 References 24

Part I Finding the Best Words 27

2 Balancing the Local with the Universal: Minimal English and Agricultural Training in the Pacifc 29 Deborah Hill 2.1 Introduction 29 2.2 How Minimal English Focuses on the Local 33 2.3 Language and Development: Adapting Universal Concepts to Local Contexts 36

v vi Contents

2.4 Lessons from One Pacifc Context to Another 39 2.5 Participatory Action Research and Minimal English 46 2.6 Conclusion 47 References 49

3 Te Hunt for the Simplest Possible Vocabulary: Minimal Finnish Meets Easy Finnish 53 Leealaura Leskelä and Ulla Vanhatalo 3.1 Introduction 53 3.2 Material and Methods 60 3.3 Results and Analysis of the Text Modifcation Process 65 3.4 Discussion 74 References 80

4 Minimal English and Revitalisation Education: Assisting Linguists to Explain Grammar in Simple, Everyday Words 83 Elita Machin 4.1 Background 83 4.2 Explaining “parts of speech” Using Minimal English 88 4.3 Explaining “root and sufx” Using Minimal English 94 4.4 Explaining “forms of a word/sufx” Using Minimal English 97 4.5 Conclusions and Future Directions 102 References 103

Part II Language Learning and Intercultural Education 109

5 Using Minimal English (Minimal Spanish, Etc.) for Non-circular Learners’ Dictionaries 111 David Bullock 5.1 Introduction 111 5.2 Learn Tese Words First 115 5.3 Dictionary Development 120 Contents vii

5.4 Dictionary Evaluation 124 5.5 Universal Molecules and Cross-translation 129 5.6 Conclusion and Future Work 132 References 136

6 Standard Translatable English: A Minimal English for Teaching and Learning Invisible Culture in Language Classrooms 139 Lauren Sadow 6.1 Introduction 139 6.2 A Minimal English for Teachers 145 6.3 From Minimal English to Standard Translatable English 147 6.4 Using STE in Classroom Practice 156 6.5 A Teacher’s Resource 159 6.6 Conclusion 163 References 165

7 From Cultural to Pedagogical Scripts: Speaking Out in English, French, and Russian 171 Bert Peeters 7.1 Introduction 171 7.2 Te Unhindered Expression of Personal Opinions 174 7.3 From Cultural to Pedagogical Scripts 177 7.4 Anglo Epistemic Reserve and Openness 180 7.5 Te French Propensity to Take a Stand 182 7.6 Expressiveness 184 7.7 Russian ‘sincerity’: iskrennost’ 186 7.8 Conclusion 189 References 190

8 Using Minimal Language to Help Foreign Learners Understand Korean Honorifcs 195 Jeong-Ae Lee 8.1 Introduction 195 8.2 Background to Tis Study 196 viii Contents

8.3 Cultural Scripts for Understanding Korean Honorifc Usage 202 8.4 Forms of Folk Speech: Contaymal and Panmal 210 8.5 Conclusion 217 References 219

Part III Health 223

9 Adapting the Welch Emotional Connection Screen (WECS) into Minimal English and Seven Other Minimal Languages 225 Clif Goddard, Ulla Vanhatalo, Amie A. Hane, and Martha G. Welch 9.1 Introduction 225 9.2 Te WECS-CETL Development Process 232 9.3 Te Positive Anchors in WECS-CETL 234 9.4 Te Negative Anchor Texts and Overall Assessment (‘Emotionally Connected or Not Connected’) 241 9.5 Discussion 246 Appendix: WECS-CETL Negative 248 References 252

10 Ways of Tinking and Talking about Cancer 255 Magdalena Juda 10.1 Introduction 255 10.2 Te Importance of Using Minimal Language for Talking About Cancer 257 10.3 A First View of Cancer in Polish, French and Spanish Discourse 259 10.4 Analysis of the Ways of Tinking and Speaking About Cancer in the Tree Countries 267 10.5 Final Remarks 272 Appendix 1: Corpora Consulted 274 Appendix 2: Te Websites Consulted (November 2019) 275 References 277 Contents ix

11 Minimal English for Health: Reader Accessibility in Public Health Communication About COVID-19 in Australia (with Contrastive Reference to Denmark) 281 Ida Stevia Diget 11.1 Introduction 281 11.2 Case Study: COVID-19 Public Health Posters in Australia and Denmark 284 11.3 Minimal English for Health: A Proposed Solution 302 11.4 Re-writing COVID-19 Prevention Messages in Minimal English 303 11.5 Re-writing COVID-19 Symptoms in Minimal English 308 11.6 Summing Up 311 11.7 Concluding Remarks 313 References 315

12 Seven Essential Messages for the Time of the Coronavirus 319 Anna Wierzbicka 12.1 Introduction 319 12.2 Message 1 324 12.3 Message 2 329 12.4 Message 3 331 12.5 Message 4 332 12.6 Message 5 334 12.7 Message 6 335 12.8 Message 7 338 12.9 Concluding Remarks 342 References 343

Index 347 Notes on Contributors

David Bullock has worked as a computational linguist for over two decades, building a variety of dictionaries, language models and gram- mars in multiple languages. Tese have been used for proofng tools, machine-translation systems and speech-recognition applications. His academic base is University of Washington. Ida Stevia Diget is a PhD candidate at Grifth University, Australia. Diget researches accessibility and cross-translatability of public health communication in Australia. Her PhD project is entitled “Minimal English for accessible public health messaging: Mapping the terrain”. Diget has a Master of Linguistics and Cognitive Semiotics from Lund University, Sweden. Clif Goddard is Professor of Linguistics at Grifth University, Australia, and a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Humanities. Much of his research lies at the intersection of language, meaning and culture. He has published widely in descriptive, theoretical and applied semantics, language description and typology, ethnopragmatics and intercultural communication. Amie A. Hane is a developmental psychologist with expertise in developmental neuroscience, parent-infant mental health, and behavioural paedi- atrics. She conducts clinical research in the Nurture Science Program in

xi xii Notes on Contributors the Department of Pediatrics at Columbia University Medical Center, New York, and runs the Early Experience and Physiology Laboratory at Williams College. Deborah Hill is a member of the Centre for Sustainable Communities at the University of Canberra, Australia. She has extensive experience with linguistic research in Solomon Islands. Her interests include lexical semantics, Oceanic languages and cultures, and language and development practices. Magdalena Juda studied at University of Wrocław, Poland, where she completed her Master degree in Spanish philology. Her main research interests are cross-cultural pragmatics, narrative medicine and health communication. In addition, she coordinates clinical trials in a medical centre in Opole, Poland. Jeong-Ae Lee is Professor of Korean language in Jeonbuk National University, South Korea. Her speciality lies in Korean semantics and pragmatics. Aside from other publications she is the lead translator of Anna Wierzbicka’s Cross-cultural Pragmatics into Korean. She also has interests in education research. Leealaura Leskelä is head of Selkokeskus, the Finnish Centre for Easy Language, Helsinki, Finland. In her career she has developed the guidelines for Easier Finnish for both written and spoken language, promoted the use of Easy Language in Finland and carried out various projects with persons who need linguistic support. Leskelä is undertaking doctoral thesis at the University of Helsinki concerning guidelines for Easy Language in interaction. Elita Machin completed her Bachelor of Languages and Linguistics (Honours) at Grifth University in 2019. She is studying her Master of Information Studies, with a view to pursue a career in libraries. In doing so, she hopes to contribute to language revitalisation by connecting communities with heritage documents on their languages. Bert Peeters Until his untimely death in February 2021, Bert Peeters was a long-standing advocate of the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) approach. Working mainly on French and (Australian) English, Notes on Contributors xiii his main interests were in language as a key to cultural values, intercultural communication and language teaching. He published prolifcally on these topics and was editor of many collective volumes. Lauren Sadow completed her PhD at the Australian National University (ANU) in 2019, creating Te Australian Dictionary of Invisible Culture for Teachers. Her research focuses on the semantics and pragmatics of language, and how linguistics can improve language education. She works as a sessional lecturer at the ANU, teaching Cross-cultural Communication. Ulla Vanhatalo is a Docent in General Linguistics at the University of Helsinki, Finland. Her research interests are in lexical semantic methodology, Finnish language, and easy languages. Vanhatalo has been applying NSM outside linguistics and popularising lexical semantics. Her mission is to reduce language-related misunderstandings and help people to com- municate better in everyday life. Martha G. Welch, MD is Associate Professor of Psychiatry in the Departments of Pediatrics and Pathology & Cell Biology at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC), New York. She is the Director of CUMC’s multidisciplinary Nurture Science Program in Pediatrics. Anna Wierzbicka is Professor Emerita of Linguistics at the Australian National University. Her work spans a number of disciplines, including anthropology, cognitive science, philosophy and religious studies, as well as linguistics. She is the author of many books, most recently What Christians Believe: Te Story of God and People in Minimal English (2018). List of Figures

Fig. 1.1 Semantic primes (English version) 8 Fig. 1.2 Samples of semantic molecules of diferent kinds. (After Goddard 2018c) 11 Fig. 1.3 Components of a minimal language lexicon 14 Fig. 2.1 Family taking their garden produce to market (Nangali, North-East Guadalcanal) 32 Fig. 3.1 Part 1 of the list of semantic primes and molecules in Finnish used for Minimal Finnish, based on the English lists in Goddard and Wierzbicka (2018) 58 Fig. 3.2 Part 2 of the list of semantic primes and molecules in Finnish used for Minimal Finnish, based on the English lists in Goddard and Wierzbicka (2018) 59 Fig. 3.3 Sample text from the modifcation process, translated from Finnish. Te task for the participants was to create a text based on Minimal Finnish word list and Easy Finnish grammatical and textual instructions. Tis text was also used in the user testing situations 63 Fig. 4.1 Minimal English explications of the words ‘noun’, ‘verb’ and ‘adjective’, demonstrating the frst strategy for explicating grammatical terms 89 Fig. 4.2 Minimal English explications of the words ‘noun’, ‘verb’ and ‘adjective’, demonstrating the question-answer strategy for explicating grammatical terms 91

xv xvi List of Figures

Fig. 4.3 Minimal English explications of the words ‘demonstrative’ and ‘pronoun’, using the lexical prototypes strategy for explicating grammatical terms 94 Fig. 4.4 A late-stage explication of ‘root’ and ‘sufx’, showing how colours and demonstration can be used with Minimal English to explain the concepts 95 Fig. 5.1 Diagram of layers in the Learn Tese Words First dictionary 115 Fig. 6.1 Screenshot of the table of contents from the AusDICT ebook, showing the titles of the diferent modules on the left in ‘Short Contents’. Te ‘Section Contents’ on the right shows the expansion of the modules to their sub-headings. Te full ‘Section Contents’ are four pages 160 Fig. 6.2 Screenshot of the entry for ‘she’ll be right’ from the AusDICT ebook, illustrating the parts-of-speech, com- ments, examples, and cross-referencing applied to each entry 161 Fig. 8.1 Expressions for Korean relationships, according to the degree of intimacy 209 Fig. 9.1 A baby in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. (Photo by Meghan Wyvill, used with permission) 227 Fig. 9.2 Section of the original WECS research rating form (Hane et al. 2018). Te full form had fve sections. © 2017, 2020 Te Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York 228 Fig. 9.3 Section of Clinical WECS rating form. Te anchors at the low, middle, and high ranges guide scoring. © 2017, 2020 Te Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York 229 Fig. 9.4 Example of an interim English/Finnish parallel text used in translatability testing. Te numbers in the right column fag issues for follow-up 233 Fig. 9.5 Te WECS-CETL form uses the CETL language for the four domains. Shown here is the section of the form for rating the domain corresponding to ‘Attraction’. © 2020 Te Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York 245 Fig. 11.1 Public health communication concerning COVID-19 at a restaurant and at a public toilet in Brisbane, Australia (photos taken by the author) 282 Fig. 11.2 Poster informing about Coronavirus, retrieved on March 1, 2020. © Australian Government Department of Health (2020c) 286 List of Figures xvii

Fig. 11.3 Excerpt of Figure 11.2 287 Fig. 11.4 Excerpt of Figure 11.2 288 Fig. 11.5 Excerpt of Figure 11.2 289 Fig. 11.6 Excerpt of Figure 11.2 290 Fig. 11.7 Poster about the symptoms of Coronavirus, retrieved on March 1, 2020. © Australian Government Department of Health (2020b) 291 Fig. 11.8 Excerpt of Figure 11.7 292 Fig. 11.9 Excerpt of Figure 11.7 292 Fig. 11.10 Excerpt of Figure 11.7 293 Fig. 11.11 Excerpt of Figure 11.7 294 Fig. 11.12 Poster about COVID-19, retrieved on March 1, 2020. © Sundhedsstyrelsen (2020). Reprinted with permission 295 Fig. 11.13 Excerpt of Figure 11.12 296 Fig. 11.14 Excerpt of Figure 11.12 297 Fig. 11.15 Excerpt of Figure 11.12 298 Fig. 11.16 Excerpt of Figure 11.12 299 Fig. 11.17 Excerpt of Figure 11.12 300 Fig. 12.1 Essential Message 1 324 Fig. 12.2 Essential Message 2 330 Fig. 12.3 Essential Message 3 331 Fig. 12.4 Essential Message 4 332 Fig. 12.5 Essential Message 5 334 Fig. 12.6 Essential Message 6 335 Fig. 12.7 Essential Message 7 339 List of Tables

Table 1.1 Supplementary words (allolexes, portmanteaus, grammatical function words) of Minimal English 10 Table 3.1 A comparison showing the simplifcation from the original text to the easier versions in terms of the number of words and sentences, number of words per sentence, and percentage of concrete nouns in each text 66 Table 3.2 Number of texts in each of the three categories of simple text which used the criteria words or equivalents. Equivalents to the criteria words appear in parentheses 70 Table 5.1 Accuracy of identifying missing headwords for defnitions 125 Table 5.2 Coverage of word tokens in the British National Corpus (BNC) 127 Table 5.3 Number of words used to defne each sense of each headword: Average (Avg) and interquartile range (IQR) 128 Table 6.1 Key features of good materials for culture 143 Table 6.2 Defning vocabulary used in the AusDICT—comprising primes (italics) and molecules 149 Table 6.3 Other Minimal English words which could potentially be used in STE, if needed 150 Table 8.1 Korean speech styles 198

xix xx List of Tables

Table 8.2 Korean speech forms and honorifc expression elements (after Yoon 2004: 191–200; Brown 2011: 23–45; Kim 2016: 29) 201 Table 9.1 Sample descriptors from WECS training materials (Expanded WECS v1.2) in use in February 2018, for Positive anchor points 230