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An Analysis of Semantic and Syntactic Negation in Oshiwambo and English
JULACE: Journal of University of Namibia Language Centre Volume 4, No. 2, 2019 (ISSN 2026-8297) An analysis of semantic and syntactic negation in Oshiwambo and English Immanuel N. Shatepa1 Namibia University of Science and Technology Abstract Negation in languages has been documented since the 1970s and 1980s. This paper attempts to explain the negation structures in semantic and syntactic structures of Oshiwambo and English languages. These two languages have two complete negation structures and how they function to achieve negation is far from being similar. The focus of the paper was on the analysis of the sentential negation and how negative particles are used in English and Oshiwambo, a Bantu language. It analyzes and compares the use of full negatives, affixes and quasi negative words to achieve negation in English and Oshiwambo language. The Oshiwambo and English texts/contents were purposely sampled and content analysis was performed accordingly. The analysis shows that Bantu languages share a common rule of negation which is the use of a pre- initial prefix while the rules to changing negative imperative to interrogative or declarative are different between English and Oshiwambo. Keywords: pre-initial, negation, marker, imperative, declarative, integrative, syntactic, semantic, Bantu Introduction A number of studies on negation of English and Bantu languages have been conducted by linguists. Studies by Kim and Sag (1995); Neba and Tanda (2005) and Weir (2013) show that negation differs from language to language. They further state highlighted that since every language has its own morphological and semantic components to express negation, one rule fits all simply does not work. -
Classifiers: a Typology of Noun Categorization Edward J
Western Washington University Western CEDAR Modern & Classical Languages Humanities 3-2002 Review of: Classifiers: A Typology of Noun Categorization Edward J. Vajda Western Washington University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://cedar.wwu.edu/mcl_facpubs Part of the Modern Languages Commons Recommended Citation Vajda, Edward J., "Review of: Classifiers: A Typology of Noun Categorization" (2002). Modern & Classical Languages. 35. https://cedar.wwu.edu/mcl_facpubs/35 This Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by the Humanities at Western CEDAR. It has been accepted for inclusion in Modern & Classical Languages by an authorized administrator of Western CEDAR. For more information, please contact [email protected]. J. Linguistics38 (2002), I37-172. ? 2002 CambridgeUniversity Press Printedin the United Kingdom REVIEWS J. Linguistics 38 (2002). DOI: Io.IOI7/So022226702211378 ? 2002 Cambridge University Press Alexandra Y. Aikhenvald, Classifiers: a typology of noun categorization devices.Oxford: OxfordUniversity Press, 2000. Pp. xxvi+ 535. Reviewedby EDWARDJ. VAJDA,Western Washington University This book offers a multifaceted,cross-linguistic survey of all types of grammaticaldevices used to categorizenouns. It representsan ambitious expansion beyond earlier studies dealing with individual aspects of this phenomenon, notably Corbett's (I99I) landmark monograph on noun classes(genders), Dixon's importantessay (I982) distinguishingnoun classes fromclassifiers, and Greenberg's(I972) seminalpaper on numeralclassifiers. Aikhenvald'sClassifiers exceeds them all in the number of languages it examines and in its breadth of typological inquiry. The full gamut of morphologicalpatterns used to classify nouns (or, more accurately,the referentsof nouns)is consideredholistically, with an eye towardcategorizing the categorizationdevices themselvesin terms of a comprehensiveframe- work. -
Grammatical Gender and Grammatical Stems
Grammatical gender and grammatical stems How many grammatical genders exist in Czech? How can we tell the grammatical gender of a noun? What is a grammatical stem and how do we determine it? Why is knowing the grammatical stem important? How does the ending of a noun help us to know whether it is a hard- or soft-stem noun? Like other European languages (German, French, Spanish) but unlike English, Czech nouns are marked for grammatical gender. Czech has three grammatical genders: Masculine (M), Feminine (F), and Neuter (N). M and F partly overlap with the natural gender of human beings, so we have učitel for a male teacher and učitelka for a female teacher, sportovec for a male athlete and sportovkyně for a female athlete… But grammatical gender is a feature of all nouns (names of inanimate things, places, abstractions…), and it plays an important role in how Czech grammar works. To determine the grammatical gender of a noun (Maskulinum, femininum nebo neutrum?), we look at the ending—the last consonant or vowel—of the word in the Nominative singular (the basic or dictionary form of the word). 1. The great majority of nouns that end in a consonant are Masculine: profesor (professor), hrad (castle), stůl (table), pes (dog), autobus (bus), počítač (computer), čaj (tea), sešit (workbook), mobil (cell-phone)… Masculine nouns can be further divided into animate nouns (people and animals) and inanimate nouns (things, places, abstractions). 2. The great majority of nouns that end in -a are Feminine: profesorka (professor), lampa (lamp), kočka (cat), kniha (book), ryba (fish), fotka (photo), třída (classroom), podlaha (floor), budova (building)… 3. -
The Term Declension, the Three Basic Qualities of Latin Nouns, That
Chapter 2: First Declension Chapter 2 covers the following: the term declension, the three basic qualities of Latin nouns, that is, case, number and gender, basic sentence structure, subject, verb, direct object and so on, the six cases of Latin nouns and the uses of those cases, the formation of the different cases in Latin, and the way adjectives agree with nouns. At the end of this lesson we’ll review the vocabulary you should memorize in this chapter. Declension. As with conjugation, the term declension has two meanings in Latin. It means, first, the process of joining a case ending onto a noun base. Second, it is a term used to refer to one of the five categories of nouns distinguished by the sound ending the noun base: /a/, /ŏ/ or /ŭ/, a consonant or /ĭ/, /ū/, /ē/. First, let’s look at the three basic characteristics of every Latin noun: case, number and gender. All Latin nouns and adjectives have these three grammatical qualities. First, case: how the noun functions in a sentence, that is, is it the subject, the direct object, the object of a preposition or any of many other uses? Second, number: singular or plural. And third, gender: masculine, feminine or neuter. Every noun in Latin will have one case, one number and one gender, and only one of each of these qualities. In other words, a noun in a sentence cannot be both singular and plural, or masculine and feminine. Whenever asked ─ and I will ask ─ you should be able to give the correct answer for all three qualities. -
Synchronic and Diachronic Aspects of Valency-Reducing Devices in Oceanic Languages
2016 LINGUA POSNANIENSIS LVIII (2) DoI 10.1515/linpo-2016-0013 Synchronic and diachronic aspects of valency-reducing devices in Oceanic languages Katarzyna Janic Department of Comparative Linguistics, University of zurich e-mail: [email protected] Abstract: Katarzyna Janic. Synchronic and diachronic aspects of valency-reducing devices in Oceanic langu- ages. the poznań Society for the advancement of arts and Sciences, pL ISSn 0079-4740, pp. 151-188 this paper sketches out valency-reducing devices available in oceanic languages. the proto-oceanic prefix *paRi- and suffix *-akin[i] are specifically the focus of the discussion, being approached from both synchro- nic and diachronic perspectives. I explain the currently attested functions performed by the reflexes of these two morphemes by assuming that the evolution went in a particular direction: from a very general function to a more specialized, concrete one. among different functions performed by the reflexes of *paRi- and *-akin[i] within the valency-reducing domain, I will show that the antipassive has not been fully recognized and properly designated in linguistic descriptions of the oceanic languages yet. Keywords: oceanic languages, valency, plurality of relations, detransitivization, antipassive 1. Introduction the question of valency and valency-changing devices in oceanic languages has been extensively discussed in the literature (ozanne-Rivierre 1976; Moyse-Faurie 1983, 2007, 2008, 2016, 2017; Schlie 1983; Lichtenberk 1985, 1991, 2000, 2007, 2008: 54-163; Schütz 1985; Dixon 1988: 45-51; Mosel & hovdhaugen 1992: 693-774, 720-741; B. Ev- ans 2003: 301-309; Davis 2003: 110-178; Bril 2005; naess 2013; among many others). While some of the scholars have investigated it diachronically with the aim to reconstruct these devices within the proto-oceanic system (harrison 1982; B. -
Morphological Classes and Gender in Ɓəna-Yungur
Morphological classes and gender in əna-Yungur Mark van de Velde, Dmitry Idiatov To cite this version: Mark van de Velde, Dmitry Idiatov. Morphological classes and gender in əna-Yungur. Shigeki Kaji. Proceedings of the 8th World Congress of African Linguistics, Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, pp.53-65, 2017. halshs-01484016 HAL Id: halshs-01484016 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01484016 Submitted on 6 Mar 2017 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. Morphological classes and gender in Ɓə́ná-Yungur Mark Van de Velde1,2 & Dmitry Idiatov1,2 1Llacan (UMR 8135 CNRS – USPC/Inalco), Paris, France 2Research Centre for Nigerian Languages, KWASU, Malete, Nigeria Abstract This paper provides an analysis of the gender system of Ɓə́ná-Yungur (glottocode: bena1260), distinguishing noun classes proper, defined as agreement classes, from morphological classes, defined in terms of number marking on nouns. The gender system is typologically unusual in its symmetry and simplicity. Ɓə́ná-Yungur has three noun classes in the singular and the same three classes in the plural. All logically possible singular-plural pairings are attested, except one. -
Serial Verb Constructions Revisited: a Case Study from Koro
Serial Verb Constructions Revisited: A Case Study from Koro By Jessica Cleary-Kemp A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Associate Professor Lev D. Michael, Chair Assistant Professor Peter S. Jenks Professor William F. Hanks Summer 2015 © Copyright by Jessica Cleary-Kemp All Rights Reserved Abstract Serial Verb Constructions Revisited: A Case Study from Koro by Jessica Cleary-Kemp Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics University of California, Berkeley Associate Professor Lev D. Michael, Chair In this dissertation a methodology for identifying and analyzing serial verb constructions (SVCs) is developed, and its application is exemplified through an analysis of SVCs in Koro, an Oceanic language of Papua New Guinea. SVCs involve two main verbs that form a single predicate and share at least one of their arguments. In addition, they have shared values for tense, aspect, and mood, and they denote a single event. The unique syntactic and semantic properties of SVCs present a number of theoretical challenges, and thus they have invited great interest from syntacticians and typologists alike. But characterizing the nature of SVCs and making generalizations about the typology of serializing languages has proven difficult. There is still debate about both the surface properties of SVCs and their underlying syntactic structure. The current work addresses some of these issues by approaching serialization from two angles: the typological and the language-specific. On the typological front, it refines the definition of ‘SVC’ and develops a principled set of cross-linguistically applicable diagnostics. -
A Generative Approach to the Phonology of Bahasa Indonesia
A GENERATIVE APPROACH TO THE P H O N O L O G Y OF BAHASA INDONESIA by Hans Lapoliwa (MATERIALS IN LANGUAGES OF INDONESIA, N o. 3) ,W. A. L. Stokhof, Series Editor A GENERATIVE APPROACH TO THE PHONOLOGY OF BAHASA INDONESIA by Hans Lapoliwa (MATERIALS IN LANGUAGES OF INDONESIA/ NO. 3) W.A.L. Stokhof, Series Editor Department of Linguistics Research School of Pacific Studies THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY F A K U L T A S - S AS IR A PACIFIC LINGUISTICS is issued through the L-ingu-c6t-cc C-t fide, o & Ca.nbzn.tia. and consists of four series: SERIES A - OCCASIONAL PAPERS SERIES 8 - MONOGRAPHS SERIES C - BOOKS SERIES V - SPECIAL PUBLICATIONS EDITOR: S.A. Wurm. ASSOCIATE EDITORS: D.C. Laycock, C.L. Voorhoeve, D.T. Tryon, T.E. Dutton. EDITORIAL ADVISERS: B. Bender, University of Hawaii K.A. McElhanon, University of Texas D. Bradley, University of Melbourne H. McKaughan, University of Hawaii A. Capell, University of Sydney p - Miihlhausler, Linacre College, Oxford S. Elbert, University of Hawaii G.N. O'Grady, University of Victoria, K. Franklin, Summer Institute of B.C. Linguistics A.K. Pawley, University of Hawaii W.W. Glover, Summer Institute of K. Pike, University of Michigan; Summer Linguistics Institute of Linguistics G. Grace, university of Hawaii E.C. Polome, University of Texas M.A.K. Halliday, University of Sydney G. Sankoff, Universite de Montreal A. Healey, Summer Institute of W.A.L. Stokhof, National Center for Linguistics Language Development, Jakarta; L. Hercus, Australian National University University of Leiden N.D. -
Puana 'Ia Me Ka 'Oko'a: a Comparative Analysis of Hawaiian
Vol. 5 (2011), pp. 107-133 http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/ldc/ http://hdl.handle.net/10125/4494 Puana ‘Ia me ka ‘Oko‘a: A Comparative Analysis of Hawaiian Language Pronunciation as Spoken and Sung Joseph Keola Donaghy University of Hawai‘i at Hilo and University of Otago, New Zealand In this paper I argue that the differences between spoken Hawaiian and vocal perfor- mance of western-influenced “traditional” Hawaiian music are representative of the linguistic diversity found within the Hawaiian language. It contains a comparative analysis of Hawaiian Language Pronunciation as Spoken and Sung, using transcriptions of recorded examples by John Kameaaloha Almeida, a native speaker of the Hawaiian language and a prominent composer, singer, and instrumentalist. It will provide a pho- nemic analysis of notable and predictable variations heard in Hawaiian language vocal performances that are not heard in spoken Hawaiian. Further, it will show that rhythmic arrangement of morae over strong beats in the musical measure is largely analogous to accent in spoken Hawaiian, with some predictable exceptions. The paper also documents how, during his vocal performance, Almeida added three non-lexical vocables not heard in spoken Hawaiian. I argue that these characteristics and variation are indicative of the linguistic diversity found within the Hawaiian language and, as such, are worthy of the same attention and scholarly scrutiny as spoken Hawaiian. The second goal of this applied research is to present the results in a manner that is accessible to practitioners of Hawaiian language performance. 1. INTRODUCTION.1 One day during my time as an undergraduate student in the Hawaiian Studies program at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, I was listening to a record- ing of Rev. -
The “Person” Category in the Zamuco Languages. a Diachronic Perspective
On rare typological features of the Zamucoan languages, in the framework of the Chaco linguistic area Pier Marco Bertinetto Luca Ciucci Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa The Zamucoan family Ayoreo ca. 4500 speakers Old Zamuco (a.k.a. Ancient Zamuco) spoken in the XVIII century, extinct Chamacoco (Ɨbɨtoso, Tomarâho) ca. 1800 speakers The Zamucoan family The first stable contact with Zamucoan populations took place in the early 18th century in the reduction of San Ignacio de Samuco. The Jesuit Ignace Chomé wrote a grammar of Old Zamuco (Arte de la lengua zamuca). The Chamacoco established friendly relationships by the end of the 19th century. The Ayoreos surrended rather late (towards the middle of the last century); there are still a few nomadic small bands in Northern Paraguay. The Zamucoan family Main typological features -Fusional structure -Word order features: - SVO - Genitive+Noun - Noun + Adjective Zamucoan typologically rare features Nominal tripartition Radical tenselessness Nominal aspect Affix order in Chamacoco 3 plural Gender + classifiers 1 person ø-marking in Ayoreo realis Traces of conjunct / disjunct system in Old Zamuco Greater plural and clusivity Para-hypotaxis Nominal tripartition Radical tenselessness Nominal aspect Affix order in Chamacoco 3 plural Gender + classifiers 1 person ø-marking in Ayoreo realis Traces of conjunct / disjunct system in Old Zamuco Greater plural and clusivity Para-hypotaxis Nominal tripartition All Zamucoan languages present a morphological tripartition in their nominals. The base-form (BF) is typically used for predication. The singular-BF is (Ayoreo & Old Zamuco) or used to be (Cham.) the basis for any morphological operation. The full-form (FF) occurs in argumental position. -
0 German Noun Class As a Nominal Protection Device Richard Futrell
German Noun Class as a Nominal Protection Device Richard Futrell Undergraduate Honors Thesis Stanford University, Department of Linguistics May 2010 ____________________________________ Faculty advisor: Dan Jurafsky ____________________________________ Second reader: Michael Ramscar 0 Gretchen: Wilhelm, where is the turnip? Wilhelm: She has gone to the kitchen. Gretchen: Where is the accomplished and beautiful English maiden? Wilhelm: It has gone to the opera. - Mark Twain, ―The Awful German Language‖ 1. Introduction Grammatical gender, also known as noun class, afflicts about half of the world's languages. Speakers of these languages must mark each noun for its membership in a certain noun class, and must similarly mark elements such as adjectives or verbs that agree with the noun. In over half of these cases, the choice of gender for a noun has no comprehensive systematic relationship to the meaning of the nouns (Corbett 2008), posing a significant obstacle for L2 learners (Harley 1979, Tucker et al. 1968: 312). Some have taken grammatical gender to be superfluous: for instance, Maratsos (1979: 235) calls the existence of such a system ―excellent testimony to the occasional nonsensibleness of the species.‖ A number of researchers have nonetheless defended noun class against the accusation of uselessness, and I will take up that cause in this paper. I will examine the gender system of Standard German with an eye toward detecting function. I claim that noun class serves as a sort of ‗Nominal Protection Device,‘ alleviating the linguistic difficulties inherent in nouns by reducing uncertainty about nouns. Noun class markers help language users predict nouns in a number of ways: they predict the form of the noun, they predict the semantics of the noun, and they predict 1 which discourse referent a pronoun points to in reference tracking (in the sense of Barlow 1992). -
The Laterwriting of Abraham Fornander, 1870-1887 A
523 UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'llIBRARY "A TRUSTWORTHY HISTORICAL RECORD": THE LATERWRITING OF ABRAHAM FORNANDER, 1870-1887 A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF EDUCATION IN EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATIONS MAY 2004 By Pamela Haight Thesis Committee: Eileen Tamura, Chairperson Gay Garland Reed Vilsoni Hereniko ABSTRACT Using a post-colonial framework, this thesis examines the later research and writing ofAbraham Fornander. The paper addresses the politics, religion, and society that informed Fornander's research and writing, then focuses more closely on his book, An Account ofthe Polynesian Race and international response to it. Fornander's tenacity in promoting his Western worldview and his efforts to advance his career infused his writings and, in the end, served to overshadow existing indigenous language and culture, hastening deterioration ofboth. Utilizing correspondence, early writing for newspapers, and other archival information, the paper demonstrates his attempts to attain authentic status for himselfand his work. Though inconclusive in terms ofproving Fornander's complicity with colonialism, the thesis presents another viewing ofone man's work and begs a previously hidden discussion. 111 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1 Purpose ofthe study 7 Methodology 10 Background to the study 13 Language and Colonization , 15 Representing Others 17 Collecting Cultures 21 19th Century Hawai'i 25 Abraham Fomander 30 Fomander's Newswriting 34 Fomander's Philological Research 50 Response to An Account ofthe Polynesian Race 61 Discussion and implications 75 Postscript 78 Appendix A: Letter from Rollin Daggett to Abraham Fomander 82 Appendix B: Letter from Abraham Fomander to Rollin Daggett.