scholarly journals Contact or Inheritance? Criteria for distinguishing internal and external change in genetically related languages

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 313-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Na’ama Pat-El
Keyword(s):  
Language Contact ◽  
Practical Problem ◽  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Test Cases ◽  
Common Language ◽  
Language Family ◽  
Source Language ◽  
Linguistic Form ◽  
Semitic Language ◽  
Internal Change

Several prominent scholars have recently doubted whether it is possible to differentiate borrowing from internal change, to the point that in some cases subgrouping is not feasible or is restricted (Dench, 2001; Dixon, 2001). Since a situation of prolonged and intense contact between closely related languages is very common, language contact and its results are a major problem if not a real hazard to historical linguistics. The main practical problem is how to differentiate internal changes, changes motivated by internal processes, from external changes, changes due to language contact, when the structure of the languages is so similar. In other words, how do we know which linguistic form is the source of the change: one of the attested languages, or the mother of both of them? In this paper, I suggest two preliminary criteria to isolate the source language in cases of contact: 1) the existence of intermediary stages, and 2) an even spread of the change across categories. I will show, using test cases from the Semitic language family that these criteria can help us distinguish between internal and external changes.

Sound Correspondence and the Comparative Study of Miao-Yao Languages (語音對應與苗瑤語比較研究)

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Wang (汪鋒) ◽  
Wen Liu (劉文)
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Relationship ◽  
Similar Pattern ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Common Ancestor ◽  
Language Family ◽  
Genetic Position ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Comparative Study

Rigorous sound correspondence is fundamental to historical linguistics. It serves as a solid start in studying genetic relationship. Regarding the genetic position of Miao-Yao languages, Li (1937) proposed a hypothesis that the Sino-Tibetan language family consists of Chinese, Tibeto-Burman, Kam-Tai, and Miao-Yao. Benedict (1942; 1975) excluded Miao-Yao from the Sino-Tibetan language family since sound correspondences between Miao-Yao and Chinese were considered to be caused by language contact. The key point in this debate has been ignored for a long time: are the related morphemes proposed in this debate supported by rigorous sound correspondence? In this paper, related morphemes across 11 Miao-Yao languages have been first identified under the requirement of complete sound correspondence, and then analyzed by the Rank Method. The result of the genetic relationship between the 11 Miao-Yao languages has been confirmed. The same procedure has been applied to Sino-Miao-Yao related morphemes, and similar pattern has been found. The Sino-Miao-Yao related morphemes were recognized to be inherited from the common ancestor of Chinese and Miao-Yao. Combined with the result from the perspective of pervasive sound correspondence (Wang 2015), the proposal of a genetic relationship between Chinese and Miao-Yao has been supported. The Inexplicability Principle has been used to weaken the possibility of Sino-Miao-Yao related morphemes being induced by borrowing from Chinese to Miao-Yao, since some sound correspondences are unlikely to be explained by natural phonetic mechanisms. Moreover, related morphemes in Chinese and Miao-Yao have been examined from the perspective of Old Chinese, and such an examination also supports the hypothesis of a genetic relationship between Chinese and Miao-Yao languages. 嚴格的語音對應是歷史比較的基礎，也是判定語源關係的必要條件。在苗瑤語的語源問題研究中，李方桂（1937）提出漢藏語系四語族學說，即漢語、藏緬語、侗台語和苗瑤語。Benedict（1942、1975）則將苗瑤語從漢藏語系中劃分出去，理由是苗瑤語和漢語有對應關係的語素是由接觸造成的。苗瑤語系屬問題的爭議焦點在於苗瑤語和漢語音近義同的一批關係語素是否有嚴格的語音對應支持，然而這一問題一直以來不被重視。本文基於完全對應得到苗瑤語族內部11個語言的關係語素，隨後應用詞階法分析，結果如願所示，這11個語言之間具有發生學關係。同樣的程序應用于漢-苗瑤語關係語素，結果與上述呈現的模式相同，即這些關係語素是來自漢語和苗瑤語共同的祖語，而非語言接觸的產物。結合普遍對應的研究（Wang 2015），漢語和苗瑤語的發生學關係可以得到支持。不可釋原則也顯示漢-苗瑤語關係語素是由苗瑤語從漢語借用的可能性較小，因為二者間的部分語音對應不可能通過自然音變來解釋。此外，從上古漢語的角度對漢-苗瑤語關係語素的校驗也支持二者的同源關係。

The Impact of Contact Languages on the Degrammaticalization of the Hebrew Definite Article

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 283-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edit Doron ◽  
Irit Meir
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Definite Article ◽  
Syntactic Category ◽  
Semantic Change ◽  
Modern Hebrew ◽  
Internal Change ◽  
The Impact

The Hebrew articleha- is apparently undergoing a process of degrammaticalization within Modern Hebrew. Its distribution has been changing in a particular direction that is unexpected from the point of view of historical linguistics. Whereas in Classical Hebrew it was found with a limited number of lexical items, it now attaches to a variety of phrases. This change is indicative of a change in its morpho-syntactic category: it is becoming more a clitic than an affix. The morpho-syntactic change is accompanied by a semantic change; its function is to mark the definiteness of the phrase it attaches to, rather than being part of the Classical Hebrew state system. We propose that the change has its roots in a language-internal change that affected the periphrastic genitive construction of Mishnaic Hebrew and was enhanced through several phases of language contact such as the contact of Medieval Hebrew with Arabic and the contact of nineteenth-century Hasidic Hebrew with Yiddish.

Loanwords vs relics

Diachronica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ewa Geller ◽  
Michał Gajek
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Data ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Historical Analysis ◽  
Semantic Relations ◽  
Digital Networks ◽  
Contact Linguistics ◽  
Source Language ◽  
Word Families ◽  
Induced Changes

Abstract One of the major issues in historical and contact linguistics is how to distinguish between inherited and acquired vocabulary in a given language: both traditional historical linguistics and modern contact linguistics are in this respect eventually forced to resort to inferences. The aim of this paper is to propose a diagnostic test to aid in the identification of putative substratum relics in the lexicon. The method for this test consists in juxtaposing and comparing word families in the source and recipient language. We use the example of Yiddish-Slavic language contact, in which contact-induced changes are still relatively transparent. We employ wordnets – digital networks of lexical entities connected by lexico-semantic relations – in order to visually “‘map” lexical and semantic relations of transferred lexemes within the recipient language onto the source language. The method allows us to combine contemporary empirical data with historical analysis.

scholarly journals LANGUAGE CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT: HISTORICAL LINGUISTICS

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Trisna Dinillah Dinillah Harya
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Language Change ◽  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Historical Change ◽  
Language Family ◽  
Social Culture ◽  
Level Of Education ◽  
Pattern Change ◽  
History Of ◽  
Internal Change

Language can change and develop by itself slowly. Language can change and development because of adaptation of development and pattern change and system of society life, such as level of education, social, culture and technology mastery. Language change and development can occur internally and externally. In this article the changes internally and language development will be reviewed by looking through the study of historical change and development language based on the history of its development. While changes in external and development will be explored through the study of Sociolinguistics by examining and looking at changes and developments that language is influenced by socio-cultural factors that occur in society. Changes internally initially occurred in the behavior of speakers in their everyday lives to adjust to each other, and followed by a tendency to innovate in groups of people who are already familiar, then followed by other changes in sequence, which ultimately makes a language different each other, although originally derived from a single language family. Changes in the external language change and language development is caused by the contact of a language with other languages, where humans as social beings who have been cultured either interconnected or inter-ethnic nations in the world in a country.Key words: Language Changes, Internal Change, External Change, Historical linguistics

Modern Greek V V dvandva compounds: A linguistic innovation in the history of the Indo-European languages

2009 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela Ralli
Keyword(s):  
Language Contact ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Compound Formation ◽  
Modern Greek ◽  
Late Medieval Period ◽  
European Languages ◽  
History Of ◽  
Internal Change ◽  
Contact Situation ◽  
Asian Languages

This paper deals with [V V] dvandva compounds, which are frequently used in East and Southeast Asian languages but also in Greek and its dialects: Greek is in this respect uncommon among Indo-European languages. It examines the appearance of this type of compounding in Greek by tracing its development in the late Medieval period, and detects a high rate of productivity in most Modern Greek dialects. It argues that the emergence of the [V V] dvandva pattern is not due to areal pressure or to a language-contact situation, but it is induced by a language internal change. It associates this change with the rise of productivity of compounding in general, and the expansion of verbal compounds in particular. It also suggests that the change contributes to making the compound-formation patterns of the language more uniform and systematic. Claims and proposals are illustrated with data from Standard Modern Greek and its dialects. It is shown that dialectal evidence is crucial for the study of the rise and productivity of [V V] dvandva compounds, since changes are not usually portrayed in the standard language.

scholarly journals Breton a-marking of (internal) verbal arguments: A result of language contact?

Linguistics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (3) ◽  
pp. 745-766
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Stark ◽  
Paul Widmer
Keyword(s):  
Language Contact ◽  
Object Position ◽  
Relative Chronology ◽  
Celtic Languages ◽  
Potential Case ◽  
Existential Constructions ◽  
History Of ◽  
Internal Change ◽  
Pronominal System ◽  
Verbal Arguments

AbstractWe discuss a potential case of borrowing in this paper: Breton a- ‘of’, ‘from’ marking of (internal) verbal arguments, unique in Insular Celtic languages, and reminiscent of Gallo-Romance de/du- (and en-) arguments. Looking at potential Gallo-Romance parallels of three Middle Breton constructions analyzed in some detail (a with indefinite mass nominals in direct object position, a-marking of internal arguments under the scope of negation, a [allomorphs an(ez)-/ahan-] with personal pronouns for internal arguments, subjects (mainly of predicative constructions) and as expletive subjects of existential constructions), we demonstrate that even if there are some semantic parallels and one strong structural overlap (a and de under the scope of negation), the amount of divergences in morphology, syntax and semantics and the only partially fitting relative chronology of the different constructions do not allow to conclude with certainty that language-contact is an explanation of the Breton facts, which might have come into being also because of internal change (bound to restructuring of the pronominal system in Breton). More research is necessary to complete our knowledge of a-marking in Middle Breton and Modern Breton varieties and on the precise history of French en, in order to decide for one or the other explanation.

scholarly journals The Lexical and Phonetical Features of The Tengger Dialect of Javanese

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 147
Author(s):  
Sri - Andayani
Keyword(s):  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Descriptive Study ◽  
Language Family ◽  
Austronesian Language ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Qualitative Descriptive ◽  
Observation Method ◽  
Local Languages

Probolinggo, East Java is an area of Pandalungan. Culturally, the area has the mixing of Javanese and Madurese cultures, so as the local languages that are used by the society. Most of Probolinggo people master Javanese as well as Madurese language. Besides, there is one more dialect developing in Probolinggo, that is Tengger dialectdialect. It is used by the Tengger society in Tengger Mountainuos region around Mount Bromo. The Javanese that is used by the Tengger society is different from the Javanese of Probolinggo or even the standard Javanese. The significant difference is in the pronunciation of the vowel. It tends to have the features of the Old Javanese. By doing Comparative Historical Linguistics study, the features of Tengger dialect compared to the Modern and Old Javanese. The qualitative descriptive study uses an observation method to collect the data. Then, they are analyzed by the distributional and identity methods. It indicates that the distribution and development of Javanese as a part of Austronesian language family is not merely innovatively. It can be relix likewise. The Tengger dialect phonetical and lexical features tends to be similar to the Old Javanese feature, not the modern ones as the innovative Javanese.

CONVERGENCE AND THE FORMATION OF AFRIKAANS

2002 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul T. Roberge
Keyword(s):  
Language Contact ◽  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Important Case ◽  
General Idea ◽  
Linguistic Features ◽  
Language Varieties ◽  
Languages In Contact ◽  
History Of

As a phenomenon to be explained, convergence in historical linguistics is substantively no different than in creolistics. The general idea is that accommodation by speakers of “established” languages in contact and the formation of new language varieties both involve a process of leveling of different structures that achieve the same referential and nonreferential effects. The relatively short and well-documented history of Afrikaans presents an important case study in the competition and selection of linguistic features during intensive language contact.

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