Core vocabulary and core collocations: combining corpus analysis and native speaker judgement to inform selection of collocations in learner dictionaries

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Native Speaker ◽  
Corpus Analysis ◽  
Core Vocabulary ◽  
Selection Of

Same difference? L1 influence in the use of initial adverbials in English novice writing

2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (4) ◽  
pp. 427-461 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanne Van Vuuren ◽  
Janine Berns
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Initial Position ◽  
Transfer Effect ◽  
Corpus Analysis ◽  
Efl Writing ◽  
Frequent Use ◽  
L1 Influence ◽  
Novice Writers ◽  
Linguistic Behaviour

Abstract This paper examines the use of clause-initial adverbials in English novice writing. Previous research has identified frequent use of such adverbials as characteristic of Dutch EFL writing. Our contrastive corpus analysis of novice writing by Dutch and Francophone learners as well as native speakers allows us to determine whether this use of initial adverbials is (a) a V2 transfer effect, (b) a general interlanguage feature, independent of learners’ L1, or (c) a characteristic of novice writing in general, holding true for both native and non-native writers. We will show that both learner groups are ‘equally different’ from the native-speaker novice writers in their frequent use of initial adverbials, but appear to have distinct underlying reasons for this linguistic behaviour: Francophone writers place adverbials in initial position more often for stylistic purposes, while Dutch writers have a stronger tendency to use initial adverbials for local discourse linking.

scholarly journals Language Ideology and Its Manifestations: Exploring Implications for Japanese Language Teaching

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 305-316
Author(s):  
Mahua Bhattacharya
Keyword(s):  
Language Ideology ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Japanese Language ◽  
Pedagogical Approach ◽  
Language Pedagogy ◽  
It Impacts ◽  
Neutral Activity ◽  
Selection Of

Language teaching is often seen as an ideologically neutral activity. Linguists have traditionally believed that what people say about language use or structure does not represent ‘real’ linguistic data (Schieffelin, et al, 1998:11).  However, it is precisely this dismissal that modern linguistic anthropologists hope to dispel. This paper attempts to lay bare the workings of language ideology and how it impacts language teaching in general and Japanese language pedagogy in particular.The ideological orientation of what constitutes ‘standard’ Japanese language involves inclusion of certain components that are motivated by Nihonjinron discourses of ‘identity, aesthetics, morality and epistemology’ and processes of exclusion that ‘erase’ deviations from the ‘norm’ (Schieffelin, et al, 1998:3). Ideas about ‘native speaker’ understanding, selection of language materials, inclusion and exclusion of syntactical, lexical, and pragmatic forms in teaching manuals, etc., are all affected by these perspectives, some of which this paper will hope to enumerate. With concrete examples it will be demonstrated how flawed these processes are and how a critical pedagogical approach may help solve these issues. 

Form prominence in the L2 lexicon: Further evidence from word association

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-90
Author(s):  
Nan Jiang ◽  
Jianqin Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Word Association ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Association Studies ◽  
First Language ◽  
The Past ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Orthographic Priming ◽  
Selection Of

Two lines of evidence emerged in the past suggesting that lexical form seemed to play a more important role in the organization of the second language (L2) mental lexicon than in that of the first language (L1) lexicon. They were masked orthographic priming in L2 word recognition and an elevated proportion of form-related responses in L2 word association. However, findings from previous word association studies were inconsistent regarding (1) how often L2 speakers produced form-related responses ( flood–blood) and (2) whether L2 speakers were more likely than L1 speakers to provide such responses. Attributing this inconsistency to two methodological causes, the classification of form-related responses and the selection of stimuli, the present study adopted an improved approach by quantifying the definition of form-related responses and by selecting stimuli that had both strong semantic associates and orthographically similar words as potential responses. The latter improvement helped remove the bias for producing either meaning-based or form-based responses. A group of 30 English native speakers and two groups of 65 non-native speakers were tested on the same set of stimuli of 74 English words. Three findings were obtained: (1) non-native speakers produced significantly more form-related responses than native speakers, (2) the two non-native speaker group who differed in L2 experiences showed comparable results, and (3) the participants’ familiarity with the stimuli and the lexical frequency of the stimuli negatively correlated with the proportion of form-related responses among non-native speakers. These results provided more compelling evidence for form prominence in the L2 lexicon.

scholarly journals Model for Vocabulary Selection of Sensitive Topics: An Example from Pain-Related Vocabulary

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (04) ◽  
pp. 276-285
Author(s):  
Juan Bornman ◽  
Kerstin Tönsing ◽  
Ensa Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Augmentative And Alternative Communication ◽  
Communication Systems ◽  
Alternative Communication ◽  
Sensitive Topics ◽  
Communication Difficulties ◽  
Graphic Symbol ◽  
Children's Pain ◽  
Core Vocabulary ◽  
Sensitive Issues ◽  
Selection Of

AbstractVocabulary selection for graphic symbol-based augmentative and alternative communication systems is important to enable persons with significant communication difficulties to express a variety of communication functions to indicate needs and wants, to develop social closeness, and to fulfill social etiquette. For persons who experience pain, abuse, bullying, or neglect, it is essential to be able to communicate about sensitive issues. However, published core vocabulary lists allow limited scope for communicating about sensitive topics, due mainly to the techniques employed to determine such lists (e.g., observations or recording of communication patterns of peers with typical development during fun-based or daily activities). This article is based on the outcome of a study of children's pain-related vocabulary. Based on the study, we propose a model for selecting vocabulary on sensitive topics. The model consists of four phases: (1) using hypothetical scenarios; (2) considering different perspectives that may affect vocabulary selection; (3) involving direct stakeholders, and (4) customizing vocabulary.

Prosodic accommodation in language contact: Spanish intonation in Majorca

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 (221) ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Romera ◽  
Gorka Elordieta
Keyword(s):  
Language Contact ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
Prosodic Features ◽  
Native Spanish Speakers ◽  
Early Stages ◽  
Contact Situation ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Selection Of

AbstractIn this article we study a language contact situation in Majorca, Spain, in which adult monolingual speakers of Spanish who arrived recently in Majorca acquire aspects of Majorcan Catalan prosody. Although the possibility that the adoption of features can take place directly from Catalan is not rejected, we provide evidence that it can be an indirect process, through a process of accommodation (Trudgill 1986; Giles and Coupland 1991) to the L2 variety of Spanish spoken by L1 Majorcan Catalan speakers. An experiment was set up in which we recorded four native Spanish speakers who arrived recently in Majorca holding a semi-directed conversation in Spanish with a native speaker of Majorcan Catalan. The results showed consistent adoption of prosodic features of L2 Majorcan Spanish in interrogative sentences (not in declaratives). The results support the idea that the adoption of prosodic features of Majorcan Catalan by monolingual Spanish speakers can take place in early stages of contact. Our article also shows that subjective factors such as determination towards integration play a fundamental role in determining the degree of accommodation. Finally, salience of prosodic features is claimed to play a role in the selection of transferred features.

scholarly journals PAIN: the Word, the Image and the Concept in the Dostoevsky’s Thought and Speech Space

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 436-453
Author(s):  
Alexey V. Varzin
Keyword(s):  
Native Speaker ◽  
General Structure ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Continuous Sampling ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
Linguistic Methods ◽  
Academy Of Sciences ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Selection Of

The article is devoted to the study of the linguistic expression of the phenomenon of pain in the texts of F.M. Dostoevsky. The material of the analysis is the texts of works of fiction, journalism and letters of the Great Russian writer. The study of Dostoevskys texts is preceded by an analysis of entries in explanatory and specialized dictionaries and encyclopedias, including articles in the Dictionary of Dostoevskys Language. The relevance of the study is determined by the approaching bicentennial of F.M. Dostoevsky, in whose works the phenomenon of pain has become one of the important subjects of the image. The specificity of this work lies in the reliance on linguistic methods of studying the phenomenon of pain while maintaining the interdisciplinary focus of the research as a whole. Various associative connections of the word pain and its derivatives in the contexts of the writers works of different genres are being studied. At the initial stage, the selection of material is carried out by the method of continuous sampling using the DiaWin software system of the Department of Experimental Lexicography of the V.V. Vinogradov Russian Language Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The material thus obtained, is subjected to a multilevel analysis, in course of which the specificity of the conceptualization of pain in language and culture is revealed and the features of the depiction and interpretation of the phenomenon of pain in the discourse of Dostoevsky and his characters are revealed. Conclusions are formulated about the stable associative connections of the lexeme pain, the specificity of the linguistic depiction of various states of pain in the writers texts is revealed, the original interpretations of the concept of pain in the discourses of heroes-ideologists are analyzed. As a result, the analyzed phenomenon appears in multidimensional illumination. The general structure of the frame is established. The relationship between external symptoms and internal sensations of physical and mental pain is revealed. It is postulated that the explication of the concept of pain by a native speaker is fraught with significant difficulties, since pain is introspective and subjectively experienced. This special state is experienced and lived on. The contextual combinations of meanings of the word pain in Dostoevskys texts are highlighted. The specificity of the figurative representation of pain situations in the writers works is revealed. The increments of meaning characteristic of Dostoevskys contexts are analyzed. As a result, pain is interpreted as a complex phenomenon of language and culture and an important concept in the discourse of F.M. Dostoevsky.

Salience and construal in the use of synonymy: A study of two sets of near-synonymous nouns

2013 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dilin Liu
Keyword(s):  
Forced Choice ◽  
Semantic Context ◽  
Corpus Analysis ◽  
Semantic Structure ◽  
Usage Pattern ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Selection Of

AbstractVia a corpus-based collocation analysis and a forced-choice questionnaire examination, this study investigates the use of two sets of near-synonymous nouns: authority/power/right and duty/obligation/responsibility. The corpus analysis reveals the prototypical meanings of the nouns in each set and the semantic and usage pattern differences among the synonymous nouns. Also, the corpus analysis and the results of the forced-choice study jointly show that the level of lexical salience and the language users' construal are two key factors in the use of synonymous nouns. Due to entrenchment effects, speakers/writers typically use a synonymous noun with the highest salience in a given semantic context unless the speaker/writer's construal operations result in a decision to use a different noun whose prototypical meaning fits the context better. It is also found that the selection of a non-salient noun in a given context typically signifies a difference in meaning. Furthermore, the meanings of synonymous nouns and the internal semantic structure of a synonymous-noun set seem to show a certain degree of fluidity, influenced by the competition of lexical salience and language users' construal. The study has also demonstrated the effectiveness of combining corpus-based analysis and elicited data examination in the study of synonyms.

scholarly journals DYSPHEMISMS IN ANIMATED FILMS

2021 ◽  
Vol XII (35) ◽  
pp. 175-194
Author(s):  
Admir R. Gorcevic ◽  
Samina N. Dazdarevic ◽  
Amela Lukač Zoranić
Keyword(s):  
American English ◽  
Corpus Analysis ◽  
Specific Language ◽  
South Park ◽  
Methodological Foundation ◽  
Animated Films ◽  
Natural Discourse ◽  
Google Search ◽  
Language Corpus ◽  
Selection Of

Current research focuses on an observational investigation of dysphemistic words and phrases in contemporary animated films. The language of animated films varies from other genres and styles, and this divergence from conventional language presents an important sociolinguistic problem. The main reason for the study is an assumption that authors and script writers of animated films use dysphemisms in this specific language style, despite the fact that they should be avoided. The study's methodological foundation is a corpus analysis which deals with three different corpora: the primary corpus – selected contemporary animated films (dating from 2017 to 2020) and the secondary – a) the native language corpus (Corpus of Contemporary American English - COCA), and b) Google search engine. The following goals were pursued in this dysphemism investigation: (1) the selection of animated films for the primary corpus, (2) identification of dysphemisms in the primary corpus, (3) sociolinguistic analysis and explanation of some of the most appealing expressions from the primary corpus, and (4) to cross-check some of the dysphemisms identified in the primary corpus against the secondary corpus. The authors believe that certain number of them are exclusive to animated films and cannot be found in the native discourse. The analysis has confirmed that the language of animated films contains dysphemisms, and that their number and nature vary from film to film. The most common dysphemisms can be found in all animated films, but those containing the most profane language are characteristic only for South Park. Further investigation revealed that certain number of dysphemistic expressions identified in the primary corpus can only be found in animated films and not in the natural discourse.

scholarly journals Freedom and culture in Maphalla’s translation of Kipling’s ‘If’ into Sesotho

Literator ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johannes Seema
Keyword(s):  
Native Speaker ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Original Text ◽  
Translation Theory ◽  
Source Text ◽  
Cultural Contact ◽  
Good Leader ◽  
Selection Of

A translation is generally regarded as a transportation of the message from one text into another such that, in prototypical cases, the content of the original or source text is preserved in the target text. Any translation reflects language and cultural contact. It is the effect of a mapping of one language onto another and of one culture onto another. In both cases, it involves a selection of counterparts. Traditionally, translation is thought of as establishing equivalence between the original text and the translated one. This article explores the notion of equivalence and the closely linked but conflicting principles of fidelity and freedom in translation theory and practice. The issues involved in practical translation stem from a critical selective combination of freedom or fidelity on the part of the translator. Manipulation of either may lead to certain problems. Kipling’s poem ‘If’ is a didactic poem meant to give encouragement. It serves as a motivation as manifest in several traits of a good leader. Maphalla took the initiative to translate Kipling’s poem ‘If’ into Sesotho. This article addresses the idea that the translator’s task is not only to convey Kipling’s ideas but also to render his style in such a way as to make the translation road smooth to a native speaker of the target language, which in this case is Sesotho. This article also advocates greater freedom for the translator, based on Derridean theory that offers the translator more freedom.

scholarly journals THE USE OF NATIVE SPEAKER NORMS IN CRITICAL PERIOD HYPOTHESIS RESEARCH

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 565-596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sible Andringa
Keyword(s):  
Critical Period ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Test Items ◽  
Highly Educated ◽  
Critical Period Hypothesis ◽  
Norm Group ◽  
Selection Of

In critical period hypothesis (CPH) research, native speaker (NS) norm groups have often been used to determine whether nonnative speakers (NNSs) were able to score within the NS range of scores. One goal of this article is to investigate what NS samples were used in previous CPH research. The literature review shows that NS control groups tend to be small and highly educated and that detailed background information is usually not provided. Another goal of this article is to investigate how the NS norm group may affect the incidence of nativelike performance by NNSs. To this end, 124 NSs and 118 NNSs of Dutch completed five comprehension tasks and a vocabulary task. On the basis of mean scores and standard deviations, norms were determined for a representative and a nonrepresentative (highly educated) subsample of NSs. Also, separate norms were constructed for the high- and low-frequency items within a task. Exact McNemar tests were used to establish that the incidence of nativelike performance by NNSs was significantly higher if a representative sample norm was used. The results also showed that, insofar as there were effects of frequency, norms based on low-frequency test items tended to be more inclusive. The results imply that the selection of NSs in CPH research deserves more consideration than it has received in the past; they also suggest that NS ceiling performance is potentially useful in determining nativelike performance.

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