ЛЕКСИКО-СТИЛІСТИЧНІ ОЗНАКИ КОНФЕСІЙНОЇ СФЕРИ В АНГЛІЙСЬКІЙ ТА УКРАЇНСЬКІЙ МОВАХ: ЗІСТАВНИЙ АСПЕКТ (ЧАСТИНА 2)

The paper deals with the contrastive analysis of the Ukrainian (Ivan Ohiyenko) and English (King James Bible) translations of the Old Testament (Genesis, Chapter 1) with the purpose to establish their comparative lexical and stylistic features. The assessment of the stylistic devices in the Ukrainian (UTT) and English (ETT) target texts proves a high degree of their similarity. There is a considerable parallelism in the use of repetition, paraphrase, aphorisms, generic nouns, stylistically coloured lexemes, rhetorical address and homogenous elements’ structure. The polysyndeton is a distinctive feature of both texts as well as gradation and a systematic use of archaic or unusual words. The dissimilarities of the two texts include alliterative repetition in verse 10, a double-focus repetition and a weakened polysyndeton in verse 29 in ETT, repetition in ETT (verses 14-15) which appeared to be impossible in UTT due to the specifi c structure used there and the strengthened verb repetition in the refrain of each period in UTT. Other distinctions include a systematic use of the state verb (be) in ETT, whereas the UTT utilizes a range of dynamic verbs indicating the transition from one state to another; the use of two monotypic metaphors in ETT, as compared to neutral lexemes in UTT; or, conversely, the ETT counterpart of an elevated style word is stylistically neutral in UTT. Another divergence is the use of parceling in ETT, which shifts the stylistic emphasis to the parceled fragment, while in the UTT the preference is given to the double synonymic structure; the use of archaism, metaphor and synecdoche in ETT whereas they are absent in UTT. Other unilaterally used stylistic devices include personifi cation in ETT versus alliteration and assonance in UTT; the use of an infi nitive stricture in ETT and a verbal noun in UTT to render purpose; greater variability of attributes (prepositional, postpositional, subordinate clauses), as well as lexical stylistic means in UTT; greater phonetic and lexical diversity of generalizing attributes in UTT. Overall, a somewhat greater variety of lexical stylistic means in UTT may be assumed, although it can hardly be regarded as the latter’s advantage because the standards of stylistic acceptability substantially vary in diff erent languages and cultures. The scope of further research is outlined. Key words: English and Ukrainian languages, Bible (Genesis), comparative stylistics, comparative lexicology, confessional style, teaching translation and interpreting, comparative lexical and stylistic analysis, lexical and stylistic features.

Understanding Child-Directed Speech Around Book Reading in Toddler Classrooms: Evidence From Early Head Start Programs

Child-directed speech (CDS), which can help children learn new words, has been rigorously studied among infants and parents in home settings. Yet, far less is known about the CDS that teachers use in classrooms with toddlers and children’s responses, an important question because many toddlers, particularly in high-need communities, attend group-care settings. This exploratory study examines the linguistic environment during teacher-led book readings in American Early Head Start classrooms serving 2-year-olds from households in poverty. Seven teachers in four classrooms were trained to emphasize target words while reading story and informational books. We first analyzed the nature and quality of their book readings from a macro-level, exploring global instructional quality [Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS)] and linguistic complexity [i.e., diversity of vocabulary (D) and sophistication of syntax (MLU-w)], and we also examined micro-level teacher-child talk strategies and use of target words. Compared to prior research, these classrooms had similar global quality and syntactic complexity, although less lexical diversity. Exploratory results also revealed three distinct teacher talk patterns—teachers who emphasized (1) comments, (2) questions, and (3) a balance of the two. Question-focused teachers had more adult and child talk during reading, as well as more repetitions of target words, and stronger CLASS Engaged Support for Learning. However, comment-focused teachers used more diverse vocabulary and had stronger CLASS Emotional and Behavioral Support. Results illuminate the nature and quality of CDS in toddler classrooms, particularly in the context of an intervention emphasizing target vocabulary words, and highlight applications for professional development and questions for further research.

Effects of EFL Learning on L1 Chinese Lexis

The advocates of multi-competence theory argue that the L2 learners’ language system is unique because of the crosslinguistic influences of both languages. However, the influence of a foreign language on the learner’s L1 has not been extensively investigated. In order to address the gap, the present study sought to investigate the effects of EFL learning on written L1 Chinese at the lexical level. Two studies were conducted on 200 abstracts of MA theses written in Chinese, half on English literature written by Chinese-L1 English majors (EMs), and half on Chinese literature written by Chinese-L1 Chinese majors (CMs). The first study investigated the differences between the two groups in terms of the frequencies of nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, prepositions, and conjunctions in the abstracts. The second study examined the differences in the lexical complexity and diversity between the two groups. The results reveal 12 significant differences in 27 investigated word classes and subclasses, as well as significant differences in lexical complexity, but no significant difference in lexical diversity. The identified differences are discussed from a multi-competence perspective.

Lexical variation in Caribbean English

The present paper seeks to further develop an interdisciplinary research into language variation and contact studies. Integrating cognitive-onomasiological and ecolinguistic approaches, it addresses lexical diversity in the Caribbean English. The permanent contacts between English and other local and transported languages have caused a wide range of modifications in the Caribbean English lexicon, including allonymy. Allonymy is treated as a contact-induced type of lexical variation leading to the formation of alternative names for the same referents. By tracing the sources of allonyms and disclosing cognitive mechanisms involved in their formation, this study explains the vitality of allonymic lexical items in the complex language ecology of the Caribbean region. It is argued that variation in naming processes is determined by speakers’ cognitive preferences as well as their cultural vigour that manifest in multilingual and multicultural ecology.

What the frequency list can teach us about Turkish sign language?

Recent studies on linguistics, cognitive science and psychology have shown that describing lexical frequency characteristics can answer many critical questions on language acquisition, mental lexicon and language use. Given the importance of corpus-based methodology, this study reports the preliminary findings from the objective lexical frequency list in TİD based on 103.087 sign tokens. This paper shows that frequency occurrence has a very decisive role on the linguistics categories and language in use. With respect to the multi-functionality of pointing in signed languages, the top ranked ID-gloss occurrences are mostly shaped by the pronominal references. Moreover, when compared to previous studies in terms of lexical density and lexical diversity, TİD shares both similar and different statistical features observed in other signed languages.

Parent-child interaction during storybook reading: wordless narrative books versus books with text

This study examines the content and function of parent-child talk while engaging in shared storybook reading with two narrative books: a wordless book versus a book with text. Thirty-six parents audio-recorded themselves reading one of the books at home with their 3.5–5.5-year-old children. Pragmatic and linguistic measures of parental and child talk during both narrative storytelling and dialogic interactions were compared between the wordless and book-with-text conditions. The results show that the wordless book engendered more interaction than the book-with-text, with a higher rate of parental prompts and responsive feedback, and significantly more child contributions, although lexical diversity and grammatical complexity of parental language were higher during narration using a book-with-text. The findings contribute to research on shared storybook reading suggesting that different book formats can promote qualitatively different language learning environments.

Lexical diversity in an L2 Spanish learner corpus

This study examines the impact of two topic-related variables (i.e., valence polarity and everyday-life closeness) on the lexical diversity scores (i.e., MTLD) of learners of L2 Spanish at different proficiency levels. The analysis included 3,045 texts written in response to two pairs of prompts by 1,165 students enrolled in an L2 Spanish program. The first pair of prompts asked learners to narrate an event: prompt 1 focused on a perfect vacation (positive event), while prompt 2 asked participants to tell a terrible story (negative event). The second pair asked to describe a person: prompt 1 required that the subject be famous, thus not close to the writer, whereas prompt 2 required that the subject be special and close to the writer. Results indicate that lexical diversity scores were higher for the texts written about the positive event and the famous subject across all proficiency levels.

Applying phraseological complexity measures to L2 French

This study partially replicates Paquot’s (2018, 2019) study of phraseological complexity in L2 English by investigating how phraseological complexity compares across proficiency levels as well as how phraseological complexity measures relate to lexical, syntactic and morphological complexity measures in a corpus of L2 French argumentative essays. Phraseological complexity is operationalized as the diversity (root type-token ratio; RTTR) and sophistication (pointwise mutual information; PMI) of three types of grammatical dependencies: adjectival modifiers, adverbial modifiers and direct objects. Results reveal a significant increase in the mean PMI of direct objects and the RTTR of adjectival modifiers across proficiency levels. In addition to phraseological sophistication, important predictors of proficiency include measures of lexical diversity, lexical sophistication, syntactic (phrasal) complexity and morphological complexity. The results provide cross-linguistic validation for the results of Paquot (2018, 2019) and further highlight the importance of including phraseological measures in the current repertoire of L2 complexity measures.

Lexical and acoustic speech features relating to Alzheimer’s disease pathology

INTRODUCTIONIn this study, we compared digital speech features of AD and lvPPA patients in a biologically confirmed cohort and related them to specific neuropsychiatric test scores and CSF proteins.METHODSWe extracted language variables with automated lexical and acoustic pipelines from oral picture descriptions of 44 AD and 21 lvPPA patients with autopsy or CSF confirmation of AD pathology. We correlated distinct speech features with MMSE and BNT test scores and CSF p-tau levels.RESULTSLvPPA patients produced fewer verbs, adjectives, and more fillers with lower lexical diversity and higher pause rate than AD. Both groups showed some shared language impairments compared with normal speakers.DISCUSSIONOur speech measures captured differences in speech between the two phenotypes. Also, shared speech markers were linked to the common underlying pathology. This work demonstrates the potential of natural speech analysis in detecting underlying AD pathology.

Developmental Features of Lexical Richness in English Writings by Chinese L3 Beginner Learners

Lexical richness is considered as one of the most efficient methods for assessing writing proficiency and development. However, the developmental features of lexical richness in L3 writing remain relatively poorly understood compared with that of L2 writings. This study reports a cross-sectional corpus-based study that aims to explore the developmental features of lexical richness in L3 writings by Chinese beginner learners of English from the perspective of the dynamic usage-based approach. Specifically, this study compares samples of English writing by Chinese L3 secondary students (grades 7–12) aged 13–18 across three learning stages in terms of lexical sophistication, lexical diversity and lexical density. The writing samples were collected from the Writing Corpus of Chinese Ethnic Minority Beginner Learners as the Third Language (WCCMBL), and the sample sizes of the three stages remained almost the same. The results revealed that lexical richness was generally low in L3 beginner learners' writing. Specifically, L3 beginner learners used fewer diverse words and lexical words, but used numerous high-frequency words in their writing. Additionally, lexical sophistication and lexical density yielded positive growth across the three learning stages, whereas lexical diversity developed non-linearly. These findings reveal a dynamic development of lexical richness in L3 writings, with each of the three measures developing unevenly. Drawing upon these findings, several suggestions for L3 vocabulary teaching are also proposed.