Historical linguistics and the comparative study of African languages / Gerrit J. Dimmendaal.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dimmendaal, Gerrit Jan.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

African languages--Grammar, Comparative.

African languages.

Historical linguistics.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (439 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Amsterdam ; Philadelphia : John Benjamins Pub. Co., 2011.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This advanced historical linguistics course book deals with the historical and comparative study of African languages. The first part functions as an elementary introduction to the comparative method, involving the establishment of lexical and grammatical cognates, the reconstruction of their historical development, techniques for the subclassification of related languages, and the use of language-internal evidence, more specifically the application of internal reconstruction. Part II addresses language contact phenomena and the status of language in a wider, cultural-historical and ecological context. Part III deals with the relationship between comparative linguistics and other disciplines. In this rich course book, the author presents valuable views on a number of issues in the comparative study of African languages, more specifically concerning genetic diversity on the African continent, the status of pidginised and creolised languages, language mixing, and grammaticalisation.

Contents:

pt. 1. The comparative method

pt. 2. The linguistic manifestation of contact

pt. 3. Studying language change in a wider context.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9786613128287

9781283128285

1283128284

9789027287229

9027287228

OCLC:

733732831