Rent 9780195582475 | An Introduction to Historical Linguistics

Summary Table of Contents

All languages change, just as other aspects of human society are constantly changing. This book is an introduction to the concepts and techniques of diachronic linguistics--the study of language change over time. It covers all the major areas of historical linguistics, presenting concepts in a clear and concise way. While examples are given from a wide range of languages, most major concepts and techniques are illustrated by material drawn from the languages of Australia and the Pacific. The needs of undergraduate students of linguistics have b... MORE

Preface	p. 9
Acknowledgements	p. 11
How to use this book	p. 13
Chart of phonetic symbols	p. 15
Maps of languages referred to in the text	p. 16
Introduction	p. 21
The Nature of Linguistic Relationships	p. 21
Attitudes to Language Change	p. 28
Deliberately Changing Languages	p. 31
Types of Sound Change	... MOREp. 38
Lenition and Fortition	p. 39
Sound Addition	p. 43
Metathesis	p. 45
Fusion	p. 46
Unpacking	p. 48
Vowel Breaking	p. 49
Assimilation	p. 49
Dissimilation	p. 56
Abnormal Sound Changes	p. 57
Expressing Sound Changes	p. 66
Writing Rules	p. 66
Ordering of Changes	p. 69
Phonetic vs Phonemic Change	p. 75
Phonetic Change without Phonemic Change	p. 75
Phonetic Change with Phonemic Change	p. 77
Phonemic Change without Phonetic Change	p. 82
The Comparative Method	p. 90
Sound Correspondences and Reconstruction	p. 90
Reconstruction of Conditioned Sound Changes	p. 104
The Reality of Proto-Languages	p. 111
Internal Reconstruction	p. 122
Synchronic Alternations	p. 122
Limitations of Internal Reconstruction	p. 126
Grammatical, Semantic, and Lexical Change	p. 133
Typology and Grammatical Change	p. 134
Mechanisms of Grammatical Change	p. 145
Semantic Change	p. 148
Lexical Change	p. 152
Subgrouping	p. 163
Shared Innovation and Shared Retention	p. 164
Lexicostatistics and Glottochronology	p. 168
Causes of Sound Change	p. 191
Anatomy and Ethnic Character	p. 191
Climate and Geography	p. 193
Substratum	p. 194
Local Identification	p. 195
Functional Need	p. 196
Simplification	p. 197
Structural Pressure	p. 200
Observing Language Change	p. 204
The Traditional View	p. 204
Indeterminacy	p. 206
Variability	p. 210
The Spread of Change and Lexical Diffusion	p. 216
Problems with the Comparative Method	p. 222
The Neogrammarians	p. 222
Analogy	p. 230
Convergent Lexical Development	p. 235
Spelling Pronunciation	p. 235
Lexical Copying	p. 236
Non-Phonetic Conditioning	p. 238
The Wave Model and Lexical Diffusion	p. 240
Dialect Chains and Non-Discrete Subgroups	p. 247
Language Contact	p. 253
Convergence	p. 254
Language Genesis - Pidgins and Creoles	p. 262
Language Death	p. 274
Cultural Reconstruction	p. 284
Archaeology	p. 284
Oral History	p. 286
Comparative Culture	p. 290
Historical Linguistics	p. 292
Palaeolinguistics	p. 303
The Reliability of Cultural Reconstruction	p. 307
Data Sets	p. 313
Palauan (Micronesia)	p. 313
Nganyaywana (northern New South Wales)	p. 313
Mbabaram (northern Queensland)	p. 314
Yimas and Karawari (East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea)	p. 314
Lakalai (New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea)	p. 315
Suena and Zia (Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea)	p. 315
Korafe, Notu and Binandere (Oro Province, Papua New Guinea)	p. 316
Paamese (Vanuatu)	p. 316
Motu (Central Province, Papua New Guinea)	p. 317
Sepa, Manam, Kairiru and Sera (coastal Sepik, Papua New Guinea)	p. 317
Burduna (Western Australia)	p. 318
Language Index	p. 320
References	p. 323
Index	p. 328
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.

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