Text-to-scene generation systems take input in the form of a natural language text and output a 3D scene illustrating the meaning of that text. A major benefit of text-to-scene generation is that it allows users to create custom 3D scenes without requiring them to have a background in 3D graphics or knowledge of specialized software packages. This contributes to making text-to-scene useful in scenarios from creative applications to education. The primary goal of this thesis is to explore how we can use text-to-scene generation in a new way: as a tool to facilitate the elicitation and formal documentation of language. In particular, we use text-to-scene generation (a) to assist field linguists studying endangered languages; (b) to provide a cross-linguistic framework for formally modeling spatial language; and (c) to collect language data using crowdsourcing. As a side effect of these goals, we also explore the problem of multilingual text-to-scene generation, that is, systems for generating 3D scenes from languages other than English. The contributions of this thesis are the following. First, we develop a novel tool suite (the WordsEye Linguistics Tools, or WELT) that uses the WordsEye text-to-scene system to assist field linguists with eliciting and documenting endangered languages. WELT allows linguists to create custom elicitation materials and to document semantics in a formal way. We test WELT with two endangered languages, Nahuatl and Arrernte. Second, we explore the question of how to learn a syntactic parser for WELT. We show that an incremental learning method using a small number of annotated dependency structures can produce reasonably accurate results. We demonstrate that using a parser trained in this way can significantly decrease the time it takes an annotator to label a new sentence with dependency information. Third, we develop a framework that generates 3D scenes from spatial and graphical semantic primitives. We incorporate this system into the WELT tools for creating custom elicitation materials, allowing users to directly manipulate the underlying semantics of a generated scene. Fourth, we introduce a deep semantic representation of spatial relations and use this to create a new resource, SpatialNet, which formally declares the lexical semantics of spatial relations for a language. We demonstrate how SpatialNet can be used to support multilingual text-to-scene generation. Finally, we show how WordsEye and the semantic resources it provides can be used to facilitate elicitation of language using crowdsourcing.

Based on 160 hours of recording collected in the villages of Săbăoani, and Pildeşti, Romania, the present research attempts to describe the middle voice system of Northern Moldavian Hungarian (NMH), an endangered language spoken by no more than 3000 speakers. Defining the middle voice category semantically rather than formally, it is argued that the various middle situation types in NMH can be placed relative to one another on a “semantic map” based on shared semantic properties such as 1) the confinement of the development of the action within the agent’s sphere to the extent that the action’s effect accrues back on the agent itself, 2) the degree of volitionality of the Initiator/Agent, and 3) the degree of affectedness of the Initiator/Agent. Polysemy structures are examined against the background of a common semantic map derived on the basis of cross linguistic investigation of a given grammatical domain. In working toward this end a detailed description of major patterns of meaning inherent in the NMH middle system, examining three types of morphological middles, syntactic middles, and lexical middles is presented. Cases in which the same verb can occur with or without a middle marker apparently having the same meaning are discussed. Moreover, seemingly minimal pairs in which two different morphological constructions occur with the same verb are analyzed. A detailed analysis of the differences in form and function of the two reciprocal syntactic middle constructions in NMH is provided. Regarding reflexive syntactic middles it will be shown that depending on the case marking taken by the reflexive anaphoric operator the function conveyed is different such as reflexives, intensifiers, causers, and experiencer. Finally, cases in which the same verb can convey a middle meaning by using a morphological middle marker or by using a syntactic middle construction are analyzed showing that there are main differences in the meaning those two strategies convey. Thus, the present paper identifies specific semantic properties relevant to the middle voice system in NMH, sets up some hypotheses regarding the relations among middle and related situation types and proposes some diachronic predictions regarding the middle voice system of NMH.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alberta. / Title from pdf file main screen (viewed September 2, 2009). "A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in parital fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Anthropology". Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of California, San Diego, 2009. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed July 7, 2009). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Includes bibliographical references (p. 120-126).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Oregon State University, 2008. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 173-178). Also available on the World Wide Web.

AN ABSTRACT ON THE THESIS OFJose Benavides Pantoja, for the Master of Arts degree in Linguistics presented on April 30, 2020, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: PHONETIC VARIATION IN KAMËNTS̈Á: AN ANALYSIS OF STOPS AND AFFRICATESMAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. Karen Baertsch This study contributes to the limited body of research concerned with documenting and studying the minority and indigenous languages of the world. More specifically, it focuses on Kamënts̈á, a language isolate spoken by less than 500 people in southern Colombia. According to UNESCO (2003), this language has been categorized as “definitely endangered” which makes its documentation even more critical. Although there have been initial investigations undertaken by Juajibioy, Howard, and McDowell, the scarce accessible research has relied on purely impressionistic reviews of the language, leading to unreliable conclusions and descriptions of the language. This thesis constitutes the first phonetic acoustic analysis of Kamënts̈á language in order to substantiate what has been described in the current literature. Additionally, the geographic location where Kamënts̈á emerged, together with Spanish, and Inga Kichwa has proven to be an intriguing sociohistorical and linguistic landscape for the study of these languages being an area worth of investigating. Given that there is no existing documentation of language variation in the language, the primary goal of this thesis is to analyze the production of plosive and affricate segments at a word-level to examine language variation at a phonetic level. Considering that Kamënts̈á has been poorly documented, it was not surprising for differences in the production to be found. One difference fell in the phonemic status of the segment between younger and older speakers of the language. The production of the segments in three linguistic environments at word-level attested for variation of some phonemes. For this study, data were collected from two experimental tasks. For the first task, eight Kamënts̈á-Spanish bilinguals (N=8) were recorded producing words in isolation in a word-elicitation exercise. The purpose of this task was to gather raw data on the production of the segments at word level. For the second task, the consultants were asked to take a sociolinguistic questionnaire. This instrument was designed to account for the linguistic ethnography and language ecology of the Kamënts̈á. The purpose of this task was also to tie sociolinguistic data from the speakers with any phonemic differences in the realization of the segments. Results supported the VOT framework proposed by Lisker and Abramson (1964) as an effective metric to measure the voicing status of plosives. For the analysis of affricates, the center of gravity and spectral peak location demonstrated accurate acoustic correlates to capture frication in the phonemes. Equally, amplitude provided valuable information for the analysis of prenasalization. What is more, consistent resemblances were found comparing Kamënts̈á with other studies regarding the acoustic cues, place and manner of articulation, and voicing status of the phonemes.

Unangam Tunuu has been recorded since the early days of contact in the mid 1700s; it is the sole representative of the 'Aleut' branch in the Eskimo-Aleut language family, and though it shares certain features with Yupik, Inuktitut and other Eskimo languages, it is distinct and employs a host of unique strategies to convey meaning. In this paper I will give an overview of the language, Unangam Tunuu, and background of the Indigenous people who speak it. I will also give a brief overview of the grammatical category of mood, discuss how mood is traditionally understood to function in European languages, and how it is represented in Unangam Tunuu. I will argue that the category of mood in Unangam Tunuu and the markers which have been glossed as such show many irregularities from what has been traditionally considered mood, and argue that this category needs to be critically re-examined. I will also suggest elicitation plans to assist in testing for mood-marking, specifically the indicative, as well as subjunctive-like or irrealis inflections.

Recent census data have shown that the number of Breton speakers in Lower Brittany has continued to drop despite revitalization efforts. A problem minority languages face is struggling to maintain a place in the lives of the people who have adopted the dominant language. In this study, I assess the current problems faced by the Breton language today by examining a few select problems. First, I highlight the lack of situations in which speakers can use Breton. Even children attending immersion programs often do not live in a Breton-speaking household, nor do they have settings outside the school where they can practice the language. Secondly, I consider the ideological place of Breton in the minds of speakers. Many people feel that while Breton is important to their heritage, they do not need to actively speak it in order to associate with a Breton identity. Related to this is the opinion of many people that Breton is an outdated language with no future ahead of it, as revealed by recent research (Broudic 2009, Jones1998, Timm 2001). Finally, the creation of a new, standardized Breton known as neo-Breton adds to the problem of finding a place for the language; older speakers who use traditional Breton are marginalized, while it is the young speakers using neo- Breton. I use current census data as well as personal research conducted in Brittany in July 2010 to supplement my assessment of the current Breton situation. While progress has been slow, Breton is gaining a stronger presence in society. / text

xxii, 995 p. A print copy of this thesis (with two accompanying DVD videos) is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / Since 2005, I have been working with members of the Kari'nja community of Konomerume, Suriname to document, describe, preserve, and revitalize their heritage language, the Aretyry dialect of Kari'nja (Cariban family). Simultaneously, I have worked to develop, pilot, and articulate a model of field research that depends on participation from speech community members. This dissertation combines exposition of this model of field research with presentation of a large body of the results from the application of that new model. Ethnically Kari'nja, Konomerume community members have witnessed a decline in language use in recent generations. Although I work primarily with members of the Konomerume community, a village on the banks of the Wajambo River in Suriname, in recent years, I have expanded my work to include two other communities in the region, Corneliskondre and Kalebas Kreek. My work with Kari'nja community members concerns four broad, interrelated areas of endangered languages research, each described in a section of the dissertation. Following Chapter 1, which provides an orientation to the dissertation as a whole, Chapter 2 reviews strengths and problems with prior models of fieldwork, then proposes a new model of fieldwork with members of Indigenous communities. Chapter 3 demonstrates some of the linguistic results of our work together in Konomerume, offering a more pedagogical overview of some aspects of Kari'nja grammar followed by more academic descriptions of nonverbal predication and an innovative main clause progressive construction. Chapter 4 addresses how documentation can be combined with applied linguistics to support revitalization through formal language teaching. Finally, Chapter 5 describes the documentary corpus that is found in the appendices, explaining procedural steps used in creating the corpus and outlining the actual documentary products that we have produced. The Appendices are the concrete representation of the body of collaborative work that the Kari'nja community and I have done together. They include DVD videos, a substantial collection of transcribed, translated, and grammatically annotated texts in multiple genres, a dictionary, a pedagogical grammar sketch, and a curriculum guide for formal teaching of introductory Kari'nja. / Committee in charge: Spike Gildea, Chairperson, Linguistics; Eric Pederson, Member, Linguistics; Susan Guion, Member, Linguistics; Janne Underriner, Member, Linguistics; Brian Klopotek, Outside Member, Anthropology

Bih is a Chamic (Austronesian) language spoken by approximately 500 people in the Southern highlands of Vietnam. This dissertation is the first descriptive grammar of the language, based on extensive fieldwork and community-based language documentation in Vietnam and written from a functional/typological perspective. The analysis in this work is supported with illustrations drawn mainly from texts, with examples from elicitation when needed as well. In phonology, Bih is the only mainland Chamic language to have retained all four Proto-Chamic presyllablic vowels. As a result, Bih is the only Chamic language having only primary clusters inherited from Proto-Chamic and lacks the secondary clusters created by a reduction of an original disyllable form in Proto-Chamic, which occur in other languages of the family. In addition to the vowels, Bih retains only six out of thirteen Proto-Chamic presyllable consonants, but it retains all main syllable consonants from Proto-Chamic. In addition, all voiced "aspirated" consonants in Proto-Chamic become voiceless in Bih. This phonological change is common throughout coastal Chamic and it is also shared among Bih and other two highland Chamic languages, Chru and Northern Roglai, but not with Ede. In morphological terms, Bih is an isolating language. Words are mostly monosyllabic, although there are a number of disyllable or trisyllable words with the fossilized prefixes pa- or ma- or both. Without inflection on verbs, like other mainland Southeast Asian languages, Bih includes a set of particles functioning as grammatical markers. In fact, many Bih words function as either a full lexical verb or particle depending on their syntactic behaviors. The fundamental mechanisms of Bih syntax are clause-chaining and verb serialization. Most grammatical forms develop from serial verb source constructions. Another feature of great areal typological interest is the topic and focus distinction system of Bih, which, in combination with word order alternations, indicates the discourse status of a referent: whether it is new and/or important in the discourse, or the speaker's evaluation of whether or not a referent is accessible to the mind of the hearer, or whether it contradicts a presupposition or expectation on the part of the hearer or of people in general. Bih has a very interesting obviative-like system, which uses one third person pronoun form to refer to the character whose point of view is being represented and another for all other third persons.