Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2001. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The concern of the study of phonetics and phonology is the speech sounds of languages. Phonetics is concerned with the description and the classification of speech sounds. Phonology, on the other hand is responsible for the sound patterns of speech sounds in a given language namely, the sound inventory, permissible sequences and how the sounds change in different circumstances. This study examines and evaluates the manner in which phonetic-phonological information is applied in South African dictionaries with particular reference to Nguni dictionaries. Dictionaries are regarded as authoritative linguistic tools, therefore, the phonetic-phonological aspects of the language is one of the important information categories that is included in dictionaries. A word as the linguistic unit consists of speech sounds which are in turn regarded as phonological units as well as phonetic entities. The phonetic-phonological signification of the lexical unit in the dictionary entry plays a role in access to facilitating the spoken form of the language recorded. This critical analysis and evaluation of Nguni dictionaries reflects on the current approaches pertaining to the presentation of both segmental and suprasegmental features of speech sound. Secondly, it also demonstrates the types of pronunciation information that is lexicographically relevant for the thorough treatment of the lemma. Although phonetic-phonological information is almost the prevalent feature of all dictionary types, there are problems encountered during its presentation. In the evaluation of Nguni dictionaries the treatment of pronunciation information is coupled with inadequacies and inconsistencies. This is due to the lack of lexicographic planning and the sound application of lexicographic principles. It is evident from the investigation that pronunciation information remains the essential component of the dictionary entry. The inclusion of phonetic-phonological information requires lexicographic planning that is actually based on linguistic theories that are primarily aimed at practical lexicography. The general guidelines that are presented in this study compel lexicographers to introduce innovative methods when handling pronunciation. The proposed approaches in future dictionaries will enhance the accessibility of information when harmonised. It is concluded that lexicographical products in the multilingual South Africa should begin to document the spoken form of various languages for the general record of the sounds of the language and also for pedagogic purposes. A good phonological and phonetic description of the official languages is also pertinent especially in the design stage of the dictionary. The lexicographic approaches followed in the treatment of any linguistic information should based on the (a) functional criteria of the dictionary compiled and (b) also on the prospective user's skills. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Fonetiek en fonologie is die studie van die spraakklanke van tale. Fonetiek sien om na die beskrywing en klassifikasie van spraakklanke. Fonologie daarenteen is verantwoordelik vir die klankpatrone van spraakklanke in 'n gegewe taal nl. die klankinventaris, die toelaatbare sekwensies en hoe die klanke omvorm word in wisselende omstandighede, dit wil se die fonologiese proses. Hierdie studie ondersoek die manier waarop foneties-fonologiese inligting in Suid-Afrikaanse woordeboeke, veral die van die Nguni-tale, vergestalt word. Woordeboeke word gesien as gesaghebbende linguistiese werktuie en die foneties-fonologiese aspekte van taal kom as 'n vername informasiekategorie daarin voor. Die woord as linguistiese eenheid bestaan uit spraakklanke wat op hul beurt beide as fonologiese eenhede sowel as fonetiese entiteite beskou word. Die foneties-fonologiese komponent van die leksikale eenheid speel 'n betekenisvolle rol in die toegang tot die gesproke vorm van die opgetekende taal. Die kritiese analise en evaluasie van Nguni-woordeboeke oorweeg die huidige benaderings wat betrekking het op die aanbieding van beide segmentele en suprasegmentele kenmerke van spraakklanke. Tweedens toon dit ook die tipes uitspraakinformasie wat leksikografies relevant is vir die deeglike uiteensetting van die inligting. Alhoewel foneties-fonologiese inligting die mees algemene verskynsel in alle woordeboektipes is, is daar nietemin probleme met die aanbieding daarvan. Uit die evaluasie van Nguni woordeboeke blyk dit dat ontoereikendhede en inkonsekwensies voorkom. Dit is toe te skryf aan die gebrek aan leksikografiese beplanning en die tekort aan deeglike toepassing van leksikografiese beginsels. Dit blyk uit die ondersoek dat uitspraakinformasie 'n essensiele komponent van die woordeboekinskrywing bly. Die insluiting van foneties-fonologiese inligting verg leksikografiese beplanning wat gebaseer is op 'n linguistiese teorie primer gefokus op praktiese leksikografie. Die algemene riglyne wat in hierdie studie aangebied word dwing leksikograwe om innoverende maatreels toe te pas by die hantering van uitspraak. Die voorgestelde benaderings vir woordeboeke van die toekoms sal die toeganklikheid tot hul inhoud verhoog indien die benaderings harmonieer word. Die slotsom is dat leksikografiese produkte in die veeltalige Suid-Afrika die gesproke vorm van die verskillende tale moet dokumenteer beide as 'n algemene rekord en ook vir pedagogiese doeleindes. 'n Goeie fonologiese en fonetiese beskrywing van die amptelike tale is ook van belang veral in die ontwerpstadium van die woordeboek. Die leksikogafiese benaderings wat gevolg word in die behandeling van enige linguistiese informasie moet gegrond wees op (a) funksionele kriteria van die saamgestelde woordeboek en (b) ook op die vaardighede van die voorgestelde gebruiker.

This research work has several aims, demanded by a number of external and internal factors. First of all, it aims to identify Lala: whether it is simply a dialect of Tekela- Nguni, or perhaps the substratum Bantu language spoken in the eastern parts of Southern Africa since the fourth century of the first millennium A.D. on which every new migratory wave imposed its language (chapters one and two). The lexical-statistical method has been attempted (chapter three), but with mixed results. In fact, relexification is widely used in southern African societies, and this renders the identification of the core vocabulary a very difficult task. The result is that all that can be said is that Lala indeed shows the characteristics of a Tekela-Nguni language, but it is impossible to determine at this stage whether Lala is the mother or the daughter of Tekela. Another important aim, dictated by an earlier research by Wilkes (1981 ), was to compare the two main branches of Lala, called North and South Lala, to prove whether the differences between the two dialects are so wide as to justify a division into two separate entities or not. Here the verdict is emphatically negative. In fact the various stages of the research abundantly re-affirm the view that Lala is one language, with only marginal differences caused by the different linguistic environments: Zulu in the north and IsiZansi in the south. African societies in this part of the world have affirmed themselves in the realm of the written word only recently, i.e. during the last 150 years or so. The background culture of these societies is still vigorously oral, and this means that the spoken word is used for much more than simple communication of thought and feeling. Language is felt as the major binding element in a society that has seen constant political break-ups, upheavals, migrations, wars, attempted exterminations. This means that Lala, as a language or the dominant dialect of a group, is banded about as a cultural-historical flag around which people are proud to gather. This sense of unity is an emotion, a feeling, rather than a deep reality. The colours of the flag, or the distinguishing elements of the language, may be fading away, and only a core might be preserved. But this is quite enough to kindle emotions and to rally people. At least in areas where people are still proud of their cultural heritage. hnicity and language should not be the same, but most of the people interviewed (cf chapter two) felt very strongly that they were Lalas because they spoke Lala; and that they spoke Lala because they are Lalas. Their either glorious or sad histories are recorded in chapter two to demonstrate how Shaka's wars, and the Mfecane, forced them to leave their homeland and to migrate. The trauma of this latest migration is still felt so strongly that it is often superimposed and confused with the great migrations from Central and Western Africa that took place in mythological times, or very long ago. But through their histories, they keep alive their memories and the certainty of the unity of the Lala nation, even though it is now spread from Kranskop to Harding and IZingolweni. Chapter four examines the phonetics and phonology of the two Lala dialects in the context of Swati and Zulu. Lala is a Tekela dialect indeed, but with its own phonetic and phonological peculiarities. The same can be said with regard to the research exposed in chapter five, on the morphology of Lala compared to Swati and Zulu. The grammatical system among the three languages is extremely similar, and there is hardly any substantial difference between North and South Lala. This can also be said with regard to tonology (chapter six) The last chapter reflects on what has been achieved. The ancient Lala language, about which James Stuart stated in the 1920's that it was nearly extinct, is proving very strong and resilient. Possibly the very dynamism experienced in its ability to adapt to the colonial languages and the new material culture by assimilating many foreign lexical items, and that South Lala has adopted many words from IsiZansi, is proof that Lala has got a life of its own that cannot be taken for granted, nor extinguished. The more one is able to study the local languages, the more one dusts up some ancient treasure that needs to be admired and constantly re-valued. The functional word here is 'treasure': because all languages, as carriers of culture, are a treasure that together form the mosaic of our beautiful "Rainbow Nation". / African Languages / D.Litt et Phil.

This research work has several aims, demanded by a number of external and internal factors. First of all, it aims to identify Lala: whether it is simply a dialect of Tekela- Nguni, or perhaps the substratum Bantu language spoken in the eastern parts of Southern Africa since the fourth century of the first millennium A.D. on which every new migratory wave imposed its language (chapters one and two). The lexical-statistical method has been attempted (chapter three), but with mixed results. In fact, relexification is widely used in southern African societies, and this renders the identification of the core vocabulary a very difficult task. The result is that all that can be said is that Lala indeed shows the characteristics of a Tekela-Nguni language, but it is impossible to determine at this stage whether Lala is the mother or the daughter of Tekela. Another important aim, dictated by an earlier research by Wilkes (1981 ), was to compare the two main branches of Lala, called North and South Lala, to prove whether the differences between the two dialects are so wide as to justify a division into two separate entities or not. Here the verdict is emphatically negative. In fact the various stages of the research abundantly re-affirm the view that Lala is one language, with only marginal differences caused by the different linguistic environments: Zulu in the north and IsiZansi in the south. African societies in this part of the world have affirmed themselves in the realm of the written word only recently, i.e. during the last 150 years or so. The background culture of these societies is still vigorously oral, and this means that the spoken word is used for much more than simple communication of thought and feeling. Language is felt as the major binding element in a society that has seen constant political break-ups, upheavals, migrations, wars, attempted exterminations. This means that Lala, as a language or the dominant dialect of a group, is banded about as a cultural-historical flag around which people are proud to gather. This sense of unity is an emotion, a feeling, rather than a deep reality. The colours of the flag, or the distinguishing elements of the language, may be fading away, and only a core might be preserved. But this is quite enough to kindle emotions and to rally people. At least in areas where people are still proud of their cultural heritage. hnicity and language should not be the same, but most of the people interviewed (cf chapter two) felt very strongly that they were Lalas because they spoke Lala; and that they spoke Lala because they are Lalas. Their either glorious or sad histories are recorded in chapter two to demonstrate how Shaka's wars, and the Mfecane, forced them to leave their homeland and to migrate. The trauma of this latest migration is still felt so strongly that it is often superimposed and confused with the great migrations from Central and Western Africa that took place in mythological times, or very long ago. But through their histories, they keep alive their memories and the certainty of the unity of the Lala nation, even though it is now spread from Kranskop to Harding and IZingolweni. Chapter four examines the phonetics and phonology of the two Lala dialects in the context of Swati and Zulu. Lala is a Tekela dialect indeed, but with its own phonetic and phonological peculiarities. The same can be said with regard to the research exposed in chapter five, on the morphology of Lala compared to Swati and Zulu. The grammatical system among the three languages is extremely similar, and there is hardly any substantial difference between North and South Lala. This can also be said with regard to tonology (chapter six) The last chapter reflects on what has been achieved. The ancient Lala language, about which James Stuart stated in the 1920's that it was nearly extinct, is proving very strong and resilient. Possibly the very dynamism experienced in its ability to adapt to the colonial languages and the new material culture by assimilating many foreign lexical items, and that South Lala has adopted many words from IsiZansi, is proof that Lala has got a life of its own that cannot be taken for granted, nor extinguished. The more one is able to study the local languages, the more one dusts up some ancient treasure that needs to be admired and constantly re-valued. The functional word here is 'treasure': because all languages, as carriers of culture, are a treasure that together form the mosaic of our beautiful "Rainbow Nation". / African Languages / D.Litt et Phil.

M.A., Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, 1995

Thesis (M. Computer Science)--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Includes summary. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 46-48).

Although the complexity of prosody is widely recognised, there is a lack of widely-accepted descriptive standards for prosodic phenomena. This situation has become particularly noticeable with the development of increasingly capable text-to-speech (TTS) systems. Such systems require detailed prosodic models to sound natural. For the languages of Southern Africa, the deficiencies in our modelling capabilities are acute. Little work of a quantitative nature has been published for the languages of the Nguni family (such as isiZulu and isiXhosa), and there are significant contradictions and imprecisions in the literature on this topic. We have therefore embarked on a programme aimed at understanding the relationship between linguistic and physical variables of a prosodic nature in this family of languages. We then use the information/knowledge gathered to build intonation models for isiZulu and isiXhosa as representatives of the Nguni languages. Firstly, we need to extract physical measurements from the voice recordings of the Nguni family of languages. A number of pitch tracking algorithms have been developed; however, to our knowledge, these algorithms have not been evaluated formally on a Nguni language. In order to decide on an appropriate algorithm for further analysis, evaluations have been performed on two stateof- the-art algorithms namely the Praat pitch tracker and Yin (developed by Alain de Cheveingn´e). Praat’s pitch tracker algorithm performs somewhat better than Yin in terms of gross and fine errors and we use this algorithm for the rest of our analysis.<./p> For South African languages the task of building an intonation model is complicated by the lack of intonation resources available. We describe the methodology used for developing a generalpurpose intonation corpus and the various methods implemented to extract relevant features such as fundamental frequency, intensity and duration from the spoken utterances of these languages. In order to understand how the ‘expected’ intonation relates to the actual measured characteristics extracted, we developed two different statistical approaches to build intonation models for isiZulu and isiXhosa. The first is based on straightforward statistical techniques and the second uses a classifier. Both intonation models built produce fairly good accuracy for our isiZulu and isiXhosa sets of data. The neural network classifier used produces slightly better results for both sets of data than the statistical method. The classification model is also more robust and can easily learn from the training data. We show that it is possible to build fairly good intonation models for these languages using different approaches, and that intensity and fundamental frequency are comparable in predictive value for the ascribed tone. / Dissertation (MSc (Computer Science))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Computer Science / MSc / unrestricted

Bibliography: pages 131-146. / There is presently considerable debate as to the forms of relationships established between hunter-gatherers and their non-forager neighbours and whether relationships which are documented as having been established significantly affected these hunter-gatherer societies. In southern Africa, particular attention has been paid to the effects of such contact on hunter- gatherer communities of the south-western Cape and the Kalahari. The aim of this thesis has been to assess the nature and extent of relationships established between the south-eastern San and southern Nguni and Sotho communities and to identify the extent to which the establishment of these relationships may have brought about changes in the political, social and religious systems of south- eastern hunter-gatherers. General patterns characterising interaction between a number of San and non-San hunter-gatherer societies and farming communities outside the study area are identified and are combined with archaeological and historiographical information to model relationships between the south-eastern San and southern Nguni and Sotho communities. The established and possible effects of these relationships on some south-eastern San groups are presented as well as some of the possible forms in which changes in San religious ideology and ritual practice resultant upon contact were expressed in the rock art. It is suggested that the ideologies of many south-eastern San communities, rather than being characterised by continuity throughout the contact period, were significantly influenced by the ideological systems of the southern Nguni and Sotho and that paintings at the caves of Melikane and upper Mangolong, as well as comments made upon these paintings by the 19th century San informant, Qing, should be interpreted with reference to the religious ideologies and ritual practices of the southern Nguni and Sotho as well as those of the San. Other rock paintings in areas where contact between the south-eastern San and black farming communities was prolonged and symbiotic may need to be similarly interpreted.

This thesis utilizes the theory of feminism in all its implied branches in an attempt to critically review the subtle and sometimes deliberate subjugation of women in general and South Africa in particular. This occurs, in spite of the fact that there are laws in place that are meant to discourage women abuse. Juxtaposing this is the perspective conception of women, looking at themselves as subjects of virtue who deserve equal treatment to any other human being. It is through some oral forms that this reflection could be tested. Praise poetry, in the hands of a creative artist opens up a world of human emotions that could not be easily seen or felt, and yet it can simultaneously be used to manipulate situations. Language therefore could be seen as a powerful double-edged instrument. The patriarchal system, in this thesis, is exposed as that holy ideology turned unholy to achieve condescending agendas against women. The thin light of respect demonstrated by the traditionalist thinking is made to disappear into thin air, especially when contaminated by Western ideas. It is the resoluteness and the fair obstinacy of some both traditional and modern women that determinedly stood up to conscientise the world in terms of respect for human life irrespective. In this research, an exploration of literary elements within four Nguni languages, that is Siswati, isiZulu, isiNdebele, and isiXhosa reveals the singularity of purpose, for these elements to be manipulated to achieve domineering intentions. Be that as it may, tibongo (praise poems/ praises) of outstanding women who have served in traditional leadership in these language groups give reason to challenge any idea that women should by virtue be relegated to the back seat. Through these tibongo it becomes apparent that because of the women leaders’ stubborn fairness and unparalleled foresight, they have become personifications of democratic values and as such, role models and symbolic hope not only for the empowerment of women, but also for their total liberation from all negative perceptions and oppressions. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)

This thesis utilizes the theory of feminism in all its implied branches in an attempt to critically review the subtle and sometimes deliberate subjugation of women in general and South Africa in particular. This occurs, in spite of the fact that there are laws in place that are meant to discourage women abuse. Juxtaposing this is the perspective conception of women, looking at themselves as subjects of virtue who deserve equal treatment to any other human being. It is through some oral forms that this reflection could be tested. Praise poetry, in the hands of a creative artist opens up a world of human emotions that could not be easily seen or felt, and yet it can simultaneously be used to manipulate situations. Language therefore could be seen as a powerful double-edged instrument. The patriarchal system, in this thesis, is exposed as that holy ideology turned unholy to achieve condescending agendas against women. The thin light of respect demonstrated by the traditionalist thinking is made to disappear into thin air, especially when contaminated by Western ideas. It is the resoluteness and the fair obstinacy of some both traditional and modern women that determinedly stood up to conscientise the world in terms of respect for human life irrespective. In this research, an exploration of literary elements within four Nguni languages, that is Siswati, isiZulu, isiNdebele, and isiXhosa reveals the singularity of purpose, for these elements to be manipulated to achieve domineering intentions. Be that as it may, tibongo (praise poems/ praises) of outstanding women who have served in traditional leadership in these language groups give reason to challenge any idea that women should by virtue be relegated to the back seat. Through these tibongo it becomes apparent that because of the women leaders’ stubborn fairness and unparalleled foresight, they have become personifications of democratic values and as such, role models and symbolic hope not only for the empowerment of women, but also for their total liberation from all negative perceptions and oppressions. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)

This thesis is a comparative study of Pai and Swati. The Pai language is spoken in the easten1 parts of the Mpumalanga Province of the Republic of South Africa. The study concentrates on the correspondences and differences of the speech sounds of these two languages and reference is also made to the morphology. The previous comprehensive work on Pai was by Ziervogel (1956) where he classified the Pai language as one of the three dialects of Eastern Sotho. He also considered the Swati elements present in Pai to be merely borrowings. The present investigation into the history of the Pai people indicates that Pai may have had links with languages other than those belonging to the Sotho group and, from the evidence, an Nguni connection has become a distinct possibility. The speech sounds of Pai are described in detail in chapter two and corresponding speech sounds in Swati are included. The vowels of both languages receive special attention because Pai apparently has a seven-vowel system and Swati a five-vowel system. The corresponding consonants in these two languages soon points towards a relationship that is based on more than just borrowed items. In chapter three the Ur-Bantu sounds of Meinhof and their reflexes in Swati and Pai are described and compared. The wide variety of attestations in Pai and the instability of some phonemes are indicative of a language that has been subjected to many outside influences and that is at the moment in a state of flux. In chapter four some aspects of the morphology are described in order to highlight the peculiar characteristics of Pai as an individual language. The relationship with Swati is again emphasized by the findings in this chapter. A statistical analysis of the speech sounds of Pai and Swati in chapter five indicates that an Nguni core of sounds exists that is shared by both these languages. A re-classification of Pai within the language context of that area may therefore be necessary. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)