This dissertation presents a study of three linguistic areas--morphology, syntax and semantics--of what have traditionally been called auxiliaries or auxiliary verbs in Thai, but what I call temporal verbs. My morphological analysis offers answers to long-term questions: What is the grammatical category of temporal verbs? What is the structure of sequences of these elements? And how are their syntactic discontinuities to be handled? My syntactic analysis investigates all possible positions of temporal verbs in both Subject-Verb-(Complement) and Verb-Subject-(Complement) sentences (Sookgasem 1989). Using Head-Driven Phrase Structure Grammar (Pollard & Sag 1987) for my analysis, I focus on three interesting points: First, a problem with the Head Feature Principle when describing a temporal verb in a sentence. Second, a problem with the linear order of the VP constituent in the Verb-Subject-(Complement) constructions of temporal verbs. And third, a position of some temporal verbs in relation to part of its VP complement. For the semantic analysis of temporal verbs, I focus on the temporal interpretation of the Future and Aspect verbs. I argue that Thai is a tense language. To support this, I analyse Aspect in Thai and examine tense interpretation in simple sentences and all types of complex sentences. Based on the evidence, I propose a tense system in Thai. I provide definitions of Reference Time and Tenseness. I propose a Tense Assigner Hierarchy, a relation named Overlap, a semantic model for tense interpretation, and the truth conditions for tensed sentences and clauses. To provide an accurate account of tense interpretation in Thai, I analyse eventualities which include Activities, Accomplishments, Achievements and States.

Bibliography: pages 208-219. / The Auxiliary is a sadly neglected field of study in Southern African languages. The study investigates the syntactic and semantic behaviour of Auxiliaries in Sesotho. Having established that there is a category AUX in Sesotho, we then developed a descriptive framework in which auxiliaries in Sesotho participate. In this framework we posit as basic the three grammatical-semantic categories of verb phrases, namely, Tense, Aspect and Modality. The next major step was to develop formal tests which we used as defining characteristics for auxiliaries. We had to do this because the formal tests developed for English, for instance, do not work for Sesotho. The data used in this study represents samples of Sesotho as spoken by the native speakers. This work makes contributions in two areas. First, to language studies in Southern Africa and then to general linguistic theory. Since Tswana, Northern Sotho and Southern Sotho form one language group predict that the formal 'tests' we have suggested can be applied in the two Sotho languages as well. As far as Aspect, Tense and Modality are concerned, it is where this study makes a major contribution. Nowhere in Sesotho grammatical studies has either a tense or aspectual system of Sesotho been suggested or discussed. Modality has not even been referred to. In this regard the study is breaking new ground. We hope that a fresh debate will be initiated leading to vibrant discussions on comparative work. A number of studies on syntactic typology have been made. This study affords Sesotho its rightful place in the AUX debate.

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Thesis. 1977. Ph.D.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Linguistics and Philosophy. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND HUMANITIES. / Vita. / Bibliography : leaves 210-213. / Ph.D.

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Graduate / 0290

Graduate / 0290

This thesis examined the factors of L1, input frequency and emergent productivity in child L2 acquisition. This thesis is the first study to look at the interplay of L1 and usage factors in children learning a L2. The focus of the thesis was an investigation of these factors in the acquisition of article and auxiliary systems of English, which have been proven to be problematic areas for both L1 and L2 learners. While accounts of L1 transfer in L2 are better developed in generative theory, the roles of input frequency and emergent productivity are better developed in constructivist theory. The thesis assessed these two approaches against the data from L2 children from various L1 backgrounds. The children’s accuracy and error patterns with articles and auxiliaries were investigated. The main findings were as follows. L1 typology facilitated the acquisition of the structure of the NP and VP, but it only extended as far as the awareness of the presence of the functional morpheme (article or auxiliary). L1 transfer effects were observed only in the first 1.5 years of acquisition, which could be due to the unstable L1 knowledge in child L2 learners. The use of articles and auxiliaries was also influenced by their input frequencies and distribution, as more frequent forms were supplied more accurately and were substituted for less frequent forms. Different forms of articles and auxiliaries emerged separately and followed different paths of development. It was argued that they were acquired piecemeal and that productivity with these forms emerged gradually. It was concluded that constructionist theories were better supported by the data, since the findings on input frequency and productivity were not compatible with the generative approach, and L1 transfer was incorporated into the constructionist approach to account for the findings. It was argued that by the onset of acquisition, child L2 learners had established constructions in their L1 that were abstract enough to be transferred to L2 and did not rely on lexically specific information. As all children learned specific morphological forms of L2 piecemeal, in doing so they demonstrated input effects that held across all L1 backgrounds.

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Doctorat en philosophie et lettres / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished