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Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Dept. of Linguistics, June 2001. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

This study deals with the cross-linguistic interpretation of aspect and tense in natural languages which have superficially disparate morphological structure. It is argued that in Yao, Chea (Bantu languages) and English, where aspect for instance, is not as systematically grarnmaticalized as it is in Slavic, the interpretation of aspect and tense must be one which construes them as theoretical (conceptual) categories. We assume essentially that both aspect and tense are characterized by temporal primitives which are often though riot invariably, denoted by morphological markers. "Verbal aspect" in Slavic for example, is effectively defined by the temporal stretch encoded in (or signalled by) a productive system of afuixal marking. The temporal stretch is characteristically completive, inceptive, resumptive, durative, continuative, punctual, iterative etc. These aspectual time schemata have affinities with those assumed by philosophers and linguists like Vendler (1957), Kenny (1963), Dowty (1977, 1979) and others for the classification of verbs and verb phrases. These in turn are similar to the time schemata encoded by such categories as adverbials and noun phrases. Accordingly, though Yao, Chea and English might not mark aspect morphologically in the manner common in Slavic, the specification of aspect is assured by the semantic content of VPs, ADVs etc., thus facilitating a cross-linguistic treatment of the category. Correspondingly, "tense", which is a deictic category and is largely morphologized in Yao and Chea is also best understood when we examine the temporal structure of whole utterances. We take tense to be a category orthogonal to aspectual concepts like continuity, habituality, inception, completion etc. and which specifies how these are related to each other, in terms of whether or not they are anterior or posterior to or simultaneous with the speech time of utterances in question (Cf. Reichenbach, 19147; and followers). Traditional and model-theoretic treatments of these concepts have inadequacies which manifest themselves in the form of such problems as the "imperfective paradOx" (Cf. Dowty, ibid), the "gaps problem" (Cf. Bennett, 1981), the problem of the lack of difference in truth conditions between the "simple past" and "perfect" utterances when it is clear that some (intuitively semantic) difference between them exists etc. It is suggested that these issues be resolved within pregmatics of the Gricean (1968, 1975 etc) type as recently extended by Sperber & Wilson (1982, forthcoming). On the interpretation of aspect and tense in Yao, Che'a and English then, this study takes the view that two factors are operative: semantic factors exemplified by the knowledge (or identification) of the time schemata encoded in morphological markers, words and constructions and the truth-conditional processing of the propositions thus expressed on the one hand, and pragmatic factors of their use (e.g. the "principle of relevance" of Sperber & Wilson, ibid.) which determine the choice of the appropriate construal of those utterances which are especially temporally indeterminate on the other.

This study is concerned with the process of linguistic adoption, in particular the setting up of techniques that can be used to identify adopted material (adoptives) within Bantu languages and especially adoptives that result from the mutual interpenetration of Bantu languages. A model of identification has been set up principally by applying Guthrie's comparative techniques and results to Matengo (N13), a Bantu language spoken in Southern Tanzania. After a background description to the languages involved here and a brief treatment of some of the theories generally held on Lexical Borrowing, in which Swahili loans of non-Bantu provenance have mostly been employed, regular and irregular (skewed) reflexes of Common Bantu 'starred' forms in Matengo have been abstracted, and the skewed reflexes examined to determine whether or not the forms involved are loan suspects. When the irregular reflexes contain extraneous phonological features, whether segmental (Chapter 3) or tonal (Chapter 5), and especially if a possible source language for the skewing or extraneousness can be found, then our suspicion regarding loaning is strengthened. The languages employed in this study as examples of those from which Matengo might have adopted part of its Bantu material are Manda (N11) and Ngoni (N12), close linguistic associates of Matengo, and Standard Swahili (here distinguished from Ki-Unguja - G42d) which has had significant contact with Matengo. The identification methodology developed in this study has also been tested on material unrelated to Common Bantu (Chapter 4) and some putative adoptives of intra-Bantu source have been detected in such material. In this connection, only the segmental features have been taken into account, since the tonal typologies of Common Eastern Nyasa (*EN) have not been worked out.

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

This dissertation examines word-prosody of ciTonga, a Malawian Bantu language spoken by lakeshore people of northern Malawi. It is argued that the real word-prosody in this language (and perhaps many Bantu languages) revolves around the idea of Strong Accent Constituency, power relations between segments, syllables and between lower and higher prosodic categories as determined by Universal Guidelines such as SONORITY, FINALITY, EDGENESS and PROSODIC HIERARCHY as well as constraints which favour language- or context-specific Strong Accent Constituents (PROSODIC STEM, ACCENT FOOT, STEM-SYLLABLE1, PENULTIMATE SYLLABLE or FINAL SYLLABLE). Tone and prosodic morphemes such as Minimal Prosodic Words and Reduplicative Prosodic Morphemes also seem to be heavily regulated by Strong Accent Constituency. The empirical bases are three speech styles found in ciTonga (Nkhata-Bay Variety) namely, formal, common, and elderly speech styles. It is one of several understudied and endangered languages in Malawi. This study therefore is in line with one of the goals of the University of Malawi's Centre for Language Studies, where this candidate serves as a member, which is to prioritize research activities on such languages. The candidate is a native speaker of ciTonga and , as such, he is primary source of most of the data. Other methods such as elicitation and focus group discussions were conducted with informants not only to get to the bottom of the matter, but to also understand social issues underlying language variation. The dissertation has been presented in 6 chapters. Chapter 1 presents introductory remarks. These include the problem statement, a note on methodology, summary of findings, theoretical precedents, and, finally, organization of the dissertation. Chapter 2 presents basic facts about the language under study. These include language classification, previous works on ciTonga, speech sounds, the syllable, tone, as well as nominal and verbal morphology. Chapter 3 presents a proposal for the theory of Strong Accent Constituency. It presents the data on vowel and consonant deletion which motivates this theory analysis. Then attempts are made to account for the facts in terms of stress-accent theory and Downing's (2006b) Morpheme-Based Templates Theory both of which are found to be slightly problematic to account for segment deletion and preservation patterns exhibited in ciTonga. Finally, the chapter introduces the theory and accounts for the facts in terms of Strong Accent Constituent Theory. Chapter 4 presents formally the theory of Interaction between Tone and Strong Accent Constituents. The chapter presents the data on tone assignment in basic verbs, simple past tense verbs and present progressive aspect verbs which motivate this type of theory analysis. Attempts are then made to account for the facts in terms of tone alignment theory (as argued by Mtenje 2006), autosegmental accent (Clements and Goldsmith 1984) and 'pitch-accent' or accentual properties of tone in Bantu languages (as hinted upon by Downing 2004). All these theoretical perspectives are found to be slightly inadequate to account for tone distribution patterns in ciTonga. On the other hand, a theory based on Interaction between Tone and Strong Accent Constituents is shown to account for the facts slightly better. Chapter 5 presents formally proposals for Strong Accent Constituent-Based Templates as a theory of morphology-prosody interfaces in ciTonga and perhaps many other Bantu languages with a Strong Accent Constituent system. It presents the data on general phonological words, Minimal Prosodic Words and Reduplicative Prosodic Morphemes. It then reviews two competing theories in the literature within the Generalized Templates Theory namely, the Prosodic Hierarchy-Based Templates Theory and the Morpheme-Based Templates Theory both of which have a goal to account for morphology-prosody interfaces. Both these theories are shown to be slightly inadequate to account for parameters exhibited by phonological words in ciTonga. On the other hand, it is suggested that a theory of Strong Accent Constituent-Based Templates may account for the facts slightly better. Chapter 6 summarizes and concludes the dissertation.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1967. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 1998. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 160-165). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

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

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