There is currently a very wide range of different approaches on the study of emotional meaning in language. This paper discusses how these different approaches might be combined within the same...Show moreThere is currently a very wide range of different approaches on the study of emotional meaning in language. This paper discusses how these different approaches might be combined within the same model. I hypothese a framework, which incorporates both pragmatic and sociolinguistic theory, and illustrates how this framework could be used to compare the emotional meaning of US politicians in relation to their American culture.Show less
Michelle Obama faces public scrutiny over her race and use of African American Language. Research has demonstrated that African American Language (AAL) shoulders much prejudice and that Michelle...Show moreMichelle Obama faces public scrutiny over her race and use of African American Language. Research has demonstrated that African American Language (AAL) shoulders much prejudice and that Michelle Obama, as a black woman, has faced negative stereotypes due to her complexion. This study aims to establish a direct connection between Michelle Obama’s use of African American Language and her public image, based on a sentiment analysis of tweets. Building on existing work, this study asks how Michelle Obama’s African American Language use affects her public image and whether public perception is based on her use of AAL. In this context, the archaic use of African American Vernacular English is substituted with the use of African American Language. Based on a corpus of gathered tweets, a sentiment analysis was performed to determine online engagement based on mood. An analysis of the results demonstrated that positive online engagement could be connected to a decreased use of African American Language by Michelle Obama. The results indicate that Americans think more highly of Michelle when she speaks less “black.”Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
open access
2023-08-31T00:00:00Z
In this thesis, I study loanwords of unknown origin in Proto-Indo-Iranian and early Post-Proto-Indo-Iranian. According to the Central Asian Substrate Hypothesis, Indo-Iranian speakers migrated to...Show moreIn this thesis, I study loanwords of unknown origin in Proto-Indo-Iranian and early Post-Proto-Indo-Iranian. According to the Central Asian Substrate Hypothesis, Indo-Iranian speakers migrated to Central Asia around 2000 BCE and came into contact with the agricultural BMAC civilization, which resulted in a body of loanwords into Proto-Indo-Iranian, borrowed from the language of the BMAC people. Following a methodology for identifying non-Indo-European vocabulary in Indo-European languages, I argue that 74 out of 103 previously suggested loanwords can plausibly be analyzed as loanwords (chapter 3). Only a handful of these may have been borrowed from known languages. After establishing the relative chronology of Proto-Indo-Iranian sound changes (chapter 2), I divide the 74 early Indo-Iranian loanwords into chronological layers based on when they were borrowed (chapter 3-4). I argue that 21 words were borrowed after the disintegration of Proto-Indo-Iranian. Moreover, I argue that many of the remaining 53 loanwords that are reconstructable to Proto-Indo-Iranian were borrowed towards the end of this stage. Finally, I integrate the chronological layers into my analysis of structural characteristics of early Indo-Iranian loanwords and describe two new phonological patterns of loanwords (chapter 5). The fact that many loanwords are shown to have been borrowed in late PII or Post-PII, i.e. after Indo-Iranian speakers migrated to Central Asia, is consistent with the timeline of the Central Asian Substrate Hypothesis. Second, the newly discovered phonological characteristics provide additional support for the Central Asian Substrate Hypothesis, since they increase the likelihood that most loanwords originate in the same language.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Afrikaanse talen en culturen (BA)
closed access
The present study seeks to investigate the body part nomenclature and partonomy of the Bantu language Xhosa and to explore its semantics by looking at the conventionalised ways these body part...Show moreThe present study seeks to investigate the body part nomenclature and partonomy of the Bantu language Xhosa and to explore its semantics by looking at the conventionalised ways these body part terms are used figuratively, in metaphorical and metonymical expressions. This is done in order to discover and document the richness of the way this language uses its body part nomenclature while simultaneously analysing to what extent the patterns that are found in the partonomy and the metaphorical use of body parts agrees with universal patterns found in previous research and to what extent it is culturally specific. First, the literature on the topic of body part nomenclature, partonomy and on metaphorical uses of body parts in African languages will be reviewed. Then, the methodology employed and data collected on Xhosa body nomenclature and partonomy and the metaphorical expressions will be presented. Thirdly, the body parts and their metaphorical uses that were collected will be described and analysed. Fourthly, the data collected will be compared to cross-linguistic data and data from similar studies performed on African languages. These components will finally accumulate to a concluding discussion on Xhosa body part nomenclature, partonomy and its metaphorical uses by exploring the ways in which Xhosa speakers conceive of body parts semantically and conceptualise them linguistically, with a special case study of the terms iminwe (fingers) and iinzwane (toes).Show less
In August 2017, The Guardian announced the display of the Yeats family collection, which took place in London from 22 to 26 September. This thesis will discuss William Butler Yeats’ (1865 – 1939)...Show moreIn August 2017, The Guardian announced the display of the Yeats family collection, which took place in London from 22 to 26 September. This thesis will discuss William Butler Yeats’ (1865 – 1939) relationship with his wife, George Yeats “Georgie” (born Bertha Hyde-Lees, 1892 – 1968), his sister, Susan Mary ('Lilly') Yeats (1866-1949), and his business partner, Lady Gregory (1852 – 1932) from the perspective of his language use. The focus will be on the degree of linguistic involvement between Yeats and the women in his life revealed from the letters written by Yeats, during 1917– 1932. This paper will discuss possible style variation in these letters of W.B. Yeats (1865 – 1939). Also, I shall asses the relationships between Yeats and the three different women in his life by analysing the opening and closing formulas. The hypothesis is that the linguistic variation shows the degree of involvement between the man behind the poet and his correspondent. I shall look at the involvement by taking into consideration the usage of markers such as evidential verbs, degree adverbs, and second-person pronouns, while working with Wordsworth Tools 7.0, drawing on previous research, and linking it back to my findings (see e.g. Milroy 1980, Sairio 2005, Tieken-Boon van Ostade 2014, and Bax 2000).Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
open access
This thesis sets out to explore relationships between attitudes to language learning and context as influential factors on the production, and perceived offensiveness and acceptability of L2...Show moreThis thesis sets out to explore relationships between attitudes to language learning and context as influential factors on the production, and perceived offensiveness and acceptability of L2 English swearwords. Using a sample of 111 L1 Dutch, L2 secondary school learners of English, this study uses a three-part approach to further understand L2 English swearing behaviour. The participants first completed a production task. In this task they replied to six hypothetical text- messages following a DCT approach that were manipulated on speaker (authoritative/non- authoritative). Following this, they completed an attitudes task consisting of 24 stimuli to be able to shed further light on attitudes to L2 English learning and swearing as possible influential variable on L2 swearing behaviour. Lastly, based on previous studies by Dewaele (2004, 2016, 2017) and Jay & Janschewitz (2008), the participants completed a perception task in which they rated the perceived offensiveness and acceptability of four swearwords in 4 different contexts. These contexts were manipulated on speaker (authoritative/non-authoritative) and location (formal/informal). For the production task, the findings suggest that participants are more likely to use swearwords in a closed-DCT design. Further, an effect of speaker is found as significantly more swearwords were used when the participants were in conversation with a friend rather than a parent. Swearing, however, occurred rather infrequently, which is partly explained by the negative attitudes of the participants to the use of swearwords. Continuing, the results of the perception task revealed significant effects of speaker (p = 0.001) and location (p = 0.005) on offensiveness ratings, and a significant effect of speaker on acceptability ratings (p = 0.001). Further, a strong negative correlation was revealed between offensiveness and acceptability. Lastly, a comparison between the ratings of offensiveness by the participants and native speaker scales of offence (Millwood-Hargrave, 2000; McEnery, 2006; OFCOM, 2016) show that the non-native participants significantly rate offensiveness lower than native speakers. These results re-affirm findings by other researchers such as Dewaele (2004, 2016, 2017) and Jay & Janschewitz (2008), and indicate that ratings of acceptability are largely dependent on ratings of offensiveness.Show less
This thesis explores the readability of Roald Dahl's books. Specifically, it tests two adult books against two children's books to see if there is a difference between the language use of the two...Show moreThis thesis explores the readability of Roald Dahl's books. Specifically, it tests two adult books against two children's books to see if there is a difference between the language use of the two genres for Dahl. Did he change his language when switching from adult stories to children's books? The readability is tested through the use of the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level and the Automated Readability Index tests. These tests showed that there is indeed a slight difference between the readability of the children's books and the adult books of Dahl. This was in line with the prediction based on the literature discussed on language development, children's books as a genre, and readability. However, the adult texts of Dahl turned out to be easier to read than expected and easier to read than the average of adult books. This raises the question whether Dahl really did change his language to fit his new audience, children, or if his adult books show that he actually has always written in a way that is readable for children.Show less
This study aims to clarify the general attitudes of Dutch people towards the usage of anglicisms in Dutch. To this end the function and presence of anglicisms in Dutch are analysed, followed by the...Show moreThis study aims to clarify the general attitudes of Dutch people towards the usage of anglicisms in Dutch. To this end the function and presence of anglicisms in Dutch are analysed, followed by the creation and distribution of a survey that presents ten frequently used anglicisms in Dutch. The results of the survey display an overall neutral stance towards the presence and usage of anglicisms in Dutch, with some interesting outcomes considering the age, education level, and province of origin of the participants.Show less
Dental fricatives are amongst the rarest speech sounds in the natural languages found in the world (Jekiel, 2012) and have disappeared from most Germanic languages (Laker, 2014). However, the...Show moreDental fricatives are amongst the rarest speech sounds in the natural languages found in the world (Jekiel, 2012) and have disappeared from most Germanic languages (Laker, 2014). However, the standard varieties of English still contain both the voiced and voiceless dental fricatives as phonemes. Although these phonemes are still common in e.g. Received Pronunciation (RP) and General American (GA) (Ladefoged & Maddieson, 1996), the dental fricatives are often replaced in other, non-standard varieties through processes such as th-fronting. The phenomenon of these contemporary changes in articulation has been studied, though a large portion of the research has been based mostly on sociolinguistic descriptions and discussing the phenomenon from this field’s paradigm (see e.g. Kerswill, 2003; Stuart-Smith et al., 2013) without thoroughly discussing other potential underlying phenomena that could cause the variation and change of dental fricatives in dialects: phonetic and phonological reasons, as an addition to sociolinguistic explanations, could provide a greater understanding of the factors of speech sound variation. This thesis explores some of the various ways the subfields of linguistics, historical linguistics, sociolinguistics, and phonetics, can work together to provide insights into the underlying factors influencing sound changes. By analysing the scientific literature concerning dental fricatives, the tentative conclusion was reached that, as dental fricatives do not have much phonemic function and are difficult to acquire and most Germanic languages have lost the dental fricatives, Britain could soon follow, especially if th-fronting loses its social stigma.Show less
This thesis examines two approaches to ellipsis in order to gain further insight into the behaviour of clausal ellipsis when targeting constituents. In their recent article, Ott and Struckmeier ...Show moreThis thesis examines two approaches to ellipsis in order to gain further insight into the behaviour of clausal ellipsis when targeting constituents. In their recent article, Ott and Struckmeier (2018) advocate the usefulness of German modal particles (MPs) as a test to show selective targeting in swiping, in contrast to the generally accepted unselective move-and-delete approach of ellipsis argued by Merchant (2001). This thesis adopts Ott and Struckmeier’s argument in order to determine whether the interaction between R-pronouns and MPs in clausal ellipsis in Dutch, also known as sweeping, results in evidence supporting selective targeting of constituents in the clause. This investigation was done via an acceptability judgment task, completed by 162 native speakers of Dutch and Flemish. Comparing acceptability scores of differing syntactic configurations shows that ellipsis does seem to target selectively, as MPs are demonstrated to be resistant to movement and are allowed as remnants in the ellipsis site. Further research into Dutch sweeping constructions thus seems to be advisable.Show less
This study will focus on translation between English and the Germanic language Dutch as well as English and the Romance language French by comparing the Dutch (1960) and French (1969) translation...Show moreThis study will focus on translation between English and the Germanic language Dutch as well as English and the Romance language French by comparing the Dutch (1960) and French (1969) translation of J. R. R. Tolkien’s fictional work The Hobbit (1937). Earlier works within the field of translation were mainly concerned with linguistic approaches, attempting to construct taxonomies of the observed changes (e.g., Vinay and Darbelnet, 1958; Catford, 1965). Later scholars took a broader approach by increasingly taking culture and context into more consideration (e.g., Snell-Hornby, 1990; Nord 2005), but linguistic taxonomies have remained a useful framework for discussing translations. Tolkien’s work is presented as an interesting case within the field of translation, as the language he uses appears to be more challenging for translating into Romance Languages (Turner, 2006). Although genetically further away from French, the English language displays features belonging to both the Germanic and Romance languages. The aim of this study is thus to establish any potential structural differences between the Dutch and French translation of the English original text The Hobbit (1937). Tolkien’s use of language and avoidance of specific cultural references create the expectation that the Dutch translation will be closer to the English original compared to the French translation. This expectation was tested within the linguistic framework by applying Vinay and Darbelnet’s (1958) taxonomy of translation procedures and examining word order in Chapter XVI of Tolkien’s work of fiction. The results show that the Dutch and French translation are both quite literal and more similar than the literature would suggest. The French translation, however, is more inclined to use modulations when not translating literally. An analysis of word order illustrated that most changes were made out of necessity. This research shows that linguistic approaches can still be useful for looking at translations.Show less
This study examines the voice onset time (VOT) in voiced and voiceless plosives of Dutch late-language learners of English. Dutch contrasts prevoicing with short-lag VOT, while English has a short...Show moreThis study examines the voice onset time (VOT) in voiced and voiceless plosives of Dutch late-language learners of English. Dutch contrasts prevoicing with short-lag VOT, while English has a short-lag and long lag VOT contrast, making them an interesting language pair to look at for bilingual research. In order to find naturalistic VOT values, the data used for this study was found by analysing five speakers as case studies on YouTube. The data was collected in Dutch, English and code-switched sentences. Although there were individual differences, some speakers managed to produce native-like English VOT values for both the voiceless and the voiced plosives. In code-switched utterances, the VOT values for the voiceless plosives were slightly higher than the Dutch values, while the voiced plosives were still produced with prevoicing. Some speakers were thus able to maintain separate categories in both languages, although there was more L1 interference in code-switched contexts. The data also showed that the velar and alveolar plosives followed by a sonorant consonant in English and code-switched contexts contained higher VOT means than those followed by a vowel, suggesting that these are easier to acquire for an L2 learner.Show less
In film and television, actors are sometimes expected to speak in a particular accent in order to convey their character’s identity as accurately as possible. A term in sociolinguistic research...Show moreIn film and television, actors are sometimes expected to speak in a particular accent in order to convey their character’s identity as accurately as possible. A term in sociolinguistic research fields that describes this connection between identity and language is indexicality: it “refers to the way an observable linguistic fact can be indexical of social identities in the same way, for instance, that clothing can. Language features can thus be semiotic signs associated with such identities.” (Smakman 2018: 57). Filmmakers make use of this fact when they include a specific dialect in their films: “film uses language variation and accent to draw character quickly, building on established preconceived notions associated with specific loyalties, ethnic, racial or economic alliances” (Lippi-Green 1997: 81). However, as the actors in film may be required to speak in an accent that is different than their own, inaccuracies can occur in their pronunciation, which may lead to linguistic stereotyping, appropriation or even racism. In this thesis, I examined this phenomenon in relation to the Birmingham (or, ‘Brummie’) accent, which is spoken in the series Peaky Blinders. I first established the most prototypical accent features of the Birmingham accent by comparing several sources, after which I analysed the use of these features in the speech of native speakers and actors. I then juxtaposed the differences in frequency and consistency between the pronunciation of the native speakers and actors, and several patterns emerged. These patterns could all be related to four sociophonetic processes detected by Bell and Gibson in a similar study: selectivity, mis-realisation, overshoot and undershoot (2011: 568). It was then found that these sociophonetic processes can account for the inaccuracies that may occur in actors’ accent use, which ultimately pointed out that there is, in fact, a correlation between dialect use in film and linguistic stereotyping.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
open access
This thesis consists of two interconnected parts: a synchronic section dealing with Lio phonology, and a diachronic section dealing with the internal relations of the Central Flores language group,...Show moreThis thesis consists of two interconnected parts: a synchronic section dealing with Lio phonology, and a diachronic section dealing with the internal relations of the Central Flores language group, of which Lio is a member. The first section is a description of the phonetics and phonology of Lio (Austronesian), a language spoken in Flores, an island in the Lesser Sunda island chain of eastern Indonesia. I describe the phonemic inventory, phonotactics, stress system and adaptation of loanwords into Lio. This is based on fieldwork carried out in Central Flores in July-August 2017 which focused mainly on Lio. This is a contribution to the state of linguistic documentation in Central Flores, which remains relatively poorly documented. This will also set the stage for the second part of the thesis, because Lio is an important language for reconstructing aspects of Proto-Central Flores. The second section is a historical analysis of the relations of the Central Flores languages, and a reconstruction of Proto-Central Flores. I present evidence that the Central Flores languages form a valid innovation-defined subgroup, which underwent a period of splitting and isolation at the level of Proto-Central Flores. Then I address the internal relations of the Central Flores group and the process of differentiation from Proto-Central Flores to the modern Central Flores languages. Lio is one of the more conservative members of the Central Flores group, and is crucial for distinguishing the reflexes of certain Proto-Central Flores phonemes. The Central Flores group forms a linkage, with patterns of intersecting isoglosses which are not easily captured in a tree diagram. Therefore, the findings of this section will be cast in the framework of Historical Glottometry, a wave model-based methodology which is better equipped to represent and model the relations holding between linkages.Show less
Objectives: This thesis is a replication study of previous work on Spanish-English code-switching (Stadthagen-González, Parafita Couto, Párraga and Damian, 2017) and focuses on comparative...Show moreObjectives: This thesis is a replication study of previous work on Spanish-English code-switching (Stadthagen-González, Parafita Couto, Párraga and Damian, 2017) and focuses on comparative judgments, with regard to adjective-noun order in Papiamento-Dutch code-switched utterances. It examines the predictions of adjective-noun order derived from two different theoretical models: the Minimalist Program (Cantone & MacSwan, 2009) and the Matrix Language Framework (Myers-Scotton, 2002). In Dutch, adjectives are prenominal, like ‘zwarte hond’ (‘black dog’), whereas in Papiamento, adjectives are mostly post-nominal, as in ‘kachó pretu’ (literally: ‘dog black’). The Matrix Language Framework (MLF) posits that the word order in code-switched sentences must follow the word order of the Matrix Language (determined by finite verb morphology) (Myers-Scotton, 2002). However, according to Cantone and MacSwan (2009) within the Minimalist Program (MP), the word order depends on the adjective’s language. Methodology and analysis: To evaluate these predictions, 10 monolingual base sentences were modified into 40 code-switched items, consistent with the MP, the MLF, with both or none of the theoretical models. Data was gathered by a 2-Alternative Forced Choice (2AFC) task, concentrating explicitly on switches in adjective-noun word order and was analysed using Thurstone’s Law of Comparative Judgment (Thurstone, 1927). Conclusions: Results of the thirty-seven bilinguals that participated in this experiment, indicate that both the language of the verb as well as the language of the adjective are used to determine word order in code-switched sentences and these results do not differ much from those of the similar study regarding Spanish-English bilinguals (Stadthagen-González et.al., 2017). Evidence showed that neither of the two theoretical models can fully account for the acceptability of adjective-noun switches. Implications: A suggestion would be to combine the insights of both the Minimalist Program and the Matrix Language Framework to be able to understand grammaticality in code-switching, as already proposed by Stadthagen-González et.al., (2017).Show less
A research on the evaluation of Indian English (IE) speech by speakers of Indian English through the analysis of over 1000 Youtube comments. How these evaluations are shaped is investigated through...Show moreA research on the evaluation of Indian English (IE) speech by speakers of Indian English through the analysis of over 1000 Youtube comments. How these evaluations are shaped is investigated through an in-depth examination of the following factors: (1) Historical background of English in South Asia; (2) Current role of English in India; (3) The evolutionary linguistic perspective on group formation and use of language as a marker of group membership; (4) The perception of (presumed) non-native speakers (NNS) by speakers of Englishes that are (phonetically similar to) “global standards”, global ideologies of IE and how that interacts with the perception of IE speech by IE speakers.Show less
William Shakespeare (1564–1616) – as far as we know – wrote thirty-seven plays over a time period of twenty-three years (Hoenselaars 2012:xv–xxii), one could wonder if traces of the changing verb...Show moreWilliam Shakespeare (1564–1616) – as far as we know – wrote thirty-seven plays over a time period of twenty-three years (Hoenselaars 2012:xv–xxii), one could wonder if traces of the changing verb-morphology of the Early Modern English Period (1500–1700) should be found in his writing (Crystal 2004:3). One example of this changing verb morphology is that, during this period, the third-person singular present tense inflection -th fell out of general use and the -s inflection became a part of Standard English (Nevalainen 2006:89). This thesis discusses if Shakespeare’s verb morphology represents this morphological shift. To answer this question, this thesis analysed the verb morphology of third-person singular present tense verbs in three of Shakespeare’s plays, more specifically comedies, one from the beginning of his career, one from the middle and one from end, i.e. The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1589–1593) , Twelfth Night (1601–1602) and The Two Noble Kinsmen (1613–1615). This analysis has presented results that prove that the use of the -th inflection by Shakespeare in his plays decreased throughout his career.Show less
Dothraki, one of the fictional languages that features in HBO’s Emmy-award winning TV series Game of Thrones, resembles a natural language in many ways. This thesis is an empirical syntactical...Show moreDothraki, one of the fictional languages that features in HBO’s Emmy-award winning TV series Game of Thrones, resembles a natural language in many ways. This thesis is an empirical syntactical investigation into one of the language’s more idiosyncratic features, namely its double marking of negation. A corpus of 46 negative Dothraki sentences was analysed to determine the position of negation with in a sentence. These results were discussed in reference to a number of theories on the syntax of negation in natural languages. This was done with the ultimate aim of discovering whether negation in Dothraki adheres to the syntactical patterns of natural languages, or whether it is constructed differently and in that way evidence of the language’s artificiality. This thesis ultimately concludes that the double marking of negation in Dothraki can be accounted for by existing theories based on negation in natural languages, arguing that Dothraki resembles languages like Berber in that NegP is the left-most phrase in the split-IP, with the subject in the specifier of TopP.Show less
This thesis examined which pronunciation of the three existing variants of the English swearword fucking, which are FAKKING ([fɑkɪŋ]), FUKKING ([fʏkɪŋ]), or FOKKING ([fɔkɪŋ]), is L1 Dutch speakers’...Show moreThis thesis examined which pronunciation of the three existing variants of the English swearword fucking, which are FAKKING ([fɑkɪŋ]), FUKKING ([fʏkɪŋ]), or FOKKING ([fɔkɪŋ]), is L1 Dutch speakers’ preferred use. In addition to this, this thesis studied which variant is considered most offensive to Dutch speakers. An experiment was conducted in which 50 L1 Dutch speakers were interviewed on these issues. In addition, a smaller second experiment was conducted in which an L1 English speaker was interviewed via email on the offensiveness of the word fucking to a native speaker of English and on their opinion on Dutch speakers using it. The results of the main experiment suggested that the ‘nativeness’ or ‘Dutchness’ of the pronunciation is the main influence on offensiveness ranking, not sound iconicity, which was originally hypothesised to be the main influencing factor.Show less
