Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
open access
The basis of this study is an observation of a Mandarin expression, which was heard in a Chinese television programme. The expression is qí le guài le, which I tentatively translate as ‘how strange...Show moreThe basis of this study is an observation of a Mandarin expression, which was heard in a Chinese television programme. The expression is qí le guài le, which I tentatively translate as ‘how strange’. Double le is well-described for verb–object (VO) compounds, as in nà le mèr le ‘have been perplexed’. However, qíguài is listed in dictionaries as an adjective meaning ‘strange’ and as a verb meaning ‘to find strange’. It is not documented as a VO, raising questions about its syntactic status. In this study, I investigate what qí le guài le means, what each instance of le contributes to its meaning, and whether qí and guài should be analysed as two different syntactic elements. The second paragraph contains an overview of the methodology. Here, it is explained that I understand syntax primarily as the study of relations between meanings. This contravenes a popular view of syntax as primarily concerning relations between forms. I also make a fundamental distinction between meaning and interpretation. In the following paragraphs, the analyses are presented step by step, and any linguistic jargon is explained and illustrated with examples. The reader is not expected to have prior knowledge of either Mandarin or linguistics.Show less
Secondary schools in the Netherlands have been offering Chinese Language and Culture as an official exam subject for three years now. Studies on Dutch students SLA of Mandarin are very limited in...Show moreSecondary schools in the Netherlands have been offering Chinese Language and Culture as an official exam subject for three years now. Studies on Dutch students SLA of Mandarin are very limited in number, and established literature often studies participants in their twenties with English as their L1. This study aims to look at improvement shown in tonal production by Dutch teenagers aged 13-17 who follow the relatively new Mandarin course in secondary school, to provide deeper insight into SLA of Mandarin by Dutch teenagers, and into the effectiveness of the course. There were two groups of participants: students with four months of experience in Mandarin, and students from the same school with three and a half years of experience. They were asked to produce a selection of both monosyllabic and disyllabic words. Their tones were visualized using Praat, and compared to both the tonal production of native speakers to identify errors. The production of the two different grades was then compared to one another to identify points of improvement. The results showed that female students showed improvement mainly in pitch contour, and to some extent even acquired tonal coarticulation. The male students showed improvement in pitch height, and very little improvement in pitch contour. For both genders the production of tone 3 appeared most difficult, followed by tone 4, then tone 2. Tone 1 was the easiest to produce.Show less
In this thesis, the phenomenon of dangling topic sentences in Mandarin is investigated. These topics can appear without obvious marking in sentence initial position and are not related to a...Show moreIn this thesis, the phenomenon of dangling topic sentences in Mandarin is investigated. These topics can appear without obvious marking in sentence initial position and are not related to a resumptive pronoun or a gap in the comment. The goal is to explain that these sentences are actually not exclusive to Mandarin, but also appear in many other languages. Furthermore, I provide evidence that suggests that these topics receive a topic marker that is part of the numeration and are thus not as "bare" as they appear to be at first glance. This marker can either be realized prosodically or by a particle.Show less
In recent years, the complex relationship between Hong Kong society and the growing Mainland Chinese political influence has led to active outbursts of civil dissatisfaction. A large component of...Show moreIn recent years, the complex relationship between Hong Kong society and the growing Mainland Chinese political influence has led to active outbursts of civil dissatisfaction. A large component of this unease is the anti-Mainland sentiment, aimed at both the government and Chinese immigrants and tourists. Additionally, the prevalence of the Mandarin language and the Simplified Chinese script has increased, in local schools, on television, in the workplace and in the streets. Since both the language issues of Hong Kong and the socio-political issues associated with the Mainland Chinese influence have gotten increasing attention, it makes one wonder whether there is a form of correlation and plausible causation between these two factors. Thus, using news articles, social media, a survey and youth responses this paper will attempt to answer the question; Do attitudes regarding the Mandarin and Cantonese language in Hong Kong reflect a political stance vis-à-vis Mainland China and Hong Kong?Show less
Previous studies have indicated that native and non-native listeners’ attention to differences in segments and lexical tones is heightened when language context is removed. Do they also display...Show morePrevious studies have indicated that native and non-native listeners’ attention to differences in segments and lexical tones is heightened when language context is removed. Do they also display greater sensitivity to intonational differences in the absence of language context? To examine this question, this thesis tests the ability of Dutch and Mandarin listeners to identify Mandarin questions and statements that differ only in intonation in three different levels of language context: no language context, a neutral language context, and a constraining language context. All listeners were found to identify questions and statements better with each increasing level of language context. This suggests that the presence of a meaningful semantic context facilitates the perception of intonational meaning. Moreover, Mandarin listeners were better at identifying questions and statements than non-native listeners in sentences with language context. But the difference between Mandarin and Dutch listeners’ abilities was minimal in sentences without language context. This result suggests that the effect of language experience on intonation perception is diminished at the lower auditory processing level.Show less
This thesis compares similar phonological features across Táiwān Mandarin and Singapore Mandarin by measuring the acoustic properties of the variables in question. Despite both varieties’ official...Show moreThis thesis compares similar phonological features across Táiwān Mandarin and Singapore Mandarin by measuring the acoustic properties of the variables in question. Despite both varieties’ official claim of being identical to Běijīng Mandarin, they have developed a significant number of differences in parallel. I hypothesize that this is because both of these varieties grew out of having Mandarin imposed upon populations that were originally and largely Southern Mǐn speaking. To test this, I modified the Labovian sociolinguistic interview for an online survey format for easy distribution. I focused largely on four variables, the first three of which are theoretically available in both of the varieties of Mandarin under investigation: 1) dentalization of the retroflex sibilants, 2) dentalization of the velar nasal codas following mid to high front vowels, and 3) unrounding of the rounded high front vowel. The final variable under investigation was a possible fifth tone only available in Singapore Mandarin. Despite whatever ease this afforded in data collection, the online survey format also created a lot of disparity between recordings that could have been avoided by using a laboratory setting, or even just consistent recording equipment. Keeping this defect in mind, I found both the behaviours predicted in prior literature, but also its exact opposite, leading me to believe that an online survey format will need a lot of honing before it can reliably be applied to research based on measuring acoustics.Show less
This thesis discusses the properties of the current global language English, along with other three languages: Esperanto, Latin, and Classical Chinese who once were or close to be an international...Show moreThis thesis discusses the properties of the current global language English, along with other three languages: Esperanto, Latin, and Classical Chinese who once were or close to be an international language. This paper attempts to figure out if Chinese will replace English as the next global language by listing the properties of a global language following a comparison of the list with properties of Modern Chinese. In order to find out the properties of a global language, this thesis analyzes the reasons why each language became a global or a regional lingua franca and why some of the languages failed to maintain the status of being an international language. The result shows that being a global language often relies on colonial expansion, strong influence in multiple fields throughout the world and the easiness of acquiring the language. Chinese being the only language written with characters and the principle of “Peaceful Rise” of China makes Chinese less likely to be the next global language.Show less
In this thesis I focus on the system of word categorization in Mandarin. The discussion on this topic is an ongoing one. I try to shed some light on categoriality in Mandarin by discussing several...Show moreIn this thesis I focus on the system of word categorization in Mandarin. The discussion on this topic is an ongoing one. I try to shed some light on categoriality in Mandarin by discussing several different views and contrasting proposals which have been put forward by different authors. In order to obtain some new insight I conducted two experiments, based on Borer’s (2003) theory about the exo-skeletal approach, in which I tested verbal coercion on nouns. The results of these experiments have led me to adopt the term ‘categorical fluidity’ (Kwong & Tsou, 2003) to describe word classes in Mandarin. This fluidity proved to be accommodated by the high potential for innovative ambiguities, which, in turn is caused by characteristics of Mandarin when it comes to morphology and syntax. I then take a sidetrack and focus on one word category in particular to point out a peculiar similarity. The results of a third experiment show that the flexibility that is found between different word classes in Mandarin, is also found within the word category of classifiers and measure words.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
open access
In this thesis, I investigated interjections in spoken Taiwan Mandarin. I gathered data from a contemporary spontaneous conversation between two Taiwan Mandarin speakers that I recorded in the...Show moreIn this thesis, I investigated interjections in spoken Taiwan Mandarin. I gathered data from a contemporary spontaneous conversation between two Taiwan Mandarin speakers that I recorded in the Leiden University for Linguistics Phonetics Laboratory. I described these interjections by writing down their form as accurately as possible, and placed them into categories I designed based on their meaning. After that, I discussed existing literature about interjections and compared it with my own data. Since there is no standard definition of interjections, I formulated my own definition based on my data. Finally, I tested whether or not the presence of a running microphone has an influence on the use of interjections by speakers. I compared one part during which the speakers think the microphone is running with another part during which they think it is off. The interjections I found in these parts are very similar, suggesting that my data reflect a natural language conversation. This work aims to shed light on the use of interjections in Taiwan Mandarin, and to contribute to a wider discussion of interjections.Show less
In this thesis the argument made is that Mandarin sentence-le is to be analyzed as the English nonfinite perfect "to have + -ed". First, by the use of the Reichenbach-Klein framework, a definition...Show moreIn this thesis the argument made is that Mandarin sentence-le is to be analyzed as the English nonfinite perfect "to have + -ed". First, by the use of the Reichenbach-Klein framework, a definition is given of the used terms such as 'tense' and 'aspect'. Then, also using the Reichenbach-Klein framework, a description is given of the main characteristics of the English nonfinite perfect "to have + -ed". Then, a description is given of the semantics of le, based on what is said about this in the literature. Finally, a native speaker is asked to answer questions about sentences in which sentence-le is used with different types of predicates in order to see how the meaning of these sentences differ or are similar to the meaning of sentences in which the English nonfinite perfect is used.Show less
In 1956, the Chinese government began to encourage people all over the country to speak Mandarin in accordance with government policy. This policy was regarded as an effective way to remove...Show moreIn 1956, the Chinese government began to encourage people all over the country to speak Mandarin in accordance with government policy. This policy was regarded as an effective way to remove linguistic barriers among the different provinces, but later it was found that it was also one of the most important reasons behind the vanishing of dialects. Shanghainese 上海话 (Shanghaihua), is the indigenous language in Shanghai. It developed rapidly in the first half of the last century and is regarded as a cultural symbol by the local people of Shanghai. It enjoyed a dominant position in the area until the implementation of the national language policy. After 2000, more and more local people in Shanghai have begun to speak Mandarin in daily life. This thesis aims to study political, social and cultural factors which have led to this kind of linguistic change. I will explore the social function of Shanghainese and give an analysis on why and how people speak specific languages in various social domains. After demonstrating that the social function of Shanghainese is at present rather limited, I will investigate the prevalence of the awareness that favors saving the language and promoting local culture in Shanghainese for the goal of retaining local uniqueness. The thesis will consist of five chapters. The first chapter will include the introduction of Shanghainese, the interdependent relationship amongst languages, society and people and the central question and research methods. The second chapter will be the literature review. Then, I will discuss about how the social context has impacted peoples’ attitudes to Shanghainese and Mandarin and explore incentives behind the switching of languages. Different public and private space, including schools, governmental institutions, media, work places, home and so on, will be analyzed respectively in the third chapter. In ‘Chapter Four’, I will sketch how people consider Shanghainese to be a key part of their cultural identity. The last chapter will be the conclusion of thesis.Show less
The thesis compares two non-canonical question types in Mandarin: Negative Wh-Constructions and causal/denial how-questions. The second chapter investigates their syntax. Based on a number of...Show moreThe thesis compares two non-canonical question types in Mandarin: Negative Wh-Constructions and causal/denial how-questions. The second chapter investigates their syntax. Based on a number of syntactic tests, they seem to share the same position in the Mandarin sentence. The third chapter aims to answer the question whether there are any differences between Negative Wh-Constructions and propositional negations. Negative Wh-Constructions prove to be metalinguistic negations, and as such, their use is limited by some conversational constraints. Also, as for the licensing of negative polarity items, they show a peculiar behavior. The fourth chapter looks at Mandarin 'how come' questions and the source of their causal and denial readings. Causality is explained in syntactic terms while for the denial reading, a semantic explanation is given based on modality. Mandarin data are compared to Hungarian ones.Show less
Abstract: The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the suffixes –er and –zi as encountered in modern Mandarin. What it aims to explore are the semantic and grammatical aspects of these two suffixes...Show moreAbstract: The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the suffixes –er and –zi as encountered in modern Mandarin. What it aims to explore are the semantic and grammatical aspects of these two suffixes. The analyses touch upon questions such as: (1) What kind of word classes can –er and –zi be suffixed to? (2) Do –er and –zi imply diminutive meaning? (3) Is there a difference in meaning when a word allows for both –er and –zi suffixation? These and other questions are investigated with the help of two dictionaries, namely Wei (2005) and Jia (1990), on the basis of which a database of words suffixed with –er and –zi will be created.Show less
