The phenomenon of Russian honorific agreement was first mentioned and used as evidence in Agreement Hierarchy by Greville Corbett (1979). Since then it has received little attention in the...Show moreThe phenomenon of Russian honorific agreement was first mentioned and used as evidence in Agreement Hierarchy by Greville Corbett (1979). Since then it has received little attention in the literature, unlike the other, more famous, cases of semantic agreement, e.g. hybrid nouns (Corbett 2015), pancake sentences (Enger 2004). This thesis is dedicated to investigating honorific agreement in Russian on the basis of independently collected data from the Russian National Corpus and a number of individually selected literary works.Show less
This thesis builds on the idea that subtle, culturally induced differences in semantic meaning remain between translation equivalent words across different languages. This study further argues that...Show moreThis thesis builds on the idea that subtle, culturally induced differences in semantic meaning remain between translation equivalent words across different languages. This study further argues that these differences in meaning may be approached through the examination of the linguistic contexts within which these words occur. Consequently, this work provides a quantitative methodology for highlighting relevant areas in which such cultural differences may be reflected. The method is based on intuition derived from several existing, structuralist methods and works primarily by comparing the frequency of hypernyms of nouns that appear in the neighborhood of an examined word. This thesis focuses on the indigenous Dolgan language as a case study; one that is purposely exploratory in nature. This minority language poses the research with the additional challenge of working with a small-sized language corpus for computational purposes: it demands a ‘rough’ look at data to act as a means, instead of being a limitation. Overall, the results indicate that culturally determined differences between words exist to a measurable degree, despite the unavailability of an adequately sized dataset. Although the results provide insufficient guidance for drawing anthropological conclusions, the findings reassert that cultural knowledge is encoded within language and reiterate the need to preserve endangered indigenous languages.Show less
Experimental approaches to sentence processing focus on localizing areas responsible for language comprehension in the brain oftentimes disregarding the role of time in both the construction and...Show moreExperimental approaches to sentence processing focus on localizing areas responsible for language comprehension in the brain oftentimes disregarding the role of time in both the construction and deconstruction of linguistic structure. Inspired by predictive coding and cue integration, this thesis proposes a theoretical framework for sentence processing where the hierarchical structure of language and its evolution over time profoundly influences its processing leading to time-contingent weighted integration of information. Essential to this theory is the assumption that the reliability of the internal representations generated by each level of linguistic analysis influences the gain of the predictions formulated by the other levels. Multivariate Pattern Analysis was used to compare the gain of semantic and phonological processing at two different timepoints in a sentence. Experiment 1 was the design of an EEG Multivariate Pattern Classification experiment where the classification accuracy of a phonological and semantic classifier for words in early and late positions in a sentence would be compared. We expected classification accuracy of the phonological classifier to be constant regardless of word position and a higher classification accuracy for the semantic classifier at later time points relative to the phonological classifier. Experiment 2 was a Representational Similarity Analysis of nouns in early and late positions from MEG audiobook data. When correlating Phonological and Semantic models with the data, no significant time windows were found. However, the presence of uncorrected clusters suggests the implementation of nested timescales as variations in temporal integration frequency.Show less
This thesis is a contribution to descriptive work on emotion expression in sign languages. The main purpose is providing a detailed description of anger expression in Ghanaian Sign Language (GSL),...Show moreThis thesis is a contribution to descriptive work on emotion expression in sign languages. The main purpose is providing a detailed description of anger expression in Ghanaian Sign Language (GSL), as well as placing this description within the framework of anger expression in the languages of the world. Anger is considered a basic emotion, resulting in a discussion about the universality of anger expression. This thesis aims to include sign languages in this discussion, by analysing anger expression in GSL in the context of proposed universals. Multiple data collection methods were applied, among which the usage of movie- and picture stimuli, scenarios containing different types of anger, and storytelling. Six signers of GSL were provided with these stimuli and asked to either narrate the movie, identify emotions, create a story containing expression of anger or act out scenarios. Results showed that GSL has a division, phonologically as well as semantically, between signs at the head and signs at the chest area. Furthermore, anger expression is largely iconic and metaphorical. GSL confirms existing theories about universals, such as the embodiment of anger expression and the universality of anger metaphors. However, GSL does distinguish itself from earlier research on anger expression in its usage of intensifiers. Furthermore, although GSL is based in American Sign Language (ASL), many of the signs belonging to the anger lexicon are unique to GSL. Nonetheless, the two signs most frequently used to express anger are the same in both languages.Show less
This thesis consists of two parts. In the first part, I go over some of the difficulties in representing semantic structures, including a discussion of the characteristics of syntactic and semantic...Show moreThis thesis consists of two parts. In the first part, I go over some of the difficulties in representing semantic structures, including a discussion of the characteristics of syntactic and semantic structures, syntax-semantics correspondence, and two types of semantic underspecification. In the second part, I offer a design for the visualization of semantic structure as derived by the Delilah parser, as well as a software tool for drawing these structures automatically.Show less
Dutch uses cardinal posture verbs (/zitten/ ‘to sit’, /staan/ ‘to stand’, and /liggen/ ‘to lie’) for all sorts of purposes, many of which have received considerable research attention — like the...Show moreDutch uses cardinal posture verbs (/zitten/ ‘to sit’, /staan/ ‘to stand’, and /liggen/ ‘to lie’) for all sorts of purposes, many of which have received considerable research attention — like the posture progressive, e.g. /zitten te lezen/ ‘lit. sit to read: to be reading’. This thesis investigates an understudied posture verb pattern in which a posture verb is combined with a complementive past participle, e.g. /zitten vastgeplakt/ 'lit. sit stuck: to be stuck' and /staan volgepriegeld/ 'lit. stand scribbled full: to be scribbled full'. Previous analyses disagree on the status of this pattern in terms of its productivity (is it fixed or are new combinations possible?), meaning (what does the pattern as a whole express?), and structure (is the complementive participle verbal or adjectival?). By examining over 6,000 attestations of the pattern in a corpus of written Dutch, this thesis evaluates these competing accounts, concluding that (i) the patterns are indeed productive; (ii) constraints on that productivity can be accounted for in terms of the meaning of the pattern as a whole, i.e. 'locativity' and 'resultativity'; and (iii) the pattern's syntax appears highly heterogeneous: some past participles behave like adjectives, others like verbs. Finally, I show that this heterogeneity is compatible with the semantic properties of past participles in general, and of the posture verb-participle pattern in particular.Show less
This thesis is about the expression of ingressive aspect: language elements that focus on the beginning of a situation. The aim is to conduct a fine-grained analysis and comparison of the aspectual...Show moreThis thesis is about the expression of ingressive aspect: language elements that focus on the beginning of a situation. The aim is to conduct a fine-grained analysis and comparison of the aspectual semantics of three ‘manifestations of ingressivity’: the ingressive suffix -qilai起來 in Mandarin and the ingressive adverbs chū初 and shǐ始 from pre-Tang Chinese. The comparison reveals both similarities and differences. First, the three ingressive markers share a basic conceptual structure consisting of [+BEGIN] and [+focusBEGIN], but -qilai 起來 additionally consists of the optional component [±STAND UP] due to limited semantic bleaching of the source structure’s lexical semantics, i.e. the verb qǐlai 起來 ‘to stand up’. This explains the fact that Stage Level States selecting -qilai起來 may shift optionally to Activities, as metaphorical extensions of ‘standing up’ (i.e. ‘increase’) license dynamic interpretations. This same optionality may be explained for the pre-Tang Chinese adverbs through the causative potential of the predicate, which likewise optionally entails ‘increasing’. Second, combinatory possibilities can be described for shǐ始 without additional restrictions, while those of -qilai起來 and chū初 can be accounted for with one disjunctive rule each: -qilal起來 requires the predicate to be durative, atelic, or both; chū初 requires it to be dynamic-durative, telic, or both. In terms of ingressive subtypes, this means that chū初 is typically inceptive, -qilai起來 is more inceptive than inchoative, and shǐ始 is actually ingressive in that inceptive and inchoative interpretations are equally available.Show less
This thesis discusses emotion lexicon in Tarifiyt, an Afro-Asiatic Berber language of North Morocco. I will discuss the meaning of several negative emotion terms and expressions in this language....Show moreThis thesis discusses emotion lexicon in Tarifiyt, an Afro-Asiatic Berber language of North Morocco. I will discuss the meaning of several negative emotion terms and expressions in this language. In the study of anthropological linguistics, the meaning of emotions in several languages has received attention. However, until now, the semantic field of emotions in Tarifiyt has not been researched. I will use the Natural Semantic Metalanguage and linguistic examples in order to discuss the semantics of these terms and expressions. I will conclude that there is a diverse emotion lexicon in Tarifiyt and that emotions are presented as verbs or as nouns and are something internal to a human being. The seat of emotions, ur (‘heart’) is crucial in understanding emotional expression in Tarifiyt. Furthermore, emotions are often expressed via emotion symptom expressions, so by expressing the bodily sensations that typically accompany the emotion.Show less
Artificial Grammar Learning (AGL) is a powerful experimental paradigm for testing specific hypotheses about language acquisition but is limited because of its reliance on meaningless grammatical...Show moreArtificial Grammar Learning (AGL) is a powerful experimental paradigm for testing specific hypotheses about language acquisition but is limited because of its reliance on meaningless grammatical structures. Meanwhile, formal and computational semantics provide rigorous ways to define and calculate meanings for formal languages, but are typically only used to describe or simulate the linguistic competence of adult speakers. This thesis attempts to connect these two fields by proposing a new type of AGL experiment that uses a language with both a context-free syntax and a formally defined semantics which can be used to express spatial relationships between objects. Moreover, using a computer simulation in which an Intelligent Agent (IA) acquires such a language, it shows how this new paradigm can be used to test psycholinguistic hypotheses about the acquisition of both syntax and semantics.Show less
Brown and Levinson’s (1987) typology of politeness strategies is based on the basic wants of a model person (MP). Their concepts of face and positive and negative politeness have been...Show moreBrown and Levinson’s (1987) typology of politeness strategies is based on the basic wants of a model person (MP). Their concepts of face and positive and negative politeness have been groundbreaking in the fields of pragmatics and intercultural communication. However, their claim of having developed a universal model has been refuted by many scholars (Bargiela-Chiappini 2003; Watts 2003; Hill et al. 1986; Matsumoto 1988; Nwoye 1992; Mao 1994). In this paper, I use a contrastive language guide by Baxter and Baxter (2011) to attempt to analyze [1] how their pragmalinguistic advice relates to Brown and Levinson’s theory of politeness; [2] what influence the sociological variables have had on Baxter and Baxter’s choice of politeness strategies that are incorporated with face-threatening acts (FTAs); and [3] what the key underlying cultural differences are between the Dutch and the British in their choice of politeness strategies. The results of this study indicate that the pragmalinguistic advice relates to Brown and Levinson’s theory by using positive and negative politeness strategies when an FTA is incorporated into an utterance. Furthermore, sociological variables do play a significant role in the selection of politeness strategies, as they adhere to the discernment principles of their respective cultures. The key difference between the Dutch and the British is found in the sociological variable Low context communication.Show less
