Endangered Languages

1. Auflage 2011
ISBN: 978-0-415-43843-8
Verlag: CRC Press

Buch, Englisch, 1792 Seiten, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm, Gewicht: 3396 g

Reihe: Critical Concepts in Linguistics

At least half of the seven thousand or so languages spoken today are in danger of disappearing during the 21st century. Although languages have always come and gone, the current rate of language extinction is unprecedented, a loss which not only affects individual communities but also diminishes the world's linguistic heritage. This crisis has stimulated a variety of responses from linguists: sociolinguists have been concerned with the study of language revitalisation—how the tendency to shift away from minority languages can be reversed—while general linguists have paid more attention to the structural aspects of language endangerment—how languages change as they fall into disuse. In recent years linguists have been particularly concerned with language documentation—the activity of recording, annotating, translating and archiving audiovisual materials of languages before they are lost. In addition, all linguists working on endangered languages face the ethical question of how much effort they should devote to non-academic activities in support of the communities with whom they work.

The study of language endangerment has only really become a concern of mainstream linguistics in the past twenty years, and this four-volume collection is the first of its kind, bringing together research on language endangerment from leading scholars. Theoretical and practical responses by linguists have led to the emergence of the linguistic sub-fields of language documentation and language revitalisation, and most of the publications within them date from just the last ten years. There has however been a veritable flood of books and articles during this time, and an enormous flowering of interest both within academia and in the wider community as well. Twenty years ago an extensive collection on this topic could not have been put together.

A general introduction by the editors gives an overview of the history of research on endangered languages and the main issues faced by scholars of language endangerment today, while specific volume introductions detail the research context for the individual articles. Endangered Languages is an essential one-stop work of reference and will be appreciated by researchers and students of language endangerment and related disciplines.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Austin, Peter K.

McGill, Stuart

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Sprachwissenschaft Sprachwissenschaften

Inhaltsverzeichnis

VOLUME I: BEGINNINGS

Part 1: Language Obsolescence and Death

Part 2: Structural Changes

Part 3: Implications of Language Loss

Volume II: Language Documentation

Part 1: Defining Language Documentation

Part 2: Data in Language Documentation

Part 3: Documentation Methods

Volume III: Language Planning and Case Studies in Revitalization

Part 1: Language Planning Models

Part 2: Case Studies in Revitalization

Volume IV: Issues in revitalization and challenges for linguists

Part 1: General Issues in Revitalization

Part 2: Challenges for Linguists

Part 3: Endangered Languages in the Future

Über Autor(innen)

Edited by Stuart McGill and Peter Austin