Perniss / Pfau / Steinbach Visible Variation

Comparative Studies on Sign Language Structure
1. Auflage 2008
ISBN: 978-3-11-019885-0
Verlag: De Gruyter
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, Band 188, 413 Seiten, Gewicht: 10 g

Reihe: Trends in Linguistics. Studies and Monographs [TiLSM]ISSN

It has been argued that properties of the visual-gestural modality impose a homogenizing effect on sign languages, leading to less structural variation in sign language structure as compared to spoken language structure. However, until recently, research on sign languages was limited to a number of (Western) sign languages. Before we can truly answer the question of whether modality effects do indeed cause less structural variation, it is necessary to investigate the similarities and differences that exist between sign languages in more detail and, especially, to include in this investigation less studied sign languages.

The current research climate is testimony to a surge of interest in the study of a geographically more diverse range of sign languages. The volume reflects that climate and brings together work by scholars engaging in comparative sign linguistics research. The 11 articles discuss data from many different signed and spoken languages and cover a wide range of topics from different areas of grammar including phonology (word pictures), morphology (pronouns, negation, and auxiliaries), syntax (word order, interrogative clauses, auxiliaries, negation, and referential shift) and pragmatics (modal meaning and referential shift). In addition to this, the contributions address psycholinguistic issues, aspects of language change, and issues concerning data collection in sign languages, thereby providing methodological guidelines for further research. Although some papers use a specific theoretical framework for analyzing the data, the volume clearly focuses on empirical and descriptive aspects of sign language variation.

Zielgruppe

Scholars and Researchers of Sign Languages, Theoretical Linguisti

Autoren/Hrsg.

Perniss, Pamela M.

Pfau, Roland

Steinbach, Markus

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Sprachwissenschaft Historische & Vergleichende Sprachwissenschaft, Sprachtypologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Sprachwissenschaft Angewandte Sprachwissenschaft
• Geisteswissenschaften Sprachwissenschaft Zeichensprachen, Künstliche Sprachen

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Frontmatter;1
2;Table of contents;5
3;Notational conventions;7
4;Can’t you see the difference? Sources of variation in sign language structure;11
5;Occurrence of mouthings in American Sign Language: A preliminary study;45
6;Do all pronouns point? Indexicality of first person plural pronouns in BSL and ASL;73
7;Negation in Jordanian Sign Language: A cross-linguistic perspective;113
8;On the syntax of negation and modals in Catalan Sign Language and German Sign Language;139
9;‘Real data are messy’: Considering cross-linguistic analysis of constituent ordering in Auslan, VGT, and ISL;173
10;Cross-linguistic comparison of interrogatives in Croatian, Austrian, and American Sign Languages;217
11;The expression of modal meaning in German Sign Language and Irish Sign Language;255
12;Reported action in Nicaraguan and American Sign Languages: Emerging versus established systems;289
13;Grammaticalization of auxiliaries in sign languages;313
14;The possible range of variation between sign languages: Universal Grammar, modality, and typological aspects;351
15;Backmatter;395

Über Autor(innen)

Pamela M. Perniss, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Roland Pfau, Universiteit van Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Markus Steinbach, Johannes-Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Germany.