Language and Space: Theories and Methods: An International Handbook of Linguistic Variation, Volume 1
The dimensions of time and space fundamentally cause and shape the variability of all human language. To reduce investigation of this insight to manageable proportions, researchers have traditionally concentrated on the 'deepest' dialects. But it is increasingly apparent that, although most people still speak with a distinct regional coloring, the new mobility of speakers in recently industrialized and postindustrial societies and the efflorescence of communication technologies cannot be ignored.
This volume focuses on how far the policies, principles and practices of foreign language teaching and learning are, or can be, informed by theoretical considerations and empirical findings from the linguistic disciplines. Part I deals with the nature of foreign language learning in general, while Part II explores issues arising from linguistic, socio-political, cultural and cognitive perspectives. Part III and IV then consider the different factors that have to be taken into account in designing the foreign language subject and the various approaches to pedagogy that have been proposed.
Accessibly written, Writing Systems: A Linguistic Approach provides detailed coverage of all major writing systems of historical or structural significance with thorough discussion of structure, history, and social context as well as important theoretical issues. The book examines systems as diverse as Chinese, Greek, and Maya and each writing system is presented in the light of four major aspects of writing: history and development; internal structure; the relationship of writing and language; and sociolinguistic factors.
Complex Predicates: Cross-linguistic Perspectives on Event Structure
Complex predicates are multipredicational, but monoclausal structures. They have proven problematic for linguistic theory, particularly for proposed distinctions between the lexicon, morphology, and syntax. This volume focuses on the mapping from morphosyntactic structures to event structure, and in particular, the constraints on possible mappings. The volume showcases the 'coverb construction' a complex predicate construction which, though widespread, has received little attention in the literature.
Thinking without Words provides a challenging new theory of the nature of non-linguistic thought. Many scientific disciplines treat non-linguistic creatures as thinkers, explaining their behavior in terms of their thoughts about themselves and about the environment. But this theorizing has proceeded without any clear account of the types of thinking available to non-linguistic creatures. One consequence of this is that ascriptions of thoughts to non-linguistic creatures have frequently been held to be metaphorical and not to be taken at face value.
