Colloquium: Marianne Mithun
Dr. Mithun, whose research interests include Native American languages, linguistic universals and typology, and interrelations between morphology, syntax, and discourse, is a Professor of Linguistics at the University of California, Santa Barbara
| What | Colloquium |
|---|---|
| When |
2007-10-25 04:10 PM
2007-10-25 05:30 PM
October 25, 2007 from 04:10 pm to 05:30 pm |
| Where | 53A Olson Hall |
| Contact Name | Dionne Soares |
| Contact Email | dmsoares@ucdavis.edu |
| Contact Phone | 530-752-3464 |
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Interactions and Explanations: Intonation, Morphology, and Syntax
We know that intonation can play a major role in conveying information structure, distinguishing such elements of the message as focus and topic, and such features of referents as givenness and identifiability. We also know that languages and even dialects can vary substantially in their intonation patterns. This variability raises questions about the universality of the relationship between intonation and information structure. Further investigation indicates that the two can be related not only to each other but also to some major morphological and syntactic structures. Taking several Romance languages as a point of departure, we move first to Iroquoian, represented by Mohawk, and finally to Eskimo-Aleut, represented by Central Alaskan Yupik. We will see that relations among these structures can be understood in terms of the chains of events by which they developed over time.
This event is co-sponsored by the UC Davis Department of Native American Studies
New Linguistics Club