Converging genetically related languages
-
Kurt Braunmüller
Abstract
The main goal of this paper is to investigate and model the impact of genetically close relationships between languages in contact situations and to describe the consequences for bilingual speakers living in bilingual communities. Both Muysken’s concept of “congruent lexicalization” and Myers-Scotton’s definitions of “composite matrix languages” will be evaluated and an outline of a code mixing hierarchy designed to achieve a better understanding of convergence processes will be proposed. The main source of the data is an ongoing research project on “Variation in Multilingualism on the Faroe Islands”, supplemented by other parallel data from the German-Danish border region and German vernaculars. The results of the data analysis strongly suggest that, in the long run, code mixing is inevitable, preconditions being (balanced) bilingualism and the frequent alternating use of the two contact languages/varieties.
Abstract
The main goal of this paper is to investigate and model the impact of genetically close relationships between languages in contact situations and to describe the consequences for bilingual speakers living in bilingual communities. Both Muysken’s concept of “congruent lexicalization” and Myers-Scotton’s definitions of “composite matrix languages” will be evaluated and an outline of a code mixing hierarchy designed to achieve a better understanding of convergence processes will be proposed. The main source of the data is an ongoing research project on “Variation in Multilingualism on the Faroe Islands”, supplemented by other parallel data from the German-Danish border region and German vernaculars. The results of the data analysis strongly suggest that, in the long run, code mixing is inevitable, preconditions being (balanced) bilingualism and the frequent alternating use of the two contact languages/varieties.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. Challenges to accepted views of convergence and divergence in language contact situations
- Divergence, convergence, contact 13
- Increases in complexity as a result of language contact 41
- Converging genetically related languages 53
-
Part II. Convergence and divergence in different varieties in oral and written discourse
- Converging languages, diverging varieties 73
- Converging verbal phrases in related languages 101
- Convergence and divergence of communicative norms through language contact in translation 125
- On the importance of spontaneous speech innovations in language contact situations 153
-
Part III. Phonological processes of variation and change in bilingual individuals
- Gradient merging of vowels in Barcelona Catalan under the influence of Spanish 185
- Comparing the representation of iambs by monolingual German, monolingual Spanish and bilingual German-Spanish children 205
- Author index 235
- Subject index 239
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. Challenges to accepted views of convergence and divergence in language contact situations
- Divergence, convergence, contact 13
- Increases in complexity as a result of language contact 41
- Converging genetically related languages 53
-
Part II. Convergence and divergence in different varieties in oral and written discourse
- Converging languages, diverging varieties 73
- Converging verbal phrases in related languages 101
- Convergence and divergence of communicative norms through language contact in translation 125
- On the importance of spontaneous speech innovations in language contact situations 153
-
Part III. Phonological processes of variation and change in bilingual individuals
- Gradient merging of vowels in Barcelona Catalan under the influence of Spanish 185
- Comparing the representation of iambs by monolingual German, monolingual Spanish and bilingual German-Spanish children 205
- Author index 235
- Subject index 239
