Polysynthesis in the Arctic/Sub-Arctic
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Michael Fortescue
Abstract
This paper presents a diagnostic for distinguishing older from newer forms of polysynthesis. Explanations for the global “cline” of polysynthesis from northern Asia into northwestern America are examined in this light. This leads to addressing the questions as to the “robustness” of polysynthesis in general (and head-marking morphology in particular) and as to whether its development is necessarily a “one-way road.” Traces of the phenomenon in the Amur-Sakhalin-Hokkaido area suggest at least one possible Asian source of the cline.
Abstract
This paper presents a diagnostic for distinguishing older from newer forms of polysynthesis. Explanations for the global “cline” of polysynthesis from northern Asia into northwestern America are examined in this light. This leads to addressing the questions as to the “robustness” of polysynthesis in general (and head-marking morphology in particular) and as to whether its development is necessarily a “one-way road.” Traces of the phenomenon in the Amur-Sakhalin-Hokkaido area suggest at least one possible Asian source of the cline.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
-
Part I. Structures and typologies
- Discourse semantics and the form of the verb predicate in Karachay-Balkar 3
- Typology and channel of communication 47
- Marking versus indexing 69
- Head-marking languages and linguistic theory 91
- Lessons of variability in clause coordination 125
- Noun classes grow on trees 153
- Affecting valence in Khumi 171
- Capturing diversity in language acquisition research 195
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Part II. Distributions in time and space
- Who inherits what, when? 219
- Polysynthesis in the Arctic/Sub-Arctic 241
- A (micro-)accretion zone in a remnant zone? 265
- A history of Iroquoian gender marking 283
- The satem shift, Armenian siseṙn, and the early Indo-European of the Balkans 299
- Penultimate lengthening in Bantu 309
- Culture and the spread of Slavic 331
- The syntax and pragmatics of Tungusic revisited 357
- Some observations on typological features of hunter-gatherer languages 383
- Typologizing phonetic precursors to sound change 395
- Distributional biases in language families 415
- The morphology of imperatives in Lak 445
- Subgrouping in Tibeto-Burman 463
-
Part III. A (cautionary) note on methodology
- Real data, contrived data, and the Yokuts Canon 477
- Language index 495
- Name index 499
- Subject index 505
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
-
Part I. Structures and typologies
- Discourse semantics and the form of the verb predicate in Karachay-Balkar 3
- Typology and channel of communication 47
- Marking versus indexing 69
- Head-marking languages and linguistic theory 91
- Lessons of variability in clause coordination 125
- Noun classes grow on trees 153
- Affecting valence in Khumi 171
- Capturing diversity in language acquisition research 195
-
Part II. Distributions in time and space
- Who inherits what, when? 219
- Polysynthesis in the Arctic/Sub-Arctic 241
- A (micro-)accretion zone in a remnant zone? 265
- A history of Iroquoian gender marking 283
- The satem shift, Armenian siseṙn, and the early Indo-European of the Balkans 299
- Penultimate lengthening in Bantu 309
- Culture and the spread of Slavic 331
- The syntax and pragmatics of Tungusic revisited 357
- Some observations on typological features of hunter-gatherer languages 383
- Typologizing phonetic precursors to sound change 395
- Distributional biases in language families 415
- The morphology of imperatives in Lak 445
- Subgrouping in Tibeto-Burman 463
-
Part III. A (cautionary) note on methodology
- Real data, contrived data, and the Yokuts Canon 477
- Language index 495
- Name index 499
- Subject index 505
