Typology and universals
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
Typology and universals
(Cambridge textbooks in linguistics)
Cambridge University Press, 1990
- : hard
- : pbk
Available at 136 libraries
  Aomori
  Iwate
  Miyagi
  Akita
  Yamagata
  Fukushima
  Ibaraki
  Tochigi
  Gunma
  Saitama
  Chiba
  Tokyo
  Kanagawa
  Niigata
  Toyama
  Ishikawa
  Fukui
  Yamanashi
  Nagano
  Gifu
  Shizuoka
  Aichi
  Mie
  Shiga
  Kyoto
  Osaka
  Hyogo
  Nara
  Wakayama
  Tottori
  Shimane
  Okayama
  Hiroshima
  Yamaguchi
  Tokushima
  Kagawa
  Ehime
  Kochi
  Fukuoka
  Saga
  Nagasaki
  Kumamoto
  Oita
  Miyazaki
  Kagoshima
  Okinawa
  Korea
  China
  Thailand
  United Kingdom
  Germany
  Switzerland
  France
  Belgium
  Netherlands
  Sweden
  Norway
  United States of America
Note
Bibliography: p. 278-292
Includes indexes
Description and Table of Contents
Description
Comparison of the grammars of human languages reveals systematic patterns of variation. Research in typology and universals attempts to uncover those patterns, to formulate the universal constraints on language that define those patterns, and to seek explanations for the universals. In this volume, the first of its kind, William Croft provides the reader with a comprehensive introduction to the method and theory used in typology-universals research, together with an overview of basic grammatical differences between languages. He discusses theoretical issues ranging from the most fundamental - on what basis can the grammars of diverse languages be compared? - to the most abstract - what is the role of functional and historical explanation of language universals? - and gives extensive illustration from the world's languages. Numerous case studies provide extended examples of the methodologies applied to specific problems. As well as explicating basic concepts established in the last thirty years, current areas of typological research are thoroughly covered (including diachronic typology and the functional-typological approach). This textbook will appeal to scholars and students alike in linguistics and anthropology.
Table of Contents
- 1. Introduction
- 2. Typological classification
- 3. Implicational universals
- 4. Markedness in typology
- 5. Grammatical hierarchies
- 6. Prototypes and the interaction of typological patterns
- 7. External motives and the typology of form-function relations
- 8. Diachronic typology
- 9. Linguistic explanation in the dynamic paradigm
- Notes
- References
- Map of languages cited
- Author index
- Language index
- Subject index.
by "Nielsen BookData"