ISBN : 9780199609895
This book provides a comprehensive overview of current research in African languages, drawing on insights from anthropological linguistics, typology, historical and comparative linguistics, and sociolinguistics. Africa is believed to host at least one third of the world's languages, usually classified into four phyla - Niger-Congo, Afro-Asiatic, Nilo-Saharan, and Khoisan - which are then subdivided into further families and subgroupings. This volume explores all aspects of research in the field, beginning with chapters that cover the major domains of grammar and comparative approaches. Later parts provide overviews of the phyla and subfamilies, alongside grammatical sketches of eighteen representative African languages of diverse genetic affiliation. The volume additionally explores multiple other topics relating to African languages and linguistics, with a particular focus on extralinguistic issues: language, cognition, and culture, including colour terminology and conversation analysis; language and society, including language contact and endangerment; language and history; and language and orature. This wide-ranging handbook will be a valuable reference for scholars and students in all areas of African linguistics and anthropology, and for anyone interested in descriptive, documentary, typological, and comparative linguistics.
Acknowledgements
List of abbreviations
List of maps, figures, and tables
The contributors
1 Gerrit J. Dimmendaal and Rainer Vossen: Introduction
Part I: Domains of Grammar
2 Michael J. Kenstowicz: Phonology and phonetics
3 David Odden: Tone
4 Klaus Beyer: Morphology
5 Jochen Zeller: Syntax
Part II: Language Comparison
6 Rainer Vossen: African language types
7 Mena Lafkioui: Dialectology and linguistic geography
8 Ludwig Gerhardt: Reflections on the history of African language classification
Part III: Language Phyla and Families
9 Jeff Good: Niger-Congo, with a special focus on Benue-Congo
10 Friederike Lupke: Atlantic
11 Henning Schreiber: Mande
12 Mary Esther Kropp Dakubu: Kwa
13 Gudrun Miehe: Gur
14 Lutz Marten: Bantu and Bantoid
15 Ulrich Kleinewillinghofer: Adamawa
16 Helma Pasch: Ubangi
17 Nicolas Quint: Kordofanian
18 Victor Porkhomovsky: Afro-Asiatic overview
19 Balazs J. Irsay-Nagy: Egyptian
20 Maarten Kossmann: Berber
21 Mauro Tosco: East Cushitic
22 Martine Vanhove: North Cushitic
23 Zelealem Leyew: Central Cushitic
24 Roland Kiessling: South Cushitic
25 Bernhard Kohler: Omotic
26 Bernard Caron: Chadic
27 Victor Porkhomovsky: Ethio-Semitic
28 Gerrit J. Dimmendaal: Nilo-Saharan and its limits
29 Norbert Cyffer: Saharan
30 Gerrit J. Dimmendaal and Angelika Jakobi: Eastern Sudanic
31 Pascal Boyeldieu: Central Sudanic
32 Henry Honken: Khoisan
33 Gerrit J. Dimmendaal: Linguistic isolates
Part IV: Languages Structures: Case Studies
34 Tucker G. Childs: Bom-Kim
35 Valentin Vydrin: Dan
36 Coffi Sambieni: Biali
37 Rose-Juliet Anyanwu: Yukuben
38 Yuko Abe: Bende
39 Ulrich Kleinewillinghofer: Waja
40 Helma Pasch: Zande
41 Catherine Taine-Cheikh: Zenaga
42 Kazuhiro Kawachi: Sidaama
43 Zelealem Leyew: Kolisi
44 Maarten Mous: Iraqw
45 Zygmunt Frajzyngier: Wandala
46 Osamu Hieda: Kumam
47 Gerrit J. Dimmendaal: Baale
48 Lameen Souag: Songhay languages
49 Rainer Vossen: Cara
50 Henry Honken: ǁ?X'egwi
51 Helen Eaton: Sandawe
Part V: Language, Cognition, and Culture
52 Christa Kilian-Hatz: Ideophones
53 Doris L. Payne: Colour term systems: Genetic vs areal distribution in Sub-Saharan Africa
54 Ulrike Zoch: Experiencer constructions
55 Karsten Legere: Language and ethnobotany
56 Patricia Friedrich: Distinctive languages
57 Maren Rusch: Conversation analysis
58 Axel Fleisch: Cognition and language
Part VI: Language and Society
59 Andrij Rovenchak and Solomija Buk: Indigenous African scripts
60 Kembo Sure: Language policy and politics
61 Ingse Skattum: Language and education
62 James Essegbey: Language endangerment, documentation, and revitalization
63 Ellen Hurst: Language birth: youth/town language
64 Klaus Beyer: Language contact
65 Maarten Mous: Mixed languages: The case of Ma'a/Mbugu
66 Andrea Hollington: African languages in the Diaspora
67 Gabriele Sommer: Pidgin and creole languages
68 Victoria A.S. Nyst: Sign languages
69 Jonathan Owens: Arabic in Africa
70 Elke Karan and David Roberts: Orthography standardization
71 Thomas Bearth: Pragmatics and communication
72 Kristin Vold Lexander: African languages in information and communication technology
Part VII: Language and History
73 David L. Schoenbrun: Words, things, and meaning: Linguistics as a tool for historical reconstruction
74 Koen Bostoen: Language and archaeology
Part VIII: Language and Orature
75 Wilhelm J.G. Mohlig: Narratives
76 Sebastian K. Bemile: Proverbs
77 Clarissa Vierke: Poetry
Language index
Author index
Subject index
