The chapters in this volume address the process of syntactic change at different granularities. The language-particular component of a grammar is now usually assumed to be nothing more than the specification of the grammatical properties of a set of lexical items. Accordingly, grammar change must reduce to lexical change. And yet these micro-changes can cumulatively alter the typological character of a language (a macro-change). A central puzzle in diachronic syntax is how to relate macro-changes to micro-changes. Several chapters in this volume describe specific micro-changes: changes in the syntactic properties of a particular lexical item or class of lexical items. Other chapters explore links between micro-change and macro-change, using devices such as grammar competition at the individual and population level, recurring diachronic pathways, and links between acquisition biases and diachronic processes. This book is therefore a great companion to the recent literature on the micro- versus macro-approaches to parameters in synchronic syntax. One of its important contributions is the demonstration of how much we can learn about synchronic linguistics through the way languages change: the case studies included provide diachronic insight into many syntactic constructions that have been the target of extensive recent synchronic research, including tense, aspect, relative clauses, stylistic fronting, verb second, demonstratives, and negation. Languages discussed include several archaic and contemporary Romance and Germanic varieties, as well as Greek, Hungarian, and Chinese, among many others.

The volume brings together fifteen papers focusing on the morphosyntax of different Romance varieties. It is based on papers presented at the workshop bearing the same title held at the University of Bucharest in November 2015 and is dedicated to Professor Martin Maiden of the University of Oxford in honour of his 60th birthday. The contributions tackle different theoretical issues concerning current linguistic theory (relevant both for comparative and diachronic approaches), including parameters, features and their hierarchical organization, word order changes, the level of verb movement in different varieties, inflected infinitives, clitic placement and clitic doubling, ethical datives, and personal subject pronouns, among others. As such, the volume represents diverse theoretical approaches to addressing a number of key morphological and syntactic issues in the morphosyntactic development of the Romance languages, drawing on modern research methods and current linguistic theory, with a clear preference for parametric syntax. The most significant areas of grammar are well-represented here. The volume will appeal to advanced graduate and postgraduate students in diachronic linguistics, theoretical linguistics, and Romance linguistics, as well as researchers in the fields of historical and typological linguistics, morphosyntactic theory, and the history of the Romance languages.

The aim of this study about the plurilingual language situation in Botswana is to show tendencies in the attitudes of Botswana citizens towards the ca. 25 languages that are still in use. Results are presented on questions like - which differentiated roles do the official language English, the national language Setswana, and the so-called minority languages play in the present Botswanan society? The overall question of which language will win the race, which ones will survive in the language contest and which ones will not, will be analysed and discussed on the basis of extensive survey data. Based on socio-historical background information, language phenomena like bi-and multilingualism, diglossia, language shift, code switching, language status and power structures, and ethnic stereotypes triggered by language are explored and linked to the current language policy and its implementation in the educational system. Contents: Brief historical profile and sociolinguistic account -- Bi- and multilingualism -- Diglossia -- Language shift and language maintenance -- Code switching -- Language status -- Language stereotypes."

This is a comprehensive reference volume that will give the reader an insight into all the concepts, theories, issues and scholars that have shaped the field of pragmatics.

"Abstracts of the world's literature in linguistics and language-related research, book abstracts, book review listings, and enhanced bibliographic citations of relevant dissertations." Related disciplines such as anthropology, education, ethnology, information science, medicine, and communications are covered. Also includes some reference to papers in publishedconference proceedings.

This book examines the Croatian speech of 100 Croatian-English bilingual adults in Melbourne. The focus of this study is directed at the transference of English words and forms in otherwise Croatian speech. An examination of English-origin forms, whether single or multiple items, is matched against various contemporary models of code-switching. Furthermore, grammatical structures divergent from those found in homeland Croatian are presented. They reveal possible consequences of contact-induced language change. As such, this work represents a recent contribution to the study of code-switching and languages in contact.