The Acquisition of Morphology in Moroccan Heritage Speakers in France

There are two major perspectives regarding heritage speakers’ (henceforth HS) ultimate attainment. Some researchers on HS in the U.S. conclude that HS have incomplete grammars (Benmamoun, Montrul & Polinsky, 2013). It is argued that heritage languages (henceforth HL) do not fully develop (Montrul, 2016), and they are not completely acquired because of shifting to a dominant language (Benmamoun et al., 2013). Other researchers argue that HS’ grammars are complete, but simply different as monolingual and HS experience different linguistic realities (Pascual y Cabo & Rothman, 2012). While there is abundant research on Arabic as a HL in the U.S., research on HS in Europe has been rather limited (Montrul, 2016). This dissertation focuses on Moroccan Arabic (henceforth MA) as a HL in France and aims at contributing to the understanding of the linguistic outcomes of the acquisition of Arabic as a HL in an immigrant context. The current study investigates the acquisition of nominal morphology and verbal-derivational patterns by Moroccan HS in France. Nominal morphology was represented by plural and diminutive formation, and verbal derivations were represented by four patterns. Nominal morphology gives insights into both concatenative and non-concatenative morphological processes. Verbal derivational processes are characterized by the use of non-concatenative morphological processes, and semantic notions such as causativeness and reciprocity are lexicalized within the MA verb-pattern system. The studied patterns are the basic (P1), causative (P2), medio-passive (P5), and reciprocal (P6). 15 Moroccan-French participants took part in this study. The data were gathered through three production experiments. Experiment 1 investigated the acquisition of 3 sound morphemes and 14 broken plurals. In experiment 2, participants were tested in diminutive formation, exemplified by the six types of diminutives, and experiment 3 examined the acquisition of verbal derivations. Experiment 1 revealed that participants’ plural system is mainly characterized by concatenative processes as just two sound plural morphemes were acquired by a significant number of participants. All the participants acquired the morpheme -at and 80% of the participants acquired the sound morpheme -in. Participants depend on overgeneralization and simplification of their plural system. The sound morphemes characterize the HL and were overgeneralized in broken plural targeted data. Additionally, the sound plural [-at] seems to be the underspecified default morpheme in the HL. The findings of experiment 2 show that the mean percentage of source-like use of diminutive forms is 38%. The results revealed that just two patterns were acquired by a significant number of participants: CCiCa and CCiCjCjəC. Diminutive forms that do not require complex processes are acquired by a significant number of participants and the percentage of source-like use is high as well. In this study, a brief analysis of diminutive derivational processes was given, and participants’ patterns of acquisition correspond to the suggested continuum of complexity. Irregular stems present difficulties to HS as complex processes are applied. Non-source like data is rule-governed as 69% of the non-source-like data shows the use of either initial consonant cluster or insertion of the glide /-j/, and these are the main processes characterizing diminutive processes. Additionally, the requirement of having two syllables was met. Participants tend to regularize diminutive formation and show a preference to the following processes: initial constant cluster and insertion of the palatal glide. Generally, HS’s variety is mainly characterized by two patterns. Experiment 3 reveals that the basic pattern (P1) was acquired by all the participants and 40% of the participants acquired the causative (P2). The medio-passive pattern (P5) and the reciprocal patterns (P6) were not acquired. ANOVA showed that there were statistically significant differences among the use of the four patterns. The main finding of this study is that semantic distinction realized by pattern alternation is neutralized in the HL. Specifically, the basic pattern (P1) and periphrastic constructions were used predominantly in P5 and P6 targeted data. It is likely that the basic pattern is used as a default morphological device because it unmarked. The three experiments demonstrate that participants omit irregularities and non-source like forms are rule governed. Less complex and less marked morphological structures characterize the HL. Specifically, morphological aspects thought to be acquired earlier in language development are the ones characterizing the HL. Additionally, the findings of the experiments propose implicational hierarchies for the acquisition of the studied morphological structures. Adopting overgeneralization in nominal morphology, and neutralization in verb patterns showed that HS speak a variety that is reanalyzed. Accordingly, HS in France have a distinct variety that was shaped by their linguistic experience. Their variety is different, reanalyzed and does not comprise all the patterns attested in the source language

The historical reality of the plural of paucity and the plural diminutive in Classical Arabic: Evidence from kalām al-‘arab (Part One)

This study investigates the semantics of the plural of paucity and the plural diminutive, based on their attestations in the non-literary source of Classical Arabic traditionally known as kalām al-‘arab. In noun plural marking, the meaning of the diminutive is as elusive as that of the plural of paucity. What is known of both kinds of meanings is mainly derived from the indirect description of early lexicographers and grammarians. To assess the historical reality of this traditional semantic description, attestations from the kalām al-‘arab are collected, then compared to data from Arabic dialects, and finally subjected to a distributional analysis. The grammatical categories of the collective, inherent plural, and the pseudo-dual are also considered in this assessment

Alternations in Contexts of Code-mixing: Allomorphy, Suppletion and Diminutives

Arabic broken plural morphology has been given a templatic treatment with a CVCVVCVVC template suprafixed to the skeleton of the singular (McCarthy 1983, McCarthy and Prince 1990). The Prosodic Morphology Hypothesis consistent with the iambic foot and extrametricality applies in the formation of the plural and places strong restrictions on the shapes of Arabic broken plural nouns. This paper presents cases where at a first glance the formation of these stems is not only restricted to its prosodically characterized sub-domain but also inflectional morphology out of it. Within a Distributed Morphology framework, I argue that these can be accounted for with the assumption of a null NUM that conditions the allomorphy on the stem that will be inserted. The consequences of this are that morphosyntactic features in the underlying structure first define the conditions of the minimal word followed by mapping of its contents to the iambic foot providing evidence for the syntax-morphology interaction that feeds the phonological component

The Acquisition of Diminutives in Moroccan Heritage Speakers in France

This study addresses the acquisition of diminutive forms by Moroccan heritage speakers in France. Diminutive formation depends on stem modification. 15 Moroccan-French participants took part in this study. In a production experiment, participants were asked to form diminutives for 6 types of stems, since the stem type determines the diminutive pattern. The findings of this study show that the mean percentage of source-like use of the diminutive forms is 38%. The results revealed that just two patterns that were acquired by a significant number of participants: CCiCa and CCiCjCjəC. Diminutive forms that do not require complex processes are acquired by a significant number of participants and the percentage of source-like use is high as well. Irregular stems present difficulties to HS. Non-source like data is rule-governed as 69% of the non-source-like data shows the use of either initial consonant cluster or insertion of the glide, which means that participants produce rule-governed errors. The findings of this study also propose an implicational hierarchy for the acquisition pattern of diminutive forms. For example, if a learner only knows one diminutive pattern, it will be the [CCiCa] pattern. For instance, 27% of the participants acquire just one diminutive pattern and it is [CCiCa]

The construction of a Maltese pedagogical grammar : a study of the noun

This paper discusses the construction of a pedagogical grammar for the teaching of Maltese to native speakers. It illustrates some of the issues that arise in the process of syllabus design by focusing on the noun, and reviews the literature to illustrate differences between traditional and modern linguistics. Starting by taking a critical approach to the syllabus and textbooks of Maltese, it continues by reviewing the literature dealing with the noun as a part of speech. It explores how teaching the ‘noun’ can be made relevant to learners at a secondary level. This short study proposes a syllabus for the noun with a ‘spiral format construction’ for the first four years of Secondary level education. This study can act as a guide to teachers who wish to plan lessons taking into consideration scientifically sound linguistic criteria.peer-reviewe