On modality in Georgian sign language (GESL)

Modality is one of the most fascinating and complex areas of language studies. This paper illustrates the types of modal constructions in Georgian Sign language (GESL), including negative forms. GESL shows modality semantics with a combination of manual and facial signs. Modals in GESL can occur in the pre-verbal, clause-final, or clause-initial positions, as in many other sign languages (SLs). GESL modal constructions show the specific tense-related negation strategy. Modal constructions in this language often use combinations of modal signs with an equal value

Konstruktionen und Paradigmen

The notion of constructions-as the basic semiotic units of language varying in complexity, size and degree of abstraction-has proved to be useful in diachronic research in general and in grammaticalization studies in particular. Grammaticalization scenarios have been modelled as a unidirectional succession of specific types of constructions, thus providing a means for depicting the interdependence of pragmatic and contextual feature on the one hand and language internal features on the other. However, the endpoint of grammaticalization processes, i.e. the integration of formerly autonomous signs into tightly organized paradigmatic structures (grammatical paradigms), so far has not been in the scope of constructional approaches. It is argued that existing models of grammaticalization scenarios should be expanded by a fourth stage, the stage of paradigmatic integration. It is suggested that a grammatical paradigm represents a particular type of construction. Thus, the stage of paradigmatic integration represents the formation of a fourth type of construction.GRAMIS/P6/4

Lice in the fur of our language? German irrelevance particles between Dutch and English

The present paper compares the distribution of English ‑ever, German immer and/or auch, and Dutch (dan) ook in universal concessive-conditional and nonspecific free relative subordinate clauses (e.g. G. Was auch immer du willst ‘Whatever you want’) and in their elliptically reduced versions (e.g. D. … of wat dan ook ‘… or whatever’). By combining large language-specific corpora such as the DeReKo, SoNaR, and BYU corpora with the smaller multilingual Conver‑ GENTiecorpus, 38,748 instances were obtained while maintaining comparability. Whereas present-day English has only one option in both clausal and elliptical constructions, viz. WH-ever, Dutch and German show more variation: in Dutch, discontinuous W … ook is by far the most frequent option in subordinate clauses, while the complex particle dan ook is largely confined to elliptical constructions. In German subordinate clauses, immer in adjacency to the W-word is the most frequent option, thus corresponding to English WH-ever, but in elliptical constructions auch immer is predominates, thus corresponding to Dutch dan ook

Another Look at the Present Perfect in an Andean Variety of Spanish: Grammaticalization and Evidentiality in Quiteño Spanish

The existence of an extensive body of literature on the Present Perfect (PP), both Spanish-specific (cf. Alarcos Llorach 1947, Copple 2011, Escobar 1997, Gili Gaya 1972, Howe 2013, Rodríguez Louro 2009, Schwenter 1994, Schwenter & Torres Cacoullos 2008, inter alia) and cross-linguistic studies (cf. Bybee, Perkins, & Pagliuca, 1994, Comrie 1976 Harris, 1982, Squartini & Bertinetto 2000, inter alia), attests to the complexity of accurately describing the uses, meanings and functions of the PP. Among the studies of the PP in Spanish, two main approaches are employed. In one approach, the grammaticalization, analysis of temporal and aspectual uses of the PP are emphasized, and the PP is often examined in relation to the Preterit (Pret) (cf. Copple 2009, 2011, Hernández 2004, Howe & Schwenter 2003, Jara Yupanqui 2006, Rodríguez Louro & Howe 2010, Rodríguez Louro & Jara Yupanqui 2011, Schwenter 1994, Schwenter & Torres Cacoullos 2008, Serrano 1994, 1996, inter alia). Another approach focuses on non-temporal and non-aspectual uses of the PP, with particular attention to contact situations that appear to have produced innovative evidential uses of the PP (cf. Escobar 1997, Klee & Ocampo 1995, Mendoza 1991, Rojas-Sosa 2008, Stratford 1991, inter alia). The specific goals of this paper are to situate the grammaticalization of the Quiteño PP in relation to that of other varieties of Spanish, and to quantitatively test claims that the PP in this variety has acquired evidential meaning. [excerpt

Herstellung eines Phaffia rhodozyma : Stamms mit verstärkter Astaxanthin-Synthese über gezielte genetische Modifikation chemisch mutagenisierter Stämme

Ziel dieser Arbeit war es erstmals durch eine Kombination aus chemischer Mutagenese und gezielter genetischer Modifikation (hier: „metabolic engineering“) einen Phaffia-Stamm herzustellen, welcher über die Mutagenese hinaus über eine weiter verstärkte Astaxanthin-Synthese verfügt. Die von „DSM Nutritional Products“ bereitgestellten chemischen Mutanten wurden analysiert und über einen Selektionsprozess auf Pigmentstabilität und Wachstum hin optimiert, da die Stämme aus cryogenisierter Dauerkultur starke Pigmentinstabilitäten und ein verzögertes Wachstum aufwiesen. Über eine exploratorische Phase wurde die Carotinoidsynthese analysiert und festgestellt, dass in den Mutanten keine Einzelreaktionen betroffen sind, welche für die Heraufregulierung der Carotinoidsynthese in den Mutanten verantwortlich sind. Hierbei wurden Limitierungen identifiziert und diese durch Transformation von Expressionsplasmiden mit geeigneten Genen aufgehoben, um damit eine noch effizientere Metabolisierung von Astaxanthin-Vorstufen hin zu Astaxanthin zu erreichen. Eine Überexpression der Phytoensynthase/Lycopinzyklase crtYB resultierte in einem gesteigerten Carotinoidgehalt bei gleichbleibendem Astaxanthin- Anteil. Durch eine zweite Transformation mit einer Expressionskassette für die Astaxanthin-Synthase asy konnte der Carotinoidgehalt weiter gesteigert und zusätzlich eine Limitierung der Metabolisierung von Astaxanthin-Vorstufen behoben werden, sodass die Transformante nahezu alle Intermediate der Astaxanthinsynthese zu Astaxanthin metabolisieren konnte (Gassel et al. 2013). Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass auch in den Mutanten, aus Experimenten mit dem Wildtyp bekannte, Limitierungen identifiziert und ausgeglichen werden konnten

Grammaticalization and grammar

This paper is concerned with developing Joan Bybee's proposals regarding the nature of grammatical meaning and synthesizing them with Paul Hopper's concept of grammar as emergent. The basic question is this: How much of grammar may be modeled in terms of grammaticalization? In contradistinction to Heine, Claudi & Hünnemeyer (1991), who propose a fairly broad and unconstrained framework for grammaticalization, we try to present a fairly specific and constrained theory of grammaticalization in order to get a more precise idea of the potential and the problems of this approach. Thus, while Heine et al. (1991:25) expand – without discussion – the traditional notion of grammaticalization to the clause level, and even include non-segmental structure (such as word order), we will here adhere to a strictly 'element-bound' view of grammaticalization: where no grammaticalized element exists, there is no grammaticalization. Despite this fairly restricted concept of grammaticalization, we will attempt to corroborate the claim that essential aspects of grammar may be understood and modeled in terms of grammaticalization. The approach is essentially theoretical (practical applications will, hopefully, follow soon) and many issues are just mentioned and not discussed in detail. The paper presupposes a familiarity with the basic facts of grammaticalization and it does not present any new facts

Out-of-focus encoding in Gur and Kwa

This paper investigates the structural properties of morphosyntactically marked focus constructions, focussing on the often neglected non-focal sentence part in African tone languages. Based on new empirical evidence from five Gur and Kwa languages, we claim that these focus expressions have to be analysed as biclausal constructions even though they do not represent clefts containing restrictive relative clauses. First, we relativize the partly overgeneralized assumptions about structural correspondences between the out-of-focus part and relative clauses, and second, we show that our data do in fact support the hypothesis of a clause coordinating pattern as present in clause sequences in narration. It is argued that we deal with a non-accidental, systematic feature and that grammaticalization may conceal such basic narrative structures

The emergence of noun and verb categories in the acquisition of French

This paper considers whether the child's early vocabulary shows signs of being organized into word categories. Two main kinds of evidence are looked for: 1. differential production of fillers (referred to here more neutrally as Prefixed Additional Elements); ii. relevant phonomoprhological variation for verb-words, and only in them. Results of analyses of natural speech production provided by the longitudinal studies of two French acquiring children followed between the ages of 1;3 and 2;3, show that there is a first period in which words seem to constitute one, formally undifferentiated, set. Differentiation between noun-words and verb-words appears progressively, as evidenced by the differential occurrence of PAEs in prenominal and in preverbal positions, and in the appearance of phonomorphologically relevant variations only in words that are verbs in the language. Looking at connected aspects of language, other péhenomena are observed to occur at the same time, in particular, a significant increase in the production of multiword speech, that becomes the dominant way of expression

Constructing a concept of number

Numbers are concepts whose content, structure, and organization are influenced by the material forms used to represent and manipulate them. Indeed, as argued here, it is the inclusion of multiple forms (distributed objects, fingers, single- and two-dimensional forms like pebbles and abaci, and written notations) that is the mechanism of numerical elaboration. Further, variety in employed forms explains at least part of the synchronic and diachronic variability that exists between and within cultural number systems. Material forms also impart characteristics like linearity that may persist in the form of knowledge and behaviors, ultimately yielding numerical concepts that are irreducible to and functionally independent of any particular form. Material devices used to represent and manipulate numbers also interact with language in ways that reinforce or contrast different aspects of numerical cognition. Not only does this interaction potentially explain some of the unique aspects of numerical language, it suggests that the two are complementary but ultimately distinct means of accessing numerical intuitions and insights. The potential inclusion of materiality in contemporary research in numerical cognition is advocated, both for its explanatory power, as well as its influence on psychological, behavioral, and linguistic aspects of numerical cognition