Grammar of Location and Motion in Zande

In Zande expressions of position and motion are arranged on a gamut in correlation with increasing syntactic complexity. Topological relations, expressed by basic locative construction are at the left end, directed motion at the right end. Directed translational motion is marked by the preposition ku, which also marks angular location. Topological relations, in situ motion and undirected translational motion do not get a specific marking. This indicates the interrelatedness of stasis and motion on the one hand and undirected and directed motion on the other hand

Two multifunctional locative and directional prepositions in Zande

In Pasch (2007: 174ff) I observed that the direction of self-induced or caused motion towards a location is usually expressed by the preposition ku ((1), (2)). Ku is frequently used to mark DIRECTION in a journey of which the starting point has been mentioned ((3), (4)). In this case the verb describing the motion away from the starting point is gapped. These observations are in agreement with Gore & Gore (1952: 78), who translate ku as ‘towards’ and add “that it always implies motion”. The situation of the speaker may optionally be indicated by the distal adverb yo ‘there’ (more frequent) or by the proximal adverb no (less frequent) ‘here’ in clause-final position

Mündü language and culture: the current state of research

The article outlines the ethnography and the socio-linguistic situation of the Mündü with focus on the sociolinguistic situation and on the endangerment of their language. The Mündü are a little known ethnic group living in several non-contiguous areas in the border triangle of Sudan, DR Congo and Uganda. Data on the history and the culture of the Mündü are scant and scattered in small pieces in the reports of the early European travellers in the region, in ethnographic descriptions of the neighbouring peoples, in particular on the Zande, in ethnographic surveys of Africa and ethnographic handbooks. All pieces of information on the cultural, economic and political situation of the Mündü from the latter second half the 20th century until now are published online on the websites of various organisations. Data on the current situation of the Mündü result partly from my own observations in Arua/Uganda

From anaphoric pronoun to copula in Zande

In Zande there is a particle ni which has two syntactic functions. The first one is that of an ana¬phoric pronoun (cf. ex. 1. for its use as a possessive pronoun) which is neutral with regard to gender, number, and syntactic function. The second function is that of a copula (ex. 2. and 3.). My hypothesis is that this copula has developed in a process of grammaticalisation from the anaphoric pronoun. The aim of the present paper is to outline this development and the conditions which allowed for it to take place

New Roles for African Languages with the New Electronic Media

Mass communication is not new in Africa. Until the mid-20th century aural surrogate languages were used to convey messages which would immediately reach many listeners and which could even be transmitted when the telephone line was interrupted, in particular in Western and Central Africa. The comprehension of these languages depended on the mastership of the spoken language and basically all speakers could understand messages transferred by drum, gong or whistle. With the introduction of writing and printed literature a division emerged according to which certain types of written/printed information were restricted to non-African languages or available also in African languages. While basically all types of literature can be printed or imported in English or French, the production (or import) of literature in African languages is basically restricted to religious texts and to fiction, but hardly any non-fiction. Letter-writing to family members overseas was for a long time the only type of written communication carried out � if at all � in African languages. The new media bring the chances of significant changes in the choice of languages for written information. While making books is expensive, the production of websites is fairly cheap. This offers the chance to produce written texts in African languages which formerly could not be published for economy reasons

Food & Beverage Advertising and Youth: a focus-group analysis of what youth find appealing in food and beverage marketing

Youth perception of print and outdoor food and beverage advertising was gauged to identifying aspects of ads that characterized them as youth oriented. Two sets of focus groups totaling 125 participants were conducted; one with children aged 8-15 focusing on print ads, and one with participants aged 11-14 emphasizing outdoor ads. Qualitative analysis of focus groups highlighted appeal of ads perceived as easily comprehensible, emphasizing flavor, evoking happiness and containing colors. Participants disliked ads described as boring and deceptive. Opinion of the ads were heavily influenced by attitude toward the product, with perceived health having mixed effect on appeal. These finding suggest that through use of certain characteristics, food and beverage ads can specifically target youths. The use of child attracting elements in ads promoting products falling outside of the dietary guidelines for America may contribute to youth consumption of unhealthy products and youth obesity.Kinesiology and Health Educatio

Expressions of Cardinal Directions in Nilotic and in Ubangian Languages

In the Nilotic and Ubangian languages expressions for cardinal directions have been created on the basis of a wide range of conceptual sources: primarily cosmological, geographical and atmospheric concepts. But also names of neighbouring ethnic groups and even historical events are used as such. Borrowing of naming systems, however, do not occur

Superconductivity and magnetic ordering in the mixed ternary ErxY1−xRh1.1Sn3.6 system

The superconducting transition temperature Tc as well as the magnetic ordering temperature Tm have been determined in the mixed ternary compound ErxY1−xRh1.1Sn3.6 as a function of the Er concentration. Tc decreases from 3.13 K for YRh1.1Sn3.6 to 1.1K for ErRh1.1Sn3.6. Reentrant superconductivity has been found for x > 0.6.\ud \ud The application of the models of Abrikosov and Gorkov, Maekawa and Tachiki, and Roshen and Ruvalds to this system is discussed. Tc as function of the concentration x is best described by the model of Roshen and Ruvalds assuming a ferromagnetic interaction between the spins. The parameter I2N(0), arising from electron spin, is found to be 0.088 K. The ferromagnetic ordering temperature dependence is described by the theory of Oguchi and Ono, using an effective coordination number z = 6 and an exchange constant of J′ = 0.30 K

Competing scripts: the introduction of the Roman alphabet in Africa

The introduction of the Roman script since the turn of the 20th century was the first attempt of mass alphabetization in Africa, and it has become the most important writing system. It was, however, not the first script on the continent. In Old Egypt and its successor states, writing systems were developed, transferred to other languages and modified, replaced by new systems, and occasionally became obsolete. In a number of northern and north-eastern African languages Latin replaced earlier scripts. Despite many efforts to alphabetize the population and graphize African languages only a few languages have become media of written communication and learning. For some languages, however, independent scripts were, some of which are used till today. The introduction of the internet enhanced the chances for the Latin script as a written medium for African languages. It is also the platform for a revival of the old scripts likeTifinagh and Ajami, and some of the independent African scripts