Are you curious to know what all human languages have in common and in what ways they differ? Do you want to find out how language can be used to trace different peoples and their past? Then this book is for you! Now in its third edition, it guides beginners through the rich diversity of the world's languages. It presupposes no background in linguistics, and introduces the reader to linguistic concepts with the help of problem sets, end of chapter exercises and an extensive bibliography. Charts of language families provide geographical and genealogical information, and engaging sidebars with demographic, social, historical and geographical facts help to contextualise and bring languages to life. This edition includes a fully updated glossary of all linguistic terms used, new problem sets, and a new chapter on cartography. Supplementary online materials include links to all websites mentioned, and answers to the exercises for instructors.
Author(s): Asya Pereltsvaig
Edition: 3
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Year: 2021
Language: English
Commentary: Converted from EPUB F752ABAFC69B60FDD2FE20F7561EA9AF
Pages: 500
Half title
Title page
Imprints page
Dedication
Contents
Figures
Tables
Textboxes
“Focus on” Topics
Preface to the Third Edition
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations Used in the Glosses
1 Introduction
1.1 Languages, Dialects, and Accents
1.2 Language Families
1.3 How Language Families Are Established: Comparative Reconstruction
Advanced:
1.4 Linguistic Diversity
1.5 How Do Languages Diversify?
1.6 Field Linguistics
1.7 Focus on: Language Maps
Do It Yourself – Chapter 1
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
2 Languages of Europe
2.1 The Indo-European Language Family
2.2 The Indo-European Controversy
2.3 Non-Indo-European Languages of Europe
Advanced:
2.4 Focus on: Endangered Languages of Europe
Do It Yourself – Chapter 2
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
3 Languages of Iran and South Asia
3.1 Indo-European Languages of Iran and South Asia
3.1.1 Iranian Languages
3.1.2 Indo-Aryan Languages
Advanced:
3.2 Dravidian Languages
3.3 Other Languages of South Asia
3.4 Focus on: Universals and the Parametric Theory of Language
Do It Yourself – Chapter 3
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
4 Languages of Northern Eurasia
4.1 Finno-Ugric Languages
4.2 Other Uralic Languages
4.3 Turkic Languages
4.4 Other Languages of Siberia
4.5 Focus on: Evidential Markers
Do It Yourself – Chapter 4
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
5 Languages of the Caucasus
5.1 Northwest Caucasian Languages
5.2 Northeast Caucasian Languages
Advanced:
5.3 Kartvelian Languages
Advanced:
5.4 Indo-European Languages in the Caucasus
5.5 Focus on: Head-Marking vs. Dependent-Marking
Do It Yourself – Chapter 5
Explore the Web and Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
6 Languages of the Greater Middle East
6.1 Afroasiatic Languages
6.2 Semitic Languages
Advanced:
6.3 Berber Languages
6.4 Focus on: Language Contact
Do It Yourself – Chapter 6
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
7 Languages of Sub-Saharan Africa
7.1 Nilo-Saharan Languages
7.2 Niger-Congo Languages
Advanced:
7.3 Khoisan Languages
7.4 Focus on: Official Languages, Trade Languages, and Creole Languages in Sub-Saharan Africa
Do It Yourself – Chapter 7
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
8 Languages of Eastern Asia
8.1 Sino-Tibetan Languages
Advanced:
8.2 Austro-Asiatic Languages
Advanced:
8.3 Tai-Kadai Languages
Advanced:
8.4 Japanese and Korean
8.5 Focus on: Isolating Morphology and Language Change
Do It Yourself – Chapter 8
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
Set A:
Set B:
Set C:
9 Languages of the South Sea Islands
9.1 Discovery of the Austronesian Family and the Austronesian Homeland
9.2 Today’s Austronesian Languages and the Internal Classification of the Family
9.3 Linguistic Properties of Austronesian Languages
Advanced:
9.4 Focus on: The Mystery of Malagasy
Advanced:
Do It Yourself – Chapter 9
Explore the Web:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
Analyze Linguistic Data and Discuss:
10 Aboriginal Languages of New Guinea and Australia
10.1 Languages of New Guinea
10.1.1 Overview of Papuan Languages
10.1.2 Areal Papuan Features
10.1.3 Tok Pisin
10.2 Languages of Australia
10.3 Focus on: Is There Such a Thing as a Primitive Language?
Advanced:
Do It Yourself – Chapter 10
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
11 Native Languages of the Americas
11.1 Languages of North America
Advanced:
Advanced:
11.2 Languages of Meso-America
11.3 Languages of South America
11.4 Focus on: The Pirahã Controversy
Do It Yourself – Chapter 11
Explore the Web:
Discuss:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
12 Remaining Issues
12.1 Macro Families
12.1.1 The Dene-Yeniseian Hypothesis
12.1.2 Altaic and Ural-Altaic Macro Families
12.1.3 The Nostratic and Eurasiatic Hypotheses
12.1.4 Other Hypothesized Macro Families
12.2 Sign Languages
12.3 Constructed Languages
Do It Yourself – Chapter 12
Review and Explore the Web:
Analyze Linguistic Data:
Glossary
Bibliography
Index of Languages
Index of Terms
