Published by De Gruyter Mouton

The World of Linguistics [WOL]

Edited by: Hans Henrich Hock

Overview
Volumes

The handbook series The World of Linguistics provides an up-to-date overview of linguistic work on the world's languages. The volumes cover the entire world divided into major geographical areas: Africa, Europe, North and Central America, South America, Central and Northern Asia, South Asia, East and Southeast Asia, Western Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands. Each volume is written and edited by leading scholars on the languages and linguistics of the relevant area. In addition to linguistic classification, contact-induced areal phenomena are also discussed, as well as work in different disciplines, such as syntax, morphology, phonology, sociolinguistics, and computational linguistics. The aim is to present not only the major achievements in linguistic research in each geographical area, but also topics that are controversial or under-researched. The handbooks also provide extensive bibliographical information on major publications and databases that will enable the reader to delve further into the subject area. The World of Linguistics will remain an indispensable companion to the general linguist as well as the specialist for years to come.

Author / Editor information

Hans Henrich Hock, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA.

Topics

Book Ahead of Publication 2023

The Languages and Linguistics of Indigenous North America

A Comprehensive Guide, Vol. 2

Carmen Dagostino, Marianne Mithun, Keren Rice

Volume 13.2 in this series

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This handbook provides broad coverage of the languages indigenous to North America, with special focus on typologically interesting features and areal characteristics, surveys of current work, and topics of particular importance to communities. The volume is divided into two major parts: subfields of linguistics and family sketches. The subfields include those that are customarily addressed in discussions of North American languages (sounds and sound structure, words, sentences), as well as many that have received somewhat less attention until recently (tone, prosody, sociolinguistic variation, directives, information structure, discourse, meaning, language over space and time, conversation structure, evidentiality, pragmatics, verbal art, first and second language acquisition, archives, evolving notions of fieldwork). Family sketches cover major language families and isolates and highlight topics of special value to communities engaged in work on language maintenance, documentation, and revitalization.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.0000/9783110712742
ISBN:: 9783110712742
ISBN:: 9783110712667
ISBN:: 9783110712810
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of the Americas
Subject:: Languages of the Americas, other
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2023

The Languages and Linguistics of Indigenous North America

A Comprehensive Guide, Vol 1

Carmen Dagostino, Marianne Mithun, Keren Rice

Volume 13.1 in this series

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DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110600926
ISBN:: 9783110600926
ISBN:: 9783110598698
ISBN:: 9783110597981
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of the Americas
Subject:: Languages of the Americas, other
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2018

The Languages and Linguistics of Africa

Tom Güldemann

Volume 11 in this series

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This innovative handbook takes a fresh look at the currently underestimated linguistic diversity of Africa, the continent with the largest number of languages in the world. It covers the major domains of linguistics, offering both a representative picture of Africa’s linguistic landscape as well as new and at times unconventional perspectives. The focus is not so much on exhaustiveness as on the fruitful relationship between African and general linguistics and the contributions the two domains can make to each other. This volume is thus intended for readers with a specific interest in African languages and also for students and scholars within the greater discipline of linguistics.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110421668
ISBN:: 9783110421668
ISBN:: 9783110426069
ISBN:: 9783110421750
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of Africa
Subject:: Bantu Languages
Subject:: African Languages, other
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Linguistic Typology
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book Ahead of Publication 2024

The Languages and Linguistics of Northern Asia

Language Families

Edward Vajda

Volume 10.1 in this series

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The Languages and Linguistics of Northern Asia: A Comprehensive Guide surveys the indigenous languages of Asia’s North Pacific Rim, Siberia, and adjacent portions of Inner Eurasia. It provides in-depth descriptions of every first-order family of this vast area, with special emphasis on family-internal subdivision and dialectal differentiation. Individual chapters trace the origins and expansion of the region’s widespread pastoral-based language groups as well as the microfamilies and isolates spoken by northern Asia’s surviving hunter-gatherers. Separate chapters cover sparsely recorded languages of early Inner Eurasia that defy precise classification and the various pidgins and creoles spread over the region. Other chapters investigate the typology of salient linguistic features of the area, including vowel harmony, noun inflection, verb indexing (also known as agreement), complex morphologies, and the syntax of complex predicates. Issues relating to genealogical ancestry, areal contact and language endangerment receive equal attention. With historical connections both to Eurasia’s pastoral-based empires as well as to ancient population movements into the Americas, the steppes, taiga forests, tundra and coastal fringes of northern Asia offer a complex and fascinating object of linguistic investigation.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.0000/9783110556216
ISBN:: 9783110556216
ISBN:: 9783110554069
ISBN:: 9783110554038
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Linguistics, other
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2021

The Languages and Linguistics of Mainland Southeast Asia

A comprehensive guide

Paul Sidwell, Mathias Jenny

Volume 8 in this series

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The handbook will offer a survey of the field of linguistics in the early 21st century for the Southeast Asian Linguistic Area. The last half century has seen a great increase in work on language contact, work in genetic, theoretical, and descriptive linguistics, and since the 1990s especially documentation of endangered languages. The book will provide an account of work in these areas, focusing on the achievements of SEAsian linguistics, as well as the challenges and unresolved issues, and provide a survey of the relevant major publications and other available resources. We will address:

Survey of the languages of the area, organized along genetic lines, with discussion of relevant political and cultural background issues

Theoretical/descriptive and typological issues

Genetic classification and historical linguistics

Areal and contact linguistics

Other areas of interest such as sociolinguistics, semantics, writing systems, etc.

Resources (major monographs and monograph series, dictionaries, journals, electronic data bases, etc.)

Grammar sketches of languages representative of the genetic and structural diversity of the region.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110558142
ISBN:: 9783110558142
ISBN:: 9783110556124
ISBN:: 9783110556063
Subject:: Asian and Pacific Studies
Subject:: Southeast Asia
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of Asia
Subject:: Asian Languages, other
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Linguistic Typology
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2016

The Languages and Linguistics of South Asia

A Comprehensive Guide

Hans Henrich Hock, Elena Bashir

Volume 7 in this series

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With nearly a quarter of the world’s population, members of at least five major language families plus several putative language isolates, South Asia is a fascinating arena for linguistic investigations, whether comparative-historical linguistics, studies of language contact and multilingualism, or general linguistic theory.

This volume provides a state-of-the-art survey of linguistic research on the languages of South Asia, with contributions by well-known experts. Focus is both on what has been accomplished so far and on what remains unresolved or controversial and hence offers challenges for future research. In addition to covering the languages, their histories, and their genetic classification, as well as phonetics/phonology, morphology, syntax, and sociolinguistics, the volume provides special coverage of contact and convergence, indigenous South Asian grammatical traditions, applications of modern technology to South Asian languages, and South Asian writing systems. An appendix offers a classified listing of major sources and resources, both digital/online and printed.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110423303
ISBN:: 9783110423303
ISBN:: 9783110427158
ISBN:: 9783110423389
Subject:: Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies
Subject:: Language and Literature
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of Asia
Subject:: Asian Languages, other
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Language Contact
Subject:: Linguistic Typology
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2018

The Languages and Linguistics of Western Asia

An Areal Perspective

Geoffrey Haig, Geoffrey Khan

Volume 6 in this series

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The languages of Western Asia belong to a variety of language families, including Indo-European, Kartvelian, Semitic, and Turkic, but share numerous features on account of being in areal contact over many centuries. This volume presents descriptions of the modern languages, contributed by leading specialists, and evaluates similarities across the languages that may have arisen by areal contact.

It begins with an introductory chapter presenting an overview of the various genetic groupings in the region and summarizing some of the significant features and issues relating to language contact. In the core of the volume the presentation of the languages is divided into five contact areas, which include (i) eastern Anatolia and northwestern Iran, (ii) northern Iraq, (iii) western Iran, (iv) the Caspian region and south Azerbaijan, and (v) the Caucasian rim and southern Black Sea coast. Each section contains chapters devoted to the languages of the area preceded by an introductory section that highlights significant contact phenomena. The volume is rounded off by an appendix with basic lexical items across a selection of the languages.

The handbook features contributions by Erik Anonby, Denise Bailey, Christiane Bulut, David Erschler, Geoffrey Haig, Geoffrey Khan, Rene Lacroix, Parvin Mahmoudveysi, Hrach Martirosyan, Ludwig Paul, Stephan Procházka, Laurentia Schreiber, Don Stilo, Mortaza Taheri-Ardali, Christina van der Wal Anonby.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110421682
ISBN:: 9783110421682
ISBN:: 9783110421743
ISBN:: 9783110426083
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of Asia
Subject:: Semitic Languages
Subject:: Arabic
Subject:: Semitic Languages, other
Subject:: Sino-Tibetan Languages
Subject:: Sino-Tibetan Languages, other
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Linguistic Typology
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2017

The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area

A Comprehensive Guide

Bill Palmer

Volume 4 in this series

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The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area: A Comprehensive Guide is part of the multi-volume reference work on the languages and linguistics of all major regions of the world. The island of New Guinea and its offshore islands is arguably the most diverse and least documented linguistic hotspot in the world - home to over 1300 languages, almost one fifth of all living languages, in more than 40 separate families, along with numerous isolates. Traditionally one of the least understood linguistic regions, ongoing research allows for the first time a comprehensive guide. Given the vastness of the region and limited previous overviews, this volume focuses on an account of the families and major languages of each area within the region, including brief grammatical descriptions of many of the languages. The volume also includes a typological overview of Papuan languages, and a chapter on Austronesian-Papuan contact. It will make accessible current knowledge on this complex region, and will be the standard reference on the region. It is aimed at typologists, endangered language specialists, graduate and advanced undergraduate students, and all those interested in linguistic diversity and understanding this least known linguistic region.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110295252
ISBN:: 9783110295252
ISBN:: 9783110567267
ISBN:: 9783110286427
Subject:: Asian and Pacific Studies
Subject:: Oceania and the Pacific
Subject:: New Guinea
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of Australia
Subject:: Pama–Nyungan Languages
Subject:: Non Pama–Nyungan Languages
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Linguistic Typology
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2014

The Languages and Linguistics of Australia

A Comprehensive Guide

Harold Koch, Rachel Nordlinger

Volume 3 in this series

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The Languages and Linguistics of Australia: A Comprehensive Guide is part of the multi-volume reference work on the languages and linguistics of the continents of the world. The volume provides a thorough overview of Australian languages, including their linguistic structures, their genetic relationships, and issues of language maintenance and revitalisation.

Australian English, Aboriginal English and other contact varieties are also discussed.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110279771
ISBN:: 978-3-11-027969-6
ISBN:: 978-3-11-027977-1
ISBN:: 9783110395129
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of Australia
Subject:: Australian Languages, other
Subject:: Other Languages of Europe
Subject:: European Languages, other
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Linguistics, other
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2012

The Indigenous Languages of South America

A Comprehensive Guide

Lyle Campbell, Verónica Grondona

Volume 2 in this series

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The Indigenous Languages of South America: A Comprehensive Guide is a thorough guide to the indigenous languages of this part of the world. With more than a third of the linguistic diversity of the world (in terms of language families and isolates), South American languages contribute new findings in most areas of linguistics. Though formerly one of the linguistically least known areas of the world, extensive descriptive and historical linguistic research in recent years has expanded knowledge greatly. These advances are represented in this volume in indepth treatments by the foremost scholars in the field, with chapters on the history of investigation, language classification, language endangerment, language contact, typology, phonology and phonetics, and on major language families and regions of South America.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110258035
ISBN:: 978-3-11-025513-3
ISBN:: 978-3-11-025803-5
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Languages of the Americas
Subject:: Languages of the Americas, other
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton

Book 2011

The Languages and Linguistics of Europe

A Comprehensive Guide

Bernd Kortmann, Johan van der Auwera

Volume 1 in this series

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Open publication>

The Languages and Linguistics of Europe: A Comprehensive Guide is part of the multi-volume reference work on the languages and linguistics of the continents of the world. The book supplies profiles of the language families of Europe, including the sign languages. It also discusses the areal typology, paying attention to the Standard Average European, Balkan, Baltic and Mediterranean convergence areas. Separate chapters deal with the old and new minority languages and with non-standard varieties. A major focus is language politics and policies, including discussions of the special status of English, the relation between language and the church, language and the school, and standardization. The history of European linguistics is another focus as is the history of multilingual European 'empires' and their dissolution. The volume is especially geared towards a graduate and advanced undergraduate readership. It has been designed such that it can be used, as a whole or in parts, as a textbook, the first of its kind, for graduate programmes with a focus on the linguistic (and linguistics) landscape of Europe.

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110220261
ISBN:: 978-3-11-022025-4
ISBN:: 978-3-11-022026-1
Subject:: Linguistics and Semiotics
Subject:: Theoretical Frameworks and Disciplines
Subject:: Historical Linguistics
Subject:: History of Linguistics
Publisher:: De Gruyter Mouton