A Matter of Complexity: Subordination in Sign Languages

Open Access Published by De Gruyter Mouton 2016

A Matter of Complexity

Subordination in Sign Languages

Edited by: Roland Pfau , Markus Steinbach and Annika Herrmann

Volume 6 in the series Sign Languages and Deaf Communities [SLDC]

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781501503238

Overview
Contents

About this book

Since natural languages exist in two different modalities – the visual-gestural modality of sign languages and the auditory-oral modality of spoken languages – it is obvious that all fields of research in modern linguistics will benefit from research on sign languages. Although previous studies have provided important insights into a wide range of phenomena of sign languages, there are still many aspects of sign languages that have not yet been investigated thoroughly. The structure of subordinated clauses is a case in point. The study of these complex syntactic structures in the visual-gestural modality adds to our understanding of linguistic variation in the domain of subordination. Moreover, it offers new empirical and theoretical evidence concerning possible structures and functions of subordination in natural languages. And last but not least, it answers the question to what extent the corresponding morphosyntactic and prosodic strategies depend on the modality of articulation and perception. This volume represents the first collection of papers by leading experts in the field investigating topics that go beyond the analysis of simple clauses. It thus contributes in innovative ways to recent debates about syntax, prosody, semantics, discourse structure, and information structure and their complex interrelation.

Author / Editor information

R. Pfau, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands; A. Herrmann, M. Steinbach, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Germany.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	I
Table of Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	V
Notational conventions Open Access Download PDF	VI
Sign language acronyms Open Access Download PDF	VIII
Complex sentences in sign languages: Modality – typology – discourse Roland Pfau and Markus Steinbach Open Access Download PDF	1
Preference for clause order in complex sentences with adverbial clauses in American Sign Language Ronnie B. Wilbur Open Access Download PDF	36
Observations on clausal complementation in Turkish Sign Language Aslı Göksel and Meltem Kelepir Open Access Download PDF	65
An in-depth tour into sentential complementation in Italian Sign Language Carlo Geraci and Valentina Aristodemo Open Access Download PDF	95
Embedding polar interrogative clauses in American Sign Language Kathryn Davidson and Ivano Caponigro Open Access Download PDF	151
Relativization in Italian Sign Language: the missing link of relativization Carlo Cecchetto and Caterina Donati Open Access Download PDF	182
Reporting with and without role shift: sign language strategies of complementation Josep Quer Open Access Download PDF	204
An annotation scheme to investigate the form and function of hand dominance in the Corpus NGT Onno Crasborn and Anna Sáfár Open Access Download PDF	231
Language index Open Access Download PDF	252
Subject index Open Access Download PDF	253
Contributors Open Access Download PDF	261

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: De Gruyter Mouton
Audience: Linguists and Sign Language Researchers
Pages
- Front matter: 8
- Main content: 262
Keywords: Sign Language; Syntax; Semantics; Prosody; Information Structure

eBook

Published: March 7, 2016
ISBN: 9781501503238

Hardcover

Published: March 7, 2016
ISBN: 9781501511332