School of Languages and Linguistics - Research Publications
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 10 of 10
-
ItemComputers in Field Linguistics(Elsevier, 2006)Computers have been associated with field linguistics from their earliest days, as witness the enthusiasm with which computers were embraced by linguists, from mainframe computers in the 1960s to personal computers in the 1980s. While initially it was common to force our efforts into the framework provided by particular software, we are now more aware of the need to see the data itself as the primary concern of the analyst and not the software that we use to manipulate the data. Inasmuch as it allows us to carry out the main functions desired by a field linguist, software is a tool through which our data passes, the data becoming transformed in some way, but surviving the journey sufficiently to live on, independent of any software, into the future.
-
ItemDocumentation in practice: developing a linked media corpus of South Efate(Hans Rausing Endangered Languages Project, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, 2004)There is a growing need for linguists working with endangered languages to be able to provide documentation of those languages that will serve two functions, not only the analysis and presentation of examples and texts, but also the means for accessing the material in the future. In this paper I describe a workflow for building documentation into a language description developed in the course of writing a grammar of South Efate, an Oceanic language of Vanuatu, for a PhD dissertation. I suggest that, with appropriate tools, the effort of recording and transcribing documentary field recordings can result in a media corpus from which we can produce instant links between text and media, which in turn enriches our analysis. Further, these annotations are in an ideal form for archiving and for providing access to data by the speakers of the language. I take it as axiomatic that we must archive our recordings and associated material and that this step is integral to the larger project of language documentation.
-
ItemLanguage is like a carpet: Carl-Georg von Brandenstein and Australian languages(Pacific Linguistics Research School of Pacific and Asian Stu, 2008)Born in 1909 in Hannover, Germany, Carl Georg Christoph Freiherr von Brandenstein (Carl) entered the Australian linguistic scene in the 1960s with recordings and analysis of languages of Western Australia, mainly from the Pilbara. Over the next thirty years he also recorded information about Ngadjumaya from the south-east of WA and Noongar in the south-west. His idiosyncratic style didn’t help his reputation in a linguistic scene which became increasingly monocultural in its approach during his research career. He was never part of the mainstream of linguistics in Australia, but followed his own path, and has left a legacy of records of languages for which little else is known. He was always generous in providing material when requested, as much to champion his theories as to engage in academic openness. This chapter discusses Carl’s contribution and the period of Australian linguistics in which he worked.
-
ItemThe Road Less Travelled: Recording and Teaching Aboriginal Languages in Western Australia(Edith Cowan University, Claremont: Institute of Applied Language Studies, 1991)This paper discusses the treatment of Aboriginal languages in Western Australia. A brief historical overview is followed by an account of the more recent changes in approach to indigenous language work in Western Australia.
-
ItemBuilding an interactive corpus of field recordings(Paris: ELRA., 2004)There is a growing need for linguists working with small and endangered languages to be able to provide documentation of those languages that will serve two functions, not only the analysis and presentation of examples and texts, but also the means for others to access the material in the future. In this presentation I describe the workflow developed in the course of writing a description of South Efate, an Oceanic language of Vanuatu for a PhD dissertation. This workflow steps through (i) field recording; (ii) digitising or capturing media data as citable objects for archival purposes; (iii) transcribing those objects with time-alignment; (iv) establishing a media corpus indexed by the transcript; (v) instantiating links between text and media using a purpose-built tool (Audiamus); (vi) exporting from Audiamus to interlinearise while maintaining timecodes; (vii) extracting citable example sentences for use in a grammatical description; (viii) exporting from Audiamus in XML, Quicktime or other formats.
-
ItemLanguage programmes: for tradition or today(Perth:Institute of Applied Aboriginal Studies, 1988)This paper argues that language programmes should not necessarily require relearning of languages that are no longer spoken. Just because a programme does not aim at fluency in a language does not mean there is no role for a linguist. The challenge is to assess the reasons for initiating language work, and to design programmes and materials so that they address the current needs of Aboriginal people.
-
ItemWangka Maya, the Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre.(Pacific Linguistics Publishers, 2001)Aboriginal Language Centres occupy an exciting and innovative space in the fringe between academia and the people used by academia as its source of data. Now with funding that has lasted over a decade, language centres have the potential to train local people, to record and store information about local languages, and to promote the use of the languages in schools and other venues. In this paper we discuss the establishment and ongoing function of Wangka Maya, the Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre in Port Hedland, Western Australia (WA).
-
ItemThe demise of serial verbs in South Efate.(John Benjamins Publishing, 2007-03-14)This volume in memory of Terry Crowley covers a wide range of languages: Australian, Oceanic, Pidgins and Creoles, and varieties of English.
-
ItemLexicographic research on Australian Aboriginal languages 1968–1993(Pacific Linguistics, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University, 1997)O'Grady (1971:779) began his landmark review of lexicography on Australian Aboriginal languages with the rueful observation that in terms of quantity "lexicographic output...has shown a falling off since the turn of the century". He further observed that if the term 'dictionary' were to be confined to compendia of 5,OOO-plus richly detailed lexical entries, then "the state of lexicographic research on Australian (and Tasmanian) languages ... can be stated very simply: no such work yet exists". Even after lowering his sights to extend the term to reasonably sophisticated assemblages of 1,OOO-plus lexical entries, O'Grady could list no more than eight published dictionaries of Aboriginal languages. (From introduction)
-
ItemSteps toward a grammar embedded in data(Walter de Gruyter, 2009-06-05)This volume continues the tradition of presenting the latest findings by typologists and field linguists, relevant to general linguistic theory and research methodology.