The event will be held via Zoom: ubc.zoom.us/j/64763345823.The passcode is 635410. (The meeting ID is 647 6334 5823.)
Anne Bertrand (UBC) will present a colloquium entitled, “Investigating comparatives in Ktunaxa: A fieldwork and crosslinguistic perspective”.
Abstract: Languages vary widely in how they convey comparisons. Some languages, like English, have morphemes dedicated to expressing comparisons (e.g. John is taller than Andrew), while some languages like Washo use conjoined clauses to accomplish a similar effect (e.g. John is tall and Andrew is short) (Bochnak, 2015). In this talk, I take a look at how Ktunaxa, a language isolate spoken in the Columbia River Basin by the Ktunaxa people, expresses comparatives. Ktunaxa shows a hybrid pattern. It exhibits properties of Washo-like systems, and English-like systems. I explore the implications of this pattern for models of crosslinguistic variation and discuss what ingredients are required to account for variation between languages like English, Washo and Ktunaxa. I also discuss how linguistic research can support language revitalization as it applies to the Ktunaxa context.
Reference:
Bochnak, M. R. (2015). The degree semantics parameter and cross-linguistic variation. Semantics and pragmatics, 8, 6-1.