27.539, Books: To be or not to be? The Verbum Substantivum from Synchronic, Diachronic and Typological Perspectives: Kotin, Whitt (eds.)

Wed Jan 27 23:12:00 UTC 2016

LINGUIST List: Vol-27-539. Wed Jan 27 2016. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 27.539, Books: To be or not to be? The Verbum Substantivum from Synchronic, Diachronic and Typological Perspectives: Kotin, Whitt (eds.)

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Date: Wed, 27 Jan 2016 18:11:40
From: Chris Humphrey [chumphrey at c-s-p.org]
Subject: To be or not to be? The Verbum Substantivum from Synchronic, Diachronic and Typological Perspectives: Kotin, Whitt (eds.)

Title: To be or not to be? The Verbum Substantivum from Synchronic,
Diachronic and Typological Perspectives 
Publication Year: 2015 
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
	   http://www.cambridgescholars.com/

Book URL: http://bit.ly/1WOwQjn 

Editor: Michail L. Kotin
Editor: Richard Jason Whitt

Hardback: ISBN:  9781443880701 Pages: 380 Price: U.K. £ 52.99
Hardback: ISBN:  9781443880701 Pages: 380 Price: U.S. $ 90.95

Abstract:

The verbs of the ‘to be’-group, also called verba substantiva, belong to the
most enigmatic phenomena of the human language. Combining a distinct
suppletivity of their conjugational forms in most languages with a striking
semantic and functional ambiguity, as well as unique syntactic capabilities,
they form a very specific class of linguistic entities. They can be referred
to, without exaggeration, as one of the conceptually gravest and most
‘symptomatic’ language formations. Typologically, the be-verbs demonstrate, on
the one hand, a set of similar features in almost every language, which is
excellent evidence of their universal validity. On the other hand, the
differences between these verbs in various language groups and even in
particular languages are remarkable proof of language relativism.
Historically, the be-verbs show a sequence of relevant stages in their formal,
semantic and syntactic developments, which in many aspects coincide with their
typological and individual, ‘idioethnic’ features and properties. One can
trace, among other things, paths and mechanisms of their development and
salient changes of their functions in language systems of different types.
Especially important are also changes in the form and function of the be-verbs
arising from language contact, for they indicate essential tendencies in the
evolution of these entities accelerated by the influence of language
interaction triggers. The contribution of to be-verbs to the morphology,
semantics and syntax of the majority of the languages of the world is
substantial from a number of perspectives, and these verbs belong to the most
complex and simultaneously central entities of human language. For this reason
their analysis must continually be synchronized with the newest results of
general linguistic research. This volume, hence, describes and interprets the
to be-verbs and constructions in the broad context of contemporary linguistic
research, including synchrony, diachrony, diatopy, language contrast and
typology.

Linguistic Field(s): General Linguistics
                     Historical Linguistics
                     Typology

Written In: English  (eng)

See this book announcement on our website: 
http://linguistlist.org/pubs/books/get-book.cfm?BookID=95960

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