Cfp: Cognitive and construction-based approaches to syntactic evolution

[J óhanna Barðdal]

Call for papers for a Theme Session at ICLC 11, Berkeley, CA (July
28-August 3, 2009)

Title: Cognitive and construction-based approaches to syntactic evolution

Organizers: Jóhanna Barðdal & Gard B. Jenset (University of Bergen)

Aim: The theme session focuses on cognitive or construction-based
approaches to changes in syntactic structures, in spoken, written
and/or signed languages. It aims at bringing together researchers
working on syntax in different modalities and with different
methodological approaches, ranging from corpus-based methods,
statistical modeling, sociolinguistic, or psycholinguistic methods.
This may include a discussion on larger systemic changes (cf. Haig
2008), individual case studies, or a discussion on how cognitive and
constructional approaches contribute to the study of syntactic
evolution.

Discussion: The study of diachronic data and evolutionary perspectives
of syntax in different modalities presents unique challenges to the
research community (cf. e.g. Comrie and Kuteva 2005 and Croft 2000).
Studying diachronic syntax often requires the use of corpora, thus
forcing researchers to face the questions discussed in Gries (2006)
and Grondelaers et al. (2007) on how to incorporate empirical
corpus-based methods in the various cognitive-functional approaches to
linguistics. A number of problems present themselves when turning a
cognitive-oriented research program towards diachronic questions, as
discussed in e.g. Stefanowitsch (2006). However, there are also a
number of statistical methods available to overcome some of these
difficulties (cf. McMahon and McMahon 2006) and Pagel et al. 2007).
With its special emphasis on empirical methods, diachronic cognitive
linguistics and diachronic construction grammar are particularly well
suited for participation in the further development of empirical
methodology in cognitive linguistics, as discussed in Geeraerts
(2006). As such, the workshop will contribute to a commencing
discussion on how to develop and refine empirical methods for the
study of syntactic evolution.

Submission procedure:

*Abstract to be sent as .pdf or .rtf file
*Maximum 500 words
*Please include your name(s), title of paper, affiliation and contact
information in the body of the email
*E-mail to Johanna.Barddal at uib.no and Gard.Jenset at uib.no, with the
heading "ICLC theme session"
*No later than September 12, 2008.

Please note that all submitted abstracts as well as the proposed theme
session itself will undergo an independent review by the ICLC program
committee. Participants are therefore required to also submit their
abstracts through the ordinary submission channels of the conference
which has a deadline in the beginning of November.

References

Comrie, B., and Kuteva, T. (2005). The evolution of grammatical
structures and 'functional need' explanations. In: Language origins:
Perspectives on evolution, pages 185-207, edited by Maggie Tallermann.
Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Croft, W. (2000). Explaining language change: An evolutionary
approach. London: Longman.

Geeraerts, D. (2006). Methodology in cognitive linguistics. In:
Cognitive linguistics: Current applications and future perspectives,
pages 21-49, edited by Gitte Kristiansen, Michel Achard, René Dirven
and Francisco J. Ruiz de Mendoza Ibáñez. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

Gries, S.T. (2006). Introduction. In: Corpora in cognitive
linguistics: Corpus-based approaches to syntax and lexis, pages 1-18,
edited by Stefan Th. Gries and Anatol Stefanowitsch. Berlin: Mouton de
Gruyter.

Grondelaers, S., Geeraerts, D., and Speelman, D. (2007). A case for a
cognitive corpus linguistics. In: Methods in cognitive linguistics,
pages 149-169, edited by Monica Gonzalez-Marquez, Irene Mittelberg,
Seana Coulson and Michael J. Spivey. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Haig, Geoffrey L.J. (2008). Alignment change in Iranian languages.
Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

McMahon, A., and McMahon R. (2005). Language classification by
numbers. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Pagel, M., Atkinson, Q.D., and Meade, A. (2007). Frequency of word-use
predicts rates of lexical evolution throughout Indo-European history.
Nature 449, 717-721.

Stefanowitsch, A. (2006). Distinctive collexeme analysis and
diachrony: A comment. Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory 2(2),
257-262.

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Jóhanna Barðdal
Research Associate Professor
Department of Linguistic, Literary and Aesthetic Studies
University of Bergen
P.O. box 7805
NO-5020 Bergen
Norway
johanna.barddal at uib.no

Phone +47-55582438 (work)
Phone +47-55201117 (home)
Fax   +47-55589660 (work)

http://www.hf.uib.no/i/lili/SLF/ans/barddal
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