[Lingtyp] Typology and Word Formation

[Plank]

Dear all,

I would like to draw your attention to an upcoming conference with a focus on word formation and typology:

	Word-Formation Theories II
	Typology and Universals in Word-Formation III
	Where:  Košice, Slovakia
	When:  Fri-Sun 26-28 June 2015

Obviously morphology has long been a major concern in typology, in particular the techniques of constructing complex words.  Word formation, insofar as it is separable from inflection and from syntax, has had its share of typological exposure, too.  The perennially popular Shopen volumes on typology and syntax, despite their title, have something on word formation (vol. 3, Anderson, Aikhenvald, et al.);  there is a recent whole volume on Word-formation in the world's languages: A typological approach (by Pavol Štekauer, Salvador Valera, & Lívia Kőrtvélyessy, CUP 2012);  lexical preferences and derivational as well as syntactic responses to them have been compared across languages for Causativisation/Decausativisation (aka Transitivisation/Detransitivisation) and for Motion Event encoding;  although there is no recognised inventory of derivational categories, some have been surveyed across languages (such as Diminutive/Augmentative);  etc. etc.  

Nonetheless, work on word formation continues to be largely language-particular, and when it is getting theoretical, as it frequently does, arguably scores lower on typological awareness than other grammatical domains.  Correspondingly, word formation continues to be terrain avoided in typological circles, arguably even more so than phonology, as is suggested by submission statistics for ALT conferences and for LT.

For those who can't make it to ALT 11 at Albuquerque (1-3 August 2015;  http://www.unm.edu/~alt2015/call.html;  remember the abstract deadline: 11 Jan 2015) or who have some time to spare before they head to New Mexico, why not come to Košice to present and discuss their typological work on word formation?  The Košice conferences have long been attracting morphologists of all sorts of theoretical persuasions;  they want persuading that there needs to be more typology in word formation and more word formation in typology.  

For all practical particulars consult the Košice conference website:  
http://kaa.ff.upjs.sk/en/event/7/wor-d-formation-theories-ii#toc-home   
Their deadline for abstracts is 28 Feb 2015.



Frans Plank
Sprachwissenschaft
Universität Konstanz
78457 Konstanz
Germany

Tel  +49 (0)7531 88 2656
Fax +49 (0)7531 88 4190
eMail frans.plank at uni-konstanz.de
http://ling.uni-konstanz.de/pages/home/plank/






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