Table Of ContentTHE CROSSLINGUISTIC STUDY OF
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION
Volume 1: The Data
THE CROSSLINGUISTIC
STUDY OF
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION
Volume 1: The Data
Edited by
DAN ISAAC SLOBIN
University of California, Berkeley
LAWRENCE ERLBAUM ASSOCIATES, PUBLISHERS
Hillsdale, New Jersey London
Copyright © 1985 by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in
any form, by photostat, microform, retrieval system, or any other
means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., Publishers
365 Broadway
Hillsdale, New Jersey 07642
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Main entry under title:
The crosslinguistic study of language acquisition.
Includes bibliographies and indexes.
Contents: v. 1. The data — v. 2. Theoretical issues.
1. Language acquisition. I. Slobin, Dan Isaac
1939-
P118.C69 1985 401'.9 85-27411
ISBN 0-89859-367-0 (set)
Contents
Volume 1: THE DATA
Format and Abbreviations for Glosses
Introduction: Why Study Acquisition Crosslinguistically?
Dan I. Slobin
Crosslinguistic Study as a Method in
Developmental Psycholinguistics 4
Null Hypothesis: Developmental Universals 5
Hypotheses of Specific Language Effects 15
The Plan of the Book 18
References 22
SPOKEN LANGUAGES
1. The Acquisition of English
Jill G. de Villiers and Peter A. de Villiers
Introduction 27
The Data 38
Conclusion 124
References 128
2. The Acquisition of German
Anne E. Mills
Introduction 141
The Data 158
References 249
vi CONTENTS
3. The Acquisition of Hebrew 255
Ruth A. Berman
Introduction 255
The Data 280
The Setting of Language Acquisition 329
Conclusions 347
Postscript 363
References 364
(Hungarian Language Acquisition as an Exemplification of a General
Model of Grammatical Development
Brian MacWhinney—see Volume 2)
4. The Acquisition of Japanese 373
Patricia M. Clancy
Introduction 373
The Data 383
The Setting of Language Acquisition 470
Conclusions 502
List of Abbreviations 515
References 576
5. The Acquisition of Kaluli 525
Bambi B. Schieffelin
Kaluli Language and Cultural Content 525
Overall Sketch of Development 534
Word Order 543
Personal Pronouns 549
Nominal Casemarking 555
Verbs 566
Emphatic and Other Discourse Particles 586
Conclusions 589
References 592
6. The Acquisition of Polish 595
Magdalena Smoczyhska
Introduction 595
The Data 620
Conclusions 667
References 681
CONTENTS Vii
7. The Acquisition of Romance, with Special Reference
to French 687
Eve V. Clark
Introduction 688
The Data 702
The Setting of Language Acquisition 743
Conclusions 756
Coda 762
References 767
8. Variation and Error: A Sociolinguistic Approach
to Language Acquisition in Samoa 783
Elinor Ochs
What is an Error? 783
A Sociolinguistic Sketch of Samoan 788
Sources of Data 809
Overall Course of Development 810
Acquisition of Two Phonological Registers 812
Acquisition of Word Order 821
Acquisition of Ergative Case Marking 826
Acquisition of Ergativity Through Word Order 831
Relating Sociolinguistics to Language Acquisition 833
References 836
9. The Acquisition of Turkish 839
Ayhan A. Aksu-Koc and Dan I. Slobin
Introduction 839
The Data 847
The Setting of Language Acquisition 861
Conclusions 869
References 876
SIGNED LANGUAGES
10. The Acquisition of American Sign Language 881
Elissa L Newport and Richard P. Meier
Introduction 881
The Data 907
The Setting of Language Acquisition 975
Conclusions 927
References 933
Subject Index 939
Author Index 947
Viii CONTENTS
Volume 2: Theoretical Issues
11. Cognitive Prerequisites: The Evidence From Children Learning
English
Judith R. Johnston
12. Function, Structure, and Language Acquisition
Talmy Givon
13. Language Segmentation: Operating Principles For the Perception and
Analysis of Language
Ann M. Peters
14. Hungarian Language Acquisition as an Exemplification of a General
Model of Grammatical Development
Brian MacWhinney
15. Crosslinguistic Evidence for the Language-Making Capacity
Dan I. Slobin
16. What Shapes Children's Grammars?
Melissa Bowerman
Format and Abbreviations
for Glosses*
All foreign language examples are given in Italics. (Small caps are used for
emphasis and other usual functions of Italics.) In running text, English glosses
and grammatical codes are given in single quotes, and optional free translations
follow in parentheses, indicated by an equal sign and single quotes. Grammatical
codes are always given in capital letters (see list, below). For example:
gel-me-di-n 'come-NEG-PAST-2SG' (= 'you didn't come').
In interlinear format, translation equivalents appear below each foreign element,
and the free translation is placed below in single quotes:
gel -me -di -n
come NEG PAST 2SG
'you didn't come'
Hyphens in a gloss always correspond to hyphens in the foreign example. If one
foreign element corresponds to more than one English element and/or gram
matical code, the collection of meaning equivalents is joined by colons; e.g.
gel-medin 4come-NEG:PAST:2SG\ or even gelmedin 'come:NEG:PAST:2SG\
*The abbreviations are adapted from a list used by Bernard Comrie (The languages of the Soviet
Union, Cambridge University Press, 1981, p. xv). The format is based on useful suggestions offered
by Christian Lehmann in "Guidelines for interlinear morphemic translations: A proposal for a
standardization" (Institut für Sprachwissenschaft, Universität Köln, Arbeitspapier Nr. 37, 1980).
The system presented here is offered as a proposal for standardization in child language studies.
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