An Introduction to African Languages

286 Pages·2003·6.35 MB·English

by  George Tucker Childs

<DOCINFOAUTHOR""TITLE"AnIntroductionintoAfricanLanguages"SUBJECT""KEYWORDS""SIZEHEIGHT"220"WIDTH"150"VOFFSET"4">
AnIntroductiontoAfricanLanguages

An Introduction to
African Languages
G. Tucker Childs
PortlandStateUniversity
JohnBenjaminsPublishingCompany
Amsterdam(cid:1)/(cid:1)Philadelphia
TM Thepaperusedinthispublicationmeetstheminimumrequirements
8
ofAmericanNationalStandardforInformationSciences–Permanence
ofPaperforPrintedLibraryMaterials,ansiz39.48-1984.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Childs,GeorgeTucker
AnIntroductiontoAfricanLanguages / G.TuckerChilds.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindexes.
1.Africanlanguages.I.Title.
PL8005 .C45 2003
496-dc22 2003060704
isbn9027226059(Eur.)/158811421X(US)(Hb;alk.paper)
isbn9027226067(Eur.)/1588114228(US)(Pb;alk.paper)
©2003–JohnBenjaminsB.V.
Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedinanyform,byprint,photoprint,microfilm,or
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<TARGET"toc"DOCINFOAUTHOR""TITLE"Tableofcontents"SUBJECT""KEYWORDS""SIZEHEIGHT"220"WIDTH"150"VOFFSET"4">
Table of contents
Acknowledgementsanddedication ix
Preface xi
Abbreviations xv
ListofMaps xvii
ListofFigures xix
ListofTables xxi
1. Introduction 1
1.1 ReasonsforstudyingAfricanlanguages(cid:2)5
1.2 HistoricalbackgroundtothestudyofAfricanlanguages(cid:2)14
2. TheclassificationofAfricanlanguages 19
2.1 Thefourphyla(cid:2)21
2.2 ApproachestoclassifyingAfricanlanguages(cid:2)31
2.3 “Megalocomparison”ormasscomparison?(cid:2)38
2.4 Andthentherewerethree:MergingNilo-Saharan
andNiger-Congo(cid:2)42
2.5 Somelocalproblemsinlanguageclassification(cid:2)44
3. Phoneticsandphonology 55
3.1 Clicks(cid:2)56
3.2 Nasalprocesses(cid:2)61
3.3 Other“exotica”(cid:2)65
3.4 Syllablestructure(cid:2)66
3.5 Vowelharmony(cid:2)68
3.6 Consonantalternation(cid:2)73
3.7 Tone(cid:2)76
vi Tableofcontents
4. Morphology 97
4.1 Non-concatenativemorphology(Afroasiaticandelsewhere)(cid:2)97
4.2 Nounclasssystems:ThemanygendersofAfrica(cid:2)99
4.3 Verbalmorphology(cid:2)103
4.4 Verbextensionsandargumentstructure(cid:2)110
5. Syntaxandsemantics 117
5.1 Languageatexpressiveplay:Ideophones(cid:2)118
5.2 Predicatestructure(cid:2)124
5.3 Negation(cid:2)128
5.4 Movement:Verbfocus/predicateclefting(cid:2)132
5.5 Serialverbs(cid:2)137
5.6 Agreementphenomena:Animacyrulesandthingsfallapart(cid:2)141
5.7 ConsecutivetenseandswitchreferenceinSupyire(cid:2)145
5.8 Syntaxanddiscourse:Logophoricity(cid:2)147
6. Historicalandtypologicalissues 153
6.1 Electronicresources(cid:2)153
6.2 Languagetypologyandhistoricallinguistics(cid:2)154
6.3 Diachronictypology/grammaticalization(cid:2)155
6.4 Languageandhistory(cid:2)164
6.5 Linguistics,archaeology,andDNAanalysis:The“newsynthesis”(cid:2)170
7. SocialeffectsonthelanguagesofAfrica 175
7.1 Languagesofrespect,andotherspecialvarieties(cid:2)176
7.2 Languagecontactphenomena(cid:2)188
7.3 Pidginsandcreoles(cid:2)203
Appendices 217
References 223
Index 261
<TARGET"ack"DOCINFOAUTHOR""TITLE"Acknowledgementsanddedication"SUBJECT""KEYWORDS""SIZEHEIGHT"220"WIDTH"150"VOFFSET"4">
Acknowledgements
and dedication
ThisbookisdedicatedtothevictimsofcivilwarsandotherstrifeinAfricaand
toallofthebereavedfamilymembersleftbehind.
Theacknowledgmentsaremany,forthebookhasbeenalongtimeinthe
making.Severalsetsofstudentsweregraciousenoughtowadethroughworking
versionsofthebookattheUniversityoftheWitwatersrand,theUniversityof
Toronto,PortlandStateUniversity,theUniversityofFreiburgandl’Université
deKankan.
Ihavebeenluckyenoughtohavemanytalentedandenthusiasticteachers,
colleagues, students, collaborators, and friends, who have contributed in
different ways (in alphabetical order): Kofi Agorsah, Niyi Akinnaso, Abdel-
KaligAli,FelixAmeka,LouiseBedichek,LionelBender,RogerBlench,Eyamba
Bokamba, Pascal Boyeldieu, Raymond Boyd, George Brooks, Mamadou
Camara,RectorSeydoubaCamara,VickiCarstens,FaridaCassimjee,IvyCele,
Chacha N. Chacha, France Cloarec-Heiss, Bernard Comrie, Bruce Connell,
Denis Creissels, Naomi Cull, Chris Culy, Katherine Demuth, Keith Denning,
BoubacarDiallo,GerritDimmendaal,JeanDoneux,DavidDwyer,Genevieve
Escure, Nick Faraclas, Marie-Paule Ferry, Rosalie Finlayson, Bill Fischer,
Zygmunt Frajzyngier, Orin Gensler, Joseph Greenberg, Wili Haacke, Masaa
HenryHallie,BerndHeine,BobHerbert,LarryHutchinson,JohnHutchison,
LarryHyman,LarryJohnson,LaminJabbi,MattKaaya,JimmyKhumalo,Fallah
Lambert Kamano, Raimund Kastenholz, Nikki Keach, Maurice Keifar, John
Kingston, Chuck Kisseberth, Martin Klein, Fred Lamp, Jim Laesch, Tom
Larsen, Will Leben, Ian Maddieson, Omen Maduka, Tamba Mayson, Fayia
McCarthy, Sam Mchombo, Lemmy L. Meekisho, Saa Millimouno, Maxime
Millimouno, Yves Moñino, Lioba Moshi, Maarten Mous, Salikoko Mufwene,
Mukoe, Lynne Murphy, Carol Myers-Scotton, Moses N. Ndorbor, Philip
Neswiswi,PaulNewman,JohannaNichols,DumisaniKhrushchevNtshangase,
RidwanNytagodien,JohnOhala,EfuaOsamu,DorisPayne,FrankSengiangndo
Pittman,FatherJosephParcell,KonstantinPozdniakov,GeorgePoulos,Hank
</TARGET"ack">
viii AnIntroductiontoAfricanLanguages
Rogers, Paulette Roulon-Doko, Mahamad Sabo, Bill Samarin, Thilo Schade-
berg, Russ Schuh, Guillaume Segerer, John Victor Singler, Ron Schaeffer,
Carolyn Smallwood, John Stewart, Anne Storch, Chief Tamba Taylor, Paul
Fayia B. Tengbeh, Tony Traill, Erhard Voeltz, Valentin Vydrine, Mike Ward,
JosphatWaruhiuandAndréWilson.
Thefollowinggrantsandawardingagencieshaveaidedintheresearchand
productionofthisbook:FulbrightLecturerAward,Guinea(2000);theBremer
StiftungfürKultur-undSozialanthropologie,Germany(1999,2000);Deutsche
Forschungsgemeinschaft(1998);CollegeofLiberalArtsandSciences,Portland
StateUniversity;1997–98;SocialSciencesandHumanitiesResearchCouncilof
Canada (1994–96); CSD, Pretoria (1993); Council Grant, University of the
Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (1993); University of California at Berkeley
(1988); Foreign Languages and Area Fellowship (1981–82; 1987); Fulbright-
Hayes Doctoral Research Grant (1983–84); Humanities Graduate Research
Grant(1983);NationalResourceFellowship(1982–83).
<TARGET"pref"DOCINFOAUTHOR""TITLE"Preface"SUBJECT""KEYWORDS""SIZEHEIGHT"220"WIDTH"150"VOFFSET"4">
Preface
The primary goal of this book is to provide an introduction to the linguistic
studyofAfricanlanguages.Theorientationadoptedthroughoutthebookisa
descriptive-structural-typological one, as opposed to a formal-theoretical
approach. Formalisms are not eschewed per se but rather are invoked when
theyaidthecentralthrustofthebook,whichistodescribeandcharacterizethe
languages of Africa in a succinct and concise manner, and to make the facts
accessible to the unfamiliar reader. To say that the approach is typological
meansthatagivenstructureiscomparedtostructuresofthesametype(typical-
ly ones familiar to readers), set within an established range of variation, and
characterized as usual or unexpected. Further detail is also provided, where
possible,thestructure’ssynchronicdistributionanddiachronicorigin.Thetext
assumes at least some knowledge of language structure on the part of its
readers,butnothingbeyondthatacquiredinafirst-yearlinguisticscourse.
Thebookisorganizedbylinguisticdomainorsub-fieldwithinlinguistics,
and each of the chapters can be read independently. Readers can thus read
selectively or read the book sequentially from cover-to-cover. Instructors can
use the book as a text for a course in African languages or even language
typology. There is generous indexing and an expansive table of contents;
Appendix2containswidelyusedalternativenamesforthelanguagesdiscussed
anddirectsreaderstolistingsinthelanguageindex.
ForeachlinguisticdomainIprovideanoverviewoftherelevantphenome-
na,selectinginparticularfeaturesthatareuniquetoAfricaoratleastrobustin
Africa and unusual in languages of the world. At the least I have chosen
phenomenathataredifferentfromthelanguageinwhichthisbookiswritten
andfromitsclosecongenersinEurope.Exemplificationisdrawnfromawide
rangeoflanguages,muchofitdrawnfrommyownworkandteachingexperi-
encesbutsomeofitdrawnfromsecondarysources.
Anotherimportantgoalofthisbookistointerestthereaderbyintroducing
the reader to some of the fascination and even to some of the controversy