Browsing results for Language families
Published on July 8, 2017. Last updated on August 23, 2018.
Krisna Adi Candra, I Made (2016). Translation method of phrasal verb in novel Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. Linguistika, 23(2), 139-147. PDF (open access)
The aim of this research is to investigate the translation of phrasal verbs through the prism of Newmark’s translation theory. The data are phrasal verbs in the source language (English) and their translation in the target language (Indonesian) and are taken from the novel Eat Pray Love (Elizabeth Gilbert) and its Indonesian translation Makan Doa Cinta. The study reveals that no phrasal verb in the source language was translated into a phrasal verb in the target language. A few translations are studied more closely, and NSM is used to explicate the differences that are found to exist between the original verb and its translation.
Crude application of NSM principles carried out without prior training by an experienced NSM practitioner
Tags: (E) flip over, (E) get back, (E) kembali, (E) menuju, (E) terbalik, (E) walk up
Published on May 12, 2017. Last updated on June 25, 2019.
Gladkova, Anna (2016). Propositional attitudes and cultural scripts. In Alessandro Capone, & Jacob L. Mey (Eds.), Interdisciplinary studies in pragmatics, culture and society (pp. 329-352). Berlin: Springer.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12616-6_12
Abstract:
In linguistic literature inspired by work in philosophy, the key concepts for the analysis of ‘propositional attitudes’ include mental states such as ‘belief’, ‘hope’, ‘doubt’ and ‘know’, among others. This literature, and the work on which it is based, ignores cultural and linguistic variation in the conceptualization of mental states that can be labelled as ‘propositional attitudes’. It also overlooks the fact that categorization of mental states, in general, and ‘propositional attitudes’, in particular, is aligned with cultural attitudes and understandings.
This chapter proposes a comparative analysis of selected words reflecting propositional attitudes in English and Russian. The focus is on to believe vs. считать sčitat’ and on belief vs. мнение mnenie, and the analysis is undertaken in terms of universal meanings, using NSM. It is demonstrated that the supremacy of logical concepts in current scientific thinking is not reflected in the architecture of the mental lexicon as it is revealed in universal human concepts. Instead, it is argued that NSM semantic universals can be regarded as more appropriate elements in the analysis of propositional attitudes.
The concepts central to the analysis are KNOW and THINK, which have been shown to have exact semantic equivalents in Russian and English as well as other languages. The chapter shows that the analysed concepts differ in meaning and can be related to culture-specific cognitive styles that can be formulated as cultural scripts.
Rating:
Research carried out by one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) belief, (E) believe, (E) mnenie мнение, (E) sčitat’ считать, (S) categoricalness, (S) non-imposition, (S) opinions, (S) refusal to compromise, (S) sincerity, (S) truth and untruth, (T) Russian
Published on May 12, 2017. Last updated on June 17, 2019.
Wierzbicka, Anna (2016). Two levels of verbal communication, universal and culture-specific. In Andrea Rocci, & Louis de Saussure (Eds.), Verbal communication (pp. 447-482). Berlin: de Gruyter Mouton.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110255478-024
Abstract:
Models of the human person embedded in everyday language differ a great deal across languages, cultures and epochs, and often lead us to the heart of the shared cultural values of the speech communities where they are found. Even within European languages, there is considerable diversity. Remarkably, though, all human cultures appear to agree that human beings have a body, which is visible, and ‘something else’, which is not. Models of the human person differ with respect to the construal of that ‘something else’. For speakers of modern English, it is usually interpreted as the ‘mind’; and in the era of global English, the model of a human being as composed of a body and a mind is often taken for granted by Anglophone humanities and social sciences (and even by cognitive and evolutionary science).
Yet the ‘mind’ is a conceptual artefact of modern English – an ethno-construct no more grounded in reality than the French esprit, the Danish sind, the Russian душа duša, the Latin anima, or the Yolngu birrimbirr. The reification of the English ‘mind’ and its elevation to the status of a ‘scientific’ prism through which all other languages, cultures, indigenous psychologies, and even stages in the evolution of primates can be legitimately interpreted is a striking illustration of the blind spot in contemporary social science that results from the ‘invisibility’ of English as a more and more globalized way of speaking and thinking.
This paper demonstrates that the meanings hidden in such language-specific cultural constructs can be revealed and compared, in a precise and illuminating way, through the use of NSM. It also shows how the understanding of such culturally central concepts can lead to better communication across languages and cultures.
Rating:
Research carried out by one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) anima, (E) birrimbirr, (E) khilyot-ay, (E) lib-i, (E) mind, (E) nepesh נֶ֫פֶשׁ, (E) psykhe Ψυχη
Published on May 12, 2017. Last updated on August 31, 2018.
Wierzbicka, Anna (2016). Making sense of terms of address in European languages through the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM). Intercultural Pragmatics, 13(4), 499-527. DOI 10.1515/ip-2016-0022
Building on the author’s earlier work on address practices and focusing on the French words monsieur and madame, this paper seeks to
demonstrate that generic titles used daily across Europe have relatively stable meanings, different in different languages, and that their semantic analysis can provide keys to the speakers’ cultural assumptions and attitudes. But to use these keys effectively, we need some basic locksmith skills. The NSM approach, with its stock of primes and molecules and its mini-grammar for combining these into explications and cultural scripts, provides both the necessary tools and the necessary techniques. The unique feature of the NSM approach to both semantics and pragmatics is the reliance on a set of simple, cross-translatable words and phrases, in terms of which interactional meanings and norms can be articulated, compared, and explained to linguistic and cultural outsiders. Using this approach, this paper assigns intuitive, intelligible and cross-translatable meanings to several key terms of address in French and English, and it shows how these meanings can account for many aspects of these terms’ use. The paper offers a framework for studying the use of terms of address in Europe and elsewhere and has implications for language teaching, cross-cultural communication and education.
Research carried out by one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) monsieur, (E) Mr [= Mister], (S) speaking to a man whom one doesn’t know, (S) speaking to a man whom one doesn’t know very well, (S) speaking to a man whom one doesn’t know well
Published on May 12, 2018. Last updated on August 31, 2018.
Wierzbicka, Anna (2016). Terms of address as keys to culture and society: German Herr vs. Polish Pan. Acta Philologica [Uniwersytet Warszawski], 49, 29-44.
This article takes up a theme addressed many years ago by Andrzej Bogusławski: a semantic and cultural comparison of the Polish and German terms of address Pan and Herr. Focussing on these two words, the paper seeks to demonstrate that despite their apparent insignificance, generic titles used daily across Europe can reveal complex and intricate webs of cultural assumptions and attitudes and provide keys to the inmost recesses of the speakers’ cultural and social world. At the same time, the paper argues that to use these keys effectively, we need some basic locksmith skills; and it tries to show that the NSM approach to semantics and pragmatics can help us develop such skills. The explications posited here possess, it is argued, predictive and explanatory power that is beyond the reach of traditional analyses operating with technical labels such as “formal”, ”polite”, “respectful”, “egalitarian” and so on. The paper has implications for language teaching and cross-cultural communication and education in Europe and beyond.
Research carried out by one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) Herr, (E) Mr [= Mister], (E) Pan, (E) Pani
Published on December 16, 2017. Last updated on September 27, 2018.
Mateo Mendaza, Raquel (2016). Old English semantic primes: Events, movement, contact. PhD thesis, Universidad de la Rioja. PDF (open access)
This PhD thesis by publications consists of the author’s three published papers on Old English (2013 on TOUCH, 2016 on HAPPEN, 2016 on MOVE), preceded by an introduction and a summary of results, and followed by conclusions and perspectives for future research. It pursues the research line into the semantic primes of Old English started by Martín Arista and Martín de la Rosa. It aims at defining the criteria for exponent identification in a historical language and at applying to Old English a set of criteria that make reference to morphological, textual, semantic and syntactic aspects and that are ultimately based on markedness theory. The NSM category selected for analysis is Actions, events, movement, contact, which had not been studied in Old English in previous work.
On the descriptive side, the Old English exponents for the semantic primes TOUCH, HAPPEN and MOVE are identified. These exponents correspond, respectively, to the verbs (ge)hrīnan, (ge)limpan and (ge)styrian. The decision to select these rather than any other verbs is based on the fact that, except for some particular cases, they are the candidates that best satisfy the different morphological, textual, semantic and syntactic requirements imposed by the nature of each semantic prime.
Along with the descriptive results, significant advances are made on the methodological side because the three studies in the Old English exponents for these semantic primes contribute to the whole NSM paradigm by designing and implementing a method for indirect searching for prime exponents in historical languages. The indirect methodology proposed for the historical languages is in contrast with the direct method preferred in natural languages, which is based on linguistic analysis carried out by native speakers of the language and, moreover, on the availability of potentially infinite data.
Sound application of NSM principles carried out without prior training by an experienced NSM practitioner
Published on May 12, 2017. Last updated on September 27, 2018.
Mateo Mendaza, Raquel (2016). The search for Old English semantic primes: The case of HAPPEN. Nordic Journal of English Studies, 15(1), 71-99. PDF (open access).
This journal article aims at contributing to the research line of the Natural Semantic Metalanguage Research Programme by identifying the Old English exponent for the semantic prime HAPPEN. This study applies four different criteria, namely, the morphological, textual, semantic and syntactic one, in order to select the most suitable candidate for prime exponent. The analysis is based on both lexicographical and textual sources. Conclusions are reached on both the descriptive and the methodological side.
Published on May 12, 2017. Last updated on September 27, 2018.
Mateo Mendaza, Raquel (2016). The Old English exponent for the semantic prime MOVE. Australian Journal of Linguistics, 36(4), 542-559. DOI: 10.1080/07268602.2016.1169976
This journal article engages in the search for the Old English exponent of the semantic prime MOVE as described within the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) model. For the semantics of movement and motion, this study draws on the NSM model, which selects the term MOVE as the proper primitive to express the different meanings related both to translational and internal motion. With this background,
this study describes the semantic and syntactic properties of the main Old English verbs related to motion in order to select the best candidate for the exponent of MOVE. The analytical part comprises the application of four criteria of prime identification, including the textual, the morphological, the semantic and the syntactic criterion. The conclusion is reached that the verb (ge)styrian is the Old English exponent for the semantic prime MOVE.
Published on July 26, 2018. Last updated on May 5, 2019.
Tokula, Lillian & Pütz, Martin (2016). Emotion concepts in Igala language (Nigeria): A view from NSM theory. In Gratien G. Atindogbé & Evelyn Fogwe Chibaka (Eds.), Proceedings of the 7th World Congress on African linguistics: Vol. 2 (pp. 948-976). Bamenda (Cameroon): Langaa.
Abstract:
This study highlights the various characteristics of emotion concepts in Igala and shows the areas of overlap among the members of different categories of emotion concepts. The absence of a lexical exponent for FEEL in Igala is shown not to have any relevance to the expression and comprehension of emotive language in Igala, as shown by the side by side explication done simultaneously in both languages for happiness-, love- and fear-like emotions. The authors submit that, contrary to the claims made by the leading developers of the theory, FEEL is not necessary to the semantic explication of emotion concepts universally. They therefore recommend a review of the status of FEEL. In the face of evidence to the contrary from languages such as Igala and Sidaama, its present status as a semantic prime points to (unintended and paradoxical) ethnocentric bias on the part of the developers of the theory – a phenomenon, among others, that motivated the development of the theory in the first place. A re-evaluation of the status of the concept FEEL as a semantic molecule necessary for the semantic explication of emotion concepts in English and some other languages but not as a semantic prime found in ALL languages of the world may be more fitting to the data.
Rating:
Research carried out in consultation with or under the supervision of one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) àyìlò, (E) ɛ̀dɔ̀ ɛ̀bɔ́, (E) òkpò, (E) ufɛ́dɔ̀, (E) ùyɔ̀, (T) Igala
Published on May 19, 2019. Last updated on May 19, 2019.
Erinita, Dwi Agus (2016). Analisis ranah rasa dengan pendekatan Natural Semantic Metalanguage [An analysis of the domain of taste using the Natural Semantic Metalanguage approach]. Sirok Bastra, 4(2), 129-136.
DOI: 10.26499/sb.v4i2.82 / Open access
Abstract:
This paper analyses the lexical domain related to the human sense of taste, with special reference to Indonesian. It is shown that, in Indonesian, apart from the four main tastes (corresponding to the English words sweet, sour, salty, and bitter), there are several more tastes, including two words for ‘spicy’, another word reminiscent of ‘bitter’, and furthermore words for ‘savory’, ‘bland’ and ‘tasteless’. All can be explicated with reference to ingredients, fruit, and other food items, i.e. categories that are present in nature and daily life.
More information:
Written in Indonesian.
Rating:
Approximate application of NSM principles carried out without prior training by an experienced NSM practitioner
Tags: (E) asin, (E) manis, (E) pedas, (E) tawar, (T) Malay
Published on May 12, 2017. Last updated on November 9, 2019.
Farese, Gian Marco, & Farese, Piergiorgio (2016). L’italiano in musica: an NSM-based semantic analysis of the musical terms vivace and rubato. Quaderni di semantica, N.S. 2, 131-165.
Abstract:
This paper presents a semantic analysis of two musical terms with which most teachers and students struggle: vivace and rubato. The scope of the paper is twofold: firstly, to elucidate the meaning of these two terms in a clear way; secondly, to analyse the meaning of these terms from the point of view of cultural semantics, which adopts the methodology of the NSM approach to analyse the meaning of words, thus highlight the connection with the meaning of the Italian adjectives from which they derive. Ultimately, the analysis is aimed at illustrating the advantages that NSM-based semantic explications of vivace and rubato can have for pedagogical purposes.
Rating:
Research carried out in consultation with or under the supervision of one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) rubare, (E) tempo rubato, (E) vivace, (T) Italian
Published on May 12, 2017. Last updated on November 9, 2019.
Farese, Gian Marco (2016). The cultural semantics of the Japanese emotion terms ‘haji’ and ‘hazukashii’. New Voices in Japanese Studies, 8, 32-54.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21159/nvjs.08.02 / Open access
Abstract:
This paper presents a cultural semantic analysis of the Japanese emotion terms 恥 haji and 恥ずかしい hazukashii. The paper has three aims: (i) to pinpoint the conceptions of 恥 haji and 恥ずかしい hazukashii as emotion terms in Japanese language and culture; (ii) to highlight the differences in meaning with their typical English translations shame and embarrassing, and show that 恥 haji and 恥ずかしい hazukashii reflect two different, culture-specific emotion conceptions; (iii) to emphasize the suitability of NSM for cross-cultural comparisons of emotion terms in different languages and, in turn, for cross-cultural training.
Rating:
Research carried out in consultation with or under the supervision of one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) embarrassment, (E) haji 恥, (E) hazukashii 恥ずかしい, (E) shame, (T) Japanese
Published on August 4, 2018. Last updated on May 5, 2019.
Putri, Darni Enzimar (2016). Struktur semantis idiom yang bermakna emosi dalam Bahasa Jepang [Semantic structure of idioms referring to emotions in Japanese]. 言葉ジャーナル / Jurnal Kotoba (Andalas University, Indonesia), 3.
Open access
Abstract:
The purpose of this study is to describe the literal meaning, using NSM, of a number of Japanese idioms that refer to emotions and include body part terms.
Explications (in Indonesian) are provided for the following phrases: 頭を冷やし atama o hiyasu (‘calm’, lit. ‘cool-headed’), 顔をほころばせた kao o hokorobaseru (‘happy’, lit. ‘with a flinch on one’s face’), 肩の荷 がおり kata no ni ga oriru (‘relieved’, lit. ‘a load off one’s shoulders’), 鼻が高い hana ga takai (‘proud’, lit. ‘long-nosed’), 舌を巻いた shita o maku (‘amazed’, lit. ‘tongue rolled up’), 顔 が 赤くなり kao ga akakunaru (‘ashamed’, lit. ‘red-faced’), 顔をくもらせた kao o kumoraseru (‘sad’, lit. ‘cloud-faced’), 親の顔が見たい oya no kao ga mitai (‘dumbfounded’, lit. ‘I want to see their parents’ face’), 耳が痛い mimi ga itai (‘offended’, lit. ‘my ear hurts’), 目のかたきにし me no kataki ni suru (‘hate’, lit. ‘make an eye-enemy of someone’), 鼻 に ついて hana ni tsuku (‘sick and tired’, lit. ‘hit in the nose’), 唇をかむ kuchibiru o kamu (‘disappointed’, lit. ‘biting one’s lip’), 首をひねった kubi o hineru (‘confused’, lit. ‘head leaning to one side’), 胸が潰れる mune ga tsubureru (‘totally shocked’, lit. ‘heart-no-longer-beating’), 腹が立つ hara ga tatsu (‘angry’, lit. ‘stomach standing up’), 頭にき atama ni kuru (‘get mad’, lit. ‘come to one’s head’), 腰が抜け koshi ga nukeru (‘go weak on the knees’, lit. ‘ have one’s hips fall out from under one’), 目を白黒させ me o shirokurosaseru (‘surprised’, lit. ‘eyes made black and white’), 尻に火が付い shiri ni hi ga tsuku (‘restless’, lit. ‘a fire lit on one’s butt’), 二の足を踏ん ni no ashi o fumu (‘hesitant’, lit. ‘stepping on one’s second foot’), 大きな顔をし ookiina kao o suru (‘arrogant’, lit. ‘making a big face’).
More information:
Written in Indonesian.
The explication provided for 目に沁みた me ni shimita (‘mesmerized’, lit. ‘my eyes smart’) is unreliable. There is no evidence that the phrase has the indicated metaphorical meaning.
Rating:
Sound application of NSM principles carried out without prior training by an experienced NSM practitioner
Tags: (E) atama ni kuru 頭にき, (E) atama o hiyasu 頭を冷やし, (E) hana ga takai 鼻が高い, (E) hana ni tsuku 鼻 に ついて, (E) hara ga tatsu 腹が立っ, (E) kao ga akakunaru 顔 が 赤くなり, (E) kao o hokorobaseru 顔を綻ばせた, (E) kao o kumoraseru 顔をくもらせた, (E) kata no ni ga oriru 肩の荷 がおり, (E) koshi ga nukeru 腰が抜け, (E) kubi o hineru 首をひねった, (E) kuchibiru o kamu 唇をかむ, (E) me ni shimita 目に沁みた, (E) me no kataki ni suru 目のかたきにし, (E) me o shirokurosaseru 目を白黒させ, (E) mimi ga itai 耳が痛い, (E) mune ga tsubureru 胸が潰れる, (E) ni no ashi o fumu 二の足を踏ん, (E) ookiina kao o suru 大きいな顔をし, (E) oya no kao ga mitai 親の顔が見たい, (E) shiri ni hi ga tsuku 尻に火が付い, (E) shita o maku 舌を巻いた, (T) Indonesian
Published on May 10, 2017. Last updated on May 23, 2019.
Asano-Cavanagh, Yuko (2016). Being ‘indecisive’ in Japanese: Analysis of kana, darou ka and (n) janai ka. Studies in Language, 40(1), 63-92.
DOI: 10.1075/sl.40.1.03asa
Abstract:
Japanese speakers are often characterized as ‘indecisive’. The indecision is indicated by epistemic markers being frequently added to express doubt. The sentence-final particle kana shows an indecisive attitude and is usually translated into English as I wonder or maybe. There are other similar Japanese expressions, for example, darou ka and (n) janai ka. Both expressions represent uncertainty and are generally interpreted as I wonder or maybe. Although kana, darou ka and (n) janai ka are often treated as synonyms, they are not necessarily interchangeable.
The aim of this study is to define these Japanese epistemic markers using NSM. New definitions are presented to clarify semantic differences and the invariant concept embedded in each expression. This analysis elucidates Japanese speakers’ epistemic stance when they are in doubt.
Rating:
Research carried out by one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) darou ka だろう か, (E) ka か, (E) kana かな, (E) n janai ka ん じゃない か, (T) Japanese
Published on January 15, 2022. Last updated on January 15, 2022.
Haugh, Michael. (2016). The role of English as a scientific metalanguage for research in pragmatics: Reflections on the metapragmatics of “politeness” in Japanese. East Asian Pragmatics, 1(1), 39–71.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1558/eap.v1i1.27610
Abstract
Much of the theorisation undertaken in pragmatics has afforded English a privileged place, not only as the object of analysis but also as the means through which such theoretical discussions have been accomplished. Yet as a number of researchers have pointed out, the language in which the description, analysis, and theorisation of pragmatic phenomena is undertaken can have an influence on how the research object(s) in question are understood. In this article, the role of English as our scientific metalanguage in research on ‘politeness’ in Japanese is considered. It is argued that in order to start managing such challenges for research in pragmatics we need to go beyond the study of abstract or decontextualised meanings of words and move towards the analysis of emic concepts and emic practices. It is concluded that rather than abandoning notions such as ‘politeness’ in favour of seemingly less culturally imbued terms, what is needed instead is greater awareness of what the use of English as a scientific metalanguage both affords for researchers working in pragmatics, along with the challenges it can create for such work.
Tags: (E) omoiyari 思いやり
Published on August 26, 2018. Last updated on August 26, 2018.
Setiawan, Risky Hendra (2016). Semantic analysis on Javanese perception verbs. BA(Hons) thesis, Diponegoro University, Semarang (Indonesia). PDF (open access)
Partially published as:
Setiawan, Risky Hendra (2017). Semantic analysis on Javanese perception verbs. Lantern, 6(1).
The use and meaning of perception verbs (i.e. verbs of seeing, hearing, smelling, feeling and touching) differs from one language to another; these verbs have their own characteristics and uniqueness. This study aims to describe the exact meaning of perception verbs in Javanese. It relies on purposive sampling to retrieve data from Javanese language dictionaries and magazines as well as on the author’s intuition as a native speaker. The prime meanings SEE, THINK, WANT, KNOW, HEAR, DO, and HAPPEN are used to explicate the meaning of each of the verbs.
Approximate application of NSM principles carried out without prior training by an experienced NSM practitioner
Tags: (E) ambung-ambungan, (E) gatekake, (E) katon, (E) kepireng, (E) keprungon, (E) keprungu, (E) ketingal, (E) ketok, (E) kraos, (E) krasa, (E) krungu, (E) mambet, (E) mambu, (E) mandheng, (E) mireng, (E) mirengaken, (E) mirsani, (E) namatake, (E) ndeleng, (E) ndelok, (E) ngambet, (E) ngambu, (E) ngambung, (E) ngedhapi, (E) ngganda, (E) ngicipi, (E) ngraosaken, (E) ngrasakake, (E) ngrungokake, (E) niliki, (E) nilingake, (E) ningali, (E) niteni, (E) nonton, (E) nyawang, (E) nyekseni, (E) sumerep, (E) weruh
Published on May 10, 2016. Last updated on May 24, 2019.
August-Zarębska, Agnieszka, & Bułat Silva, Zuzanna (2016). Recalling the past: The linguistic and cultural images of kurtijo, Sephardic courtyard. Anthropological Journal of European Cultures, 25(1), 96-117.
DOI: 10.3167/ajec.2016.250107
Abstract:
The present article investigates the concept of kurtijo, roughly ‘courtyard’, ‘home’, in Ladino (also known as Judeo-Spanish, Djudezmo or Sephardi), the language of Sephardic Jews, currently under threat of extinction. It argues that, after the Holocaust, kurtijo became a culturally salient word and may be regarded as a cultural key word in Ladino. Dictionaries and texts of contemporary Ladino poets are used as the main source of data. The meaning of kurtijo is expressed in the form of an NSM explication.
Rating:
Research carried out by one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) kurtijo
Published on August 19, 2021. Last updated on August 19, 2021.
Hill, Deborah (2016). Bride-price, Baskets, and the Semantic Domain of “Carrying” in a Matrilineal Society. Oceanic Linguistics 55(2): 500-521
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/ol.2016.0023
Abstract:
The semantic domain of “carrying” is culturally salient in the Oceanic lan- guage, Longgu. Like many Austronesian languages, Longgu has about a dozen lexically specific verbs that refer to modes of carrying things and small children. This paper discusses the semantics of verbs in this domain, paying particular attention to the most culturally significant verb sungia, which is heterosemous with the noun sungi ‘bride-price exchange’ and refers to the manner in which women carry things supported on their head. The paper discusses meaning components, such as manner and motion, of verbs in this domain and highlights the importance of the association between some verbs and material objects. Further, the paper argues that there are grounds for suggesting the gender of the carrier is entailed in the lexical meaning of some verbs. The paper also discusses whether, given there is no generic verb ‘carry’, there is an underlying semantic pattern to this domain, and suggests that it may revolve around the cultural prominence of the verb sungia ‘to carry something [supported] on the head’.
Research carried out by one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) angoi’inia, (E) sungi-a
Published on September 8, 2018. Last updated on September 9, 2018.
Perović, Slavica (2016). Apologising and the Montenegrin cultural script. Logos et Littera, 1(3), pp. 1-24. PDF (open access)
The paper deals with the representation of the speech act of apology through cultural scripts. The research has been done on a corpus of students’ responses gathered through an interview of the Discourse Completion Task (DCT) type. The speech act of apology is analysed within the politeness theory originated by Brown and Levinson (1987) and the category of ‘face’. The complexity and specificity of this speech act in Montenegrin leads us to establish six semantic components of apologizing for which we devise cultural scripts. Furthermore, two broad categories of apologies are identified: non-verbal and verbal. These are labelled ‘to do is to say’ and ‘to say is to do’, respectively, and give rise to do master scripts. The analysis in this paper relies on the idea of cultural scripts developed by Anna Wierzbicka and Cliff Goddard, executed through the semantic primes of Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM).
Crude application of NSM principles carried out without prior training by an experienced NSM practitioner
Tags: (E) (abasement), (E) (admittance), (E) (regret), (E) (responsibility), (E) poniženje, (S) apologies
Published on August 22, 2018. Last updated on September 5, 2018.
Tully, Alex (2016). Applications of NSM and Minimal English in second language teaching. Master’s thesis, Australian National University.
This thesis proposes a new approach to second language teaching to adults aiming at developing their “strategic competence”, the ability to use paraphrase to communicate meaning when confronted with gaps in their vocabulary. The importance of this skill has been widely acknowledged, yet in comparison to other aspects of linguistic competence, very little has been published on practical ways to develop it. To do so, this thesis draws the link between the theoretical framework of the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) and its expanded version Minimal English, and practical applications involving the use of paraphrase by both learners and teachers. It argues for explicit teaching of the vocabulary of Minimal English (and its equivalents based on other languages), including contrastive analysis of the “mini-grammar” encapsulated in each NSM prime, and illustrates how this can be done.
By doing this, this new approach wholeheartedly rejects methods such as Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), which are based on the view that a second language (L2) is “acquired” via an unconscious, implicit process similar to the learning of a first language (L1). The empirical studies underpinning CLT have only been replicated when typological similarities between L1 and L2 enable positive transfer of grammatical features. In contrast, the proposed methodology aims to be applicable to all learners, especially those facing large typological L1-L2 typological differences. In light of the large and growing numbers of speakers of Asian languages learning English, this thesis makes an innovative contribution to current language teaching by moving away from methodologies such as CLT, which have not proven themselves useful or popular outside Europe. Rather, this thesis outlines a theoretical framework that avoids assumptions about positive transfer, and is thus more suitable for the global nature of language teaching in the 21st century.
Research carried out in consultation with or under the supervision of one or more experienced NSM practitioners
Tags: (E) (causative constructions), (E) afraid, (E) chair, (E) crime, (E) promise, (E) unhappy