Instructors:
Nancy Kula
Lutz Marten
Email:
nckula@essex.ac.uk
lm5@soas.ac.uk
Course days:
Monday 22 June 2009
Tuesday 23 June 2009
Wednesday 24 June 2009
Thursday 25 June 2009
Course time:
14.00-15.30
Venue:
G52 Monday-Thursday
4418 Friday
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Theoretical and practical problems in the description of
Bantu tones
This course will aim at presenting the main problems confronting the linguist engaged in the description of tone languages, with a focus on Bantu. Bantu languages offer an excellent field of study for tonology due to the very great variety of tonal processes they exemplify, as well as presenting relevant questions on the relation of tone to other parts of the grammar such as morphology and syntax. The theoretical perspective will deliberately be eclectic, and mainly focussing on auto-segmental approaches. Relevant case studies will provide the basis for exercises in problem-solving, and suggestions for fieldwork will be adduced. The final part of the course will emphasize the role played by tone studies in the analysis of syntactic constituency and information structure. The course does not require any specific knowledge either of Bantu languages or theoretical tonology, but some acquaintance with the bases of phonological analysis will be assumed.
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