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1. Feeling the Beat in an African Tone Language: Rhythmic Mapping Between Language and Music

   https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2021.653747  

   Franich, Kathryn H.; Lendja Ngnemzué, Ange B. (June 2021, Frontiers in communication)

   McPherson, Laura; Winter, Yoad (Ed.)

   Text-setting patterns in music have served as a key data source in the development of theories of prosody and rhythm in stress-based languages, but have been explored less from a rhythmic perspective in the realm of tone languages. African tone languages have been especially under-studied in terms of rhythmic patterns in text-setting, likely in large part due to the ill-understood status of metrical structure and prosodic prominence asymmetries in many of these languages. Here, we explore how language is mapped to rhythmic structure in traditional folksongs sung in Medʉmba, a Grassfields Bantu language spoken in Cameroon. We show that, despite complex and varying rhythmic structures within and across songs, correspondences emerge between musical rhythm and linguistic structure at the level of stem position, tone, and prosodic structure. Our results reinforce the notion that metrical prominence asymmetries are present in African tone languages, and that they play an important coordinative role in music and movement. 

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2. Complexity and Simplification in Language Shift

   https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2021.638118  

   Kantarovich, Jessica; Grenoble, Lenore A.; Vinokurova, Antonina; Nesterova, Elena (September 2021, Frontiers in Communication)

   This paper examines the question of linguistic complexity in two shift ecologies in northeastern Russia. It is frequently claimed that language shift results in linguistic simplification across a range of domains in the grammars of shifting speakers ( Campbell and Muntzel 1989 ; Dorian 1989 ; O’Shannessy 2011 ). We challenge the breadth of this claim, showing that while there are undoubtedly patterns that can be described as a simplification of some grammatical domain, the overall grammars of these speakers cannot be said to be “simple,” as simplification in one part of the grammar often corresponds to complexification in other parts (“complexity trade-offs”). Furthermore, patterns that are deemed loss or simplification are often presented in such a way because they are being compared to earlier varieties of the shifting languages; however, such patterns are entirely typologically expected, are consistent with other languages of the world, and can be seen as more or less complex depending on one’s locus of measurement. In this paper, we present incipient changes taking place in Chukchi (Chukotko-Kamchatkan, ISO ckt) and Even (Tungusic, ISO eve) stemming from the modern language shift context. We evaluate these changes against different notions of complexity to demonstrate that a more nuanced approach to morphosyntactic change in language obsolescence is warranted. While morphological simplification is expected in these scenarios, other changes in these speakers’ systems (occurring as potential adaptations in light of simplification) provide a more enlightening avenue for research on shifting varieties. 

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3. The dynamics of bilingualism in language shift ecologies

   https://doi.org/10.1075/lab.22035.gre  

   Grenoble, Lenore A; Osipov, Boris (February 2023, Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism)

   Abstract A large percentage of the world’s languages – anywhere from 50 to 90% – are currently spoken in what we call shift ecologies, situations of unstable bi- or multilingualism where speakers, and in particular younger speakers, do not use their ancestral language but rather speak the majority language. The present paper addresses several interrelated questions with regard to the linguistic effects of bilingualism in such shift ecologies. These language ecologies are dynamic: language choices and preferences change, as do speakers’ proficiency levels. One result is multiple kinds of variation in these endangered language communities. Understanding change and shift requires a methodology for establishing a baseline; descriptive grammars rarely provide information about usage and multilingual language practices. An additional confounder is a range of linguistic variation: regional (dialectal); generational (language-internal change without contact or shift); contact-based (contact with or without shift); and proficiency-based (variation which develops as a result of differing levels of input and usage). Widespread, ongoing language shift today provides opportunities to examine the linguistic changes exhibited by shifting speakers, that is, to zero in on language change and loss in process, rather than as an end product. 

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4. Age of sign language acquisition has lifelong effect on syntactic preferences in sign language users

   https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025420958193  

   Krebs, Julia; Roehm, Dietmar; Wilbur, Ronnie B.; Malaia, Evie A. (September 2020, International Journal of Behavioral Development)

   null (Ed.)

   Acquisition of natural language has been shown to fundamentally impact both one’s ability to use the first language and the ability to learn subsequent languages later in life. Sign languages offer a unique perspective on this issue because Deaf signers receive access to signed input at varying ages. The majority acquires sign language in (early) childhood, but some learn sign language later—a situation that is drastically different from that of spoken language acquisition. To investigate the effect of age of sign language acquisition and its potential interplay with age in signers, we examined grammatical acceptability ratings and reaction time measures in a group of Deaf signers (age range = 28–58 years) with early (0–3 years) or later (4–7 years) acquisition of sign language in childhood. Behavioral responses to grammatical word order variations (subject–object–verb [SOV] vs. object–subject–verb [OSV]) were examined in sentences that included (1) simple sentences, (2) topicalized sentences, and (3) sentences involving manual classifier constructions, uniquely characteristic of sign languages. Overall, older participants responded more slowly. Age of acquisition had subtle effects on acceptability ratings, whereby the direction of the effect depended on the specific linguistic structure. 

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5. Early Language Environments Predict Aspects of Explicit Language Awareness Development

   https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12381  

   Atagi, Natsuki; Sandhofer, Catherine M. (November 2019, Language Learning)

   Abstract Although language awareness is typically defined as the explicit understanding of language's functions and conventions, much evidence on the influence of diverse language environments on language awareness has shown implicit understandings of language. In contrast, this study examined whether exposure to linguistic diversity predicted monolingual children's explicit language awareness. We examined four aspects of children's explicit language awareness: ability to label languages, understanding of the communicative consequences of speaking different languages, understanding of labeling conventions, and awareness of their language environment. Participants were monolingual 3‐ to 5‐year‐olds (N= 81) who were from (a) a relatively linguistically homogenous community, (b) a relatively linguistically diverse community, or (c) a bilingual household in a relatively linguistically diverse community. Results suggest that community linguistic diversity and home bilingual exposure predict children's explicit language labeling and understanding of labeling conventions but not other aspects of language awareness. These findings provide insight into the role of early language environments in explicit language awareness development. 

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