Conventional gestures are those movements we make, such as waving hello and shaking hands, that are part of a learned, shared, symbolic system. In this book Richard L. Epstein working with the illustrator Alex Raffi examines how such gestures mean and how we can study them. Drawing on their collection of over 400 American gestures, available on the Advanced Reasoning Forum website, they examine problems of methodology and the nature of gestures in relation to the work of others who have studied and collected gestures from various cultures. An extensive annotated bibliography describes and comments on virtually all known collections of conventional gestures.

Gestures are ubiquitous and natural in our everyday life. They convey information about culture, discourse, thought, intentionality, emotion, intersubjectivity, cognition, and first and second language acquisition. Additionally, they are used by non-human primates to communicate with their peers and with humans. Consequently, the modern field of gesture studies has attracted researchers from a number of different disciplines such as anthropology, cognitive science, communication, neuroscience, psycholinguistics, primatology, psychology, robotics, sociology and semiotics. This volume presents an overview of the depth and breadth of current research in gesture. Its focus is on the interdisciplinary nature of gesture. The twenty-six chapters included in the volume are divided into six sections or themes: the nature and functions of gesture, first language development and gesture, second language effects on gesture, gesture in the classroom and in problem solving, gesture aspects of discourse and interaction, and gestural analysis of music and dance.

The progression from newborn to sophisticated language user in just a few short years is often described as wonderful and miraculous. What are the biological, cognitive, and social underpinnings of this miracle? What major language development milestones occur in infancy? What methodologies do researchers employ in studying this progression? Why do some become adept at multiple languages while others face a lifelong struggle with just one? What accounts for declines in language proficiency, and how might such declines be moderated? Despite an abundance of textbooks, specialized monographs, and a couple of academic handbooks, there has been no encyclopedic reference work in this area--until now. The Encyclopedia of Language Development covers the breadth of theory and research on language development from birth through adulthood, as well as their practical application. Features: This affordable A-to-Z reference includes 200 articles that address such topic areas as theories and research tradition; biological perspectives; cognitive perspectives; family, peer, and social influences; bilingualism; special populations and disorders; and more. All articles (signed and authored by key figures in the field) conclude with cross reference links and suggestions for further reading. Appendices include a Resource Guide with annotated lists of classic books and articles, journals, associations, and web sites; a Glossary of specialized terms; and a Chronology offering an overview and history of the field. A thematic Reader’s Guide groups related articles by broad topic areas as one handy search feature on the e-Reference platform, which includes a comprehensive index of search terms. Available in both print and electronic formats, Encyclopedia of Language Development is a must-have reference for researchers and is ideal for library reference or circulating collections. Key Themes: Categories Effects of language on cognitive development Fundamentals, theories and models of language development Impairments of language development Language development in special populations Literacy and language development Mechanisms of language development Methods in language development research Prelinguistic communicative development Social effects in language acquisition Specific aspects of language development

Volume I of the handbook presents contemporary, multidisciplinary, historical, theoretical, and methodological aspects of how body movements relate to language. It documents how leading scholars from differenct disciplinary backgrounds conceptualize and analyze this complex relationship. Five chapters and a total of 72 articles, present current and past approaches, including multidisciplinary methods of analysis. The chapters cover: I. How the body relates to language and communication: Outlining the subject matter, II. Perspectives from different disciplines, III. Historical dimensions, IV. Contemporary approaches, V. Methods. Authors include: Michael Arbib, Janet Bavelas, Marino Bonaiuto, Paul Bouissac, Judee Burgoon, Martha Davis, Susan Duncan, Konrad Ehlich, Nick Enfield, Pierre Feyereisen, Raymond W. Gibbs, Susan Goldin-Meadow, Uri Hadar, Adam Kendon, Antja Kennedy, David McNeill, Lorenza Mondada, Fernando Poyatos, Klaus Scherer, Margret Selting, Jürgen Streeck, Sherman Wilcox, Jeffrey Wollock, Jordan Zlatev.

Language Development and Language Impairment offers a problem-based introduction to the assessment and treatment of a wide variety of childhood language developmental disorders. Focuses for the most part on the pre-school years, the period during which the foundations for language development are laid Uses a problem-based approach, designed to motivate students to find the information they need to identify and explore learning issues that a particular speech or language issue raises Examines the development of a child’s phonological system, the growth of vocabulary, the development of grammar, and issues related to conversational and narrative competence Integrates information on typical and atypical language development

This volume is the first to bring together researchers studying a range of different types of emerging sign languages in the Americas, and their relationship to the gestures produced in the surrounding communities of hearing individuals. Contents Acknowledgements Olivier Le Guen, Marie Coppola and Josefina Safar Introduction: How Emerging Sign Languages in the Americas contributes to the study of linguistics and (emerging) sign languages Part I: Emerging sign languages of the Americas. Descriptions and analysis John Haviland Signs, interaction, coordination, and gaze: interactive foundations of “Z”—an emerging (sign) language from Chiapas, Mexico Laura Horton Representational strategies in shared homesign systems from Nebaj, Guatemala Josefina Safar and Rodrigo Petatillo Chan Strategies of noun-verb distinction in Yucatec Maya Sign Languages Emmanuella Martinod, Brigitte Garcia and Ivani Fusellier A typological perspective on the meaningful handshapes in the emerging sign languages on Marajó Island (Brazil) Ben Braithwaite Emerging sign languages in the Caribbean Olivier Le Guen, Rebeca Petatillo and Rita (Rossy) Kinil Canché Yucatec Maya multimodal interaction as the basis for Yucatec Maya Sign Language Marie Coppola Gestures, homesign, sign language: Cultural and social factors driving lexical conventionalization Part II: Sociolinguistic sketches John B. Haviland Zinacantec family homesign (or “Z”) Laura Horton A sociolinguistic sketch of deaf individuals and families from Nebaj, Guatemala Josefina Safar and Olivier Le Guen Yucatec Maya Sign Language(s): A sociolinguistic overview Emmanuella Martinod, Brigitte Garcia and Ivani Fusellier Sign Languages on Marajó Island (Brazil) Ben Braithwaite Sociolinguistic sketch of Providence Island Sign Language Kristian Ali and Ben Braithwaite Bay Islands Sign Language: A Sociolinguistic Sketch Marie Coppola Sociolinguistic sketch: Nicaraguan Sign Language and Homesign Systems in Nicaragua

This clear and lucid primer fills an important need by providing a comprehensive account of the many new developments in the study of metaphor over the last twenty years and their impact on our understanding of language, culture, and the mind. Beginning with Lakoff and Johnson's seminal work in Metaphors We Live By, Kövecses outlines the development of "the cognitive linguistic theory of metaphor" by explaining key ideas on metaphor. He also explores primary metaphor, metaphor systems, the "invariance principle," mental-imagery experiments, the many-space blending theory, and the role of image schemas in metaphorical thought. He examines the applicability of these ideas to numerous related fields.