This collection of selected conference papers from three SPCL meetings brings together a cross-fertilization of approaches to the study of contact languages. The articles are grouped into three coherent sections dealing with, respectively, phonetics and phonology, including Optimality Theory; synchronic analyses of both morphology and syntax; and diachronic tracings of language change, with special focus on sound patterns as well as semantics. An added value of the volume is that most of the articles are in various ways significant for more than one linguistic subgrouping, and there is a significant overlap of interests; the sections also cover sociolinguistic subjects, give both theoretical and functional linguistic analyses of language data, and discuss issues of grammaticalization. Thus, in discussing a number of issues relevant far beyond the study of pidgin and creole languages, as well as providing a wealth of linguistic data, this volume also contributes to the broader field of linguistics in general.

This book is the first collective volume specifically devoted to the multifaceted phenomenon of intensification, which has been traditionally regarded as related to the expression of degree, scaling a quality downwards or upwards. In spite of the large amount of studies on intensifiers, there is still a need for the characterization of intensification as a distinct functional category in the domain of modification. The eighteen papers of the volume contribute to this aim with a new approach (mainly corpus-based). They focus on intensification from different perspectives (both synchronic and diachronic) and theoretical frameworks, concern ancient languages (Hittite, Greek, Latin) and modern languages (mainly Italian, German, English, Kiswahili), and involve different levels of analysis. They also identify and examine different types of intensifiers, applied to different forms and structures, such as adverbs, adjectives, evaluative affixes, discourse markers, reduplication, exclamative clauses, coordination, prosodic elements, and shed light on issues which have not been extensively studied so far.

Portuguese-Spanish Interfaces captures the diversity of encounters that these languages have known and explores their relevance for current linguistic theories. The book focuses on dimensions along which Portuguese and Spanish can be fruitfully compared and highlights the theoretical value of exploring points of interaction between closely related varieties. It is unprecedented in its scope and unique in bringing together leading experts in a systematic study of similarities and differences between both languages. The authors explore the common boundaries of these languages within current theoretical frameworks, in an effort to combine scholarship that analyzes Portuguese and Spanish from multiple subfields of linguistics. The volume compares structures from both synchronic and diachronic points of view, addressing a range of issues pertaining to variability, acquisition, contact, and the formation of new languages. While it provides an up-to-date resource for scholars in the field, it can also be a useful companion for advanced students.

The study of languages in contact is an ever-relevant topic in linguistics, especially at present times when increasing globalization leads to a number of new contact situations. This volume features ten papers on various aspects of language contact by leading specialists in the field. In these papers, contact-induced change in a wide variety of languages is approached from various perspectives, reflecting the current state of affairs in language contact studies. The first main theme in the volume is related to the linguistic effects of migration, both in the present and in the past, and both in the standard language spoken by ethnic minorities, and in immigrant languages that are influenced by the standard. The second theme concerns border areas, a traditional treasure trove for the study of contact phenomena. The third theme is about contact effects without physical contact, as well as the role played by translators in this process.

The chapters in this book represent the theme of “bridges” – bridging research approaches and directions across languages, methodologies and disciplines. Alongside descriptive and theoretical studies, the contributions present experimental studies addressing issues in syntax, phonetics-phonology and sociolinguistics. And alongside investigations of linguistic phenomena in standard Romance language varieties, other investigations address less well-known and studied, minority and endangered varieties (e.g., Quebec French, Brazilian Portuguese, Romanian, Galician, Catalan and Palenquero) from both synchronic and diachronic perspectives. Romance languages in contact with other languages and bilingualism, now also integral aspects of the field, are reflected in this volume as well, including less well-known cases of contemporary contact of Serbian with Romanian, and earlier contact of African languages with Spanish and Portuguese. This volume thus continues the decades long tradition of the Linguistic Symposium on Romance Languages of embracing cutting-edge developments in the field.

Space has long been a popular topic in linguistic research. Numerous books on the subject have been published over the past decade. However, none of these books were based on linguistic data from Chinese and expressions of space in Chinese have been largely neglected in past research. In this volume, not only Mandarin Chinese (the standard language) is investigated; several other dialects, as well as a minority language of China and Chinese Sign Language are studied. Cross-linguistic, synchronic and diachronic approaches are used to investigate phenomena related to space. The authors of this book present different points of view on the expression of space in language and related theoretical issues. As the contributing scholars argue, Chinese shares many common features with other languages, but also presents some particular properties. Space is a topic that is both classical and modern, of enduring interest. These studies of space give insight into not only general linguistics but also other domains such as anthropology and psychology.

This volume deals with several types of contact languages: pidgins, creoles, mixed languages, and multi-ethnolects. It also approaches contact languages from two perspectives: an historical linguistic perspective, more specifically from a viewpoint of genealogical linguistics, language descent and linguistic family tree models; and a sociolinguistic perspective, identifying specific social contexts in which contact languages emerge.