The French and English terms for characteristics of human beauty are compared and contrasted from the perspective of how sociosemiotic factors influence the ways different speech communities deal with reality. First, background and theoretical approaches to sociosemiotically based research are discussed. The adjectives examined are listed and the…

A study investigated the correct syllabification of intervocalic /tl/ consonant clusters in Spanish dialects that lack word-initial /tl/, using data from Peruvian Spanish. The study attempted to discover native speaker preference through the playing of a popular game involving, in part, dividing a word into syllables. Words containing the /tl/…

This study examines through Conversation Analysis (CA) the way requests for action are interactionally accomplished in naturally occurring spontaneous conversation, and uses the findings as the basis for an evaluation of the way requests are presented in published English language teaching (ELT) materials. The following areas are discussed: (1)…

The distribution of Hualapai auxiliary verbs "-yu" and "-wi" can not be explained only by the presence or absence of an object, or by the active or stative feature of the matrix verb. It can be explained in terms of transitivity, in that "-wi" corresponds to high transitivity and "-yu" to low transitivity of…

The claim that children's early word combinations are best described in terms of semantic categories such as agent, rather than abstract categories such as subject, rests on the assumption that 2-year-olds have a notion of agency that acts as a springboard for knowledge of more formal categories. The literature of developmental psychology suggests…

In a tone language, tonal distinctions between words in sequence can often be analyzed using the same devices that are applied within the word (e.g., downdrift or downstep). However, it is proposed here that Sandawe is a tone language in which the tonal relationships between constituents in clause structure, and between constituents in phrase…

The recitation of a nineteenth century Swahili poem is analyzed for the devices in spoken Swahili used by the performer to keep the audience's attention. The poem has a very formal structure in both rhyme, rhythm, and words linking one stanza to the next, giving it great rigidity. The primary focus of the analysis is on three variables:…

A study of Karok, an American Indian language spoken in northern California, provides an argument for CV theory over moraic theory from compensatory lengthening. In a previous study, moraic theory is argued to be superior to CV phonology in accounting for compensatory lengthening; it is shown here that compensatory lengthening in Karok cannot be…

A discussion of the animacy hierarchy in human discourse looks at the role of the hierarchy in three Western Austronesian languages: Tagalog, Bahasa Indonesia, and Rejang. Animacy corresponds to the degree of agency an entity has with a transitive verb as contrasted with the degree to which that entity may be the patient of a transitive verb. The…

It is proposed that some reduplication processes found in Kwakiutl, a native language of British Columbia, can be explained in a very illuminating way within a moraic theory. It is argued that the cases of so-called reduplication found in Kwakiutl should be viewed as the result of a copying process triggered by the moraic requirement of some…

Word and nonword vocalizations produced by two groups of children aged 8-28 months were studied. The first group included six children whose speech was recorded monthly for 12 months. The second group contained 21 children. In both, only spontaneous vocalizations were recorded. Each sample was examined for frequency of word and nonword forms. A…

The large scale movements of refugees in many areas of the world are having dramatic impacts on indigenous cultures, languages, and literacies. Both anecdotal evidence and research suggest that the experience of uprooting and displacement creates an increased demand for literacy, new forms of literate expression, and more multilingual…

This report aims to characterize, in greater detail, the delicate psychological processes children go through when facing two languages and two cultures. In doing so, it is suggested that bilingualism can play an important role in cognitive and linguistic growth. Data used in this study is taken from a larger study involving 30 Italian bilingual…

Papers are presented from a conference that dealt with the similarities and differences between first and second language learning, ways of assessing the relationships, methodological procedures, and implications for development of procedures for teaching language handicapped children. The papers are presented under the following headings: (1)…

Noting that intercultural understanding is a prime construct in the study of intercultural communication, this paper examines two questions that confront all intercultural communication researchers: (1) What are the underlying characteristics of intercultural understanding? and (2) What constitutes an interpretative perspective to intercultural…