Ioanna Sitaridou

A comparative study of word order in Old Romance

The main objective of this article is to discuss word-order phenomena in Old French, Old Spanish, Old Portuguese, and Old Occitan from a comparative perspective. In particular, the following are examined: (i) the empirical evidence in order to assess the theoretical arguments for and against a verbsecond analysis of the Old Romance languages; (ii) verb movement in Old Romance; and (iii) whether the changes in the word-order patterns in the history of the Romance languages can be captured as yet another instance of grammaticalisation. By means of a uniform methodology and statistical analysis of novel data, it is claimed that: (a) Old Romance does not possess a Germanic V2; (b) there is variation in terms of word order among Old Romance languages, which is shown to be linked to the individual history of the languages; (c) V2 order is mostly an epiphenomenon of the discourse mechanisms and the nature of the left functional field in these languages.

On the loss of the masculine genitive plural in Cypriot Greek: Language contact or internal evolution?

The case system of Greek has undergone extensive changes, most notably loss of the dative and reorganisation of the genitive. The clear winner of this situation is the accusative. In this paper we investigate one more instance whereby the accusative wins out over the genitive: the loss of the genitive plural from the masculine nominal paradigm of Cypriot Greek. Noted in descriptions of the dialect since the 19th century —and persisting, albeit somewhat attenuated, to this day— this phenomenon has been attributed both to internal evolution (analogy) and to external factors (contact with French). We assess these two explanations from a structural and from a sociolinguistic perspective, and highlight some problematic areas that ought to be investigated before we can arrive at a more comprehensive view of how this change came about.

Coping With Stigmatized Linguistic Identities: Identity and Ethnolinguistic Vitality Among Andalusians

This study was an investigation of the impact of language stigma for identity functioning among speakers of Andalusian Spanish. Fifteen Andalusian Spaniards were interviewed using a semistructured interview schedule. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to analyze the data guided by identity process theory and the ethnolinguistic vitality framework. The following themes are outlined: (a) threatened linguistic identity and vitality (re)constructions; (b) relocating the sociopsychological value in ones linguistic variety; and (c) multiple linguistic identities: threat and management. This article elucidates how perceived threats to ethnolinguistic vitality can induce identity threat. Weak social status may jeopardize self-esteem, while weak institutional support may threaten self-efficacy. The belonging principle may be vulnerable to threat in contexts in which the stigmatized group has minority status. Relevant sociolinguistic concepts are discussed in relation to the intrapsychic level of identity functioning. Potential strategies for coping are discussed.

Assessing the sociolinguistic vitality of Istanbulite Romeyka: an attitudinal study

ABSTRACT We assess the sociolinguistic vitality of Romeyka, the only Asia Minor Greek variety, which, albeit endangered, is still spoken in the Black Sea region, Turkey (historically known as Pontus), by means of nine extralinguistic (i.e. sociological) and sociolinguistic factors, specially tailored for the situation of Romeyka. Our current vitality assessment addresses an Istanbulite community, although the results will be compared against a rural community in the Black Sea, namely ‘Anasta’ [Sitaridou, I. 2013. “Greek-Speaking Enclaves in Pontus Today: The Documentation and Revitalization of Romeyka.” In Keeping Languages Alive: Language Endangerment: Documentation, Pedagogy and Revitalization, edited by M. Jones and S. Ogilvie, 98–112. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press]. We used the direct approach to conduct an attitudinal survey – the first of its kind for Romeyka – which allows us to track the interrelation of vitality factors. The most relevant factors were (i) Turkish language policies and education; (ii) identity function of the language; and (iii) language competence. Furthermore, as an often-neglected factor, the language of data elicitation was shown to affect the answers of respondents. The following variables were also found pertinent: (iv) age, (v) gender, (vi) speech community; the latter is argued to constitute the most crucial factor for Romeyka’s vitality.