Saskia Van Putten

Vision verbs dominate in conversation across cultures, but the ranking of non-visual verbs varies

Abstract To what extent does perceptual language reflect universals of experience and cognition, and to what extent is it shaped by particular cultural preoccupations? This paper investigates the universality~relativity of perceptual language by examining the use of basic perception terms in spontaneous conversation across 13 diverse languages and cultures. We analyze the frequency of perception words to test two universalist hypotheses: that sight is always a dominant sense, and that the relative ranking of the senses will be the same across different cultures. We find that references to sight outstrip references to the other senses, suggesting a pan-human preoccupation with visual phenomena. However, the relative frequency of the other senses was found to vary cross-linguistically. Cultural relativity was conspicuous as exemplified by the high ranking of smell in Semai, an Aslian language. Together these results suggest a place for both universal constraints and cultural shaping of the language of perception.

Motion in serializing languages revisited: The case of Avatime

In the typology of motion lexicalization, two types of languages have traditionally been distinguished: satellite-framed and verb-framed. Serializing languages are difficult to fit into this typology and have been claimed to belong to a third type: equipollently framed. In this paper I use grammatical criteria to show that Avatime, a serializing language, should indeed be classified as equipollently framed. I also study motion descriptions in narratives. Avatime is similar to other serializing languages with respect to path elaboration, but unlike other serializing languages, it has low manner saliency. Equipollently framed languages thus do not behave as a single type.

Recent publications in African linguistics

JALL 29 (2008), 123–126 0167–6164/08/29-0123 DOI 10.1515/JALL.2008.007 ©Walter de Gruyter The following is a continuation of our comprehensive list of recently published books and monographs on African languages and linguistics. Prices are given where available. This list serves as an acknowledgement of receipt of review copies of the items marked (R). Copies of book reviews printed in the journal are automatically sent to the publishers. There can be no guarantee, however, that all works received will in fact be reviewed. Authors who would like to review a particular book or would like to be considered in general as potential reviewers are encouraged to write to the Editor indicating their areal and topical fields of interest. [Saskia van Putten]