Introducing Maltese Linguistics

Selected papers from the 1st International Conference on Maltese Linguistics, Bremen, 18–20 October, 2007

Editors

Bernard Comrie

| Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig

Ray Fabri

| University of Malta

Elizabeth Hume

| Ohio State University

Manwel Mifsud

| University of Malta

Thomas Stolz

| University of Bremen

Martine Vanhove

| CNRS-LLACAN

Hardbound – Available

ISBN 9789027205803 | EUR 105.00 | USD 158.00

e-Book –

ISBN 9789027290298 | EUR 105.00 | USD 158.00

This collection of articles highlights a selection of on-going research projects. Phonological, morphological, and syntactic issues are addressed by international experts on Maltese. The diachronic development of Maltese, its age-long contact with Italo-Romance, and the present diglossic situation with co-official English are the topics of a variety of contributions to this volume. The repercussions that the promotion of Maltese to the status of official working language of the EU has on the Maltese lexicon are discussed. A project on the sociolinguistics of non-native Maltese-English is presented. The problems posed by the creation of electronic resources for Maltese are equally focused upon. The papers amply demonstrate that Maltese Linguistics can stand on its own outside the traditional field of Oriental Studies.

[Studies in Language Companion Series, 113] 2009. xi, 422 pp.

Publishing status: Available

https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.113

Table of Contents

List of contributors	vii–viii
Preface	ix–xi
Part I. Typology	1
Maltese and the World Atlas of Language Structures Bernard Comrie	3–11
Part II. Phonology	13
Vowel duration and Maltese 'għ' Elizabeth Hume, Jennifer Venditti, Alexandra Vella and Samantha Gett	15–46
On Maltese prosody Alexandra Vella	47–68
Part III. Syntax	69
Topicalisation in Maltese Albert Borg and Marie Azzopardi-Alexander	71–81
A head-driven phrase structure grammar for Maltese Stefan Müller	83–112
Complex predicates in Maltese: From a neo-Arabic perspective Utz Maas	113–132
Splitting the verb chain in modern literary Maltese Thomas Stolz	133–179
"Pseudo-verbs": An analysis of non-verbal (co-)predication in Maltese John Peterson	181–204
Part IV. Lexicon and electronic resources	205
Compounding and adjective-noun compounds in Maltese Ray Fabri	207–231
Auditory and visual lexical decision in Maltese Adam Ussishkin and Alina Twist	233–249
Electronic language resources for Maltese Michael Rosner	251–276
Part V. Language change and contact	277
The Vowel system of Cantilena: Its historical development Sumikazu Yoda	279–290
The shaping of Maltese throughout the centuries: Linguistic evidences from a diachronic-typological analysis Laura Mori	291–307
"Imma l'oriġinal oriġinali?": A noun-adjective opposition in some Maltese word-classes of Romance origin Manwel Mifsud	309–320
A different kind of gender problem: Maltese loan-word gender from a typological perspective Christel Stolz	321–353
Terminology of Italian origin used in EU Maltese: A case of linguistic "Europeanisation"? Sandro Caruana	355–375
Part VI. Sociolinguistics	377
Diglossia: Variation on a theme Antoinette Camilleri Grima	379–391
Maltese English: History of use, structural variation and sociolinguistic status Lisa M. Bonnici	393–414
Index of authors	415–417
Index of languages	419
Index of subjects	421–422

Subjects

Linguistics

Afro-Asiatic languages

English linguistics

Theoretical linguistics

BIC Subject: CF – Linguistics

BISAC Subject: LAN009000 – LANGUAGE ARTS & DISCIPLINES / Linguistics / General

U.S. Library of Congress Control Number: 2009006191