Linguistic Simplicity and Complexity: Why Do Languages Undress?: 1 (Language Contact and Bilingualism [LCB], 1) - Softcover

Book 1 of 17: Language Contact and Bilingualism [LCB]

McWhorter, John

 
9781934078396: Linguistic Simplicity and Complexity: Why Do Languages Undress?: 1 (Language Contact and Bilingualism [LCB], 1)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 1934078395 ISBN 13: 9781934078396
Publisher: De Gruyter Mouton, 2017

Synopsis

In John McWhorter's Defining Creole anthology of 2005, his collected articles conveyed the following theme: His hypothesis that creole languages are definable not just in the sociohistorical sense, but in the grammatical sense. His publicationssince the 1990s have argued that all languages of the world that lack a certain three traits together are creoles (i.e. born as pidgins a few hundred years ago and fleshed out into real languages). He also argued that in light of their pidgin birth, such languages are less grammatically complex than others, as the result of their recent birth as pidgins. These two claims have been highly controversial among creolists as well as other linguists. In this volume,Linguistic Simplicityand Complexity,McWhorter gathers articles he has written since then, in the wake of responses from a wide range of creolists and linguists. These articles represent a considerable divergence in direction from his earlier work.

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About the Author

John H. McWhorter, New York, USA

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Publisher
De Gruyter Mouton
Publication date
2017
Language
English
ISBN 10 
1934078395
ISBN 13 
9781934078396
Binding
Perfect Paperback
Edition number
1
Number of pages
348

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9781934078372: Linguistic Simplicity and Complexity: Why Do Languages Undress?: 1 (Language Contact and Bilingualism [LCB], 1)

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ISBN 10:  1934078379 ISBN 13:  9781934078372
Publisher: Mouton de Gruyter, 2011
Hardcover