See the Leiden e-Prospectus
趙元任 Yuen Ren Chao, 序 "Xù" [Preface].
In: Chao (1968, 1980)b, frontispiece. Facsimile reproduction of a handwritten endorsement by the original author of a Chinese translation of his A grammar of spoken Chinese (1968).
趙元任 Yuen Ren Chao, 連動式 "Liándòng shì" [Verbal expressions in series]
In: Chao (1968, 1980)b, pp. 172-176
中國話的文法 Zhōngguóhuà de wénfǎ [A grammar of spoken Chinese]. 香港 Hong Kong: 中文大學出版社 Chinese University Press, 1980, pp. 172-176.
Translation of Yuen Ren Chao, A grammar of spoken Chinese.
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1968. Translated by 丁邦新 Pang-Hsin Ting.
A digital scan of the text is available at IASK/爱问.
1. Chao's 序 will be introduced in class. We will also start translating his text on 連動式. No preparation is needed for this first session.
2. Please pay attention to the historical, cultural and academic contexts of both texts. These will be explained and discussed in class.
LUCL Colloquium
Sharon Rose (University of California, San Diego): "Vowel Harmony Meets Centralization"
Date: 6 February 2014
Time: 15.30-17.00
Venue: Lipsius/028
Symposium: Bridging the Unbridgeable
English Usage Guides: The Early American Tradition
Date: 13 February 2014, various times and venues
Full program: see Symposium details
Conference: NACAL 42
The North American Conference on Afroasiatic Linguistics
Dates: 14-16 February 2014, various times and venues
Full program: see Conference details
3. Read the assigned text, taking good notice of the background discussed in Week 1.
4. Please note down any difficulties you may have in reading the text, and bring your notes to class.
5. The English original is available from the reference shelves in the East Asian Library.
Compare the Chinese text to the original, especially in places where you find the Chinese text hard to read.
6. Also consider the example of 並列式 in the first paragraph, which we discussed last time:
他天天儿寫信會客。Tā tiāntiār xiě xìn huì kè.
How does this example compare with its English original?
Can you spot any differences between and the English example and the translated example that might affect the line of argument in this text?
Studium Generale: Chinees schrift
"Chinese karakters: van bamboe tot billboard"
Datum en tijd: 19 februari 2014, 19u30 – 21u00
Plaats: Lipsius, zaal 011
Details: zie website
趙元任 Yuen Ren Chao, 第一讲 ∙ 语言学跟跟语言学有关系的些问题 "Dì yì jiǎng: Yǔyánxué gēn gēn yǔyánxué yǒuguān de xiē wènti" [First lecture: Linguistics and some questions relating to linguistics].
In: 语言问题 "Yǔyán wènti" [Problems of language], 趙元任全集第1卷 Zhào Yuánrèn quánjí dì yí juàn [Collected works of Yuen Ren Chao, Part 1].
北京 Peking: 商务印书馆 Shāngwù Yìnshūguǎn, 2002, pp. 10-16.
Originally published in 1959. Earlier reprint, in traditional characters: 臺北 Taipei, 商務印書館 Shāngwù Yìnshūguǎn, 1968, pp. 1-10.
7. Read Chao's 第一講, noting down any difficulties you may have in reading the text. Please bring your notes to class.
8. The BBC Worldservice program World Briefing broadcasted an item on 薄熙来 on 21 Feb 13.
An mp3 file can be found here; the item starts at 16'37".
Listen carefully to the way the Chinese name 薄熙来 is pronounced, first by the announcer, and then by the reporter.
(a) Now try to transcribe these two non-native pronunciations as precisely as possible in IPA, the International Phonetic Alphabet.
(b) Also transcribe a native Mandarin pronunciation of this name in IPA.
Hints: see the IPA charts.
趙元任 Yuen Ren Chao, 第一讲 ∙ 语言学跟跟语言学有关系的些问题 "Dì yì jiǎng: Yǔyánxué gēn gēn yǔyánxué yǒuguān de xiē wènti" [First lecture: Linguistics and some questions relating to linguistics].
In: 语言问题 "Yǔyán wènti" [Problems of language], 趙元任全集第1卷 Zhào Yuánrèn quánjí dì yí juàn [Collected works of Yuen Ren Chao, Part 1].
北京 Peking: 商务印书馆 Shāngwù Yìnshūguǎn, 2002, pp. 10-16.
Originally published in 1959. Earlier reprint, in traditional characters: 臺北 Taipei, 商務印書館 Shāngwù Yìnshūguǎn, 1968, pp. 1-10.
"Signe, signifié, signifiant" and "Premier principe: l'arbitraire du signe".
In: Ferdinand de Saussure, Cours de linguistique générale: Édition critique préparée par Tullio de Mauro [A course in general linguistics: Critical edition prepared by Tullio de Mauro], pp. 97-102.
Enlarged edition, Paris: Payot, 1985, reprint 1997. Postface by Louis-Jean Calvet.
First edition: 1972. De Saussure's original published by Charles Bally and Albert Séchehaye, in collaboration with Albert Riedlinger, Genève, 1916.
Online Scribd.com edition: Saussure, Ferdinand - Cours de Linguistique Generale, pp. 97-102.
Note: in the online edition, the text can be enlarged by pressing the "Full Screen" button....or in English translation:
"Sign, signified, signifier " and "Principle I: the arbitrary nature of the sign".
In: Ferdinand de Saussure, Course in general linguistics.
New York: Philosophical Library, 1959, pp. 65-70. Translation of Saussure (1916), translated by Wade Baskin.
Doc88 online browsable edition: Course in general linguistics, pp. 65-70.
Archive.org PDF edition: Course in general linguistics, pp. 65-70.
Note: on page 65, the illustration has been printed too low: it should follow immediately after the first paragraph of the text.
The following requirements apply to all assignments in this course:
The following deadline applies to your term paper only:
Hand in your assignment #11 below, printed on paper, at the beginning of class on 26 February, or in my pigeonhole beforehand.
Please note the format requirements mentioned above.
9. Refresh your memory about the way different linguistic units can be represented in transcription.
Common transcription conventions are summarized in the online Transcriptiewijzer.
– Caroline: since this text is in Dutch, please email me a.s.a.p. to schedule an appointment to discuss its contents.
10. We will start with the last pages of Chao's 第一講. Please bring any remaining questions to class.
11. In this lecture, Yuen Ren Chao tells an anecdote about an old Chinese woman, and then adds the original German version of the story.
Summarize Chao point in your own words. Make use of Saussure's original work to explain how Chao's point relates to the Saussurean notion of the signe.
- Your summary is intended for an academically interested audience which does not know any Chinese, and is not necessarily trained in linguistics.
- You need not quote each and every example from the story.
- Please provide transcriptions and/or English translations for expressions from other languages wherever appropriate.
- Small is beautiful: maximally four pages A4 at double line spacing
12. Check again that you have assignment 8 prepared, and bring your work to class.
This session will include an "Everything you wanted to know about phonetics but where afraid to ask" opportunities.
Part One: Consonants
Please consult the IPA charts!
LUCL Colloquium
Michael Dunn (Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen): "Evolution of Semantic systems"
Date: 28 February 2014
Time: 15.30-17.00
Venue: Lipsius/227
Chapter Two, "The Qin and Han creation of the standard"
In: Imre Galambos, Orthography of early Chinese writing: Evidence from newly excavated manuscripts, pp. 31-63.
Budapest: Eötvös Loránd University, Department of East Asian Studies, 2006.
East Asian Library code: SINOL. 59 C 11.
The book is available on the teachers' shelves in the Leiden East Asian Library.
A PDF of this book is also available online on Imre Galambos' page
....or use the direct link to this title.
From Wikipedia: The free encyclopedia
許慎 Xǔ Shèn, 說文解字 Shuō wén jiě zì [Discussion of simple characters and analysis of complex characters]
Edition: 说文解字: 附检字 Shuō wén jiě zì: Fù jiǎn zì [Discussion of simple characters and analysis of complex characters: With a character index]. 北京 Peking: 中華書局 Zhōnghuá shūjú, 1963. East Asian Library number: SINOL. 5093
This book is available on the teachers' shelves in the Leiden East Asian Library.
13. For the first two of these three titles, read the assigned text:
Galambos' Chapter Two, "The Qin and Han creation of the standard" and
the Wikipedia article "Shuowen Jiezi".
14. Please note down any difficulties you may encounter in these two texts, and bring your notes to class.
15. The third title is a modern reprint of the 說文解字.
(a) Have a good look at this book, which is currently available from the teachers' shelves in the Leiden East Asian Library.
(b) Check that you understand how the work is organised.
(c) Try to find the characters 說, 文, 解 and 字 in this dictionary.
Write down the page numbers and the dictionary's definition of these characters.
16. Check if you can find an edition of the 說文解字 online.
17. "Everything you wanted to know about phonetics but where afraid to ask"
Part Two: Vowels
Suggested reading:
- the IPA charts
- the info sheet on vowel formants
18. Info session on term papers
Discussion of individual topics
Scope, audience and terms
Literature suggestions
Format requirements & deadline: see week 3.
due to sick leave
Chapter Two, "The Qin and Han creation of the standard"
In: Imre Galambos, Orthography of early Chinese writing: Evidence from newly excavated manuscripts, pp. 31-63.
Budapest: Eötvös Loránd University, Department of East Asian Studies, 2006.
East Asian Library code: SINOL. 59 C 11.
The book is available on the teachers' shelves in the Leiden East Asian Library.
A PDF of this book is also available online on Imre Galambos' page
....or use the direct link to this title.
From Wikipedia: The free encyclopedia
許慎 Xǔ Shèn, 說文解字 Shuō wén jiě zì [Discussion of simple characters and analysis of complex characters]
Edition: 说文解字: 附检字 Shuō wén jiě zì: Fù jiǎn zì [Discussion of simple characters and analysis of complex characters: With a character index]. 北京 Peking: 中華書局 Zhōnghuá shūjú, 1963. East Asian Library number: SINOL. 5093
This book is available on the teachers' shelves in the Leiden East Asian Library.
Hand-in Assignment #2
Hand in your assignment #20 below, printed on paper, at the beginning of class on 12 March, or in my pigeonhole beforehand.
Please note the format requirements.
19. Remaining from last week: assignments 13-16.
20. Write a first draft of your term paper.
Please keep the scope of this verrsion thematically restricted - you can always elaborate later.
As mentioned in class: please feel free to discuss your plans and ideas, but do not wait until the last moment to make an appointment.
- Minimal requirements:
– to formulate your research question for this paper
– to quote one linguistic example
- If you want, you can present more than one topic at this stage to choose from later
- Maximal length: 1 sheet A4 per topic
- Please do not not write text about your paper, but text for your paper
Make sure you hand in at least two trial versions during term.
The more versions you hand in, the more feedback you will get.
My Institute pigeonhole (Arsenaal building, first floor) is available for your (printed!) work at any time during term.
Kiliaan Lecture
Philip Durkin (Oxford English Dictionary): "Dutch loanwords in English"
Date: 24 April 2014
Time: 16:00
Venue: De Vrieshof 3, first floor
孙宏开 Sūn Hóngkāi, 胡增益 Hú Zēngyì, 黄行 Huáng Xíng (eds.), 汉语 "Hànyǔ” [Chinese]
In: 中国的语言 Zhōngguó de yǔyán [The languages of China].
北京 Peking: 商务印书馆 Shāngwù Yìnshūguǎn, 2007, pp. 108-128.
pp. 181-182 of
Jerry Norman, Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
East Asian Library: linguistics handbooks shelves.
On the meaning of the term 行用 on p. 108 of Sūn e.a. (2007), see this Baidu page.
On p. 118 of Sūn e.a. (2007), 《经上》is a typo for 《经说上》.
21. Please note down any difficulties you may encounter in these two texts, and bring your notes to class.
– Unless indicated otherwise, all assignments are about Sūn e.a. (2007).
22. Can you spot anything remarkable about the publishing details printed on page ii?
23. How would you characterize the first paragraph of p. 108?
24. On pp. 109-111, tone is established as the main criterion for a division of Sinitic dialect groups. Are other criteria available?
To answer this question, please consult pp. 181-182 of Jerry Norman, Chinese (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988; on the East Asian Library's handbooks shelves).
25. Are the two tabels on p. 111 given in phonetic or phonemic transcription?
26. Please check carefully if the overview of Peking Mandarin initials, finals and tones on p. 111 is complete.
27. On p. 113, the general lack of "形变" is described for Peking Mandarin.
Can you name a productive morphological process in Peking Mandarin nonetheless?
[Note: check the meaning of productive as a linguistic term]
28. The overview of Cantonese tones on p. 113 (lines 4-6) is followed by a number of examples.
(a) In case you speak Cantonese: please check if all 入声 tones that you can think of are covered in this overview.
- If the answer is yes, please provide your own examples, citing free (not bound) forms only.
- If the answer is no, please write down any missing tones, indicating their tonal values according to the five-point scale used in the text.
(b) If not: please make an inventory of all the 入声 tones given here. For each of these, please
- give the tonal values according to the five-point scale used in the text;
- cite the example, providing transcription, Chinese character, and English translation;
- try to pronounce the example, and check your pronunciation with a Cantonese speaker.
29. In note 1 of p. 115, the original table quoted and reproduced here is supplemented by one extra possibility. Can you give more?
̄30. Please make sure that you understand all technical terms in the section on 六书 on p. 116.
31. Page 122 describes the 尔雅 dictionary. Please indicate in which ways this dictionary differs from a modern Chinese dictionary.
32. On p. 124, please identify 王力 and 俞敏.
33. On p. 126, please identify 陈第. One of his most famous quotes is shown below; can you translate it into English?
Call for papers, Linguistic Conference 2014
organized by the TWIST Student Association
孙宏开 Sūn Hóngkāi, 胡增益 Hú Zēngyì, 黄行 Huáng Xíng (eds.), 汉语 "Hànyǔ” [Chinese]
In: 中国的语言 Zhōngguó de yǔyán [The languages of China].
北京 Peking: 商务印书馆 Shāngwù Yìnshūguǎn, 2007, pp. 108-128.
pp. 181-182 of
Jerry Norman, Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
East Asian Library: linguistics handbooks shelves.
On the meaning of the term 行用 on p. 108 of Sūn e.a. (2007), see this Baidu page.
On p. 118 of Sūn e.a. (2007), 《经上》is a typo for 《经说上》.
34. Remaining from last week: assignments 27-33.
Charles F. Hockett, "Chinese versus English: An exploration of the Whorfian theses".
In: Harry Hoijer, ed., Language in culture: Conference on the interrelations of language and other aspects of culture.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1954, fifth printing, 1963, pp. 106-123.
Also published as Memoir No. 79 of the American Anthropological Association.
Benjamin Whorf, "The relation of habitual thought and behavior to language".
In: Leslie Spier, ed., Language, culture, and personality: Essays in memory of Edward Sapir.
Menasha: Sapir Memorial Publication Fund, 1941.
Available online from Stanford University; or at this mirror.
Oral Presentation
35. On Wednesday, 16 April, a short oral presentation will be expected of you about the subject of your term paper.
Points of consideration:
- Your presentation will be in English
- Maximum duration is ten minutes – please time yourself in preparation!
- Your target audience intelligent and interested, but not necessarily trained in linguistics or in Chinese. Fellow students from other departments may be invited to listen in.
- A short handout for the audience will come in handy, because it will save you time writing on the blackboard (please prepare 5 copies)
- Powerpoints are allowed, but only after prior consulation (over email) – also note that setting up your system will cut into your ten minutes!
In the assignments below, all question and page numbers refer to Hocket (1954) unless indicated otherwise.
36. Read both texts and bring your reading notes to class.
37. Background checks: make sure you know dates, publications and biographical facts for
- Benjamin Lee Whorf
- Charles Hockett
38. Give three examples of "other derivative communicative systems" (p. 106).
39. Check where Menomini (p. 108) is spoken.
Which language family does it belong to?
How many speakers does it have?
40. On p. 109, Hockett mentions "Whorfs example of the blower".
This example and similar ones are given in Whorf (1941).
What examples can you give from personal experience?
41. Why is Peking ~ Beijing ~ Běijīng ~ Yen-ching ~ Yànjīng called "Peiping" on p. 111?
For each of these names, give
- characters,
- transcription,
- dates and/or
- scope of usage.
42. On p. 111. the comparison between Mandarin and English starts from the Mandarin word for 'train'.
Which semantic associations does the English equivalent have?
43. Is it possible to calculate your own age in swèi on the basis of the description on pp. 112-113?
- If so: please do so;
- and if not: please explain why not.
44. Describe the meaning of the term "homophonous" (first line of p. 114) in your own words.
45. Pp. 114-115 describe a type of linguistis hiatus. There are several varieties, e.g.
(a) "Random Holes in Patterns" (p. 114):Isn't he? and Aren't you? are fine, but Amn't I? is not.
(b) Concepts one would like to have an expression for, but no language seems to have it.
– Or vice cersa: as soon as a new expression emerges, the worlds suddenly appears to be populated by the corresponding phenomenon.
(c) Concepts for which there is an appropriate terms in one language but not in another language.
Examples of type (c) will probably spring to mind immediately.
Now find examples in your mother tongue of types (a) en (b) – excluding those instances which might simultaneously be categorized as type (c).
46. Describe in your own words what is meant with " 'chemistry' (either sense)" on page 115.
46. Find more examples of "fluctuation in the agreeing verb" (p. 117) in a language of your choice.
47. Check where Hopi (p. 119) is spoken
Which language family does it belong to?
How many speakers does it have?
48. Describe a linguistic property of Mandarin illustrated by the contrast between the first two examples on p. 120.
49. On p. 123 Hockett states that "even Aristotle's development of the syllogism represented a sort of semantic purification of everyday Greek".
a. Illustrate the concept of the syllogism with your own example.
b. To which discipline does the notion of the syllogism belong?
c. From your own experience, find one or more differences between Aristotle's "semantic purification" (p. 123) and linguistic semantics.
Charles F. Hockett, "Chinese versus English: An exploration of the Whorfian theses".
In: Harry Hoijer, ed., Language in culture: Conference on the interrelations of language and other aspects of culture.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1954, fifth printing, 1963, pp. 106-123.
Also published as Memoir No. 79 of the American Anthropological Association.
Benjamin Whorf, "The relation of habitual thought and behavior to language".
In: Leslie Spier, ed., Language, culture, and personality: Essays in memory of Edward Sapir.
Menasha: Sapir Memorial Publication Fund, 1941.
Available online from Stanford University; or at this mirror.
Axel Schuessler, "Old Chinese and etymology".
In: Axel Schuessler, ABC etymological dictionary of Old Chinese. University of Hawai‘i Press, 2007, Chapter 1, pp. 1-11.
Axel Schuessler, "Morphology and word derivation".
In: Axel Schuessler, ABC etymological dictionary of Old Chinese. University of Hawai‘i Press, 2007, Chapter 2, pp. 12-28.
50. Last week, after your presentations, we discussed points of methodology, presentation and content.
Please review your notes about these and bring any remaining problems to class.
Make sure that you continue work on your term paper, and keep me informed about your progress.
51. Remaining from last week: assignments 37-49.
52. Read the two new texts by Schuessler and bring your reading notes to class.
Axel Schuessler, "Old Chinese and etymology".
In: Axel Schuessler, ABC etymological dictionary of Old Chinese. University of Hawai‘i Press, 2007, Chapter 1, pp. 1-11.
Axel Schuessler, "Morphology and word derivation".
In: Axel Schuessler, ABC etymological dictionary of Old Chinese. University of Hawai‘i Press, 2007, Chapter 2, pp. 12-28.
Final Hand-in Assignment
53. Hand in assignments #45 and #48 above, printed on paper, at the beginning of class on 30 April, or in my pigeonhole beforehand.
Please note the format requirements.
54. Bring your reading notes about Schuessler's texts to class.
55. On this last day of class, we will make a sightseeing tour of various linguistic hotspots at the Leiden Faculty of Humanities.
As discussed in class, at this occasion we will meet at 1:15pm in Lipsius, Room 203.
T.W.I.S.T.
The 8th T.W.I.S.T. Conference of linguistics
Date: 20 May 2014
Time: 10:30am-5:15pm
Venues: Parallel sessions in Lipsius, room 0.28 and Lipsius, room 1.47
Program: See PDF, but note the venues indicated above
Note: At the 2:30-to-3:00pm slot, your classmate Emmelot Vermaas will talk about "The influence of the Southern Min ka7-construction to the Taiwanese Mandarin bǎ-construction".
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