Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics Plus
Not a member yet
537 research outputs found
Sort by
Linguistic dualities: Deconstructible or defensible?
Full text linkAt least since Saussure, the idea that language can be understood through a number of dualitieshas been a defining trope of linguistic theorising. In this squib I propose that a better appreciation of the kinds of binary pairs, together with a richer notion of the functions of language and the possibility of simultaneity rather than complementarity in at least some of the concept pairs, may yet serve to rescue some pairs of concepts and provide fruitful, if forever provisional, understanding of linguistics as a discipline and language as an object of investigation
Perceptions of educational interpreting at SU: Towards a more informed and supportive interpreting service
Full text linkThis article reports on a study conducted in October 2019 by the interpreters in the research portfolio of Stellenbosch University’s interpreting service. The study tested student perceptions of interpreting in authentic interpreted lectures amongst two subsets of users: those listening to interpreting in English, mostly out of necessity, and those who listen to interpreted lectures in Afrikaans, largely by choice.[1] The research project was undertaken to gain a better understanding of the value that student users take from the service, and how it helps or hinders their learning. Interpreters wanted to gain insight into their users’ evolving needs and into the role that they themselves can play in addressing these. The article concludes by recommending practical measures to support students who feel lost and helpless due to a language deficit in the language of instruction. The outcome of the investigation shows the value of interpreting for some, but also the complications and frustration experienced by users in interpreted lectures. It highlights the necessity of thinking differently about our practices and about how these may be adapted in order to meet our users’ needs. Significantly, the results suggest the need for an expanded and more active role for interpreters in and outside the classroom. It also calls for closer collaboration between interpreters, their users and lecturers, which is necessary to negotiate and formalise the terms of a shared learning space. If interpreters are to facilitate meaning-making and understanding for their users in an increasingly remote online application, then innovative measures and in-depth planning will be needed to determine how to achieve this. Through these measures, what is currently a mainly theoretical objective can be converted into the reality of multilingual teaching and learning practices at South African universities.
[1] This phenomenon is supported by the data and is discussed in par. 4.1
A note in defence of Boghossian’s epistemic analyticity
Full text linkBoghossian (1996) develops and defends an epistemic notion of analyticity. In doing so he highlights the inherent difficulty of rejecting both meaning realism and analyticity. In this note I defend his argument against two attacks (Margolis & Laurence 2001; Harman 1996) that misconstrue his arguments in a way that does little except to facilitate unjustified dismissal
An Optimality Theoretic analysis of Yoruba hypocoristic personal names: Issues of truncation, reduplication and tone
Full text linkThis paper provides an Optimality Theoretic analysis of Yoruba hypocoristic personal nameswith the aim of showing the interaction of different linguistic processes in the formation ofYoruba names. Based on the data collected from Yoruba texts and interactions in the speechcommunity, this study demonstrates that the formation of the hypocoristics involves not onlyprocesses of shortening or reduplication, but also tonal truncation. While Akinlabi andLiberman (2000) note that Yoruba has tonotactic restrictions—where especially vowel-initialwords can only take a low or mid tone but not a high tone—, this study reveals that suchrestriction may be violated in formation of hypocoristics, where reduplicated forms tend ratherto satisfy a tonal requirement of HHML to be well-formed. Crucially, the study shows thatderiving the hypocoristic in Yoruba involves processes relating not only to the foot structure(foot binarity), where the base of the derived form is expected to be a binary foot, but also, andessentially, processes relating to the tonal structure
“Ek sal en jy gaan.†The interaction between the modale auxiliaries sal and gaan
Full text linkTraditionally sal, wil, moet and kan are regarded as the most common modal auxiliaries in Afrikaans. Recent literature has acknowledged that gaan, a lexical verb denoting ‘movement away from a deictic centre’, has acquired modal functions resembling those of sal in specific contexts. This article aims to explore the development of the grammatical functions of gaan and the interchangeability of sal and gaan as modal auxiliaries within the scope of grammaticalisation theory. A corpus study is undertaken to identify and analyse the nuances in the modal functions for which these auxiliaries compete when expressing modality in order to establish the extent to which gaan has grammaticalised. Similarly, the degree to which gaan and sal can be used as synonyms is explored in the formal register of the Taalkommissie’s newspaper sub-corpus and the informal register of the News Commentary corpus
The potential of social media in the classroom in case of scarce resources: Students’ perspectives
Full text linkIn a digital age, the question of using social media in the classroom has sparked interests from both researchers and all those involved in education across the globe. While using technology in the classroom and related benefits are unquestionable in developed countries (Klopfer, Osterweil, Groff and Haas 2009), they are less obvious in developing countries. The present study explores the potential of using social media even in case of scarce resources. Results obtained by means of a questionnaire designed to this end and administered to higher education students at a university in Burundi show that students know the widely used social media, which they use in their everyday life activities. Students consider them excellent vehicles for improving their language skills in both English and French. In regards with incorporating social media into the classroom, students are very positive even though they are aware of the challenges this may pose. Based on the results, this study reflects on the potential of social media in the classroom even with scarce resources
The Use of Stereotypes within South African Television Car Advertising using the German Language: A Multimodal Social Semiotic Approach.
Full text linkThe use of German is a rare phenomenon in the South African television car advertising context, and thus seems to have a specific purpose. In this paper, through a social semiotic approach, we examine the use and function of German and South African national, gender and occupational stereotypes portrayed within SA car television advertisements that use the German language. It highlights how consumers use stereotypes to orientate themselves in a complex environment. We argue that the understanding of how stereotypes are conveyed through language use in combination with the visual portrayal of social actors presents insights into what German car advertising agencies may consider effective and appropriate advertising
Endangerment of Ruruuli-Lunyala language: Past and current trends
Full text linkRuruuli-Lunyala (JE.103; Glottocode: ruul1235, ISO 639-3: ruc) is the native language of the Baruuli and Banyala ethnic groups of Uganda. It is one of the most endangered and under-described languages in Uganda (see Namyalo et al. 2021; Nakayiza 2013). This paper analyses the factors that caused the endangerment of Ruruuli-Lunyala from a historical perspective. It further provides an overview of its current status and the steps that have been taken by the community towards its revitalisation. The data for this paper were collected using oral interviews, observations, and document analysis. The results of the study indicate that the main cause of Ruruuli-Lunyala endangerment stems from the Buganda colonial administration. Under the Buganda rule, Ruruuli-Lunyala language as well as the Kiruuli-Kinyala culture were abandoned. This and other factors explain why this language remains one of Uganda’s under-described minority languages. The study concludes by observing that, although there are some support efforts towards the revitalisation of Ruruuli-Lunyala, the young population is shifting to Luganda, Runyoro and Lusoga