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      Current Issues in Areal Typology  
     
Workshop at the 28th annual meeting of the German Association for Linguistics (DGfS)
Bielefeld, 22-24 February 2006
  
     
Organised by		  
     
  • Michael Cysouw (Max Planck Insitute for Evolutionary Anthropology)
  • Balthasar Bickel (University of Leipzig)
  
     
Theme		  
     
Over the past decade it has become increasingly clear that hardly any typological variable is evenly distributed over the world; most reveal systematic areal skewings. For example, inclusive/exclusive distinctions, or numeral classifiers, show frequency peaks around the Pacific; velar nasals are common everywhere except in the Americas where they are exceedingly rare; clicks are found in substantial frequency only Southern Africa, relative pronouns only in Europe, etc. And often these skewings have exceptions, which are themselves significant, e.g. South Asia has mid-to-low degree of synthesis, but the Munda languages systematically depart from this trend.

Such typological findings have renewed a strong interest in areal linguistics, but because they often involve larger geographical areas than traditional Sprachbünde, they demand new methods for testing and explaining areal skewings. With regard to testing, methods are currently discussed to distinguish real skewings from chance, to filter out dependent structural factors (as when e.g. an area reveals not only OV but also, as a consequence, postpositions) or to measure the gradience of areal extent. With regard to explanation, large-scale areas, and their exceptions, can often only be understood against what is known from population history through genetic, archeological and social anthropology. And proper understanding requires a detailed model of language contact and its effects over (deep) time.
     
Topics		  
     
This workshop invites contributions to these issues of testing and explaining areal skewings in typological variables. Possible topics include, but are not limited to:
  • Presentation and discussion of particular (large-scale) areal patterns
  • Exceptions to areal patterns
  • Explanations for areal clusters
  • Statistical methods to validate areal distributions
  • Methods to display areal information (GIS and the like)
  • Relations to other disciplines (Archeology, Genetics, Ethnology, etc.)
  
     
Call For Papers		  
     
Send your one-page abstract to Michael Cysouw at the address below, either by email (in plain text or in PDF format) or as hard copy, to arrive no later than September 1st, 2005. Notification of acceptance is by October 1st, 2005.

To keep in sync with the rest of the programm, the normal time allotted for presentation is 20 minutes plus 10 minutes for discussion. Please indicate if you would be interested in a longer time-slot, in case they might become available		  
     
Further information		  
     
Michael Cysouw
cysouw at eva.mpg.de (replace 'at' by the '@' sign to obtain a working e-mail address)
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Deutscher Platz 6
D-04103 Leipzig
Germany		  
         
         
 
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology - Department of Linguistics