Linguistic Fieldwork

Topics include the linguist's attitude, the work session and the roles of native speakers.

Paul Newman (Edited by), Martha Ratliff (Edited by)

9780521669375, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 21 June 2001

304 pages, 11 b/w illus. 3 tables
22.8 x 15.4 x 1.9 cm, 0.486 kg

'… there are certainly no bad essays here … Several of the essays are enhanced by photographs, and the quality of the proofreading is excellent … Before the appearance of this book, budding linguistic fieldworkers had often to learn about the nitty-gritty of fieldwork through conversations with existing fieldworkers, or through reading the introductions to grammars and other works which are the fruit of fieldwork. This book, with its zest and flashes of humour, will give new fieldworkers a good idea of what to expect in the field, and at least some inkling of why people go there - and why they usually return again and again.' The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute

This book is a collection of original essays on the practice of linguistic fieldwork and language documentation. Twelve of the leading field linguists in the world have written personal essays about the study of languages in a natural setting. Drawing on extensive research experience, they pass on the lessons they have learnt, review the techniques that they found worked best in practice, and discuss a variety of relevant topics, including the attitude of the linguist, the structure and content of the work session, the varied roles of native speakers, and the practical and personal challenges of doing research in an unfamiliar environment. Covering a wide range of field areas, and written in an accessible manner, the book will be indispensable to fieldworkers in linguistics, anthropology, folklore and oral history.

Introduction Paul Newman and Martha Ratliff
1. Fieldwork as a state of mind Larry M. Hyman
2. Who shapes the record: the speaker and the linguist Marianne Mithun
3. Places and people: field sites and informants Gerrit J. Dimmendaal
4. Ulwa (Southern Sumu): the beginnings of a language research project Ken Hale
5. Escaping Eurocentrism: fieldwork as a process of unlearning David Gil
6. Surprises in Sutherland: linguistic variability amidst social uniformity Nancy C. Dorian
7. The role of text collection and elicitation in linguistic fieldwork Shobhana L. Chelliah
8. Monolingual field research Daniel L. Everett
9. The give and take of fieldwork: noun classes and other concerns in Fatick, Senegal Fiona McLaughlin and Thierno Seydou Sall
10. Phonetic Fieldwork Ian Maddieson
11. Learning as one goes Keren Rice
12. The last speaker is dead - long live the last speaker! Nicholas Evans.

Subject Areas: Social & cultural anthropology, ethnography [JHMC], Anthropology [JHM], Linguistics [CF]