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Explaining language change:

an evolutionary approach
Front Cover
3 Reviews
Longman, 2000 - Language Arts & Disciplines - 287 pages
Ever since the origins of both linguistics and evolutionary biology in the 19th century, scholars have noted the similarity between biological evolution and language change. Yet until recently neither linguists nor biologists have developed a model of evolution to apply across the two fields. Explaining Language Change presents the first integrated theory of all aspects of language change which builds on the pioneering ideas of Richard Dawkins and David Hull in biology and philosophy of science. It provides a framework for assessing current theories and advances new ideas about grammatical reanalysis, conventional and non-conventional use of language, the structure of speech communities, language mixing, and the notion of 'progress' in language change. This is an important new study which reintegrates sociolinguistics and historical linguistics and weaves together research on grammatical change, pragmatics, social variation, language contact and genetic linguistics.

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Review: Explaining Language Change

User Review  - Sara - Goodreads

This book approaches language change in an evolutionary framework. Croft looks at language as a variable and dynamic thing, in contrast with structuralists and generativists who look at language as ... Read full review

Review: Explaining Language Change

User Review  - Katja - Goodreads

Croft addresses both the why and how of language change using the biological evolution as a metaphor. In his theory, linguemes -- lingustic structures embodied in utterances (constructions?) -- are ... Read full review

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References from web pages

1 wc , Explaining Language Change. An Evolutionary Approach ...
1. W. ILLIAM. C. ROFT. , Explaining Language Change. An Evolutionary. Approach. Harlow: Pearson Education 2000. XV, 287 S. (Longman. Linguistics Library) ...
email.eva.mpg.de/ ~cysouw/ pdf/ cysouwCROFT.pdf

William Croft , Explaining language change: an evolutionary ...
William Croft, Explaining language change: an evolutionary approach. (Longman Linguistics Library). London: Longman, . Pp. xvj. ...
journals.cambridge.org/ production/ action/ cjoGetFulltext?fulltextid=122964

ingentaconnect Review of "Explaining language change: An ...
Review of “Explaining language change: An evolutionary approach” by William Croft. Author: Ansaldo U.1. Source: Functions of Language, Volume 10, Number 1, ...
www.ingentaconnect.com/ content/ jbp/ fol/ 2003/ 00000010/ 00000001/ art00008;jsessionid=1kpovbpcvn4di.alexandra?format=pri...

Croft, W. (2000) Explaining Language Change: An Evolutionary ...
Croft, W. (2000) Explaining Language Change: An Evolutionary Approach. London: Longman. Citations (only within this site) [Sort by year] [Sort by author] ...
www.isrl.uiuc.edu/ ~amag/ langev/ cited/ croft00book-by-author.html

Linguistics: an interdisciplinary journal of the language sciences ...
William Croft: Explaining Language Change. An Evolutionary Approach.(Book Review). Sanso, Andrea. William Croft: Explaining Language Change. ...
findarticles.com/ p/ articles/ mi_hb195/ is_200407/ ai_n5707492/ print

Times Higher Education - Botanical guide to the production of speech
Explaining Language Change: An Evolutionary Approach. -. Author - William Croft ISBN - 0 582 35678 4 and 35677 6 Publisher - Longman Pearson ...
www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/ story.asp?storyCode=165244& sectioncode=38

Linguistics - Introduction to Linguistics - Explaining Language ...
Explaining Language Change:An Evolutionary Approach 1st Edition - Paper ... Explaining Language Change:An Evolutionary Approach 1st Edition - Paper ...
www.pearson.ch/ HigherEducation/ Linguistics/ IntroductiontoLinguistics/ 1471/ 9780582356771/ Explaining-Language-Change-A...

THE ROLE OF FUNCTIONAL FACTORS IN LANGUAGE CHANGE: AN EVOLUTIONARY ...
Explaining language change. An evolutionary approach. Harlow, etc.: Longman. Haiman, John. 1985. Natural syntax. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ...
www.ds.unizh.ch/ gseiler/ downloads/ seiler_ICHL.pdf

Explaining Language Change - Boek - BESLIST.nl
Bekijk en vergelijk informatie, beoordelingen, vragen & antwoorden en de beste winkels voor 'Explaining Language Change' op BESLIST.nl ▪ Boeken Engels ...
boeken_engels.beslist.nl/ boeken_engels/ d0000062024/ Explaining_Language_Change.html

EXPLORING EXAPTATION IN LANGUAGE CHANGE 1. Introduction
Explaining language change: An evolutionary approach. Harlow: Longman. 2003. Typology and universals (2nd edition). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ...
www.atypon-link.com/ WDG/ doi/ abs/ 10.1515/ flin.26.1-2.13

About the author (2000)

William Croft is Professor of Linguistics at the University of Manchester. His books include Studies in Typology and Diachrony for Joseph H. Greenberg (edited with Keith Denning and Suzanne Kemmer, 1990), Typology and Universals (Cambridge, 1990), Syntactic Categories and Grammatical Relations: the Cognitive Organization of Information (1991), Explaining Language Change: An Evolutionary Approach (2000), and Radical Construction Grammar: Syntactic Theory in Typological Perspective (2001).

Bibliographic information

QR code for Explaining language change
TitleExplaining language change: an evolutionary approach
Longmans' linguistics library
AuthorWilliam Croft
Editionillustrated
PublisherLongman, 2000
ISBN0582356776, 9780582356771
Length287 pages
Subjects ›  › 

Language Arts & Disciplines / Linguistics / General
Science / Life Sciences / Evolution
  
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