LINGUIST List 6.1445

Tue Oct 17 1995

FYI: British TV series, African lgs newsgroup

Editor for this issue: Ann Dizdar <dizdartam2000.tamu.edu>

Directory

1. , UK TV programme `Baby it's you'
2. Robert Nicolao, rfd : sci.lang.compar.africa

The award-winning British TV series `Baby it's you' is currently being
repeated on Channel Four. The programme which looks at language acquisition
is being shown on Monday 23 October, from 8.30pm-9.00pm on C4 (not S4C).

Paul Rowlett

 REQUEST FOR DISCUSSION (RFD)
 moderated group sci.lang.compar.africa

This a formal Request For Discussion concerning the creation of a new
moderated newsgroup called sci.lang.compar.africa. This is not a Call For
Votes (CFV). Please do not vote at this time.

RATIONALE:
Research on African Languages; all with the exception of Bantu, is at
present non-existent in discussions carried out within Newsgroups or on
mailing lists. This is also true of comparative research on African
Languages.

It is for this reason that a group of comparative linguistics specialists
dealing in African languages of the Sahel region
(http://lolita.unice.fr/~rn/GDRE_orig.html) proposes to create a newsgroup
entitled:

 sci.lang.compar.africa.

The group formed as a network around a research project concerned with
lexical distribution in the Sahel-Sahara zone, as well as with the study of
linguistic connections among languages in the region.
It is a French CNRS research organism

END RATIONALE

CHARTER: sci.lang.compar.africa

 As a moderated group, sci.lang.compar.africa would be open to
topics where comparative linguistics in african languages are the subject
of discussion, this would include :

 -languages and language families present in the
Sahel-Sahara zone: Mande, Chadic, Berber, Nilo-Saharan...
 - Analysis of results obtained in the research on genetic
relationships.
 - Problems related to the description of changes in the
context of languages of oral tradition.
 - Understanding linguistic changes and all the relevant
factors concerning language transformation.

 Research workers who do not specialize in the above-mentioned
languages, but who nevertheless are interested in general issues of
theoretical or methodological value for the work carried out or research
tools involved, are welcome to contribute.

Issues of the following type will thus be discussed:
 - Empirical issues (Particular facts pertaining to a language or a
group).
 - Methodological issues (Procedures and methods of description).
 - Theoretical issues (Principles of language change).
 - Epistemological or cognitive issues (The validity of established
facts and how these are obtained).

 Contributions can be posted either in english or in french.

END CHARTER

MODERATION:

sci.lang.compar.africa will be a moderated group. The group has designated
Robert Nicolai, initiator and director of the project, as Moderator.

Moderator: Robert Nicolai <nicolaiunice.fr>

Contributions liables to be refused :

 1) off-topic articles
 2) gross profanity and indecency
 3) binaries
 4) advertising
 5) non-specialist articles

END MODERATION

PROCEDURE