LINGUIST List 7.447

Sat Mar 23 1996

Qs: Literacy acquisition, Mayan, Morpheme storage in the brain

Editor for this issue: Ljuba Veselinova <lveselinemunix.emich.edu>

Directory

1. Brook Swainson, Q: Rhyme and Alphabetic Systems
2. Terry Pratt, seeking information on Mayan
3. "BARBARA HERRARTE (7397)", derivational vs. inflectional morphemes

In the field of literacy acquisition, many researchers believe that
the ability to rhyme is a necessary precursor to acquiring literacy in
a language that uses an alphabetic orthography.

It has recently been suggested to me that such a view may be
linguacentric; that it may not be the case that all languages using
alphabetic writing systems implicitly develop pre-literate awareness
of rhyme through such means as nursery rhymes.

The majority of the literature that I have encountered has dealt with
the acquisition of literacy in English. Anecdotally, questioning of
native speakers of Italian, Greek, Spanish, Portuguese, and Icelandic
has informally established that nursery rhymes or rhyming word games
are introduced to children prior to formal literacy training. But is
rhyme a part of the early literacy socialization of *every* language
that uses an alphabetic writing system?

Thanks,

Brook Swainson
umswainscc.umanitoba.ca

Can anyone inform me, with respect to the Mayan family, of a readily
accessible description in English -- other than in encyclopedias -- of
either its linguistic aspects or its current state of health? Thank
you, and please reply to me directly: tprattupei.ca

Terry Pratt
Department of English
University of Prince Edward Island
Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Canada, C1A 4P3

Telephone (902) 566-0677, (902) 675-3672. E-mail tprattupei.ca

I think that I read a long time ago that inflectional and derivational
morphemes are stored in different areas of the brain and that one
could be affected by aphasia without the other being affected. Of
course I can't find the reference now. I would really appreciate any
help that anyone can give me with this topic. Thank you. Barbara
Herrarte snherrarteaugustana.edu