LINGUIST List 9.1342

Mon Sep 28 1998

Books: Austronesian Langs

Editor for this issue: Scott Fults <scottlinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. Christoph Eyrich, Austronesian Linguistics

			 Marian Klamer

			 A Grammar of Kambera

 1998. 24 x 16 cm. XV, 448 pages.
		 Cloth DM 318,-/approx. US$ 199.00
			 ISBN 3-11-016187-7
		 Mouton Grammar Library 18
 
 Mouton de Gruyter * Berlin * New York

This volume presents the first detailed, systematic and comprehensive
description of the phonology, morphology and syntax of Kambera, a
polysynthetic Austronesian (Central Malayo-Polynesian) language spoken
by approximately 150.000 speakers on the island of Sumba in Eastern
Indonesia. Although this language has drawn the attention of
missionaries and anthropologists for over a century, up to now no
systematic account of the structure of this language has been
available.

The study is based on primary language data, gathered by the author
during fieldwork on Sumba. Starting out from a detailed analysis of
Kambera phonology, the study focusses on the morphology; a detailed
discussion of the morpho-syntactic properties of Kambera is included.

While an explictly theoretical approach has been avoided, insights
from various grammatical theories are used to elucidate the structure
of the language. The analyses are accessible to linguists of all
theoretical persuasions.

The grammar is richly illustrated with examples, most of which are
taken from actual discourse. An appendix provides a selection of
Kambera texts. An index for easy reference completes the volume.

This an important contribution to Austronesian linguistics
as well as to language typology and to general linguistic theory.
_______________________________________________________________________

Mouton de Gruyter Walter de Gruyter, Inc. 
Postfach 30 34 21 200 Saw Mill River Road 
D-10728 Berlin Hawthorne, NY 10532 
Germany USA 
Fax: +49 (0)30 26005-351 Fax: +1 914 747-1326 
email: moutondegruyter.de

Publications by de Gruyter can also be ordered via World Wide Web: 
 http://www.deGruyter.com

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