Universität Wien

160137 PS Language diversity in Tibet: Dialects and languages on the Tibetan plateau (2022S)

Theory of Grammar and Structure of a Non-Indo-European Language

6.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 16 - Musikwissenschaft und Sprachwissenschaft
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 40 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Wednesday 02.03. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 09.03. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 16.03. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 23.03. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 30.03. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 06.04. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 27.04. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 04.05. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 11.05. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 18.05. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 25.05. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 01.06. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 08.06. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 15.06. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 22.06. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG
  • Wednesday 29.06. 17:00 - 18:30 Seminarraum 8 Sensengasse 3a 5.OG

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

This course is aimed both at Tibetologists and linguists. Tibetologists would acquire basic competencies enabling them to do fieldwork in the actual language spoken on field, and not just in Chinese or Nepali. Linguists will receive an informed survey of the most salient aspects of linguistic diversity on the Tibetan plateau.

1. Introduction
2 – 5. Amdo Tibetan
- Survey of phonology and grammar
- Practical focus on correspondence with Written Tibetan
- The student should be able to read Written Tibetan texts in the Amdo pronunciation at the end of this course
6 – 9. Tibetan dialectology
- Focused on historical phonology and correspondence with Written Tibetan
- The student would acquire basic competence for dealing with a new dialect on field
10 – 13. Qiangic languages of the Tibetosphere
- General survey of phonology and grammar
- The student will acquire basic competence for dealing with Qiangic grammar in texts
14 – 16. Other non-Tibetan languages of the Tibetosphere
- Focusing on language contact with Tibetan

Assessment and permitted materials

- Three written exercises (Teilleistungen) corresponding to main topics 2–4;
- Final oral test on reading Tibetan texts in the Amdo pronunciation.

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

The student should demonstrate in the "Teilleistungen" their understanding of topics covered in this course (3 × 25%), as well as their acquired practical mastering of the Amdo pronunciation of Written Tibetan (25%)

Examination topics

First Teilleistung: Making sense of a wordlist in a real or invented Tibetan dialect;
Second Teilleistung: Translating texts in Qiangic languages of Tibet with vocabulary and grammar sketch provided;
Third Teilleistung: Commenting a paper treating language contact phenomenon in a non-Tibetan language of Tibet.

Final oral examination: reading aloud a Written Tibetan text (in romanization for students of a non-Tibetologist background) in Amdo Tibetan pronunciation

Reading list

General classification on Tibetan dialects:
Nicolas Tournadre (2014). "The Tibetic languages and their classification." Trans-Himalayan linguistics: Historical and descriptive linguistics of the Himalayan area 266.1 (2014): 105-29. http://www.nicolas-tournadre.net/wp-content/uploads/multimedia/2014-The_Tibetic_languages.pdf
Especially Section 4 of Jackson T-S. Sun (2003). "Phonological profile of Zhongu: A new Tibetan dialect of Northern Sichuan." Language and linguistics 4.4 (2003): 769-836. https://www.academia.edu/7194820/Phonological_Profile_of_Zhongu

Amdo Tibetan:
Felix Haller (2004). Dialekt und Erzählungen von Themchen: Sprachwissenschaftliche Beschreibung eines Nomadendialektes aus Nord-Amdo. Vol. 14. Bonn: VGH Wissenschaftsverlag, 2004.

Qiangic grammar:
Guillaume Jacques (2010). "The inverse in Japhug rGyalrong." Language and Linguistics 11.1 (2010): 127-157. https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-00342277v2/document

Language contact in non-Tibetan languages of Tibet:
Erika Sandman & Camille Simon (2016). "Tibetan as a “model language” in the Amdo Sprachbund: Evidence from Salar and Wutun." Journal of South Asian Languages and Linguistics 3.1 (2016): 85-122. https://www.academia.edu/31665301/Tibetan_as_a_model_language_in_the_Amdo_Sprachbund_evidence_from_Salar_and_Wutun

Association in the course directory

MA1-APM4B
MA4-WM1.2
MA4-WM1.4
MA4-WM1.6
SAS.L.3

BA Sprachen und Kulturen Südasiens und Tibet: WM-14

Last modified: Th 03.03.2022 15:48