Final Vowel Length in Hausa: A Lexical, Morphophonological,and Phonetic Study (Linguistics)

该研究项目是对尼日利亚和尼日尔广泛使用的豪萨语（Hausa）词尾元音长度的综合研究，豪萨语是世界上为数不多的具有词尾长度对比的语言之一。这些发现将有助于揭示词典的结构，有助于更深入地理解语法形态句法成分中的缩短、延长和中和过程，并提供在语言的各个层次上运行的这些差异的工具性确定描述。该研究将通过提供一个全面的案例研究来测试这些概念，从而有助于当前对音韵学中长度理论地位的兴趣。纽曼博士的互动活动将包括教授她的专业课程（豪萨语和词典编纂），指导豪萨语言学的研究生，在各种论坛上发表客座演讲，一般来说，作为一名在语言学分支领域工作的科学家，她为女性学术界提供了一个榜样，而女性在这个分支领域的代表性往往不足。该项目进一步推进了VPW计划的目标，即(1)为女性提供在工程和NSF支持的科学学科中发展职业的机会；(2)通过为在工业、政府和学术机构工作的女性科学家和工程师提供更大的知名度，鼓励女性在科学和工程领域追求职业。通过鼓励妇女参与科学，这是对国家未来科学活力的宝贵投资。

The research project is an integrated study of final vowel lengths in Hausa, a widely spoken language of Nigeria and Niger, one of the rarer languages of the world with contrastive length in word final position. The findings should throw light on the structure of the lexicon, contribute to a deeper understanding of shortening, lengthening, and neutralization processes in the morphosyntactic component of the grammar, and provide instrumentally determined descriptions of these differences operating at various levels of the language. The study will contribute to current interest in the theoretical status of length in phonology by providing a comprehensive case study on which to test such notions. Dr. Newman's interactive activities will include teaching courses in her specializations (Hausa language and lexicography), supervising graduate students in Hausa linguistics, presenting guest lectures at various forums, and generally providing a role model to the female academic community as a scientist working in a subfield of linguistics where women tend to be underrepre- sented. This project furthers VPW program objectives which are (1) to provide opportunities for women to advance their careers in engineering and in the disciplines of science supported by NSF and (2) to encourage women to pursue careers in science and engineering by providing greater visibility for women scientists and engineers employed in industry, government, and academic institutions. By encouraging the participation of women in science, it is a valuable investment in the Nation's future scientific vitality.