Doctoral Dissertation Research: Structure of the Tanacross (Athabaskan) Verb

AbstractMithun HoltonU.Cal。本论文项目将准备Tanacross动词结构的语法描述。Tanacross是阿拉斯加东部Tanacross村及其周边地区大约30名中年或老年居民使用的一种独特的阿萨巴斯坎语，很少有人对其进行研究。论文将提供语言的全面描述和对共时和历时阿萨巴斯坎语言学的理论见解。在阿萨巴斯坎语中，坦纳弗罗斯语因其独特的复合音调系统的演变而引起了人们的特别兴趣，这反映了动词后缀的历史缺失。据报道，只有另外两种阿拉斯加阿萨巴斯坎语（汉语和上塔纳纳语）有这样的系统，但没有一个被详细描述过。除了科育空语和阿特纳语外，很少有人致力于描述阿拉斯加阿萨巴斯坎语的语法结构。本文的研究有助于进一步理解阿萨巴斯坎语的词法。涵盖的主题包括动词结构、前缀模板、动词词干变化和动词主题类别。由此产生的文档将有利于Athabaskanist和一般语言学社区，以及Tanacross社区本身对语言复兴的持续努力。

AbstractMithun, HoltonU.Cal. Santa BarbaraOPP-9907059This dissertation project will prepare a grammatical description of the structure of the Tanacross verb. Tanacross, a distinctive Athabaskan language spoken by roughly 30 middle-aged or older residents of Tanacross village and its environs in eastern Alaska, has received little study. The dissertation will provide both a thorough description of the language and theoretical insights into synchronic and diachronic Athabaskan linguistics. Among the Athabaskan languages, Tanacross is of particular interest due to the evolution of a unique system of compound tones, reflecting the historical loss of verb suffixes. Only two other Alaska Athabaskan languages (Han and Upper Tanana) have been reported to have such a system, and none has been described in detail. With the exception of the Koyukon and Ahtna languages, very little work has been devoted to the description of grammatical structure in Alaska Athabaskan languages. This dissertation thus contributes to the further understanding of Athabaskan verbal morphology. Topics to be covered include verb structure, prefix template, verb stem variation, and verb theme categories. The resulting documentation will benefit both the Athabaskanist and general linguistics community as well as the continued efforts toward language revitalization within the Tanacross community itself.