Doctoral Dissertation Research: Seri (SEI) Landscape Classification and Spatial Reference

博士论文研究：Seri (SEI) 景观分类和空间参考

• 批准号: 0553965
• 负责人: Juergen Bohnemeyer
• 金额: $ 1.17万
• 依托单位: SUNY at Buffalo
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2006
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2006-06-01 至 2008-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0553965&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Seri; SEI

This research project examines how the Seri people of Sonora, Mexico, categorize the landscape in which they live through their language. Under the supervision of Dr. Juergen Bohnemeyer and Dr. David Mark, Carolyn O'Meara will carry out a survey of parts of the Seri area selected in view of their geomorphologic and ecological diversity. She will record route descriptions that use land and water forms as natural landmarks and isolate landscape terms on the basis of a set of diagnostics derived from a detailed examination of the grammar of spatial reference in Seri. This work will be complemented by studies of landscape-related cultural practices (in particular, fishing and gathering expeditions) and the recording of biographical and local history narratives.The study of the classification of land and water forms such as mountains, hills, valleys, rivers, and lakes and natural assemblages of vegetation is a new field of study in linguistics and cultural anthropology. The overarching research question is to what extent the classification of such entities reflects universal principles of cognition and to what extent it varies with language and culture, reflecting, for example, differences in the ways in which different cultures make use of their natural environment. Seri makes for a fascinating case study in this domain. The territory is highly diverse, including seashore, islands, and mangroves as well as mountainous and desert areas. The Seri people practiced hunting and gathering well into the 20th century and as such have particularly intimate knowledge of this richly varied landscape. But Seri is an endangered language, and due to economic changes, traditional knowledge of the landscape is rapidly becoming obsolete. The documentation of Seri landscape terminology provides future generations of Seri with lasting access to the ways of their ancestors. At the same time, the findings of this study will bear directly on theoretical issues such as the ontological properties and individuation of land and water forms.This dissertation research is being supported by the Programs in Linguistics, Cultural Anthropology and Geography & Regional Science.

这个研究项目探讨了墨西哥索诺拉的塞里人如何通过他们的语言对他们生活的景观进行分类。在Juergen Bohnemeyer博士和大卫马克博士的监督下，Carolyn O'Meara将对Seri地区的部分地区进行调查，这些地区是根据其地貌和生态多样性选择的。她将记录路线描述，使用土地和水的形式作为自然地标和隔离景观条件的基础上，一套诊断来自一个详细的检查语法的空间参考在Seri。此外，还将研究与狩猎有关的文化习俗（特别是捕鱼和采集活动），记录传记和地方历史，对山地、丘陵、山谷、河流和湖泊等陆地和水域形态的分类以及自然植被组合进行研究，这是语言学和文化人类学的一个新领域。首要的研究问题是，对这些实体的分类在多大程度上反映了认知的普遍原则，在多大程度上因语言和文化而异，例如，反映了不同文化利用自然环境的方式的差异。Seri是这一领域的一个迷人的案例研究。领土是高度多样化的，包括海滨，岛屿，红树林以及山区和沙漠地区。塞里人在世纪一直从事狩猎和采集活动，因此对这片丰富多彩的景观有着特别深入的了解。但塞里语是一种濒危语言，由于经济变化，传统的景观知识正在迅速过时。Seri景观术语的文档为Seri的后代提供了持久的访问他们祖先的方式。同时，本文的研究成果将直接影响到水陆形态的本体属性和个体化等理论问题。本论文的研究得到了语言学、文化人类学和地理区域科学等学科的资助。