Doctoral Dissertation Research: A Multi-Modal Study of Gesture in a Spatial Language

空间定向可以说是人类语言的基本任务之一，说话者使用一系列策略来定位物体，给出方向，并对景观特征进行分类。在大洋附近地区使用的语言因依赖海陆对立的空间方位而特别出名，这种区别反映在词汇上。因此，人们会把房子定位为“朝陆地”或“朝大海”，而不是“左”或“右”、“北”或“南”。重要的是，空间词汇几乎总是伴随着空间手势，比如用手、胳膊、头或面部特征指向。通常，这些手势不仅是补充，而且在传达空间意义方面起着关键作用。然而，大多数关于空间语言的研究都只关注语音流，而不是视觉成分。这项研究借鉴了尖端的方法，使用视频记录来分析一种南岛语系语言中的空间语言和手势。这项研究将为语言家族中一个鲜为人知但语言多样化的领域提供新的数据。此外，这项研究将为目前正在迅速丧失语言的少数民族语言提供重要的新文件。这位博士生将与当地合作者合作，收集自然语言的高质量音频和视频记录，作为社区驱动的记录工作的一部分。这些记录将由未公布的遗留档案数据补充。录音将被转录、翻译和注释为空间特征，并将注意到口语和手势特征之间的相关性。所有收集的数据都将被公开存档。对这种语言中的语言、空间和手势进行分析，将拓宽人们对语言中空间本质的科学认识。此外，对手势的研究很少，对其与空间交流的关系也知之甚少。由于手势的使用在不同地区有所不同，因此重要的是使记录手势的地区多样化，以便扩大对手势促进沟通的多种方式的理解。为了做到这一点，这项研究将采用新颖的方法，将手势作为语言分析的重要组成部分。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Spatial orientation is arguably one of the fundamental tasks of human language, and speakers use an array of strategies to situate objects, give directions, and categorize landscape features. The languages spoken in regions near large oceans are particularly well-known for their reliance on the land-sea opposition for spatial orientation, and this distinction is reflected in vocabulary. Thus, one would locate a house as ‘landward’ or ‘seaward,' rather than ‘left’ or ‘right,’ or ‘north’ or ‘south.’ Crucially, spatial vocabulary is almost always accompanied by spatial gestures, such as pointing with hands, arms, head, or facial features. Often, these gestures are not just supplemental but play a critical role in conveying spatial meaning. Yet, most research on spatial language has focused solely on the speech stream rather than the visual component. Drawing on cutting-edge methodology, this study uses video recordings to analyze spatial language and gesture in a language of the Austronesian language family. The study will provide novel data on a little-studied yet linguistically diverse area of the language family. Moreover, the research will provide critical new documentation of a minority language currently undergoing rapid language loss. Working with local collaborators, the doctoral student will collect high-quality audio and video recordings of natural speech as part of a community-driven documentation effort. These recordings will be supplemented by unpublished legacy archival data. Recordings will be transcribed, translated and annotated for spatial features, and correlations between spoken and gestural features will be noted. All collected data will be publicly archived. The analysis of language, space, and gesture in this language will broaden the scientific understanding of the nature of space in language. Further, gesture has hardly been studied and its relation to spatial communication remains poorly understood. Because the use of gesture varies areally, it is important to diversify the regions where gesture has been documented in order to broaden understanding of the multitudinous ways that gesture can facilitate communication. To do this, the study will employ novel methodologies that incorporate gesture as an essential part of linguistic analysis.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.