Mechanism of contact and change in Turkic languages

有人说，尽管突厥语的地理分布很广，但它们是相对同质的。然而，这是因为以前的研究主要是基于现代标准文学体裁的材料，这些材料被人为地简化和理想化了。学者们对小语种和语言内部变异的较少关注也是形成这种共同观点的原因。因此，该研究项目组织了实地考察，目的是收集有关标准语言内的非标准语言现象和变异的数据，以及迄今最少描述的较小语言的材料。主要研究地区包括中国、蒙古、俄罗斯、哈萨克斯坦、乌兹别克斯坦、伊朗、土耳其和德国。除了周围的非突厥语外，还对诸如Sarigh-Yoghur、新维吾尔语、萨克萨语(雅库特)、多尔干语、哈萨克语、乌兹别克语、卡什卡语、克里米亚鞑靼语和土耳其语的Abdal行话等语言进行了调查。在田野调查中，我们对突厥语和非突厥语之间的语言接触情况给予了应有的关注，特别是它的产生变异的功能。已经完成了初步分析，以确定语言接触引起的语言变化的显著类型，并重写主要突厥语的语法。历史上的语言接触也得到了考察，使用的是古代维吾尔语和恰加泰语等书面语言的数据。举行了两次国际会议，以交流研究成果和进行讨论。来自美因茨、奥斯陆、乌普萨拉、伊斯坦布尔、广州和北京的突厥语语言学领域的知名学者踊跃参加，并与我们探讨了未来的合作。

It has been said that Turkic languages are relatively homogeneous in spite of the vast geographical distribution they have. This is, however, due to the fact that previous studies have been based mainly on the material of modern standard literary varieties, which were artificially simplified and idealized. Little attention of scholars to smaller languages and language-internal variation is also the reason for such a common view. This research project thus organized fieldwork, aiming for collecting data concerning non-standard linguistic phenomena, as well as variation, within standard languages, and material of smaller languages least described so far. The main research region includes China, Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Iran, Turkey and Germany. Such languages as Sarigh-Yoghur, New Uyghur, Saxa (Yakut), Dolgan, Kazakh, Uzbek, Qashqay, Crimean Tatar and the Abdal jargon of Turkish have been investigated in parallel with surrounding non-Turkic languages. During fieldwork we paid due attention to language contact situation among Turkic and non-Turkic languages, especially to its function of producing variation. Preliminary analyses have been finished for establishing salient types of language change induced by language contact and re-writing grammars of major Turkic languages. Language contact in history has been also examined, using data of written languages such as Old Uyghur and Chagatai. Two international conferences were held for the exchange of research findings and discussion. Leading scholars in Turkic linguistics from Mainz, Oslo, Uppsala, Istanbul, Guangzhou and Pekin willingly participated in them and also discussed future cooperation with us.