A functional analysis of the verb-noun in Welsh

目的：运用系统功能语法框架对威尔士语中的berfenw(英语：动词-名词，VN)进行描写。它将利用语料库驱动的方法来产生基于经验和可重复性的描述。背景：在进行语言学研究时，我们关心回答一些基本问题：‘什么是语言？语言是如何工作的？语言有什么不同？’如果我们采用SFG的观点，即语言是一种创造意义的资源，那么分析语境中的句法可能会揭示出原本可能没有被发现的模式。然而，没有人期望所有的语言都会以相同的方式形成模式：如果一个语言理论要强大和灵活，它必须包括尽可能多的语言变体。根据2021年人口普查，威尔士语是一种凯尔特语，有53.83万居民说威尔士语。这带来了几个挑战：首先，威尔士语有动词-主语-宾语顺序，这在欧洲语言的语境中是不寻常的。其次，威尔士语有一个在大多数其他语类中都不存在的词类：VN。关于VN中包含的语义更多的是动词性内容还是名义内容，文献中存在一些分歧。系统功能语法分析的论据：现有的对动名词的分析提出了两个问题：第一，他们只分析形式成分的结构，例如词类。系统功能语法认为，词汇只是词汇语法选择在语言系统的更高层面上的体现，例如语气和及物性系统，因此我们有必要分析VN在更广泛的从句中的作用。其次，生成性方法很少使用真实的数据。文本的呈现与上下文无关，因此任何识别的模式都不能在更大范围内进行概率映射或测试。有人呼吁语言学家遵守其他社会科学学科应有的同样严格的标准，并列举了内省方法实际上导致不准确结论的例子。目的：如果没有功能描述，就像威尔士语的情况一样，它必须基于对具有代表性的文本样本的分析而逐步发展。在我的MA项目期间，我开始了这一过程，设计了一个以威尔士语为主题的小规模、语料库驱动的分析，以提出对名义组的功能描述。本项目将继续这项工作，接下来将重点回答以下问题：威尔士语中的言语系统对体验的贡献是什么？威尔士语中的VN有什么作用？这些句型是如何被观察到的语境塑造的？方法：我将使用语料库来识别、提取和分析从句中的动词和动词成分。现有的语料库很少为SFG函数编码，因此我的方法将需要调整为其他目的编码的数据。国家当代威尔士语语料库(CorCenCC)包含1100多万个词汇，涉及一系列语域和方言。记号是有词性标签的，这将允许提取相关词类的样本，其大小将在仔细审查文献后确定。影响：威尔士政府启动了一项雄心勃勃的战略，到2050年覆盖100万人，理由是在教育和数字技术方面的投资是其主要推动因素。SFG中的语言描述对这些领域产生了深远的影响，因此，将威尔士语等少数族裔语言纳入这一框架，对于在这些关键战略领域取得进展至关重要。此外，该项目将响应对语言描述采用更定量和更可重复的方法的呼吁，摆脱过去传统的自省和说明性的方法。

AIM: To propose a description of the 'berfenw' (English: verb-noun, VN) in Welsh, using the Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) framework. It will draw on corpus-driven approaches to produce a description that is empirically-based and reproducible.BACKGROUND: When conducting linguistic research, we are concerned with answering some fundamental questions: 'What is language? How does language work? How are languages different?'. If we are to take the SFG view that language is a meaning-making resource, analysing syntax in context could reveal patterns that might otherwise have gone undetected. There is, however, no expectation that all languages will be patterned in the same way: if a linguistic theory is to be robust and flexible, it must include as many language varieties as possible. Welsh is a Celtic language with 538,300 resident speakers according to the 2021 Census. It poses several challenges: firstly, Welsh has Verb-Subject-Object order, which is unusual in the context of European languages. Secondly, Welsh has a word class that does not exist in most others: the VN, and there is some disagreement in the literature as to whether the VN contains more semantically verbal or nominal content. THE ARGUMENT FOR AN SFG ANALYSIS: Existing analyses of the VN pose two issues: firstly, they only analyse the structure of formal elements, e.g. word classes. SFG posits that words are simply realisations of lexicogrammatical choices at a higher level in the language system, e.g. the Mood and Transitivity systems, so it is important that we analyse the role of the VN in the wider clause. Secondly, generative approaches rarely employ the use of authentic data. Text is presented detached from context thus any patterns identified cannot be probabilistically mapped or tested on a larger scale. There have been calls for linguists to hold themselves to the same rigorous standards expected of other social science disciplines, citing examples of when the introspective approach has in fact led to inaccurate conclusions.OBJECTIVES: Where no functional description exists, as is the case with Welsh, it must be gradually developed based on the analysis of a representative sample of texts. I began this process during my MA project, designing a small-scale, corpus-driven analysis of the Subject in Welsh to propose a functional description of Nominal Groups. This project will continue this work, focusing next on answering the following questions: What is the experiential contribution of the verbal system in Welsh? What is the function of the VN in Welsh? How are these patterns shaped by the context in which they are observed?METHODS: I will use corpora to identify, extract and analyse verbs and verbal elements in the clause. Existing corpora are rarely coded for SFG functions, so my approach will need to adapt data coded for other purposes. The National Corpus of Contemporary Welsh (CorCenCC) contains over 11 million tokens across a range of registers and dialects. Tokens are POS-tagged which will allow for the extraction of a sample relevant word classes, the size of which will be determined following a closer review of the literature. IMPACT: The Welsh Government has launched an ambitious strategy to reach one million speakers by 2050, citing investment in education and digital technologies amongst its primary enablers. Language descriptions in SFG have had far reaching impacts on these fields, therefore introducing minority languages such as Welsh into this framework is imperative to progress advancement in these key strategic areas. Furthermore, this project will respond to calls for a more quantitative and reproducible approach to language description, moving away from traditionally introspective and prescriptive approaches of the past.