Exploring Morphological Means of Expressing Temporal Subordination in Latin American and Caribbean Languages

Core Concepts

Morphological means of expressing generic temporal subordination ('when'-clauses) are prevalent in many Latin American and Caribbean languages, posing challenges for token-based typological approaches. This study incorporates character n-gram analysis to capture such morphological markers alongside lexical subordinators, generating probabilistic semantic maps that reveal systematic cross-linguistic variation in the region.

Abstract

This paper explores the expression of generic temporal subordination ('when'-clauses) in Latin American and Caribbean languages, where morphological marking is particularly common in addition to lexical subordinators. The study uses a massively parallel corpus of New Testament translations to generate probabilistic semantic maps of 'when'-clauses. It incorporates character n-gram analysis to capture morphological markers of temporal subordination, in addition to lexical subordinators. The results show that the method is effective in identifying morphological means of expressing 'when'-clauses, such as switch-reference markers, in languages like Huichol and Quechuan varieties. The semantic maps reveal systematic variation in how languages in the region divide the semantic space of 'when', using a combination of lexical and morphological strategies. Beyond switch-reference, the maps capture a range of other patterns, including languages that use only lexical subordinators, or those with an inverted distribution compared to Huichol, where the lexical means occupy the top of the map and the morphological means the bottom. The study highlights the value of incorporating character n-grams to complement token-based typological approaches, in order to better understand the diversity of strategies for encoding temporal subordination cross-linguistically.

Stats

"When they came to him he said to them" (Acts 20:18) "When the men had come to him they said" (Luke 7:20) "When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him" (Matthew 8:1)

Quotes

"Languages can encode temporal subordination lexically, via subordinating conjunctions, and morphologically, by marking the relation on the predicate." "Systematic cross-linguistic variation among the former can be studied using well-established token-based typological approaches to token-aligned parallel corpora. Variation among different morphological means is instead much harder to tackle and therefore more poorly understood, despite being predominant in several language groups."

Key Insights Distilled From

Mapping 'when'-clauses in Latin American and Caribbean languages: an experiment in subtoken-based typology

by Nilo Pedrazz... at arxiv.org 04-30-2024

https://arxiv.org/pdf/2404.18257.pdf

Deeper Inquiries

How do the findings from this study on Latin American and Caribbean languages compare to patterns observed in other language families or geographical regions?

The findings from this study on Latin American and Caribbean languages reveal a significant prevalence of morphologically encoded generic temporal subordination, particularly through switch-reference markers. This contrasts with many European languages that predominantly use lexified subordinators. In other language families or regions, such as Quechuan languages, a similar pattern of switch-reference marking is observed, indicating a commonality in the use of morphological means for temporal subordination. However, some languages in Latin America and the Caribbean exhibit different patterns, with a mix of lexified and morphological markers or exclusive use of one over the other. This variation highlights the diversity in how languages encode temporal relations and the need for region-specific typological analyses.

What are the potential limitations of the n-gram search approach in capturing the full range of morphological strategies for expressing temporal subordination cross-linguistically?

While the n-gram search approach is effective in identifying potential morphological markers associated with temporal subordination, it has limitations in capturing the full range of morphological strategies cross-linguistically. One limitation is the challenge of selecting the most representative morpheme from a set of potential allomorphs identified by n-grams. The approach may also struggle to differentiate between allomorphs that share similar n-grams, leading to ambiguity in identifying the exact morphological marker. Additionally, the method relies on associations between character n-grams and English "when," which may not fully capture the complexity and nuances of morphological encoding in different languages. Furthermore, the approach may introduce bias towards languages with similar systems to the benchmark language used for hyperparameter optimization, potentially overlooking unique morphological strategies present in other languages.

Could the methods developed in this study be extended to explore other types of clause-level semantic relations beyond temporal subordination, such as causality or concession?

The methods developed in this study could be extended to explore other types of clause-level semantic relations beyond temporal subordination, such as causality or concession. By adapting the approach to focus on identifying character n-grams associated with markers of causality or concession in parallel corpora, it is possible to uncover common morphological means used to express these semantic relations across languages. The use of association measures and geostatistical interpolation, as demonstrated in the study, can help map out the distribution of different markers and reveal patterns of encoding causality or concession. However, it is essential to consider the specific linguistic features and typological characteristics of the semantic relations of interest to ensure the effectiveness and accuracy of the method in capturing the full range of morphological strategies for expressing these relations cross-linguistically.