Historical Linguistics (Cambridge Textbooks in Linguistics) [Paperback]

Theodora Bynon (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521291887 | ISBN-13: 978-0521291880 | Publication Date: October 28, 1977

Historical Linguistics is concerned with the process of language change through time. It investigates how and why the language of individuals, a social group or a whole 'speech community' develops in respect of its pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar. Dr Bynon regards language as essentially a dynamic phenomenon, whose character can be at best only partly understood by a static, and necessarily idealized, synchronic approach. In Part I she establishes the theoretical framework by providing a systematic survey of the three main models of language development - the neogrammarian, structuralist, and transformational generative. Examples drawn substantially from English and German, but also from classical languages, French, Welsh and a variety of others, are used to explain and compare these approaches. In Part II she turns to sociolinguistics and shows how changes within a language over a period of time, and changes brought about by contact between languages, are both indicators and agents of more general cultural developments. Accounts of bilingualism and of pidgin and Creole languages are included as well as wider-ranging examples of different kinds of borrowing such as loan words, loan translations and extensions of meaning. The student is provided with a practical and critical guide both to what has been done and what can be done to discover and verify these linguistic relationships. Designed primarily as a textbook for linguistics and philology students, this book will also be of interest to those studying English language, classics and modern languages.

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

Discusses all aspects of language change as a dynamic process against a background of the differing approaches of the structuralist, neogrammarian and transformational generative schools.

Product Details

• Paperback: 324 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (October 28, 1977)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521291887
• ISBN-13: 978-0521291880
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,579,106 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Doesn't compare well to the many other options, March 16, 2006

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Historical Linguistics (Cambridge Textbooks in Linguistics) (Hardcover)

Theodora Byron's HISTORICAL LINGUISTICS, published in 1979, is an entry in the Cambridge Textbooks in Linguistics series. I found it to be very unimpressive. The problem with Byron's work is that she doesn't seem to know which audience she is writing for. On one hand the book is rigorously structured and uses terminology familiar only to those with previous experience in the field. Therefore, it doesn't compete with the very basic primers of Winfred Lehmann or Lyle Campbell. On the other hand, certain elements of its writing style seem targeted towards simple classroom students, and it isn't a pure handbook. Because of this, it isn't as useful as Hock's magnum opus PRINCIPLES OF HISTORICAL LINGUISTICS.

The first half of the book presents the three main models of language development: the Neogrammarian model, the structuralist model, and the transformational-generative model. This sets it apart from many introductory works on historical linguistics, which still limit themselves to Neogrammarian notions for the sake of clarity. The second half is concerned with language contact. Byron admirably gives coverage to the Balkan sprachbund and even muses on Europe as a linguistic area. Unlike most textbooks which use the Indo-European family in general to illustrate points, or Campbell's book which packs in examples from multiple language families, Byron mainly limits examples of the comparative method to English and German,

Besides the book's odd duck status, it also suffers from some of the worst typesetting I've ever seen from Cambridge University Press. Bottom line: if you are a neophyte looking for a simple introduction and don't have much prior experience in general linguistics, seek out the primers of Lehmann or Campbell. If your interests go purely to comparative Indo-European linguistics, Benjamin Fortson's textbook may be worth reading. If you are looking for a rigorous handbook on the entire body of general knowledge of historical linguistics, you can't beat Hock's.