Topic
Classifier handshape
About: Classifier handshape is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 3 publications have been published within this topic receiving 45 citations.
Papers
2 Apr 2003
TL;DR: In the early 1970s, this article identified a classifier hand shape for directional verbs, which was the first attempt at subdividing the directional verbs into two classes: directional verbs capable of being directed in space and multidirectional verbs.
Abstract: Verbs capable o f being directed in space were initially called directional verbs (Fischer &
Gough, 1978) or multidirectional verbs (Friedman, 1976). By the mid-1970s, ASL researchers
had identified a category o f signs with characteristics that appeared to distinguish them from
other directional signs. Identifying this class o f signs was the first attempt at subdividing the
class o f directional verbs. The signs in this class were said to share the distinctive characteristic
that each is produced with a meaningful handshape representing some entity. In addition, for
many classifier predicates, the movement o f the hand describes the movement of the entity represented by the hand. Frishberg (1975) describes these handshapes as being .. in particular orientations to stand for certain semantic features o f noun arguments” (p. 715). This class o f signs
came to be called classifier predicates (Liddell, 1977) or verbs o f motion and location (Supalla,
1978). The sign in Fig. 9.1 is an example o f the type o f sign Frishberg (1975) describes as being
produced with a classifier handshape.
43 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that whole-entity and body-part classifier handshapes are agreement markers, while handling classifiers as well as the ‘moving legs’ classifiers represent an argument in combination with a verbal root, which casts doubt on the observation made in the literature that classifiers straightforwardly determine the argument structure of classifier predicates.
Abstract: We analyze classifier predicates in Russian Sign Language (RSL) using a combination of naturalistic corpus and elicited data in order to determine their argument structure, and to test the generalization, based on research on other sign languages, that there is a clear relation between argument structure and classifier type (Benedicto and Brentari 2004). We propose that whole-entity classifier predicates are intransitive unaccusative, and that body-part classifier predicates are optionally transitive. Contrary to previous research on other sign languages, we argue that handling classifier predicates in RSL describe complex events with two subevents: one of handling, and one of movement, which are not necessarily causally connected. We further suggest that the ‘moving legs’ classifier predicate in RSL also describes a complex event consisting of two subevents. To account for these facts, we develop a formal analysis of classifier predicates in RSL. Specifically, we argue that whole-entity and body-part classifier handshapes are agreement markers, while handling classifier handshapes as well as the ‘moving legs’ classifier handshape represent an argument in combination with a verbal root. This casts doubt on the observation made in the literature that classifiers straightforwardly determine the argument structure of classifier predicates, since different classifiers in RSL represent different grammatical phenomena. In addition, we show that event structures associated with some classifier predicates are more complex than those associated with monoclausal structures in spoken languages.
18 citations
1 Jan 1999
1 citations
Related Topics (5)
Performance Metrics
| Year | Papers |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 |
| 2003 | 1 |
| 1999 | 1 |