B.8 Contact phenomena in the grammar of Uralic languages
Languages belonging to the Uralic family are spoken on a vast territory throughout Eurasia, and despite sharing a number of important structural properties, they also demonstrate considerable diversity in all language domains, including morphology and syntax. Importantly, the distribution of various grammatical properties in the languages is not random, but it clearly reflects their geographical distribution and different contact histories. For instance, Western Uralic languages (e.g. Finnish and Hungarian), which have been influenced by Slavic, Germanic and Baltic varieties, are in many respects well-deserved members of the Standard Average European linguistic area. On the other hand, Eastern Uralic varieties (e.g. Nenets and Khanty), which have been in contact with northern Eurasian languages, such as Turkic and Yeniseian, exhibit a number of features considered as areal traits in Siberia.
The aim of the proposed symposium is to bring together specialists in various Uralic languages working on contact phenomena in the domain of grammar. We welcome contributions focusing on particular cases of contact-induced grammatical change, as well as more general papers discussing the methodology of language contact research and challenges specific to the Uralic family. Possible topics for talks may relate to (but are not restricted to) the following:
- contact-induced grammaticalization,
- matter and pattern borrowing in contact situations,
- role of language contact in paradigm formation and morphological levelling,
- mechanisms of contact-induced language change,
- areal typological studies of particular grammatical features or constructions,
- linguistic convergence in the Volga-Kama area,
- interaction of Uralic idioms with non-standard varieties of Russian,
- case studies of language contact from a broader perspective of historical sociolinguistics.
The symposium will consist of 10–15 papers and possibly a keynote lecture. After the symposium, we plan to publish a collection of articles by the participants as an edited volume or a special issue of a journal. The language of both the symposium and the joint publication will be English.
Organizers: Alexey Kozlov (Higher School of Economics, Moscow), Ksenia Shagal (University of Helsinki)
Contact person: Ksenia Shagal (ksenia.shagal@gmail.com)