Evans G . Mecha | Kisii University (original) (raw)

Papers by Evans G . Mecha

Skase Journal of Theoretical Linguistics, 2024

In this paper, we examine wrangle discourse in EkeGusii, a Kenyan Bantu language, from a cognitiv... more In this paper, we examine wrangle discourse in EkeGusii, a Kenyan Bantu language, from a cognitive perspective. A verbal combatant confronts an opponent in a war of words. This picture is usually contemporaneously reciprocal with spontaneous switching of roles. Our focus is on the use of impolite language in the form of insults from the assaulter's point of view, and we proceed to analyze data elicited through native speaker intuition and introspection. We aim to demonstrate the robustness of related theories within the cognitive enterprise, including conceptual metaphor, metonymy, mental spaces, blending and disintegration, in accounting for linguistic data. Most of the research on EkeGusii is limited to conceptual metaphor, yet it is fairly shy of engaging theoretical apparatus in data analysis. Notably, the language of insults in the sense of combat has received little attention in EkeGusii language, a crucial part of cultural examination that may inform future investigations. We explore the misconceptions associated with disability, explore the analysis of sarcastic and ironic language in the light of blending theory, and show the essence of looking beyond conceptual metaphor. Our findings reveal that wrangle discourse can be described elegantly by engaging an amalgam of conceptual metaphor, metonymy, mental spaces, integration, and disintegration.

This paper deals with how focus, which is mapped to a Focus Phrase(FP), is encoded in simplex Eke... more This paper deals with how focus, which is mapped to a Focus Phrase(FP), is encoded in simplex EkeGusii declarative sentences. Quantifiers and arguments realized in the subject position seem to be sructurally ambiguos between a an in situ and ex situ focus marking, however in this paper the ex situ pattern in which all the focssed constructions in the Determiner Phrase are moved to the CP, which is a criterial position, is preffered. The main verb and the predicate complements (objects, oblique, adverbials etc.) in EkeGusii are displaced from the complement of the v’P position to a FocP in the CP, or to a hijacked/stranded position, a FocP within the IP Phase, imediately before the verb (IBV) position. The focus displacement patterns to the two stipulated positions are monosemous, that is, they receive the same interpretation and obey the principles of focus projection and the minimal link condition by responding to the operation attract, with the exception of the in situ case...

Jadavpur Journal of Languages and Linguistics, 2019

This paper deals with how focus, which is mapped to a Focus Phrase(FP), is encoded in simplex Eke... more This paper deals with how focus, which is mapped to a Focus
Phrase(FP), is encoded in simplex EkeGusii declarative
sentences. Quantifiers and arguments realized in the
subject position seem to be sructurally ambiguos between a
an in situ and ex situ focus marking, however in this paper
the ex situ pattern in which all the focssed constructions in
the Determiner Phrase are moved to the CP, which is a
criterial position, is preffered. The main verb and the
predicate complements (objects, oblique, adverbials etc.) in
EkeGusii are displaced from the complement of the v’P
position to a FocP in the CP, or to a hijacked/stranded
position, a FocP within the IP Phase, imediately before the
verb (IBV) position. The focus displacement patterns to the
two stipulated positions are monosemous, that is, they
receive the same interpretation and obey the principles of
focus projection and the minimal link condition by
responding to the operation attract, with the exception of
the in situ case of the indirect object, whose movement
blocked by the realization of a focus marked element in IBV
position. The in situ and the stranded focus pattern exhibit
interpretational mismatches,

This paper gives the distributional characteristics of coordinate elliptical constructions in Eke... more This paper gives the distributional characteristics of coordinate elliptical constructions in EkeGusii. The syntax of the constructions is given using a Phase theoretic approach, one of the current theoretical constructs within the Minimalist Program. The Phase sliding theory is then tested for its efficacy to handle some cases of coordinate ellipsis.

The formalization of the syntax-semantics interface in natural and formal languages subsumes a nu... more The formalization of the syntax-semantics interface in natural and formal languages subsumes a number of homomorphisms which are assumed to exist which should be tested and made explicit in Algebraic Linguistic systems. This paper examines selected grammar formalisms in philosophy (model theory) and mainstream linguistics (especially in Generative Grammars). Homomorphisms in the algebraic systems are subject to metaphysical and epistemological assumptions of full or partial access to reality. The paper argues that the homomorphisms should be partial due to the hierarchical nature of linguistic subconstituents in the syntax which are antisymmetrical, and should be implemented entirely using partial algebras in order to meet the constraint of compositionality.This paper notes the failure of some systems to account for the assymetries between perception and reality which are implied by the notions of homomorphisms espoused with reference to analytic and generative context free and context sensitive grammars.

The work explores how the pragmatic functions, topic and focus, influence the formal organization... more The work explores how the pragmatic functions, topic and focus, influence the formal organization and content of two discoursal components: word order, and referential coherence, based on Ekegusii, a Bantu language spoken in Kenya. It uses an eclectic approach in describing the role of information structure in Ekegusii. Lambrecht’s model of Information Structure and Bidirectional Optimality Theory are used to capture both production and comprehension aspects in discourse. It demonstrates that information structural constraints at the sentential level mainly influence the information state of both canonical and non-canonical constructions word orders. Information structure influences the interpretation, through the pragmatic structuring of propositions, helping the hearer differentiate what is information (focus) in relation to a given topic, and this may induce movement, insertion or deletion of some sentential constituents. Information structure also interacts with referential coherence: alternative ways of coherently referring to participants using nominal expressions in the roles of grammatical subject object and oblique depend on pragmatic functions.

Nairobi Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, Oct 22, 2019

This paper analyzes the vowel lengths of Ekegusii, a Bantu language spoken in southwestern Lake R... more This paper analyzes the vowel lengths of Ekegusii, a Bantu language spoken in southwestern Lake Region of Kenya. Orthographically, the Ekegusii language reveals only five vowels as a, e, i, o, and u. However, pioneering researchers like Guthrie (1948) and Whiteley (1965) have shown that the language has a seven vowel system /a, e, ɛ, i, o, ɔ, u/. These researches and many later researches such as Osinde (1988), Bosire (1993), Cammenga (2002), Nurse and Gerard (2003), and Mecha (2006) among others relied upon impression to identify and describe the vowels. Of recent, however, it has become necessary to use modern scientific acoustic methods of speech analysis to confirm earlier claims about the vowels in the language. In this research, we used Praat Software (Boersma & Weenink 2010) to identify and analyze the vowel system of Ekegusii. Results indicate that vowel length is distinctive in the language. Since vowel duration is phonemic in the language, then the vowels are fourteen as ...

Macrolinguistics

This study analyses locus equations and regression lines relating to second and third formants as... more This study analyses locus equations and regression lines relating to second and third formants as a measure of co-articulatory influence of vowels following stop consonants in EkeGusii. Coarticulation can be represented statistically using a schematic representation of locus equations by tracking consonant-vowel (CV) transition as a useful tool in the discrimination of place of articulation. Acoustic data was collected using Praat version 6.0 from four males and four females, native speakers of EkeGusii. Locus equations for the eight speakers were derived from CV words with intervocalic voiceless bilabial /p/, voiceless alveolar /t/ and voiceless velar /k/ preceding vowel /i/, /a/ and /o/ contexts. Scatter plots of locus equation of F2 and F3 onsets-F2 and F3 midpoints revealed patterns for each of the three voiceless stops in EkeGusii. The strongest degree of coarticulation is reported for velars then bilabials and the least degree of coarticulation with alveolars.

Macrolinguistics

The paper examines some doctrines of the Davidsonian Programme of truth conditional Semantics tha... more The paper examines some doctrines of the Davidsonian Programme of truth conditional Semantics that relates truth to meaning using Tarski’s T-Convention, in relation to its efficacy in a semantic valuation of the EkeGusii proverb: Nda ’indongi ereta morogi ereta moibi which exemplifies a kind of complex sentence that a given system of Semantics is meant to account for. The coverage of Davidsonian truth-conditional notion of T-convention and that of compositionality are considered to have only a partial reach in accounting for the meaning of the proverb by not incorporating pragmatic aspects. The failure of T-convention is not alleviated by the adoption of radical interpretation as posited by Davidson but is extended to consider aspects of pragmatic enrichment and dynamic Semantics.

Macrolinguistics, 2021

This paper mainly presents evidence for a relationship between language structure and meaning in ... more This paper mainly presents evidence for a relationship between language structure and meaning in EkeGusii, a Bantu language spoken in Kenya. The main argument is that the structure of language mirrors the structure of reality. A brief overview of other scholars demonstrates that diagrammatic iconicity shows universal tendencies. Five main ideas run down the discussion. Firstly, in EkeGusii, speakers sub-consciously cluster sounds around related meanings, evidencing gestalt and relative iconicity. Secondly, there is evidence of overlap of morphological and phonetic iconicity, an aspect of phonaesthesia. Thirdly, reduplication in certain infinitives demonstrates the reality of phono-iconicity in EkeGusii, augmented by unpleasant sound sequences. Fourthly, certain onomatopes in EkeGusii are actually diagrammatic, indicating that there is no one stop criterion for classifying overlapping types of icons. And finally, the paper posits that iconicity intersects with arbitrariness showing t...

Macrolinguistics, 2019

This study describes the vowel system of EkeGusii ("Bantu E.42")(Guthrie, 1948) in an acoustic ph... more This study describes the vowel system of EkeGusii ("Bantu E.42")(Guthrie, 1948) in an acoustic phonetics perspective using oral data got from purposively sampled subjects: four adult males, four adult females and four children (two boys and two girls all 8 years old) equally from the two dialects of EkeGusii (EkeMaate and EkeRogoro Dialects). In order to capture the distribution characteristics of the vowel acoustic concentration, the group frequency means are normalized using Lobanov's (1971) algorithm. Two viewpoints are the subjects of analysis in EkeGusii vowels: (a) acoustic vowel space as projected by the intersection of F2 vs. F1 or quadrilateral, and (b) spatial features of high, low, front and back. These qualities are mainly influenced by the physiology of speakers and social variability as occasioned by gender, age and dialect. The results indicate that children have no gender difference in formants, and have the highest frequencies for all formants, followed by adult females and then adult males. Furthermore, acoustic vowel space and spatial features are affected by gender, age, and dialect. A vowel pattern, replicated by all informants, is realized in the dispersion of the vowels within the chart influenced by gender and age. This study found out that EkeGusii seems to adopt a seven-vowel system of /i e ɛ a ɔ o u/ with a length contrast.

Journal of Cognitive Science, 2016

Words or phrasal constructions are indicative of the way given communities experience and perceiv... more Words or phrasal constructions are indicative of the way given communities experience and perceive their environment and exploit it to create meaning. Meanings arise from creative cognitive processing of which polysemisation, which involves in some way mapping of conceptual blends or integration, is one of the means employed. This study investigates cases of double entendre, a form of polysemisation, in EkeGusii with the aim of accounting for the cognitive processes entailed in the conceptualization of the natal process (or the maternity cycle) of human beings using conceptual integration theory. Corpora for this study were elicited from two EkeGusii FM stations and analysed based on the cognitive linguistic theory of Conceptual Blending. The information gathered in this study could enrich EkeGusii semantics and understanding of the conceptual component of the speakers of the language in order to make a contribution to the teaching of the language and its maintenance.

Proceedings of 129th The IIER International Conference, 2017

Macrolinguistics, 2019

Jadavpur Journal of Languages and Linguistics, 2019

This paper mainly presents evidence for a relationship between language structure and meaning in ... more This paper mainly presents evidence for a relationship between language structure and meaning in EkeGusii, a Bantu language spoken in Kenya. The main argument is that the structure of language mirrors the structure of reality. A brief overview of other scholars demonstrates that diagrammatic iconicity shows universal tendencies. Five main ideas run down the discussion. Firstly, in EkeGusii, speakers subconsciously cluster sounds around related meanings, evidencing gestalt and relative iconicity. Secondly, there is evidence of overlap of morphological and phonetic iconicity, an aspect of phonaesthesia. Thirdly, reduplication in certain infinitives demonstrates the reality of phono-iconicity in EkeGusii, augmented by unpleasant sound sequences. Fourthly, certain onomatopes in EkeGusii are actually diagrammatic, indicating that there is no one stop criterion for classifying overlapping types of icons. And finally, the paper posits that iconicity intersects with arbitrariness showing that language has both motivated and discrete symbols.

The paper examines some doctrines of the Davidsonian Programme of truth conditional Semantics tha... more The paper examines some doctrines of the Davidsonian Programme of truth conditional Semantics that relates truth to meaning using Tarski's T-Convention, in relation to its efficacy in a semantic valuation of the EkeGusii proverb: Nda 'indongi ereta morogi ereta moibi which exemplifies a kind of complex sentence that a given system of Semantics is meant to account for. The coverage of Davidsonian truth-conditional notion of T-convention and that of compositionality are considered to have only a partial reach in accounting for the meaning of the proverb by not incorporating pragmatic aspects. The failure of T-convention is not alleviated by the adoption of radical interpretation as posited by Davidson but is extended to consider aspects of pragmatic enrichment and dynamic Semantics.

Skase Journal of Theoretical Linguistics, 2024

Jadavpur Journal of Languages and Linguistics, 2019

This paper deals with how focus, which is mapped to a Focus Phrase(FP), is encoded in simplex Eke... more This paper deals with how focus, which is mapped to a Focus
Phrase(FP), is encoded in simplex EkeGusii declarative
sentences. Quantifiers and arguments realized in the
subject position seem to be sructurally ambiguos between a
an in situ and ex situ focus marking, however in this paper
the ex situ pattern in which all the focssed constructions in
the Determiner Phrase are moved to the CP, which is a
criterial position, is preffered. The main verb and the
predicate complements (objects, oblique, adverbials etc.) in
EkeGusii are displaced from the complement of the v’P
position to a FocP in the CP, or to a hijacked/stranded
position, a FocP within the IP Phase, imediately before the
verb (IBV) position. The focus displacement patterns to the
two stipulated positions are monosemous, that is, they
receive the same interpretation and obey the principles of
focus projection and the minimal link condition by
responding to the operation attract, with the exception of
the in situ case of the indirect object, whose movement
blocked by the realization of a focus marked element in IBV
position. The in situ and the stranded focus pattern exhibit
interpretational mismatches,

Nairobi Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, Oct 22, 2019

Macrolinguistics

Macrolinguistics, 2021

Macrolinguistics, 2019

Journal of Cognitive Science, 2016

Proceedings of 129th The IIER International Conference, 2017

Macrolinguistics, 2019

Jadavpur Journal of Languages and Linguistics, 2019

This paper mainly presents evidence for a relationship between language structure and meaning in ... more This paper mainly presents evidence for a relationship between language structure and meaning in EkeGusii, a Bantu language spoken in Kenya. The main argument is that the structure of language mirrors the structure of reality. A brief overview of other scholars demonstrates that diagrammatic iconicity shows universal tendencies. Five main ideas run down the discussion. Firstly, in EkeGusii, speakers subconsciously cluster sounds around related meanings, evidencing gestalt and relative iconicity. Secondly, there is evidence of overlap of morphological and phonetic iconicity, an aspect of phonaesthesia. Thirdly, reduplication in certain infinitives demonstrates the reality of phono-iconicity in EkeGusii, augmented by unpleasant sound sequences. Fourthly, certain onomatopes in EkeGusii are actually diagrammatic, indicating that there is no one stop criterion for classifying overlapping types of icons. And finally, the paper posits that iconicity intersects with arbitrariness showing that language has both motivated and discrete symbols.

The paper examines some doctrines of the Davidsonian Programme of truth conditional Semantics tha... more The paper examines some doctrines of the Davidsonian Programme of truth conditional Semantics that relates truth to meaning using Tarski's T-Convention, in relation to its efficacy in a semantic valuation of the EkeGusii proverb: Nda 'indongi ereta morogi ereta moibi which exemplifies a kind of complex sentence that a given system of Semantics is meant to account for. The coverage of Davidsonian truth-conditional notion of T-convention and that of compositionality are considered to have only a partial reach in accounting for the meaning of the proverb by not incorporating pragmatic aspects. The failure of T-convention is not alleviated by the adoption of radical interpretation as posited by Davidson but is extended to consider aspects of pragmatic enrichment and dynamic Semantics.