Dogon Languages and Linguistics (original) (raw)
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Descriptions of Niger-Congo languages consistently remark on Dogon’s lack of noun classes as evidence for its outlier status (Hepburn-Gray 2020, Creissels 2019, Dimmendaal 2008; 2011, Bendor-Samuel et al. 1989). On the other hand, as Güldemann (2018) notes based on Heath's (2015) description of Najamba, this one Dogon language shows clear evidence of a relatively robust noun class system. Unpublished data from Kindige are provided here following a recent presentation (to be uploaded separately) on computer-assisted approaches to noun class detection among Dogon languages as a group. Please note that these data are very preliminary with many gaps that require confirmation of transcriptions, especially with respect to tonal melodies.
Cognitive Set and Lexicalization Strategy in Dogon Action Verbs
Anthropological Linguistics, 2009
Dogon languages lexicalize action verbs with obligatory reference to manner and/or process. This contrasts with English and "Standard Average European," which (in neutral contexts) profile result and/or function. Many common English verbs like carry and eat correspond to sets of Dogon verbs with senses like 'carry on back' and 'munch'. The pattern cuts across many semantic domains and constitutes a generalized lexicalization strategy, which suggests that Dogon speakers, on the one hand, and speakers of English and "Standard Average European," on the other, have distinct cognitive orientations toward observable actions. A number of explanatory frameworks are available to account for these cultural differences.
The oral history of Dogon villages and migrations' to Dogon Plateau
The oral history of Dogon villages and migrations’ to Dogon Plateau, 2018
For citation: Kutsenkov P. A. The oral history of Dogon villages and migrations’ to Dogon Plateau. Vestnik of Saint Petersburg University. Asian and African Studies, 2018, vol. 10, issue 3, pp. 330–339. https://doi.org/10.21638/spbu13.2018.304 Despite the increased attention to the Dogon by anthropologists and ethnologists, there are many " white spots " in the history and ethnography of this people. For example, not so long ago it was believed that they speak six languages; then their number grew steadily, and now linguists number already thirty Dogon languages, conditionally united in the family of Dogon languages of the macro-family of Niger-Congo; it is possible that there are even more of them. The history of migrations on the Bandiagara Highlands and the adjoining plains also remains poorly understood. All existing hypotheses, one way or another, based on oral traditions (often without specifying the informant and/or source). Only to a small extent are they based on archaeological data. In addition to the " common Dogon " historical tradition, which states that this people came to the Plateau around the turn of the 16 th century, there are historical legends of individual villages, their neighbourhoods and even families. They can be very different from the 'general' version. From this point of view, two oral histories of the village of Endé are of great interest. Based on the analysis of these legends, it is possible to draw with all possible caution a preliminary conclusion that the Dogon country was populated in two stages: the first one falling between the 10 th and the 13 th centuries, and the second between the 15 th and the 19 th centuries. In all examined villages exists the same model of relations between the local population and the aliens: the new group usurps political and military power and gives the old population its clan name, but itself adopts its language and culture. Such relations designed to prevent possible conflicts. The article based on an analysis of the Dogon oral history collected during field research between 2015–2018.
Methodological Thoughts from the Linguistic Field
k@ta, 2009
Data are the heart and soul of any linguistic research. Regardless of how incisive an analysis might be, or how clever, it can never be any better than the data it is based upon. For the field linguist gathering data, important considerations include the selection of informants, the number of informants selection, and data collection techniques.