Abstract
The container-content relation represents a set of nominal configurations unexplored in the acquisition literature. Whereas in English the switch from a noun-noun compound (water bottle) to a noun-prepositional phrase (bottle of water) is associated with a semantic shift from container to content, Spanish and Arabic adopt single canonical configurations for both conditions, noun-prepositional phrase and noun phrase, respectively. Importantly, Spanish, Arabic, and English display structural overlap in the content condition maintained by head-first isomorphic strings. In the container condition, they show structural dissimilarity; whereas English uses a head-final construction, Arabic and Spanish consistently use head-first constructions. Results from an elicited sentence-reordering task demonstrate that advanced late learners pattern native speakers when tested in Spanish but not when tested in English. Additionally, when tested in English, Arabic-speaking and Spanish-speaking learners overextend their L1 canonical configurations to both conditions. Furthermore, bilingual native speakers do not perform at ceiling, suggesting bidirectional cross-linguistic influence.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 411-445 |
| Number of pages | 35 |
| Journal | Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism |
| Volume | 8 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2018 |
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Keywords
- Bidirectional cross-linguistic influence
- Container-content relation
- Structural overlap
- Syntax-semantics interface
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Language and Linguistics
- Linguistics and Language
Cite this
Bidirectional cross-linguistic influence in late Bilingualism evidence from the container-content relatio. / Azaz, Mahmoud; Frank, Joshua.
In: Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism, Vol. 8, No. 4, 01.01.2018, p. 411-445.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Bidirectional cross-linguistic influence in late Bilingualism evidence from the container-content relatio
AU - Azaz, Mahmoud
AU - Frank, Joshua
PY - 2018/1/1
Y1 - 2018/1/1
N2 - The container-content relation represents a set of nominal configurations unexplored in the acquisition literature. Whereas in English the switch from a noun-noun compound (water bottle) to a noun-prepositional phrase (bottle of water) is associated with a semantic shift from container to content, Spanish and Arabic adopt single canonical configurations for both conditions, noun-prepositional phrase and noun phrase, respectively. Importantly, Spanish, Arabic, and English display structural overlap in the content condition maintained by head-first isomorphic strings. In the container condition, they show structural dissimilarity; whereas English uses a head-final construction, Arabic and Spanish consistently use head-first constructions. Results from an elicited sentence-reordering task demonstrate that advanced late learners pattern native speakers when tested in Spanish but not when tested in English. Additionally, when tested in English, Arabic-speaking and Spanish-speaking learners overextend their L1 canonical configurations to both conditions. Furthermore, bilingual native speakers do not perform at ceiling, suggesting bidirectional cross-linguistic influence.
AB - The container-content relation represents a set of nominal configurations unexplored in the acquisition literature. Whereas in English the switch from a noun-noun compound (water bottle) to a noun-prepositional phrase (bottle of water) is associated with a semantic shift from container to content, Spanish and Arabic adopt single canonical configurations for both conditions, noun-prepositional phrase and noun phrase, respectively. Importantly, Spanish, Arabic, and English display structural overlap in the content condition maintained by head-first isomorphic strings. In the container condition, they show structural dissimilarity; whereas English uses a head-final construction, Arabic and Spanish consistently use head-first constructions. Results from an elicited sentence-reordering task demonstrate that advanced late learners pattern native speakers when tested in Spanish but not when tested in English. Additionally, when tested in English, Arabic-speaking and Spanish-speaking learners overextend their L1 canonical configurations to both conditions. Furthermore, bilingual native speakers do not perform at ceiling, suggesting bidirectional cross-linguistic influence.
KW - Bidirectional cross-linguistic influence
KW - Container-content relation
KW - Structural overlap
KW - Syntax-semantics interface
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U2 - 10.1075/lab.15012.aza
DO - 10.1075/lab.15012.aza
M3 - Review article
VL - 8
SP - 411
EP - 445
JO - Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism
JF - Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism
SN - 1879-9264
IS - 4
ER -