Linguistic Fieldwork: A Practical Guide

✍ Scribed by Claire Bowern

• Year: 2008
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 267
• Edition: First Edition
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Doing field research isn't like working in the lab with chemicals: both the field worker and their consultants are real people who interact in complex ways. This book is a guide to conducting that interaction in order to produce research which benefits not only the linguistic community, but also language speakers. Given the rapidity of decline in global linguistic diversity, the next 30 years will be crucial for future knowledge of languages all over the world.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover......Page 2
Contents......Page 9
Acknowledgements......Page 13
1.1 About this book......Page 15
1.2 What is 'the field' and what is 'fieldwork'?......Page 16
1.4 Fieldwork and 'Theory'......Page 24
1.5 Fieldwork and identity......Page 26
1.6 Summary and further reading......Page 28
2.1 Why make recordings?......Page 30
2.2 Choosing recording equipment......Page 31
2.3 Computers......Page 39
2.4 Pen and paper......Page 40
2.5 Recording practicalities......Page 41
2.6 Checklist for equipment setup......Page 45
2.7 Summary and further reading......Page 46
3.1 What to do at the first session......Page 48
3.2 Discovering a phoneme inventory......Page 51
3.3 More on transcription......Page 53
3.4 Common errors and cues......Page 54
3.5 Data organization......Page 56
3.6 What to record?......Page 57
3.7 Summary and further reading......Page 58
4 Data Organization and Archiving......Page 61
4.1 Before the session......Page 63
4.2 After the session......Page 66
4.3 Software for data processing......Page 68
4.4 Metadata......Page 70
4.5 Processing field data......Page 73
4.6 Archiving......Page 74
4.7 Further reading......Page 76
5.1 Broad and narrow transcription......Page 77
5.2 Research design......Page 78
5.3 Further topics in phonetic research......Page 81
5.4 Suprasegmentals......Page 83
5.5 Further topics in phonology......Page 84
5.6 Further reading......Page 85
6.2 First elicitation of sentences......Page 87
6.3 Types of data collection......Page 91
6.4 Potential problems......Page 98
6.5 Summary......Page 105
7.1 Elicitation of paradigms......Page 107
7.2 Productivity......Page 109
7.3 Selected topics in morphology......Page 110
7.4 Handling unknown morphology......Page 114
7.5 Common problems......Page 115
7.6 Further topics in syntax and semantics......Page 116
7.7 Where to from here?......Page 119
8.1 Getting vocabulary......Page 121
8.2 Lexicon compilation......Page 122
8.3 Specific domains for lexical elicitation......Page 123
8.4 Frequent lexicographic pitfalls......Page 126
8.5 Further reading......Page 128
9.1 Working with texts......Page 129
9.2 What to do with the materials......Page 132
9.3 Discourse data......Page 135
9.4 Topics for investigation in discourse and pragmatics......Page 137
9.5 Further reading......Page 138
10.1 Field-methods classes and the field......Page 139
10.2 Choosing a field site and preparation......Page 140
10.3 Choosing a consultant......Page 144
10.4 Linguist-consultant interactions......Page 150
10.5 Working with semi-speakers......Page 151
10.6 Living in the field......Page 153
10.7 Coming back from the field......Page 159
10.8 Further reading......Page 161
11.1 Preliminaries......Page 162
11.2 Ethics of recording......Page 164
11.3 Ethics and archiving......Page 165
11.4 Acknowledging speakers......Page 166
11.5 Permissions......Page 167
11.6 Other ethical issues in research......Page 169
11.7 Payment......Page 176
11.8 Minority areas and endangered languages......Page 178
11.9 Further reading......Page 183
12.1 Steps to grant writing......Page 184
12.2 What to include in a grant application......Page 185
12.3 Budgets......Page 187
12.4 Human subjects applications......Page 191
12.5 Grant management and record keeping......Page 196
12.6 What if you can't get a grant?......Page 197
13.1 Published resources......Page 198
13.2 Other people's fieldnotes......Page 199
13.3 Recordings......Page 200
13.4 Some further comments about old records......Page 201
13.5 Preparing using others' research......Page 204
13.6 Further reading......Page 206
14.1 General issues......Page 207
14.2 Orthography design......Page 209
14.3 Learners' guides and sketch grammars......Page 212
14.4 Reference grammars......Page 213
14.5 Training community members......Page 214
14.6 Web materials......Page 215
14.7 Talking books......Page 216
14.8 Dictionaries and wordlists......Page 217
14.9 Language revitalization......Page 221
14.10 Summary and further reading......Page 223
Appendix A: Metadata Sheets......Page 225
Appendix B: Suggested Fieldwork Programme for an Undescribed Language......Page 226
Appendix C: A Basic Phonetics/Phonology Checklist......Page 227
Appendix D: A Basic Morphology/Syntax Checklist......Page 228
Appendix E: Sample Consent Form......Page 233
Appendix F: Equipment Checklist......Page 236
Appendix G: Basic Wordlist......Page 237
Notes......Page 239
References......Page 245
B......Page 256
C......Page 257
D......Page 258
F......Page 259
H......Page 260
L......Page 261
N......Page 262
P......Page 263
S......Page 264
T......Page 265
V......Page 266
Y......Page 267