Finite-state methods in natural language processing and mathematics of language. Introduction to the special issue

Abstract

For more than half a century, finite-state methods and mathematical linguistics have benefitted from a close relation and fruitful interaction. Both research fields aim to achieve a deeper understanding of human language by means of mathematical techniques. For the automated processing of language by computers such a mathematical basis is an indispensable prerequisite. Historically, the goal pursued by mathematical linguists to formalize natural language syntax in a computer-accessible way was one of the strongest driving forces behind the development of finite-state methods. Thus, it is no exaggeration to say that the field of finite-state methods owes its existence to a large extent to mathematical linguistics. In turn, continued research on finite-state methods has resulted in a categorization of various kinds of language classes and language aspects, together with efficient and provably correct algorithms, thus expanding our understanding of the mathematical properties of language.