Unravelling the potential emergence of a fused lect

<p>Data from the transcript of a public meeting are used to examine patterns of code switching in Tiwi, a head-marking polysynthetic language of northern Australia where an N-V mixed language has emerged among younger speakers (Lee 1987, McConvell 2008). McConvell’s theory predicts that code switching behavior should reflect the same center of gravity principles as found in the resulting mixed language. In particular, a head-marking language like Tiwi should most commonly provide the verbal part of code-switched utterances. Although the corpus used here is too small to draw definitive conclusions, the data do not support the supposed connections between morphological typology, code switching, and mixed language genesis. Reasonable interpretations of the data show no preference for code switching that retains Tiwi’s verbal subsystem, as predicted by McConvell’s center of gravity model.</p>

BackgroundModels of infectious disease increasingly seek to incorporate heterogeneity of social interactions to more accurately characterise disease spread. We measured attributes of social encounters in two areas of Greater Melbourne, using a telephone survey.MethodsA market research company conducted computer assisted telephone interviews (CATIs) of residents of the Boroondara and Hume local government areas (LGAs), which differ markedly in ethnic composition, age distribution and household socioeconomic status. Survey items included household demographic and socio-economic characteristics, locations visited during the preceding day, and social encounters involving two-way conversation or physical contact. Descriptive summary measures were reported and compared using weight adjusted Wald tests of group means.ResultsThe overall response rate was 37.6 %, higher in Boroondara [n = 650, (46 %)] than Hume [n = 657 (32 %)]. Survey conduct through the CATI format was challenging, with implications for representativeness and data quality. Marked heterogeneity of encounter profiles was observed across age groups and locations. Household settings afforded greatest opportunity for prolonged close contact, particularly between women and children. Young and middle-aged men reported more age-assortative mixing, often with non-household members. Preliminary comparisons between LGAs suggested that mixing occurred in different settings. In addition, gender differences in mixing with household and non-household members, including strangers, were observed by area.ConclusionsSurvey administration by CATI was challenging, but rich data were obtained, revealing marked heterogeneity of social behaviour. Marked dissimilarities in patterns of prolonged close mixing were demonstrated by gender. In addition, preliminary observations of between-area differences in socialisation warrant further evaluation.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12879-015-1237-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

PurposeThe prognostic and therapeutic power of special histological subtypes in breast cancer in pure form or in combination with other histological subtypes is still not established, and diagnostic guidelines are cautious regarding prognostic power based on the histological subtype alone. Therapy decisions are guided in most cases independently of the histological subtype and are directed by biomarkers and tumor stage. In this study, we analyzed a comprehensive large retrospective breast cancer cohort with a special focus on histological subtype (other than ductal non-special type or lobular carcinoma) and correlated pure or mixed histological forms with pathological tumor stage and overall disease-free survival.Materials and methodsA total of 827 breast cancer cases with pure or mixed special histological types were retrospectively analyzed. Survival information was available in 645 of 827 cases.ResultsA total of 293 cases had pure forms, and 534 cases had mixed histological subtypes. The most common pure special types were mucinous (23.9%), micropapillary (21.2%), high-grade metaplastic (13%), male breast cancer (8.2%), cribriform (6.8%), metastases (6.1%), apocrine and papillary (each 5.46%), NST with medullary and clear cell pattern (up to 3.4%) and high-grade neuroendocrine carcinomas (2.7%). Mixed forms were most frequently encountered in NST carcinomas with micropapillary components (41.8%), followed by mucinous (9.93%) and cribriform (6.74%) mixed patterns. In univariate analysis, no pure form had prognostic relevance compared with any mixed form with the basic pure element. Pooling pure histological subtypes with tumor stage and age in a linear random-effects model, the cribriform subtype had the most favorable prognosis, while male breast cancer showed the poorest outcome (p < 0.001). All other frequent pure forms had intermediate prognostic power (p < 0.001).ConclusionOur results show that the analyzed special histological breast cancer subtypes (other than ductal and lobular carcinomas) do not carry prognostic information alone, either in pure form or in any combination with other subtypes. Prognostic groups including special subtypes, however, can strongly stratify breast cancer if tumor stage, age and biomarkers are included in the prognostic measurements.

This research work studied the use of English, Thai and images on Thai magazine covers in meaning making on 24 Thai magazine covers (Praew) by analyzing language use with Systemic Functional Linguistics and Multimodal Analysis, examining the pattern of language mixing and tracing how image and language worked together to make meaning through the lens of Multimodal Analysis. It was found that Praew magazine covers made meanings in three layers including discourse semantics, lexico-grammar and display. Each of these layers saw language, language mixing and image-language intersemiosis as sources of meanings.The discourse semantics level saw the use of elaboration and extension for textual meaning, and synomyny and repetition for experiential meaning most. These were also where language mixing occurred most. Lexico-image cross referencing appeared 25 times mostly between the cover figure and the main cover-figure-explanation sub-headline. On the lexico-grammar level, language was manifested mostly in the forms of complement (mood structure), goal (transitivity structure) and rheme (theme structure). Again, these were also where language mixing occurred. Semiotic metaphor was used 26 times, majorly between the cover figure and part of the main headline. On the display level, the typographic features of typeface and color were mostly chosen to create unity (textual meaning), while font size was the main choice for salience (interpersonal meaning). The experiential meaning was based on denotation and connotation. Denotation has been identified to tell the story, advertise and set the theme of the cover and magazine. Connotation mainly involved the choice of language use, where Thai connoted national unity and respect and English the international flair and sense of quality. Language mixing was in the form of language-script combination in each micro text (headline). The most frequently occurring pattern of mix was ER, ET, TT (English in Roman script, English in Thai script, Thai in Thai script) Homospatiality showed up 4 times between graphics and part of main cover-figure-explanation headline, graphics and main cover-figure-explanation headline and graphics (encasement) and advertisements.The patterns in the three layers above implied that the magazine aimed at communicating while saving space, maximizing understanding, looking cosmopolitan, retaining Thainess and being informal.

This study investigates the phenomenon of linguistic whateverism among Bosnian high school students, focusing on the usage of English loanwords in everyday speech. A survey was conducted to assess the prevalence, frequency, and contextual factors influencing the integration of Anglicisms into Bosnian language use. The findings reveal that 71.5% of participants incorporate English words into their conversations, primarily in informal settings and often when communicating with peers who possess similar English proficiency. While many students display a relaxed attitude toward language mixing, with 72.6% expressing indifference towards the use of English in Bosnian, a significant portion (67.0%) expresses concern over the potential erosion of the Bosnian language. The analysis indicates that the influence of English is particularly strong in contexts related to technology and social media, suggesting a shift towards linguistic pragmatism among youth. Despite the high acceptance of Anglicisms, there remains a notable desire to preserve the integrity of the Bosnian language. These findings underscore the complexity of language evolution in a globalized context and highlight the need for ongoing dialogue about linguistic identity and cultural preservation among young speakers.

The Tanka people, colloquially known as the “boat people”, are primarily located in Southeast China. Over time, their transition from a maritime to a land-based lifestyle has significantly influenced the languages they speak, particularly through contact with dominant languages such as Cantonese and Hakka. Despite this, the Tanka language in Hong Kong remains under-researched and is now endangered, with its use rapidly declining. To fill this research gap, this study examined the linguistic interactions between the Tanka language and Cantonese in Hong Kong, focusing on phonological and lexical aspects. The study yielded several key findings. First, a comparative analysis of the phonological systems of the Tanka language and Cantonese revealed striking differences in their rhyme patterns and tone evolution from Middle Chinese. These findings underscore significant phonological distinctions between the two languages. However, despite these differences, Tanka and Cantonese speakers can generally comprehend each other due to a shared linguistic structure. Second, a lexical comparison of the Tanka language, Cantonese, and Mandarin demonstrated a considerable connection between the Tanka language and Cantonese, especially among the younger speakers. This generational influence highlights the impact of Cantonese on the Tanka language. In contrast, the Tanka vocabulary diverged significantly from Mandarin, reflecting a unique linguistic development influenced by its historical and social context, while showing greater convergence with Cantonese due to prolonged contact and shared regional influences. Understanding the interplay between the Tanka language and Cantonese provides valuable insights into the origins of the Tanka people. It also contributes to a broader understanding of the typological characteristics of Sinitic languages in Southeast China.

Background The factors that contribute to language alternation by bilingual speakers with aphasia have been debated. Some studies suggest that atypical language mixing results from impairments in language control, while others posit that mixing is a way to enhance communicative effectiveness. To address this question, most prior research examined the appropriateness of language mixing in connected speech tasks. Aims The goal of this study was to provide new insight into the question whether language mixing in aphasia reflects a strategy to enhance verbal effectiveness or involuntary behaviour resulting from impaired language control. Methods & procedures Semi-structured web-based interviews with bilingual speakers with aphasia (N = 19) with varying language backgrounds were conducted. The interviews were transcribed and coded for: (1) Self-reports regarding language control and compensation, (2) instances of language mixing, and (3) in two cases, instances of repair initiation. Outcomes & results The results showed that several participants reported language control difficulties but that the knowledge of additional languages could also be recruited to compensate for lexical retrieval problems. Most participants showed no or very few instances of mixing and the observed mixes appeared to adhere to the pragmatic context and known functions of switching. Three participants exhibited more marked switching behaviour and reported corresponding difficulties with language control. Instances of atypical mixing did not coincide with clear problems initiating conversational repair. Conclusions Our study highlights the variability in language mixing patterns of bilingual speakers with aphasia. Furthermore, most of the individuals in the study appeared to be able to effectively control their languages, and to alternate between their languages for compensatory purposes. Control deficits resulting in atypical language mixing were observed in a small number of participants.

Due to the intensive and extensive contact of Belarusian and Russian, mixed Belarusian-Russian speech is a widespread phenomenon in the linguistic landscape of Belarus today. Along with features on other linguistic levels, phonetic-phonological features that differ between both languages appear as variants in such mixed speech. This paper reports an acoustical analysis of three sibilant variables (sj), (tj) and (ʧ j) in instances of mixed speech spoken by 27 speakers. For (sj) and (tj), Center of Gravity calculations suggest a more posterior place of articulation for older speakers and a less posterior one for younger speakers. This is interpreted as a shift towards a more Russian-like pronunciation of younger speakers, which can be explained by an earlier and more intensive exposure to Russian. While no such intergenerational difference is found for (ʧ j), there is a relation between the realization of the two affricates (tj) and (ʧ j), suggesting some general principle of keeping distances between sibilants large enough.

In bilingual contact environments, personal pronoun systems are relatively impervious to replacement or borrowing. Several Creole languages contain hybrid personal pronoun paradigms, but the language contact environments that resulted in creolization and mixed pronominal systems are no longer in effect, and the mechanisms of pronominal replacement remain unknown. The present analysis is based on data from Zamboangueño Chabacano, a variety of Philippine Creole Spanish that has already undergone at least one set of pronominal replacements in its history, substituting Spanish-derived plural pronouns with pronouns taken from Philippine languages. Due to recent migration, Zamboangueño Chabacano is now in contact with Tagalog, and younger speakers are incorporating the Tagalog second-person singular respect-neutral pronoun ikaw into the Chabacano system. The insertion of ikaw restores the respectful–respect-neutral pronominal distinction originally present in Spanish and found in Philippine languages but lacking in Chabacano. The ease with which a Tagalog pronoun is entering Chabacano is attributed to long-standing popular views that Zamboangueño Chabacano is already a mixed-up language—often regarded as “broken Spanish”—devoid of its own grammar and therefore readily susceptible to any and all intrusions. The use of ikaw as an in-group marker among Zamboangueño youth further aids the addition of the Tagalog pronoun to the Chabacano paradigm.

Speakers in a Warlpiri community in northern Australia are participants in a complex multilingual situation in which there has been a dramatic change in the last thirty years. Children, and adults under approximately age 30, now speak a new bilingual mixed language as the language of their everyday communication. The new language, Light Warlpiri, systematically combines elements from the variety of Warlpiri spoken in Lajamanu (Lajamanu Warlpiri) and Aboriginal English or Kriol (an English-lexified creole). Both Lajamanu Warlpiri and Light Warlpiri are learned and spoken in the community. In both languages grammatical relations are indicated by an ergative-absolutive casemarking system on overt agents and a nominative-accusative system of bound pronouns, and both show variable word order. But in Light Warlpiri ergative case-marking is optional, and word order and pragmatic factors also contribute information about indicating agents. The study shows that there has been intergenerational change in the use of ergative case-marking in Warlpiri, with younger speakers using it on agents less often than older speakers. Both children and adults use ergative marking more often on agents that are postverbal, and children produce this pattern more frequently than adults do, which suggests that they are regularizing a pattern found in adult speech.

Aims and objectives: Numerical indices developed by Guzman et al. that helped characterize code-switching (CS) patterns in Spanish–English bilingual corpora, were tested on a Hindi–English bilingual corpus. Two main research questions were addressed: first, how does Hindi–English compare with Spanish–English, and second, are there measurable differences in broad CS patterns between older and younger speakers? Methodology: Television interviews of Hindi movie (Bollywood) personalities were transcribed and coded for Hindi and English lexemes. Bespoke software in Python was used to calculate the required indices, which provided information on variables such as the level of language mixing, switching probability, and the distributions of single-language spans. Further indices, such as mean span length and an approximate ratio of insertions to alternations were also calculated. Data and analysis: The indices calculated for the Hindi–English corpus broadly match those calculated for Spanish–English. Statistically significant differences between the older and younger group were detected for some key indices, with older speakers generally using less English. High levels of intra-group variability may be responsible for some indices not showing statistically significant diachronic change. Conclusions: The Guzman et al. indices suggest that Hindi–English and Spanish–English CS resemble each other in certain ways. There have been broad changes in Hindi–English CS patterns over the last few decades, but there are indications that the CS behaviour of individual speakers might change in different ways. Originality: This is the first study to systematically and quantitatively investigate age-related differences in Hindi–English CS, using naturalistic speech in semi-controlled conditions. Implications: The quantitative indices investigated in this study can be used to compare CS behaviour in different language pairs, and can also help detect diachronic changes in CS patterns.

This paper examines the status of two languages spoken in the Andean highlands of Ecuador: Imbabura Quichua and Media Lengua. The latter is a mixed language consisting of Quichua morphosyntax, including all system morphemes, and Spanish-derived roots for all lexical items. Imbabura Media Lengua is currently spoken in three small indigenous communities, surrounded by other communities where only Quichua and Spanish are spoken. Previous descriptions of Media Lengua suggest that it may not be systematically different from Quichua but rather a last-ditch attempt by Quichua speakers to retain their language in the face of growing Hispanization. This paper provides the results of several interactive experiments conducted with Quichua–Media Lengua bilinguals, which demonstrate that the psycholinguistic boundaries between Quichua and Media Lengua are clearly delimited for most speakers. Only among the youngest speakers—most of whom have received Quichua classes in school—is there some blurring of the distinction ...

Elastolytic giant cell granuloma, an idiopathic granulomatous dermatosis, is characterized by annular plaques on sun-exposed areas, and has been termed actinic granuloma or annular elastolytic giant cell granuloma. Many atypical clinical manifestations and lesions involving sun-protected areas have been reported. The aims of this retrospective study of 105 patients were to summarize the clinical and histological features of patients with this condition; to provide evidence for the viewpoint that elastolytic giant cell granuloma is a better term to include all clinical morphological types presenting with elastolysis, elastophagocytosis, and an infiltrate of multinucleated giant cells histologically; and to establish a new clinical classification. The varying clinical manifestations were further categorized into annular, papular, giant, mixed and generalized forms. The pathological manifestations were classified into giant cell, necrobiotic, histiocytic, sarcoidal and mixed patterns. Diabetes mellitus or impaired glucose tolerance were the most commonly identified comorbidities. Oral low-dose corticosteroid may be an effective treatment.

Diffuse mixed type osseous metastases of medulloblastoma in an adult: MR imaging findings

This article presents the language of Muslim Roms, who form a trilingual community in the northeastern part of Bulgaria, discussing language mixing between Romani, Turkish, and Bulgarian, applying the model of Myers-Scotton (1993). Two different Roma linguistic groups are observed: speakers of Vlax (Zagondzi) and non-Vlax (Xoraxani). The non-Vlax language, which is full of Turkish loanwords, is more prestigious than the Vlax language, which is more conservative, but both show almost the same patterns of language mixing. The study argues for the connection between language mixing and language prestige and looks at the question: Why do Roma speakers use elements from other languages when speaking Romani?