Subject: new book : bantu language

bantu language hyman , larry m . ( university of california , berkeley ) and kisseberth , charles w . ( tel aviv university ) ; theoretical aspects of bantu tone ; isbn : 1-57586 - 094 - 5 ( paper ) , 1-57586 - 095 - 3 ( cloth ) ; csli publications 1998 : http : / / csli-www . stanford . edu / publications / email : pubs @ roslin . stanford . edu . this book brings together a collection of papers focusing on the tonal systems of the bantu languages of sub - saharan africa . these papers are alike in their attempt to fuse the description of bantu tone with linguistic theory , but at the same time reflect a range of such theoretical perspectives ( autosegmental phonology , lexical phonology , optimality theory , optimal domains theory ) . much new descriptive material is to be found in this collection , as well as attempts to bring bantu tonology to bear on critical issues of phonological theory . this collection of papers stands as a testimony to the benefits to be gained from the marriage of theory and description . this book provides new theoretical insights and analyses of the complexities known to characterize bantu tone systems . three of the articles indicate not only how one can apply the concepts of rapidly developing optimality theory , but also how the latter can be shaped by the unique features found in these languages . while two of the contributions use standard ot , the third by cassimjee and kisseberth provides a detailed introduction of optimal domains theory ( odt ) and its application to a number of bantu tone systems . these and other articles provide new insights into the treatment of long-distance tonal effects , tonal domains , depressor consonants , and other issues known through the autosegmental and metrical literature on tone . the collection features contributors from both sides of the atlantic and contributions that have both synchronic and diachronic significance for the field . * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * csli publications ventura hall stanford university stanford , ca 94305-4115 telephone ( 650 ) 723-1839 fax ( 650 ) 725-2166 http : / / csli-www . stanford . edu / publications
