Language Research

Research Paper

Analyzing the Epic Romantic Narrative Structure of "Bijan and Manijeh" and Explaining its Verbal Dimensions from the Perspective of Waltsky and Labou

Nahid Jafari

Volume 14, Issue 2 , March 2024, Pages 1-24

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2023.367328.666864

Abstract

Semiotics is a tool that can be used to examine the mechanisms of formation and production of meaning in discourses. The logical and narrative discourse is the dominant discourse on ... Read More

Research Paper

The Neural Response to the SyntacticProcessing of wh-Complements in Persian within Adult Verbal Entries, Based on Lexical-Functional Grammar

Delangiz Dalir; Mehdi Purmohammad; Arsalan Golfam; Reza Khosroabadi; Mahnaz Karbalaeisadegh

Volume 14, Issue 2 , March 2024, Pages 25-53

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2024.365010.666855

Abstract

In Persian, which adheres to an SOV word order, complement clauses or prepositional objects typically follow the direct object in their conventional position. However, there is the ... Read More In Persian, which adheres to an SOV word order, complement clauses or prepositional objects typically follow the direct object in their conventional position. However, there is the potential to move this phrase to different positions within the sentence. However, this phrase can be moved to other positions in a sentence. Multiple explanations exist for this phenomenon. One such explanation is within Lexical-Functional Grammar, suggesting that the relocated constituent finds its place within lexical entries. More specifically, event-related potential (ERP) was used to investigate this processing in the centro-parietal part of the brain (for the for N400 and P600 components) following the Friedrici model of language comprehension (1995). This research aims to investigate how wh-complement displacement in Persian is processed within the verb's lexical entry using event-related potentials, rooted in the syntactic-semantic role structure. Specifically, this study focuses on the N400 central-anterior component, as introduced by Friedrich in the field of language processing in 1995. Given Persian's rich inflection, which permits various word orders, we examined four distinct positions for complement clauses in the sentences under study, constructing 50 sentences for each condition. These sentence conditions were thoughtfully designed based on consistent word length and syntactic category. To delve deeper into the verb's lexical entry, we presented sentences in a structured format on a display screen and provided comprehensive explanations to participants before the experiment. Participants were instructed to articulate words without any lip or facial movement. Brain responses were recorded as event-related potentials during reading and subsequently analyzed using MATLAB software with EEGlaB. The results reveal that complement clause displacement triggers distinct brain responses within the lexical entry of verbs, marked by an increased N400 amplitude in the central-anterior region when the complement clause is in its canonical position. These findings lead to the conclusion that the movement of the complementizer in Persian follows a Lexical-Functional grammar within the neurophysiological model put forth by by Friedrich's model of syntactic processing .The main conclusions to be drawn from these bits of evidence are the displacement of the Wh-complement in lexical entries of verb in Persian has a neurophysiological basis.

Research Paper

Investigating Object-Oblique Alternation in Persian Aktionsart

Vali Rezai; Zhaleh Makaremi

Volume 14, Issue 2 , March 2024, Pages 55-77

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2023.354726.666825

Abstract

Object alternations involve different realizations of arguments, and are represented in three forms, including locative alternation, dative shift, and object-oblique alternation. Objects ... Read More Object alternations involve different realizations of arguments, and are represented in three forms, including locative alternation, dative shift, and object-oblique alternation. Objects in object-oblique alternation are expressed in two different structures without fundamental changes in meaning. The second participant, in a transitive predicate, is either stated in a direct object position or in a preposition construction. The present paper investigates object-oblique alternation in Persian Aktionsart, based on Role and Reference Grammar. The objective of this study is twofold; firstly, to determine the im/possibility of object-oblique alternation in different classes of verbs, and secondly, to specify various readings of this alternation in verb classes consisting of states, activities, achievements, and accomplishments. The data are extracted from Persian newspapers, websites, and daily conversations. Data analysis denotes that some state verbs, including cognition, emotion, and possession verbs can be represented in object-oblique alternation. The alternate forms of cognition and possession verbs, refer to the kind of object in question. Alternation in sub-classes of activity verbs, that is, performance and consumption verbs, display total-partial interpretation. The alternative forms of creation verbs in this class, in the case of having a non-resultative verb, denote the kind of objects in question. Directed perception verbs, regardless of the parameter of object individuation, are represented in object-oblique alternation. Some achievement verbs may also be used in this alternation. Accomplishment verbs are rarely used in object-oblique alternation, except in cases where depending on the context, total-partial interpretation is intended. Generally speaking, the predicates that undergo object-oblique alternation share some characteristics; they are mostly non-state ones, their subjects are mainly agentive, and the objects are mostly low or non-affected. Furthermore, the verbs, which are more prone to object-oblique alternation, are chiefly non-resultative, and do not lead to fundamental changes in the object.

Research Paper

Investigating the Compound Words Ended to “Negar” Stem in Persian Language: A Cognitive Approach

Zahra Hasanpuran; Ali Alizadeh

Volume 14, Issue 2 , March 2024, Pages 79-104

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2024.363973.666852

Abstract

One of the word formation processes in Persian language is the compounding process, which speakers use in a productive way to create words with new meanings. This process contains at ... Read More One of the word formation processes in Persian language is the compounding process, which speakers use in a productive way to create words with new meanings. This process contains at least two components, both of which are involved in the construction of meaning. The aim of this article is to analyze the polysemy of compound words ended to “negar” stem in Persian with a cognitive approach. This analysis is done in the framework of Booij's construction morphology theory (2010, 2016), and the data of the research is extracted from the Zansu Persian dictionary (Keshani, 1993), the dictionary of Farhangistan authorized vocabularies, and Bijankhan's corpus. According to Booij's construction morphology theory (2010, 2016), language words are linguistic constructions and these linguistic constructions are the unit of construction morphology analysis. In Booij's construction morphology theory (2010, 2016), construction schemas are patterns that clarify the form and meaning of a construction and determine how other constructions are derived from this pattern. In order to investigate the polysemy of compound words ended to the "negar" stem, first the construction schemas and sub-schemas related to these words are identified, and then their polysemy network in drawn. The results of the research show that at the lowest level of the schema network of the compound words ended to "negar" stem, there are eleven different sub-schemas, seven of which have a nominal base, and four have an adjectival base. Also, the frequency of the sub-schema with an adjective base is much lower than the frequency of the sub-scheme with a nominal base. According to the study of the body of research, the combination of a noun with the "negar" stem creates different meanings such as "writing", "describing", "studying", "depicting", and "measuring" and the meanings of "writing" and "depicting" is realized with both human and non-human agents. The combination of an adjective with the "negar" stem also creates the "depicting" meaning which is realized with two human and non-human agents. Finally, four subschemas with the meaning of "depicting with a special instrument", "depicting a person with special characteristics", "depicting with a special manner", and "depicting from a special location" are results of the hierarchical classification of the subschemas of compound words with an adjective base that ends to “negar” stem. The polysemy of compound words ended to the “negar” stem can be explained at the level of these construction schemas which are more or less abstract.

Research Paper

Determining the Typological Place of a Language on the Left/Right-Branching Spectrum

Maedeh Golchin arefi; Gholamreza Dinmohammadi

Volume 14, Issue 2 , March 2024, Pages 105-129

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2024.359837.666844

Abstract

In this article we answer two questions: first, how we can use Dryer (1992) as a tool to determine the typological place of a language in the left/right-branching spectrum. Second, ... Read More

Research Paper

Investigating the Concept of Mother Tongue in the Educational Documents and Examining its Manifestation in Society Based on the Critical Discourse Analysis Approach

Behboud Yarigholi; Roya Monsefi

Volume 14, Issue 2 , March 2024, Pages 131-160

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2024.362434.666850

Abstract

One of the most prominent features of Iranian society is its linguistic and cultural pluralism. Archaeological and historical findings prove that since thousands of years ago various ... Read More One of the most prominent features of Iranian society is its linguistic and cultural pluralism. Archaeological and historical findings prove that since thousands of years ago various ethnic groups with multiple cultures and languages have lived in Iran. The policymakers of each society adopt different approaches to the issues of linguistic and cultural diversity depending on the circumstances, which sometimes leads to challenges in different fields. Among the most challenging fields in which these issues are involved is the field of education. In such diversity, the centralized educational system becomes more apparent. Currently, there are about 200 independent countries in the world and it is estimated that there are about 4,000 to 5,000 different languages. The present study examines the position and representation of the concept of the mother tongue in educational documents and its reflection and manifestation in society based on the critical discourse analysis approach. For this purpose, the reference documents as well as the approved documents in the structure of Iran's educational system were analyzed. Then, the representation of the concept of education in the mother tongue was analyzed by considering the ideas of trustees, policymakers, politicians, and experts. With the use of a descriptive-analytical method and relying on Fairclough’s (1995) model of critical discourse analysis, the results implied that despite the claims mentioned in the reference documents and the explicit and implicit references of the educational documents on the importance and necessity of teaching in the mother tongue, the dominant discourse of Beneficiaries and stakeholders in this field are using words with nationalistic and ideological empirical value and creating a false dualism of "national identity" and "mother tongue education". Considering education in the mother tongue as an obstacle to the creation of national identity and a threat to national unity has caused the position of education in the mother tongue to decline and despite having theoretical, scientific support and legal requirements, there is no will to implement it in practice.

Research Paper

Hierarchies in Clause Linkage and Complex Sentence Continuum in Spoken Persian

Fateme Yegane; Farhad Sasani

Volume 14, Issue 2 , March 2024, Pages 161-192

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2024.366685.666863

Abstract

The inadequacy of previous definitions of the concepts of subordinate or dependent clauses, and coordinate or consistent clauses, along with terminological Inconsistency, and considering ... Read More The inadequacy of previous definitions of the concepts of subordinate or dependent clauses, and coordinate or consistent clauses, along with terminological Inconsistency, and considering all sentences containing relative clauses, complement clauses, and adverbial clauses in their construction as complex sentence in Persian language on one hand, and neglecting the possibility of hierarchical nature of clause linkage on the other hand causes a lot of dispersion in the definition of clause linking and complex sentence in previous research. In Persian language, in many cases, especially in speech, linkers (conjunctions) are not overt, which make the coordinate clauses and subordinate clauses alike on one hand and similar to independent clauses on the other hand. Conjunctions or linkers in clause linkage are also place of dispute, covering an inconsistent collection its items clearly different from each other. To address these issues, in a descriptive approach, a spoken corpus of 4500 minutes of various programs of different television and radio channels of National Media of Iran, in the period of Khordad 1400 to 1401 were examined. For data analysis in this research, no priori theoretical framework was used, but based on the collected data, with a prototypical and hierarchical approach, a model proposed for the study of clause linkage and complex sentence in Persian language. To achieve this goal, definition for different kind of clause linkage presented in the first place, then two concepts of “Clause connection” and “clause relation” were distinguished. And a triple distinction was established between intra-clausal linkage (within the same clause), inter-clausal linkage (between two clauses), and beyond-clause linkage. The concepts of coordination, dependency and subordination, then re-defined. The linkers utilizing in each linkage are also specified. Then by determining same parameters for describing both the coordinate and subordinate clauses, hierarchies in clause linkage and complex sentence continuum in spoken Persian presented.

A Constructional Cognitive Approach to the Persian Suffix ‘-gɑr’

Parsa Bamshadi; Negar Davari Ardakani

Volume 9, Issue 2 , January 2019, , Pages 45-66

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2018.69528

Abstract

The suffix ‘-gɑr’ is a nominal and adjectival suffix in Persian which is believed by most researchers to express the subjective (agentive) meaning. The purpose of the present ... Read More

A Review of " The structure of the Persian Language": A review of revie and review criteria approach"

Leyla Sharifi

Volume 1, Issue 1 , November 2010

Abstract

نقد حاضر، نقدی صورتگرایانه در کنار نقد دانشگاهی است. در یک تعریف کلّی و عام، نقد صورتگرایانه (فرمالیستی)، ... Read More

The Study of Semantic Contribution of -ār and -andeh Suffixes in Persian

Gholamhossein Karimi-Dustan Ebrahim Moradi

Volume 2, Issue 1 , March 2011, , Pages 101-128

Abstract

This paper examines the semantic contribution of -?r and -andeh suffixes in Persian based on Lieber’s (2004) lexical semantic representation. This framework using six semantic features ... Read More

Preposition sense disambiguation in Persian using semantic frames

Zahra Mozaffari; giti Taki; Mojtaba Sabbagh Jaffari; Pakzad Yusefian

Volume 9, Issue 1 , June 2018, , Pages 99-117

https://doi.org/10.22059/jolr.2018.66652

Abstract

Word sense disambiguation is one of the important challenges in natural language processing (NLP) and computational linguistics. However, preposition sense disambiguation especially, ... Read More

A Study of Semantic Shifting in Persian Proverbs

Rahele Gandomkar

Volume 1, Issue 1 , November 2010

Abstract

Semantic shifting which is one of the most important semantic processes forming the meaning of some linguistic structures was first introduced by Safavi (1379). The meaning of different ... Read More

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Indexing and Abstracting

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