Discusses the correspondence between French phonology and spelling with regard to the role of accents. Refers the reader to the first part of the essay (n162, Jul 1981), then analyzes vowel harmony, free variation, the diacritic function of the grave accent, and the etymologic function of the circumflex accent. (MES)

Discusses problems connected with grammar presentation in elementary German textbooks, focusing especially on the still widespread use of paradigms and on terminological inadequacies. Suggests some simplifying formulas to collapse and summarize the morphological system of German for descriptive and pedagogical purposes. (MES)

Stresses the need for Latin instruction in the school curriculum today. The history of Latin instruction in the U.S. is traced starting from the time that writing Latin and analyzing texts in terms of grammatical, logical, and compositional categories were emphasized. (NCR)

Defines the practical functions of various types of grammars, and theoretical functions of linguistic grammars. Points out some differences between the two (stressing contrast between native and foreign languages), as well as differences in defining, finality, or variation of categories, and in psycho- and sociolinguistic components. (IFS/WGA)

This article reconsiders accounts of the conditional and subjunctive moods in English, with language instruction in mind. (Text is in French.) (CLK)

This paper compares the simplified characters of China, Japan and Singapore, based on China's list of 2295 simplified characters. Charts summarize the comparisons by numbers of characters in each country, and a comparative table lists and illustrates simplified characters in these countries. Taiwanese forms are summarized separately. (CHK)

Reports a study of the diphthongs, "EAR" and "AIR," which are merging for many New Zealand speakers. Each stage of the study involves the analysis of word lists and sentences read by over 100 14- and 15-year-old school pupils. Results indicate a trend toward a merger to the EAR diphthong. (18 references) (Author/CK)

Provides a critical review of the syntactic study of code mixing, discussing data drawn from African and South Asian languages, and focuses particular attention on the syntactic constraints paradigm. An examination of seven major surface constraints, deemed to have universal applicability, shows that none of these constraints is universal. (53…

Syntagmatic relationships receive less attention than paradigmatic relationships in the development and study of index languages. Exposes misperceptions in linguistic characterization of syntagmatic relationships, and proposes the expansion to include conceptual syntagmatic relationships (CSRs), and characterizes CSRs to determine their role in…

The difficulty in learning Mandarin Chinese is often attributed to the fact that it is a tonal language. This article reviews the tonal spelling approach of Gwoyeu Romatzyh ("G. R.") and Pinyin, the national romanization system of mainland China. (seven references) (LB)

This paper examines the differences between locative expressions in Kpelle and English, based on the dialect of one native speaker of Kpelle. It discusses the crucial role of the reference object in defining the meaning of locatives in Kpelle, in contrast to English, where the characteristics of the object to be located are less important. An…

This paper discusses the sense relation of synonymy, taking the view that this phenomenon should be understood as a gradual concept, a cline along which there are different degrees of synonymy. This view is consistent with the widely held opinion among semanticists that strict or absolute synonymy is rare in human language. A further step is taken…