Morphosyntactic Variation in Bantu

Abstract

The 400–500 Bantu languages of Sub-Saharan Africa are characterized by a rich and complex pattern of morphosyntactic variation. This volume provides a comprehensive overview of current work in the area and illustrates the wealth of empirical and conceptual work which makes this field of research so important and inspiring. The fifteen chapters of the volume discuss data from some eighty Bantu languages and draw on a wider comparative set of 200+ languages. While some studies contained in the volume focus on one specific language in a wider comparative context, others investigate fine-grained variation among a closely knit group of languages, and yet other chapters present large-scale comparative studies spanning the whole of the Bantu-speaking area. Topics addressed in the chapters include nominal and verbal morphology, syntax, and information structure, and speak directly to prominent questions in Bantu morphosyntax and provide a specific micro-variation perspective to their study. Through this, the volume highlights key aspects of contemporary research in Bantu morphosyntax and develops distinct and novel approaches to their better understanding. The volume represents a timely contribution to this growing and dynamic field, bringing together state-of-the-art thinking on morphosyntactic variation in Bantu, different theoretical and methodological approaches to variation and micro-variation, and novel empirical data from a wide range of languages.