Brill Studies in Language Contact and the Dynamics of Questioning

The study of language contact is considered a worthwhile scientific pursuit. Now that it is becoming increasingly 'mainstream', however, the question is how to proceed; and how to avoid the negative consequences of mainstreamed research? This book critically reviews some aspects of this question. This volume critically exposes problems in present language contact analysis and uses empirical findings to provide answers to the following questions. What can we learn from the study of language contact for our knowledge of languages, their dynamics and their functions (systemic elaborations, language practices, semiotic developments)? How should linguistic theory incorporate the empirical findings of language contact studies, and how could these alter underlying postulates of existing models (choice of analysis and epistemic framework)? Which role has language contact been playing in the history of linguistic research and academic life? And how has this idea influenced individual researchers and their approaches?