@article{Essegbey2021,

title = {Reminiscences of the last 50 years and the way forward},

author = {James Essegbey and Thomas Givon and Larry M Hyman and Thomas Hinnebusch and Robert Botne and Jedd Schrock and David Odden and Brent Henderson and Fiona McLaughlin},

doi = {10.32473/sal.v50i1.128775},

year  = {2021},

date = {2021-04-23},

urldate = {2021-04-23},

journal = {Studies in African Linguistics},

volume = {50},

issue = {1},

pages = {2-7},

abstract = {This article is a retrospective and a prospective look at SAL on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. The founding editors and various editors reflect on their experiences.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2017,

title = {Divergence and convergence among the Ghana-Togo Mountain languages},

author = {James Essegbey and Felix K. Ameka},

doi = {10.1515/stuf-2017-0013},

year  = {2017},

date = {2017-07-26},

urldate = {2017-07-26},

journal = {Language Typology and Universals},

volume = {70},

issue = {2},

abstract = {The genetic unity and lineage of a group of fifteen languages spoken in the mountains of the Ghana-Togo border with an outlier across the Togo-Benin border have been debated for over a century. Some have concluded that they are not a genetic group. Instead they are a geographical and socio-cultural grouping (see Ian Maddieson 1998, Collapsing vowel harmony and doubly-articulated fricatives: Two myths about the phonology of Avatime. In Ian Maddieson & Thomas J. Hinnebusch (eds.), Language history and linguistic description in Africa, 155–166. Trenton: Africa World Press) or a typological grouping masquerading as a genetic unit (Roger Blench 2009, Do the Ghana-Togo mountain languages constitute a genetic group? Journal of West African Languages 36(1/2). 19–36). This paper investigates the latter claim. We argue that even though the languages share some typological features, there is enormous diversity among the languages such that they do not constitute a typological grouping by themselves. We examine four phonological and twelve morpho-syntactic features to show the convergence and divergence among the languages. We argue that while some of the features are inherited from higher level proto languages e.g. the noun class systems, others are contact-induced and yet others in their specificities could be seen as arising due to internal parallel development in the individual languages.},

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pubstate = {published},

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}

@article{Essegbey2015b,

title = {Language use at home and performance in English composition in multilingual Ghana},

author = {James Essegbey and Sika Ahadzie and Felix K. Ameka},

year  = {2015},

date = {2015-01-01},

urldate = {2015-01-01},

journal = {Afrikanistik-Aegyptologie-Online (AAeO)},

volume = {2015},

abstract = {Ghana has witnessed a recurrent debate on the usefulness of indigenous Ghanaian languages in childhood education. It is assumed that using the mother tongue as a Medium of Instruction (MOI) during the early years improves children’s ability to acquire knowledge and other languages. Not everybody subscribes to this view though. There are those who feel that a solid start in English offers children a better chance of succeeding in school and in their careers. Presently, some parents who subscribe to the latter view have taken the extra step of stopping the use of indigenous Ghanaian languages at home. This paper presents the results of our investigation into whether the home language practices of Ghanaian students have any impact on their performance in English written argumentative discourse. The results are based on an analysis of an assigned essay of 92 students from one of Ghana’s best senior high schools. We then correlated their performance with responses they gave to a questionnaire interrogating their background and language use at home. While some speak the native language at home, others grew up speaking exclusively English. We show that students who combine English and native Ghanaian languages at home performed better than those who used only English or only Ghanaian languages.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2013,

title = {Possibility and necessity modals in Gbe and Surinamese creoles},

author = {James Essegbey and Margot van den Berg and Marleen van de Vate},

doi = {10.1016/j.lingua.2012.03.009},

year  = {2013},

date = {2013-05-01},

urldate = {2013-05-01},

journal = {Lingua},

volume = {129},

pages = {67–95},

abstract = {In this paper we compare positive possibility and necessity modals in the Gbe languages and Surinamese creoles that emerged out of language contact between European and African languages, most importantly the Gbe languages. We propose that different varieties of Gbe languages played a role in the development of the modals in the creoles. A comparison of the influence of the modals on the temporal interpretations of the sentences in which they occur in the substrate languages with that of equivalent modals in superstrate languages suggest that while there is indeed substrate influence in the development of the modals, the influence from the superstrate cannot be discounted. The findings nuance earlier proposals that explain the emergence of the modality system as deriving from a Gbe model.

},

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pubstate = {published},

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}

@article{Essegbey2011,

title = {A Tribute to Norval Smith},

author = {James Essegbey and Enoch O. Aboh and Adrienne Bruyn and Silvia Kouwenberg and Rocky R. Meade and Pieter C. Muysken and M. C. van den Berg and Tonjes Veenstra},

doi = {10.1075/jpcl.26.2.01abo},

year  = {2011},

date = {2011-08-16},

urldate = {2011-08-16},

journal = {Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages},

volume = {26},

issue = {2},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2011b,

title = {The macro-event property: The segmentation of causal chains},

author = {James Essegbey and Jürgen Bohnemeyer and N. J. Enfield and Sotaro Kita},

doi = {10.1017/CBO9780511782039.003},

isbn = {9780521898348},

year  = {2011},

date = {2011-01-01},

urldate = {2011-01-01},

journal = {The Mental Lexicon},

pages = {43 - 67},

abstract = {Semantic typology is the study of semantic categorization. In the simplest case, semantic typology investigates how an identical perceptual stimulus is categorized across languages. The problem examined in this article is that of event segmentation. To the extent that events are perceivable, this may be understood as the representation of dynamic stimuli in chunks of linguistic code with categorical properties. For illustration, consider an example from a classic study on event cognition (Jenkins, Wald and Pittenger 1986): a woman prepares a cup of tea. She unwraps a tea bag, puts it into the cup, gets a kettle of water from the kitchen, pours the water into the cup, etc. This action sequence can be diagrammed schematically as in fig. 3.1. It is conceivable that at some level of “raw” perception – before the onset of any kind of categorization – the action sequence is represented as a continuous flux. But it is hard to imagine how higher cognitive operations of recognition and inference could operate without segmenting the stream of perceived activity into units that are treated as instances of conceptual categories. Let us call the intentional correlates of such categories ‘events.’ Regardless of whether or not one assumes internal representations of the action sequence to operate on event concepts, linguistic representations of it do require segmentation into units that can be labeled as instances of unwrapping a tea bag, pouring water into a cup, and so on.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey200,

title = {Topics in Kwa syntax},

author = {James Essegbey and Enoch O. Aboh},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

urldate = {2009-01-01},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2007b,

title = {Gbe and other West African sources of Suriname creole semantic structuresP: Implications for creole genesis},

author = {James Essegbey and George L. Huttar and Felix K. Ameka},

doi = {10.1075/jpcl.22.1.05hut},

year  = {2007},

date = {2007-04-01},

urldate = {2007-04-01},

journal = {Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages},

volume = {22},

issue = {1},

pages = {57-72},

abstract = {This paper reports on ongoing research on the role of various kinds of potential substrate languages in the development of the semantic structures of Ndyuka (Eastern Suriname Creole). A set of 100 senses of noun, verb, and other lexemes in Ndyuka were compared with senses of corresponding lexemes in three kinds of languages of the former Slave Coast and Gold Coast areas, and immediately adjoining hinterland: (a) Gbe languages; (b) other Kwa languages, specifically Akan and Ga; (c) non-Kwa Niger-Congo languages. The results of this process provide some evidence for the importance of the Gbe languages in the formation of the Suriname creoles, but also for the importance of other languages, and for the areal nature of some of the collocations studied, rendering specific identification of a single substrate source impossible and inappropriate. These results not only provide information about the role of Gbe and other languages in the formation of Ndyuka, but also give evidence for effects of substrate languages spoken by late arrivals some time after the "founders" of a given creole-speaking society. The conclusions are extrapolated beyond Suriname to creole genesis generally.

},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

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}

@article{Essegbey2007c,

title = {"Cut" and "break" verbs in Gbe and Sranan},

author = {James Essegbey and James Essegbey},

doi = {10.1075/jpcl.22.1.04ess},

year  = {2007},

date = {2007-04-01},

urldate = {2007-04-01},

journal = {Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages},

volume = {22},

issue = {1},

pages = {37-55},

abstract = {This paper compares "cut" and "break" verbs in four variants of Gbe, namely Anfoe, Anlo, Fon and Ayizo, with those of Sranan. "Cut" verbs are change-of-state verbs that co-lexicalize the type of action that brings about a change, the type of instrument or instrument part, and the manner in which a change occurs. By contrast, break verbs co-lexicalize either the type of object or the type of change. It has been hypothesized that "cut"-verbs are unergative while breaks verbs are unaccusatives. For example "break" verbs participate in the causative inchoative alternation constructions but "cut" verbs don't. We show that although there are some differences in the meanings of "cut" and "break" verbs across the Gbe languages, significant generalizations can be made with regard to their lexicalization patterns. By contrast, the meanings of "cut" and "break" verbs in Sranan are closer to those of their etymons in English and Dutch. However, despite the differences in the meanings of "cut" and "break" verbs between the Gbe languages and Sranan, the syntax of the verbs in Sranan is similar to that of the Eastern Gbe variants, namely Fon and Ayizo. We look at the implications of our findings for the relexification hypothesis.

},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2007d,

title = {Cut and break verbs in Ewe and the causative alternation construction},

author = {James Essegbey and Felix K. Ameka},

doi = {10.1515/COG.2007.012},

year  = {2007},

date = {2007-01-19},

urldate = {2007-01-19},

journal = {Cognitive Linguistics},

volume = {18},

issue = {2},

abstract = {Ewe verbs covering the cutting and breaking domain divide into four morpho-syntactic classes that can be ranked according to agentivity. We demonstrate that the highly non-agentive break verbs participate in the causative-inchoative alternation while the highly agentive cut verbs do not, as expected from Guerssel et al.'s (1985) hypothesis. However, four verbs tso 'cut with precision', 'cut', l 'snap-o¤ ', and dze 'split', are used transitively when an instrument is required for the severance to be ef-fected, and intransitively when not. We reject a lexicalist analysis that would postulate polysemy for these verbs and argue for a construction approach.

},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{nokey,

title = {Cut and break verbs in Sranan},

author = {James Essegbey},

doi = {10.1515/COG.2007.011},

year  = {2007},

date = {2007-01-19},

urldate = {2007-01-19},

journal = {Cognitive Linguistics},

volume = {18},

issue = {2},

pages = {231-239},

abstract = {Guerssel et al. (1985) propose that crosslinguistically, separation verbs group into cut verbs and break verbs based on their meaning. This meaning supposedly affects the constructions in which the verbs occur, e.g., only break verbs are expected to participate in the causative/inchoative alternation. In Sranan, a verb that superficially looks like 'cut' in English is actually a break verb. Also, not only break verbs participate in the causative/inchoative alternation, as expected, but cut verbs do also. I argue that the intransitive use of cut verbs does not yield a passive construction as proposed by some; instead, it is inchoative.

},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2006,

title = {Elements of the grammar of space in Ewe},

author = {James Essegbey and Felix K. Ameka},

editor = {Stephen C. Levinson and David P. Wilkins},

doi = {10.1017/CBO9780511486753.011},

isbn = {9780521855839},

year  = {2006},

date = {2006-09-14},

urldate = {2006-09-14},

journal = {Grammars of Space Explorations in Cognitive Diversity},

pages = {359 - 399},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2004,

title = {Auxiliaries in serialising languages: On COME and GO verbs in Sranan and Ewe},

author = {James Essegbey},

doi = {10.1016/S0024-3841(03)00069-X},

year  = {2004},

date = {2004-04-01},

urldate = {2004-04-01},

journal = {Lingua},

volume = {114},

issue = {4},

pages = {473-494},

abstract = {While there is a concensus that auxiliary verbs differ in one way or the other from main verbs, linguists do not always agree on what determines the difference. This is especially so in serialising languages where two or more independent verbs can occur in a clause. It is not always clear whether the ability of a verbal form to express a temporal, aspectual or modal notion in such languages is enough for them to be analysed as auxiliary verbs or whether the nature of the form is equally important. This paper argues that a reduction in material integrity of a verbal form is a very important criterion for distinguishing verbs in serialising languages.

},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Essegbey2001,

title = {Pointing left in Ghana: How a taboo on the use of the left hand influences gestural practice},

author = {James Essegbey and Sotaro Kita},

doi = {10.1075/gest.1.1.06kit},

year  = {2001},

date = {2001-06-01},

urldate = {2001-06-01},

journal = {Gesture},

volume = {1},

issue = {1},

pages = {73-95},

abstract = {In Ghana, many peolple consider pointing by the left hand to be a taboo. We investigated consequences of this taboo on the Ghanaian gestural practice by observing gestures produced during naturalistic situations of giving route directions. First, there is a politeness convention to place the left hand on the lower back, as if to hide it from the interlocutor. Second, as a consequence of left-hand suppression, right-handed pointing may involve an anatomically staining position when indicating a leftward direction across the body. Third, pointing is sometimes performed with both hands together, which does not violate the taboo. Despite the taboo, left-handed pointing is not suppressed fully. Left-handed pointing gestures occur in association with the verbalization of the concept LEFT, suggesting the embodied nature of the concept. In addition, it is noteworthy that there is a class of left-handed gestures, which are so reduced in form that Ghanaians do not consider them as pointing for the purpose of the taboo.

},

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}