Language Acquisition Beyond Parameters

Studies in honour of Juana M. Liceras

Editors

Anahí Alba de la Fuente | University of Montreal

Elena Valenzuela | University of Ottawa

Cristina Martínez Sanz | Nebrija University, Madrid

Hardbound – Available

ISBN 9789027241931 | EUR 95.00 | USD 143.00

e-Book –

ISBN 9789027266262 | EUR 95.00 | USD 143.00

The chapters in this volume take different approaches to the exploration of language acquisition processes in various populations (monolingual and bilingual first language acquisition, L2 acquisition) and address issues in syntax, morphology, pragmatics, language processing and interface phenomena. This volume is a tribute to Juana M. Liceras’ fundamental and enduring contribution to the field of Spanish Second Language Acquisition (SLA). All the chapters in the volume are linked to or inspired by Juana’s extensive body of work, and, like Juana’s research, they all stand at the crossroads of formal and experimental linguistics. Together, the studies presented in this volume are a reflection of Juana’s impact both as a mentor and as a collaborative researcher while at the same time showcasing current trends and new directions in the field of generative SLA.

[Studies in Bilingualism, 51] 2016. vi, 305 pp.

Publishing status: Available

https://doi.org/10.1075/sibil.51

Table of Contents

Preface and acknowledgements | pp. 1–2

Introduction. L2 acquisition: links, crossroads, parameters and beyond

Anahí Alba de la Fuente and Cristina Martínez Sanz | pp. 3–14

Part I.. Parameters and beyond

Pro-drop then and now: Changing perspectives on null subjects in second language acquisition

Lydia White | pp. 17–35

Reference comprehension and production in bilingual Spanish: The view from null subject languages

Aurora Bel, Estela García-Alcaraz and Elisa Rosado | pp. 37–70

Part II.. Features and crossroads L1/L2

When masculine as default supercedes L1 transfer: Bilingual speakers of languages with asymmetric gender systems

Rachel Klassen | pp. 73–98

L2 knowledge of gender and number agreement in Spanish noun ellipsis

Joyce Bruhn de Garavito and Marcela Otálora | pp. 99–124

Not just algunos, but indeed unos L2ers can acquire scalar implicatures in L2 Spanish

David Miller, David Giancaspro, Michael Iverson, Jason Rothman and Roumyana Slabakova | pp. 125–145

Part III.. Word order and complex structures

Comprehension of subject and object relative clauses by second language learners of Spanish

Noelia Sánchez-Walker and Silvina Montrul | pp. 149–185

On the production of differential object marking and wh-question formation in native and non-native Spanish

Alejandro Cuza, Lauren Miller and Mariluz Ortiz | pp. 187–209

Part IV.. Monolingual and bilingual first language acquisition

In search of the perfect tense

Joanne Markle LaMontagne and Ana Teresa Pérez-Leroux | pp. 213–236

The acquisition of grammatical gender in L1 bilingual Spanish

Raquel Fernández Fuertes, Esther Álvarez de la Fuente and Sonja Mujcinovic | pp. 237–279

Applying computing innovations to bilingual corpus analysis

Diana Carter, Mirjam Broersma and Kevin Donnelly | pp. 281–301

Index

“This volume is a wonderful tribute to Juana Liceras by her students and collaborators. It touches on several themes of Licera’s pioneering work in second language acquisition that are still at the forefront of language acquisition research, namely the relevance of the syntax/pragmatics interface to the study of the acquisition of null pronouns in L2, the L1/L2 acquisition of nominal features and word order in relative clauses, and issues related to monolingual and bilingual acquisition. This volume will prove useful for all scholars interested in the challenging questions of how the syntax and interpretation of intricate properties of natural language are acquired by early and late learners in language contact situations.”

Maria Luisa Zubizarreta, University of Southern California

“This tribute to Juana Liceras brings together a rich and interesting — sometimes provocative — set of essays and studies representing the various strands of research found in Licera’s long and fruitful career. With both established and less established scholarly voices, there is much in this volume for those of us researching the morpho-syntactic component of Spanish L2 grammars: everything from basic generative research to issues in interface (e.g., syntax-discourse, syntax- semantics). This book should be on the shelf of every scholar and serious student.”

Bill VanPatten, Michigan State University

“This collection of papers gives an excellent and inspiring overview of the impact of the last 30 years of research on theory guided Spanish language acquistion across different populations. The contributions show that Juana Liceras has been at the forefront of many new developments in language acquistion and theory: studies adressing both production and comprehension, based on experimental work and on large bilingual databases, from the acquisition of syntax by adult L2 learners to interface vulnerabilities across the lifespan. This volume does not only constitute an honour to Juana Liceras but also to the lively field of (bilingual) language acquistion of Spanish in a comparative perspective. It will no doubt become a classical read for all those interested in language acquisition and linguistic theory.”

Aafke Hulk, University of Amsterdam

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