The Bantu Noun Phrase

‘This volume is an invaluable guide to the issues surrounding the structure and interpretation of nominal phrases in Bantu languages, but also provides an excellent source and testing ground for theories of nominal structure beyond Bantu. The empirical range of these studies in Bantu linguistics is broad, though most of the chapters address in detail the structure of nominals in a single Bantu language. Excellent chapters investigate tone, case, the structures that determine word order in nominals, relativization, definiteness and indefiniteness, anaphoricity and referentiality, all using clear criteria for classification and analysis. It is an outstanding contribution to our understanding of both Bantu syntax and semantics and nominal structure more generally.’ Ken Safir, Emeritus Professor of Linguistics at Rutgers University, USA. 'This collection of papers on the structure of the Bantu noun phrase will be of interest to all Bantuists, and to syntacticians more generally who are interested in the exploration of contemporary syntactic accounts of the NP or DP that have developed in the context of minimalism and of government and binding theory. It will also be of interest to linguists interested in the range of ways found in Bantu languages to establish and retain reference in discourse, and to phonologists interested in learning more about the complex processes that govern the realization in noun phrase tone patterns in the Bantu languages.' John Goldsmith, Professor of Linguistics at the University of Chicago, USA.