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Prof. dr. E.O. (Enoch) Aboh

Learnability of Human Languages
Faculty of Humanities
Capaciteitsgroep Taalwetenschap
Photographer: Foto: Jeroen Oerlemans

Visiting address
  • Spuistraat 134
  • Room number: 647
Postal address
  • Postbus 1642
    1000 BP Amsterdam
  • Profile

    MY INTERESTS

    Learnability of Human Language with a special focus on theoretical syntax; comparative syntax (e.g., Kwa vs. Germanic/Romance, Kwa vs. Sinitic, Kwa vs. Caribbean creoles); discourse-syntax interface; language creation and language change.

     

  • Research Projects

    2014-2018: Argument structure in three sign languages: typological and theoretical. (NWO funded project € 722835); Co-applicant with dr. Roland Pfau (PI):

    Sign language typology is a young research field with two related goals. First, sign languages (SLs) are compared to spoken languages with respect to certain grammatical features to scrutinize which typological distinctions are valid across modalities and to determine whether theoretical accounts that are based on spoken language data can be applied to SLs. Second, SLs are compared to each other to further investigate whether they differ along similar lines as spoken languages do. In this project, both types of typological comparison are applied to the area of argument structure (AS).

    2008-2012: Functional categories in analytic languages. ( NWO funded project € 600000); Co-applicant with U. Ansaldo,  L.L.S. Cheng, and R.P.E. Sybesma (PI). 

    Languages differ with respect to which functional categories they overtly realize. Whereas some overtly realize case, others overtly realize the initiation node in the verb phrase (also known as “little v”). This project aims at investigating which functional categories are overtly realized in so-called “analytic” languages and to find out whether they form a natural class. To this end we will study two language groups, which are both supposedly analytic, but which are geographically and genetically wide apart from one another, Sinitic (East Asia) and Kwa (West Africa). The results will be relevant for general theorizing on (i) language types; (ii) the nature of functional categories; (iii) the distribution of functional categories; and (iv) the question whether the verbal and nominal domains are as parallel in structure as is often assumed.

    2003-2010: The typology of focus and topic: A new approach to the discourse-syntax interface. (NWO Vidi Grant € 600 000); Principal investigator

    The aim of this project is to investigate the nature of the interface between discourse pragmatics and syntax. In other words, we propose to study how focus and topic interact with clause structure and how syntactic rules driving clause structure and discourse/pragmatic properties interact. Using descriptive tools from the generative framework, the innovative contribution of this research is to analyze syntactic properties in relation to their discourse function in order to shed more light on the discourse-syntax interface and, therefore, provide a better characterization of how information structure may affect syntax

  • Social embedding

    African Linguistics School (ALS)

    The ALS is unique in Africa in terms of its objectives and teaching methodology. The aim of the ALS is to expose African students to new advances in Linguistics and help them conduct further research on African languages thus contributing to the world knowledge of human language. The languages of Africa have long been a source of important theoretical and empirical discoveries across linguistics. However,  the insights to be gained about language from the investigation of African languages have been limited by the comparatively small number of African scholars who are participating in the formulation of linguistic theory and language description. To remedy to this situation, the ALS brings together about 80 students, the majority of whom come from within the continent of Africa, and about 18 prominent international scholars who teach pro bono for two weeks. The school takes place every two years in a different African country. In terms of organization, the school takes care of food, transportation, and accommodation for all participants such that no student admitted could miss the school due to local financial restrictions. This way, the school seeks to bolster the field of linguistics in Africa by supporting existing programs on the continent and by allowing collaborative and multidisciplinary work between students of different countries as well as between students and faculty from international Universities.

    Check the following link for more information: http://sites.google.com/site/africanlingschool/

  • Publications

    2024

    • Aboh, E. O. (2024). D is not a syntactic primitive. In A. Himmelreich, D. Hole, & J. Mursell (Eds.), To the left, to the right, and much in between: A Festschrift for Katharina Hartmann (pp. 3-26). Goethe-Universität. https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/3FX4M [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., Ameka, F., & Essegbey, J. (2024). Moving from verbs to prepositions in Gbe. In J. Essegbey, & E. O. Aboh (Eds.), Predications in African Languages (pp. 128-151). (Studies in Language Companion Series; Vol. 235). John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.235 [details]
    • Essegbey, J., & Aboh, E. O. (Eds.) (2024). Predication in African Languages. (Studies in Language Companion Series; Vol. 235). John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.235 [details]
    • Kotowski, R. J. S., Aboh, E. O., & Don, J. (2024). The eventive functional sequence: Take and Give serial verb constructions in Gungbe. In J. Essegbey, & E. O. Aboh (Eds.), Predication in African Languages (pp. 189-221). (Studies in Language Companion Series; Vol. 235). John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.235 [details]

    2022

    • Aboh, E. O., & DeGraff, M. (2022). Perspectives on Creole Formation. In S. S. Mufwene, & A. M. Escobar (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Language Contact. - Volume 2: Multilingualism in Population Structure (pp. 257-282). (Cambridge handbooks in language and linguistics). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009105965.014 [details]
    • Spit, S., Andringa, S., Rispens, J., & Aboh, E. O. (2022). Kindergarteners Use Cross-Situational Statistics to Infer the Meaning of Grammatical Elements. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 51(6), 1311-1333. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-022-09898-0 [details]
    • Spit, S., Andringa, S., Rispens, J., & Aboh, E. O. (2022). The Effect of Explicit Instruction on Implicit and Explicit Linguistic Knowledge in Kindergartners. Language Learning and Development, 18(2), 201-228. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/15475441.2021.1941968 [details]
    • Westveer, T. J. T., Sleeman, A. P., & Aboh, E. O. (2022). La lutte des genres: L'accord de genre dans les phrases partitives superlatives en français. In B. Fagard, & G. Le Tallec (Eds.), Entre masculin et féminin: Français et langues romanes (pp. 265-284). Presses Sorbonne Nouvelle.

    2021

    • Aboh, E. O., & Vigouroux, C. B. (2021). Introduction: Ecology rolls the dice. In E. O. Aboh, & C. B. Vigouroux (Eds.), Variation Rolls the Dice: A worldwide collage in honour of Salikoko S. Mufwene (pp. 1-22). John Benjamins Publishing Company. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1075/coll.59.01abo [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., & Vigouroux, C. B. (Eds.) (2021). Variation Rolls the Dice: A worldwide collage in honour of Salikoko S. Mufwene. (Contact Language Library; Vol. 59). John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/coll.59 [details]
    • Spit, S., Andringa, S., Rispens, J., & Aboh, E. O. (2021). Do Kindergarteners Develop Awareness of the Statistical Regularities They Acquire? Language Learning, 71(2), 573-611. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12445 [details]
    • Westveer, T., Sleeman, P., & Aboh, E. O. (2021). Competing genders: French partitive constructions between grammatical and semantic gender. In M-O. Hinzelin, N. Pomino, & E-M. Remberger (Eds.), Formal Approaches to Romance Morphosyntax (pp. 49-87). (Linguistische Arbeiten; Vol. 576). De Gruyter. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110719154-003 [details]

    2020

    • Aboh, E. O. (2020). Apparent violations of the final-over-final constraint:The case of Gbe languages. In A. Bárány, T. Biberauer , J. Douglas , & S. Vikner (Eds.), Syntactic architecture and its consequences I: Syntax inside the grammar (pp. 277-292). (Open generative syntax ; Vol. 9). Language Science Press. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3972852 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2020). Lessons From Neuro-(a)-Typical Brains: Universal Multilingualism, Code-Mixing, Recombination, and Executive Functions. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, Article 488. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00488 [details]
    • Kimmelman, V., Pfau, R., & Aboh, E. O. (2020). Argument structure of classifier predicates in Russian Sign Language. Natural language and linguistic theory, 38(2), 539-579. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11049-019-09448-9 [details]
    • Smith, N., Veenstra, T., & Aboh, E. O. (Eds.) (2020). Advances in Contact Linguistics: In honour of Pieter Muysken. (Contact language library ; Vol. 57). John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/coll.57 [details]

    2019

    2018

    • Aboh, E. O. (2018). What if your roots are polyfunctional? The Lexical Entry Problem in Benue-Kwa. In O. Adesola, A. Akinlabi, & O. O. Orie (Eds.), Data-Rich Linguistics: Papers in Honor of Yiwola Awoyale (pp. 83-116). Cambridge Scholars Publishers. [details]
    • Westveer, T., Sleeman, P., & Aboh, E. O. (2018). Discriminating dictionaries? Feminine forms of profession nouns in dictionaries of French and German. International Journal of Lexicography, 31(4), 371-393. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijl/ecy013 [details]

    2017

    2016

    2015

    • Aboh, E. (2015). The Left Periphery in the Surinamese Creoles and Gbe: On the Modularity of Substrate Transfer. In P. Muysken, & N. Smith (Eds.), Surviving the Middle Passage: the West Africa-Surinam Sprachbund (pp. 323-368). (Trends in linguistics. Studies and monographs; Vol. 275). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110343977.323 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2015). The Emergence of Hybrid Grammars: language contact and change. (Cambridge approaches to language contact). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139024167 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2015). Functional verbs in Gungbe: The case of inherent complement verbs. Linguística: revista de estudos linguísticos da Universidade do Porto, 10, 9-29. http://ler.letras.up.pt/uploads/ficheiros/14016.pdf [details]
    • Aboh, E., & Smith, N. (2015). Migrations, ethnodynamics and geolinguistics in the Eastern Aja-Tado cultural area. In P. Muysken, & N. Smith (Eds.), Surviving the Middle Passage: the West Africa-Surinam Sprachbund (pp. 43-66). (Trends in linguistics. Studies and monographs; Vol. 275). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110343977.43 [details]
    • Aboh, E., & Smith, N. (2015). Non-iconic reduplications in Eastern Gbe and Surinam. In P. Muysken, & N. Smith (Eds.), Surviving the Middle Passage: the West Africa-Surinam Sprachbund (pp. 241-260). (Trends in linguistics. Studies and monographs; Vol. 275). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110343977.241 [details]

    2014

    • Aboh, E. O., & DeGraff, M. (2014). Some notes on bare nouns in Haitian creole and in Gungbe: a transatlantic Sprachbund perspective. In T. A. Åfalí, & B. Mæhlum (Eds.), The sociolinguistics of grammar (pp. 203-236). (Studies in language companion series; No. 154). Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.154.11abo [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., Guasti, M. T., & Roberts, I. (2014). Locality: an introduction. In E. O. Aboh, M. T. Guasti, & I. Roberts (Eds.), Locality (pp. 1-31). (Oxford studies in comparative syntax). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199945269.003.0001 [details]

    2013

    2011

    2010

    2009

    • Aboh, E. O. (2009). Clause structure and verb series. Linguistic Inquiry, 40(1), 1-33. https://doi.org/10.1162/ling.2009.40.1.1 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2009). Competition and selection: that’s all! In E. O. Aboh, & N. Smith (Eds.), Complex processes in new languages (pp. 317-344). (Creole language library; No. 35). Benjamins. [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2009). Delete: a phase-level property. Theoretical Linguistics, 35(2/3), 229-237. https://doi.org/10.1515/THLI.2009.012 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., & Dyakonova, M. (2009). Predicate doubling and parallel chains. Lingua, 119(7), 1035-1065. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lingua.2008.11.004 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., & Smith, N. (2009). Simplicity, simplification, complexity and complexification: where have the interfaces gone? In E. O. Aboh, & N. Smith (Eds.), Complex processes in new languages (pp. 1-25). (Creole language library; No. 35). Benjamins. [details]

    2008

    • Aboh, E. O., & Nauze, F. (2008). Tense, mood, and aspects in Gungbe (Kwa)? Typological studies in language, 79, 215-239. [details]

    2007

    • Aboh, E. O. (2007). A 'mini' relative clause analysis for reduplicated attributive adjectives. Linguistics in the Netherlands, 24, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1075/avt.24.03abo [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2007). La genèse de la périphérie gauche du saramaka: un cas d'influence du substrat? In K. Gadelii, & A. Zribi-Hertz (Eds.), Grammaires creoles et grammaire comparative (pp. 73-97). Presses Universitaires de Vincennes. [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2007). Leftward Focus versus Rightword Focus: the Kwa-Bantu Conspiracy. SOAS Working Papers in Linguistics, 15, 81-104. [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., & Ansaldo, U. (2007). The role of typology in language creation: A descriptive take. In U. Ansaldo, S. Matthews, & L. Lim (Eds.), Deconstructing creole (pp. 39-66). (Typological Studies in Language; No. 73). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. [details]

    2006

    • Aboh, E. O. (2006). Complementiation in Saramaccan and Gungbe: the case of c-type modal particles. Natural language and linguistic theory, 24(1), 1-55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11049-005-1815-4 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2006). The role of the syntax-semantics interface in language transfer. In C. Lefebvre, L. White, & C. Jourdan (Eds.), L2 Acquisition and Creole Genesis: Dialogues (pp. 221-252). Amsterdam: Benjamins. [details]
    • Aboh, E. O. (2006). When verbal predicates go fronting. ZAS Papers in Linguistics, 46, 21-48. [details]

    2024

    • Aboh, E. O., & Essegbey, J. (2024). Introduction. In J. Essegbey, & E. O. Aboh (Eds.), Predications in African Languages (pp. 1-17). (Studies in Language Companion Series; Vol. 235). John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.235 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., & Parafita-Couto, M. D. C. (2024). Modelling Multilingual Ecologies Beyond The L1-L2 Binary. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism.

    2022

    • Aboh, E. O. (2022). The Romance Inter-Views: Cartography. Isogloss.

    2018

    2017

    2016

    • Aboh, E. O. (2016). Grammaticalization: A population factor. In A. Bannink, & W. Honselaar (Eds.), From variation to iconicity: festschrift for Olga Fischer on the occasion of her 65th birthday (pp. 1-16). Uitgeverij Pegasus. [details]

    2015

    • Aboh, E. O., Schaeffer, J. C., & Sleeman, P. (2015). Romance Languages and Linguistic Theory 2013: Selected Papers from 'Going Romance' Amsterdam 2013. (Romance Languages and Linguistic Theory; No. 8). Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/rllt.8 [details]

    2014

    2013

    • Aboh, E. O., Smith, N. S. H., & Veenstra, T. (2013). Saramaccan. In S. Michaelis, P. Maurer, M. Haspelmath, & M. Huber (Eds.), The survey of pidgin and creole languages. - Vol. 1: English-based and Dutch-based languages (pp. 27-38). Oxford University Press. [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., Veenstra, T., & Smith, N. S. H. (2013). Saramaccan structure dataset. In S. M. Michaelis, P. Maurer, M. Haspelmath, & M. Huber (Eds.), Atlas of Pidgin and Creole Language Structures Online Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. http://apics-online.info/contributions/3 [details]

    2012

    • Aboh, E. O., & Smith, N. (2012). The morphosyntax of non-iconic reduplications: A case study in Eastern Gbe and the Surinam creoles. In E. O. Aboh, N. Smith, & A. Zribi-Herz (Eds.), The morphosyntax of reiteration in creole and non-creole languages (pp. 27-76). (Creole language library; No. 43). John Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/cll.43.02abo [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., Smith, N., & Zribi-Hertz, A. (2012). The morphosyntax of reiteration in creole and non-creole languages. (Creole language library; No. 43). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., Smith, N., & Zribi-Hertz, A. (2012). Reduplication beyond the word level: A cross-linguistic view. In E. O. Aboh, N. Smith, & A. Zribi-Hertz (Eds.), The morphosyntax of reiteration in creole and non-creole languages (pp. 1-26). (Creole language library; No. 43). John Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/cll.43.01abo [details]
    • Pfau, R., & Aboh, E. O. (2012). On the syntax of spatial adpositions in sign languages. In E. Cohen (Ed.), Proceedings of IATL 2011 (pp. 83-104). (MIT Working Papers in Linguistics; Vol. 65). MITWPL. http://www.iatl.org.il/wp-content/files/27/Pfau-Aboh.pdf [details]

    2011

    • Aboh, E. O., Bruyn, A., Essegbey, J., Kouwenberg, S., Meade, R. R., Muysken, P., van den Berg, M., & Veenstra, T. (2011). A tribute to Norval Smith. Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages, 26(2), 235-246. https://doi.org/10.1075/jpcl.26.2.01abo [details]

    2010

    2009

    • Aboh, E. O. (2009). [Review of: C. Lefebvre, A.M. Brousseau (2002) A grammar of Fongbe]. Journal of African Languages and Linguistics, 30(1), 97-104. https://doi.org/10.1515/JALL.2009.006 [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., & Smith, N. (2009). Complex processes in new languages. (Creole language library; No. 35). Amsterdam: Benjamins. [details]
    • Aboh, E. O., van der Linden, E., Quer, J., & Sleeman, P. (2009). Romance languages and linguistic theory: selected papers from 'Going romance,' Amsterdam 2007. (Romance languages and linguistic theory; No. 1). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. [details]

    2007

    • Aboh, E. O., Hartmann, K., & Zimmermann, M. (2007). Focus strategies in Niger Congo and Afro-Asiatic. On the Interaction between Focus and Grammar in some African Languages. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

    2006

    • Aboh, E. O. (2006). Countries and languages - Africa (including Atlantic Ocean, India). Benin: Language Situation. In K. Brown (Ed.), Contributions to the thirtieth Incontro di Grammatica Generativa (Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics, 2nd Ed.). Oxford: Elsevier. [details]

    2021

    2011

    2021

    • Westveer, T. J. T., Sleeman, A. P., & Aboh, E. O. (2021). Gender agreement and mismatches: the syntactic structure of quantified and superlative partitives. Poster session presented at Tabu Dag, Groningen, Netherlands.

    2018

    • Spit, S. B., Andringa, S. J., Rispens, J. E., & Aboh, E. O. (2018). Kindergarteners’ statistical learning is influenced by instruction.
    • Westveer, T. J. T., Sleeman, A. P., & Aboh, E. O. (2018). Sexless animates? Gender agreement in superlative partitives in French. Poster session presented at Going Romance 2018, Utrecht, Netherlands.
    • Westveer, T. J. T., Sleeman, A. P., & Aboh, E. O. (2018). Sexless animates? Gender agreement with fixed gender nouns in German and French. Poster session presented at 1st international workshop on language comparison and typology, Berlin, Berlin, Germany.

    2017

    Membership / relevant position

    • Aboh, E. (2016-2021). Member of the Comité National, Section 34, CNRS Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.

    Talk / presentation

    • Kimmelman, V. (speaker), Pfau, R. (speaker) & Aboh, E. O. (speaker) (1-9-2016). Word-internal coordination in handling classifier predicates, Formal and Experimental Advances in Sign Language Theory, Venice.
    • Westveer, T. (speaker) & Aboh, E. O. (speaker) (6-2-2016). On reflexives with an additional direct object in French and German, TIN dag, Utrecht.

    Others

    • Aboh, E. (organiser) & Haegeman, L. (participant) (19-10-2016 - 20-10-2016). A probe into the multilingual mind: How languages evolve, Ghent (organising a conference, workshop, ...).
    • Aboh, E. (organiser) (17-7-2016 - 30-7-2016). African Linguistics School, Yamoussoukro. Linguistics Institute (organising a conference, workshop, ...).
    • Aboh, E. (organiser) & Haegeman, L. (organiser) (9-4-2014 - 12-4-2014). The Emergence of Grammar in a Multilingual Context, Wassenaar. NIAS workshop (organising a conference, workshop, ...).
    • Aboh, E. (organiser) (15-7-2013 - 26-7-2013). African Linguistics School, Ibadan. Linguistics Institute (organising a conference, workshop, ...).
    • Aboh, E. (organiser) (17-7-2011 - 29-7-2011). African Linguistics School, Porto-Novo, Benin. Linguistics Institute (organising a conference, workshop, ...).
    • Aboh, E. (organiser) (27-7-2009 - 7-8-2009). African Linguistics School, Accra (organising a conference, workshop, ...).
    This list of publications is extracted from the UvA-Current Research Information System. Questions? Ask the library or the Pure staff of your faculty / institute. Log in to Pure to edit your publications. Log in to Personal Page Publication Selection tool to manage the visibility of your publications on this list.
  • Ancillary activities
    • No ancillary activities