Project: A diachronic and spatial analytical approach to linguistic micro-variation in the Kikongo dialect continuum.

2014-01-01 – 2019-01-31

Abstract

The proposed research project aims at: (a) identifying the broadest possible set of linguistic parameters along which Kikongo manifests micro-variation; (b) calculating linguistic distances between Kikongo varieties through computational techniques; (c) understanding how the Kikongo dialect continuum was shaped through time; (d) comprehending the role extra-linguistic phenomena played in the shaping of patterns of regional variation.