Call for Topic-focused Papers

Call for topic-focused papers of Gengo Kenkyu No.170

Gengo Kenkyu invites submissions for a special issue on the theme “Grammatical Categories and Linguistic Units from a Cross-Linguistic Perspective” (Number 170, expected publication date: July 2026).

A key challenge faced when analyzing languages is determining whether the notion of grammatical categories, as subjects or methods of analysis, is overly influenced by the Standard Average European (SAE). Existing grammatical frameworks can introduce biases in linguistic description and analysis. However, previous studies, such as those on ergativity and polysynthetic languages, have brought fresh perspectives to linguistic research. Recent works by Aikhenvald (2003) and Shibatani (2019) on grammatical gender, noun classes, and classifiers have similarly suggested that these categories could be analyzed as gradual differences, significantly impacting subsequent research.

The special papers in Issue No. 170 will feature cross-linguistic discussions that offer novel perspectives on the analysis and classification of grammatical categories and linguistic units. Topics may include morphosyntactic phenomena in categories such as case, voice, tense, aspect, and mood, as well as basic linguistic units such as words (including clitics), clauses, and sentences. Studies on new findings in these areas can contribute to general linguistics and linguistic typology. Crucially, they also have the potential to influence the “established” theoretical discussions and grammar descriptions of well-known languages, which otherwise are considered well-studied. We welcome papers which, beyond reporting specific cases, provide significant insights and implications from a cross-linguistic perspective.

The deadline for submission of manuscripts is 31 August, 2025. All submissions will go through the usual peer-review process. When submitting a manuscript, please select “特集 special feature article” for the item “セクション/カテゴリー Section/Category” in the Editorial Manager online submission and reviewing system.

Style Sheet (extract) and Editorial Manager
Editorial Board

Call for topic-focused papers of Gengo Kenkyu No.168

Gengo Kenkyu invites submissions of papers for a special issue on the theme “The Diversity of Linguistic Sounds in the World” (Number 168, expected publication date: July 2025).

Research methods in phonetics and phonology have made remarkable progress along with technological innovations. New research is constantly advancing through new laboratory techniques for observing speech sounds, analyzing large-scale data, excavating past speech data, and developing field linguistic tools. The accumulation and sharing of highly accurate observations and descriptions of several individual languages and language groups, including minority languages, which have been poorly described, has expanded remarkably in recent years. This trend enriches the foundation for exploring linguistic sound diversity and typological research.

The special papers in Issue No. 168 will contribute to phonological and phonetic typology. We welcome a wide variety of submissions, including discussions related to wide-range, areal, and intra-genetic typologies; developments from consideration of individual languages to typological examinations; new findings on rare features related to linguistic sound diversity; and presentation of findings on previously unknown phonetic and phonological features.

The deadline for submission of manuscripts is 31 August, 2024. All submissions will go through the usual peer-review process. When submitting a manuscript, please select “特集 special feature article” for the item “セクション/カテゴリー Section/Category” in the Editorial Manager online submission and reviewing system.

Style Sheet (extract) and Editorial Manager
Editorial Board

Call for topic-focused papers of Gengo Kenkyu No.166

Gengo Kenkyu invites submissions of papers for a special issue on the theme “Cognitive Linguistics: Where We Are and Where We are Going” (Number 166, expected publication date: July 2024).

Cognitive Linguistics emerged as a new paradigm of theoretical linguistics in the 1980s, having been productively applied to varied linguistic phenomena in different languages. During the first few decades, a succession of theoretical frameworks were proposed, including Cognitive Grammar, Construction Grammar, Frame Semantics, Conceptual Metaphor Theory, and Mental Spaces/Blending. Recently, however, radical theoretical innovations have been rare and Cognitive Linguistics appears to have reached a plateau. This Special Issue aims to consider possible new directions in Cognitive Linguistics, based on critical assessments of the state of the art of the discipline. We welcome submissions from cutting-edge approaches, including new interdisciplinary research and methodological innovations.

The deadline for submission of manuscripts is 31 August 2023. All submissions will go through the usual peer-review process. When submitting a manuscript, please select “特集 special feature article”
for the item “セクション/カテゴリー Section/Category” in the Editorial Manager on-line submission and reviewing system.

Style Sheet (extract) and Editorial Manager
Editorial Board

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