Overview
Language is in large part about the description of events occurring in the world around us. Relationships of different sorts may be perceived between those events. And some of these relationships can be expressed by specific verb forms--or by syntactic constructions involving specific verb forms. The present study examines this facet of the Egyptian and Coptic verbal systems in isolation, singling out three types of relationships between events and the linguistic means by which they are expressed. The first essay studies the verb form called ""conjunctive,"" arguing that the function of the conjunctive is to ""con-join"" a chain of two or more events into a single--though compound--notion. The second essay shows how a certain syntactic construction can be used to refer to events that are contiguous, that is, events that succeed one another rapidly in time. The third essay examines verb forms that refer to events whose occurrence is contingent on the occurrence of other events implied or explicitly mentioned in the context. The respective grammatical phenomena are labeled conjunction, contiguity, and contingency. This study constitutes a significant advancement in our understanding of the ancient language of Egypt, and will be of interest to scholars in the fields of Egyptology, Coptology, and the Ancient Near East, as well as linguists, Byzantinists and Classicists.
Full Product Details
Author: Leo Depuydt (Assistant Professor of Egyptology, Assistant Professor of Egyptology, Brown University)
Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc
Imprint: Oxford University Press Inc
Dimensions:
Width: 14.60cm
, Height: 3.20cm
, Length: 21.70cm
Weight: 0.552kg
ISBN: 9780195080926
ISBN 10: 0195080920
Pages: 304
Publication Date: 22 July 1993
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: To order
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Reviews
Conjunction, Contiguity, Contingency is truly an enjoyable book to read: the author writes with grace, elegance, and even wit. Not only is the book a fresh and innovative look at specific points in Egyptian grammar, but it is also an impressive contribution to our understanding of the ancient Egyptian language as a whole. * Journal of Near Eastern Studies *
"""Conjunction, Contiguity, Contingency is truly an enjoyable book to read: the author writes with grace, elegance, and even wit. Not only is the book a fresh and innovative look at specific points in Egyptian grammar, but it is also an impressive contribution to our understanding of the ancient Egyptian language as a whole.""--Journal of Near Eastern Studies ""Conjunction, Contiguity, Contingency is truly an enjoyable book to read: the author writes with grace, elegance, and even wit. Not only is the book a fresh and innovative look at specific points in Egyptian grammar, but it is also an impressive contribution to our understanding of the ancient Egyptian language as a whole.""--Journal of Near Eastern Studies"
