How and why do languages change? This new introduction offers a guide to the types of change at all levels of linguistic structure, as well as the mechanisms behind each type. Based on data from a variety of methods and a huge array of language families, it examines general patterns of change, bringing together recent findings on sound change, analogical change, grammaticalizat...(展开全部)

How and why do languages change? Where does the evidence of language change come from? How do languages begin and end? This introduction to language change explores these and other questions, considering changes through time. The central theme of this book is whether language change is a symptom of progress or decay. This book will show you why it is neither, and that understan...(展开全部)

Lexicalization, a process of language change, has been conceived in a variety of ways. In this up-to-date survey, Laurel Brinton and Elizabeth Traugott examine the various ideas that have been presented. In light of contemporary work on grammaticalization, they then propose a new, unified model of lexicalization and grammaticalization. Their approach is illustrated with a vari...(展开全部)

Lexicalization, a process of language change, has been conceived in a variety of ways. In this up-to-date survey, Laurel Brinton and Elizabeth Traugott examine the various ideas that have been presented. In light of contemporary work on grammaticalization, they then propose a new, unified model of lexicalization and grammaticalization. Their approach is illustrated with a vari...(展开全部)

This is a lucid and up-to-date overview of language change. It discusses where our evidence about language change comes from, how and why changes happen, and how languages begin and end. It considers both changes which occurred long ago, and those currently in progress. It does this within the framework of one central question - is language change a symptom of progress or decay...(展开全部)

Ever since the origins of both linguistics and evolutionary biology in the 19th century, scholars have noted the similarity between biological evolution and language change. Yet until recently neither linguists nor biologists have developed a model of evolution to apply across the two fields. Explaining Language Change presents the first integrated theory of all aspects of lang...(展开全部)

Languages are constantly changing. New words are added to the English language every year, either borrowed or coined, and there is often railing against the 'decline' of the language by public figures. Some languages, such as French and Finnish, have academies to protect them against foreign imports. Yet languages are species-like constructs, which evolve naturally over time. M...(展开全部)

约翰 P. 科特（John P. Kotter） 举世闻名的领导力专家，世界顶级企业领导与变革领域最权威的代言人。他的核心思想是领导与变革。曾服务过的客户包括高级微型设备公司（AMD）、美国运通（American Express）、ARCO、雅芳（Avon）、通用电气（General Electric）、IBM、摩托罗拉（Motorola）、壳牌石油（Shell Oil）、索尼（Sony）等。科特1947年出生于美国圣迭哥，早年先后就读于麻省理工学院及哈佛大学，1972年开始执教于哈佛商学院，1980年，年仅33岁的科特成为哈佛商学院的终身教授，他和“竞争战略之父”迈克尔•波特是哈佛历史上获此项殊荣的最年轻得主。 科特已经出版了18种书籍，其中12种都在畅销书榜中名列前茅。他的书籍和文章被翻译成超过150种外文版本。

奥托·叶斯柏森（Otto Jespersen，1860—1943）是享誉国际的丹麦语言学家，一生著述颇丰，研究涵盖普通语言学、语法学、语音学、语言史、符号系统、语言哲学、外语教学、国际辅助语等多个领域，对普通语言学和语法学的贡献尤为显著，影响了包括布龙菲尔德（L.Bloomfield）、乔姆斯基（N. Chomsky）、韩礼德（M. Halliday）等语言学泰斗在内的大批学者。 中国语言学界和外语教学界对叶斯柏森的名字十分熟悉。20世纪40年代，他的语言学理论思想曾深刻影响过吕叔湘、王力等汉语语法界大师。