Grammar of Social Cognition in Khalkha-Mongolian

• Applicant: Dr. Dolgor Guntsetseg
• Subject Area: General and Comparative Linguistics, Experimental Linguistics, Typology, Non-European Languages
• Term: from 2019 to 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 417675039

Recent linguistic studies have shown that languages are not just autonomous systems with fixed structures, but rather, are complex, dynamic systems that interact with cognitive processes such as perception and information processing as well as with models of the world view of individuals or of socio-cultural groups with common experiences. Thus, empirical studies on linguistic aspects of "social cognition" and their coding in language grammars become increasingly important. The proposed project investigates and describes how social cognition is reflected in the grammar of Khalkha-Mongolian. More specifically, the project aims to find out which social and cultural parameters influence the grammar of this language and how the mental processes of individuals are reflected in it. The following aspects of social cognition will be covered by the research analysis at different linguistic levels: a) human reference concerning kinship, social status and ownerships; b) private predicates expressing thoughts and feelings of individuals that can be only known by their "owners"; c) reported speech and thought; and d) evidentiality, mirativity and epistemic modality. For the research database, audio-visual language materials of Khalkha-Mognolian will be collected using an innovative field elicitation tool that will result in natural, spontaneous and interactive speech data. The data will be analysed according to the linguistic aspects of social cognition and annotated with relevant linguistic variables using the software tool ELAN. The completely annotated data will be transferred into SCOPIC (Social Cognition Parallax Interview Corpus) in order to place the research results into a broader cross-linguistic and theoretical context of social cognition that could explain the diversity of world's languages. Thus, the proposed project provides not only a language-specific description of Khalkha-Mongolian but also contributes crucial data for cross-linguistic insights on social cognition in the languages of the world.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Australia
• Co-Investigator: Professorin Dr. Elena Skribnik
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Nicholas Evans, Ph.D.