Description
Book SynopsisThird Language Acquisition and Universal Grammar contains nine chapters on adult third language (L3) or multilingual acquisition from the Universal Grammar (UG) perspective. A variety of languages other than English are involved in the studies reported in the papers, including Cantonese Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Kazakh, Mandarin Chinese, Norwegian, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, and Thai, with acquisition cases taking place in a number of different geographical locations, such as Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Norway, Taiwan, Thailand, the UK and the USA. This volume will appeal to those studying L3 acquisition from a variety of theoretical perspectives and should encourage scholarly exchange between the fields of bi-/multilingualism and SLA.
Trade ReviewLeung’s volume makes an important contribution to the dynamic, fast-growing field of third language acquisition, showcasing state of the art research and presenting a bird’s eye view of the challenging research agenda. The papers show how the acquisition of third language competence poses new theoretical and empirical puzzles that can be described and explained in interesting ways. The transfer phenomena given rise by the interaction of typologically diverse combinations of L1-L2-L3 are reminiscent of parallel cases in the mother field of second language acquisition, but with the variables and complexity greatly multiplied. The volume is sure to inspire further studies in the field.
* Virginia Yip, Chinese University of Hong Kong *
A pioneer in the theoretical study of third language acquisition and interlanguage transfer, Ingrid Leung presents a series of original studies from diverse theoretical perspectives, ranging from typology to Universal Grammar and multicompetence. Featuring interesting three-way interactions between European and Asian languages, the studies offer an intriguing taste of the findings beginning to emerge in this rapidly developing field.
* Stephen Matthews, University of Hong Kong *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements
Contributors
Introductory Chapter: Third Language Acquisition and Universal Grammar - Yan-kit Ingrid Leung
Chapter 1: The Acquisition of Spanish Middle and Impersonal Passive Constructions from SLA and TLA Perspectives - Patricia Bayona
Chapter 2: Language Transfer in the Acquisition of the Semantic Contrast in L3 Spanish - Diana Hsien-Jen Chin
Chapter 3: Multilingual Universal Grammar as the Norm - Vivian Cook
Chapter 4: UG and L3 Acquisition: New Insights and More Questions - Suzanne Flynn
Chapter 5: Transfer in L3 Acquisition: The Role of Typology - Rebecca Foote
Chapter 6: L3 Enhanced Feature Sensitivity as a Result of Higher Proficiency in the L2 - Carol Jaensch
Chapter 7: Third Language Acquisition of Norwegian Objects: Interlanguage Transfer or L1 Influence? - Fufen Jin
Chapter 8: Null Objects in L1 Thai-L2 English-L3 Chinese: An Empiricist’s Take on a Theoretical Problem - Sirirat Na Ranong / Yan-kit Ingrid Leung
Chapter 9: The L3 Acquisition of Cantonese Reflexives - Wai lan Tsang
