Like stars, societies are born, and this story deals with such a birth. It asks a fundamental and compelling question: How did societies first coalesce from the small foraging communities that had roamed in West Central Africa for many thousands of years? Jan Vansina continues a career-long effort to reconstruct the history of African societies before European contact in How Societies Are Born. In this complement to his previous study Paths in the Rainforests, Vansina employs a provocative combination of archaeology and historical linguistics to turn his scholarly focus to governance, studying the creation of relatively large societies extending beyond the foraging groups that characterized west central Africa from the beginning of human habitation to around 500 BCE, and the institutions that bridged their constituent local communities and made large-scale cooperation possible. The increasing reliance on cereal crops, iron tools, large herds of cattle, and overarching institutions such as corporate matrilineages and dispersed matriclans lead up to the developments treated in the second part of the book. From about 900 BCE until European contact, different societies chose different developmental paths. Interestingly, these proceeded well beyond environmental constraints and were characterized by "major differences in the subjects which enthralled people," whether these were cattle, initiations and social position, or "the splendors of sacralized leaders and the possibilities of participating in them."

Sonic Signatures is devoted to the representation of sound patterns and sound structures across a diverse range of typologically distinct languages with the overall aim of understanding the nature of linguistic data structures from a principled balance between representational economy and the interfaces of phonology with other domains, including acoustic and visual. The volume embraces data spanning from Nivkh vowel harmony to Maxakalí sign language, and from the representation of consonant clusters in adult Laurentian French and to those found in child Greek and child Brazilian Portuguese. The volume strives towards concrete commitments to the theoretical understanding of empirical territory both familiar but with a novel take (English stress) and novel but with immediate relevance (Hungarian suffix allomorphy). With authors contributing from five continents, the book offers a range of perspectives on the representation of sound patterns, while nonetheless retaining a tight focus on the core questions of which characteristics and signatures are specifically encoded for these patterns in the phonological component of the language faculty.

A rich analysis of the complex dynamic between food collection and food production in the farming societies of precolonial south central Africa Engaging new linguistic evidence and reinterpreting published archaeological evidence, this sweeping study explores the place of bushcraft and agriculture in the precolonial history of south central Africa across nearly three millennia. Contrary to popular conceptions that place farming at the heart of political and social change, political innovation in precolonial African farming societies was actually contingent on developments in hunting, fishing, and foraging, as de Luna reveals.

This volume presents a detailed understanding and analysis of the ideology of kingship among the Aruwund (Lunda) of southern Democratic Republic of the Congo. In doing so, the text is drawn into addressing a range of important regional themes. (Archaeology/Anthropology)

Embark on a fascinating exploration of the origins of the English language with Coleridge's illuminating work, "A Dictionary of the First or Oldest Words in the English Language." Join Coleridge as he unravels the linguistic tapestry of early English, shedding light on the roots of our modern vocabulary. As Coleridge delves into the oldest words in the English language, he invites readers to journey back in time to the dawn of human speech. From ancient roots to modern usage, each entry in this dictionary offers a window into the evolution of language and the rich history of English. But amidst the exploration of linguistic origins lies a question that resonates with readers and scholars alike: What can the earliest words in our language teach us about ourselves and our shared history? Through Coleridge's meticulous research and insightful commentary, readers are invited to ponder the mysteries of language and the human experience. Join Coleridge on a journey through the lexicon of the past, where words are more than just symbols-they are windows into the minds and cultures of our ancestors. Through his dictionary, he invites readers to explore the rich tapestry of linguistic heritage that continues to shape our world today. Are you ready to uncover the hidden history of the English language? Immerse yourself in the pages of "A Dictionary of the First or Oldest Words in the English Language," where the roots of our language come alive. Join Coleridge on a journey of discovery and exploration, and uncover the secrets of our linguistic heritage. Experience the beauty of language's evolution. Order your copy of "A Dictionary of the First or Oldest Words in the English Language" today and embark on a linguistic adventure through time. Don't miss your chance to delve into the linguistic tapestry of English with Coleridge. Purchase "A Dictionary of the First or Oldest Words in the English Language" now and discover the ancient roots of our modern vocabulary.

This book could be considered as the cornerstone of the historical and literary part of the English dictionary proposed by the Linguistic Association. This standard applies to works before 1526 and is provided on the following pages, which contain an alphabetical list of each word in English literature printed in the 13th century.