Trends in Linguistics #120: The Welsh Answering System

Adult learners of Welsh are usually dismayed to discover that the language has no simple equivalent of English yes or no, that answering a question in the affirmative or negative takes a wide range of forms depending on a number of contextual factors. In Welsh, there are many parts of No to misunderstand. Jones investigates the phenomenon from two main standpoints. First he describes and explains the answering system in a linguistic analysis, then he uses that analysis as a basis for a sociolinguistic analysis of the use of the system by Welsh- speaking children between the ages of three and seven. His special concern is with the existence of the different formal types of yes-no answers and with the grammatical, semantic, and discourse influences that determine the selection of one of the types rather than another.
Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

This book researches the various ways of saying 'yes' and 'no' in Welsh. In many languages, responding with 'yes' or 'no' is simple. This work shows that in Welsh a variety of forms can be used, depending upon syntax, morphology, lexis and semantics.

The work will appeal to scholars of various interests: the chapters which analyse the answering system provide interesting data for theorists and comparative linguists; the chapters which describe and attempt to explain variation will be of interest to sociolinguists; and, of course, the whole work will appeal to Celticists.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [317]-349) and index.