Dimapur, Dec. 28 (EMN): A book titled ‘Tenyidie Tone: A morpho-phonological investigation,’ written by Savio Megolhuto Meyase, was formally released on Wednesday at Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
The book is a first of its kind dedicated especially to the tones of Tenyidie language and one of the first in linguistics in the language area, an update stated.
Taking both a documentary as well as a structural approach to the exhibition of the tones and other linguistic data in Tenyidie, it provides pioneering insights to the tonal grammar of the language while also analysing the morphological structure which in turn largely informs the tonal grammar.
In his foreword, Dr. Yuni Kim, University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom, wrote that Nagaland, with its unique cultures, landscapes, histories, and languages, awakens great interest in the foreigner.
“The linguistics community in the UK and Europe has been fortunate in recent years to have Savio M Meyase as a Tenyidie ambassador, educating us about the languages of North East India and extending scientific knowledge of linguistic diversity through the study of previously unrevealed structural intricacies of the Tenyidie language”, it read.
Stating that his 2021 publication in the top international journal Phonology attests to the interest in his work on a global level, Dr. Yuni Kim also noted that “what is perhaps more important, however, is the reach of Meyase’s work on the local level.”
“If a linguistic theory or research programme takes authentic language and the verbal expression of native speakers as its input, surely a top priority is for it to output knowledge that is illuminating and useful for a language’s speakers and communities,” she said.
Dr. Yuni Kim further expressed hope that “Tenyidie Tone” will awaken new insights into the Tenyidie language and beyond, thinking both of Tenyidie speakers who will enjoy reading the illustrations out loud with heightened awareness; and of speakers of other languages who may be inspired to undertake studies of tonal morphophonology that build on Meyase’s example.
Dr. T Temsunungsang, The English and Foreign Languages University, Regional Campus, Shillong, also remarked that “Linguistics as a choice of study is a fairly new area for students of North East India, particularly Nagaland.” However, with much focus on the protection and preservation of indigenous languages across the world in recent years, this discipline has become all the more important.
At such a time, he said, “it is heartening to see the publication of a book on linguistics, especially one which deals with a topic that is seldom given the attention that it needs.”
Pointing out that of all the languages spoken in Nagaland, Tenyidie is way ahead of the other languages in terms of both literary and linguistic studies, he stated that “the publication of Tenyidie Tone exemplifies this growth of research work”
He also expressed confidence that the book will benefit not only the many Tenyidie students, teachers, and scholars working in the field of Tenyidie linguistics, but also the linguistic fraternity in general.
‘Tenyidie Tone: A morpho-phonological investigation’ is the 67th publication of PenThrill and the first academic book published by the Publication House.
The author, Dr. Savio Megolhuto Meyase, is a linguist specialising in tone, phonology and the languages of the Northeast of India. He has a PhD in English from The English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU) Hyderabad (formerly CIEFL) and a PhD in Linguistics from Leipzig Universität, Germany.
He is currently a Newton International postdoctoral fellow of the British Academy hosted by the University of Essex at Colchester campus in the United Kingdom.
He previously served as an assistant professor of English (language and literature) at Don Bosco College, Kohima (2016 and 2017) where he taught the history of English language, phonetics, and English literature (drama and poetry).
He was also a teacher of phonetics to undergraduate students of English at the English and Foreign Languages University Hyderabad for three semesters between 2012 and 2015 and a teacher of grammar to undergraduate students of foreign languages at the same university in 2014.
