Functional Categories in Language Acquisition: Self-Organization of a Dynamical System

This study investigates the acquisition of Functional Categories from the perspective of self-organization. Syntax emerges through a major bifurcation of the dynamical language system. Dynamical notions such as precursor, oscillation, symmetry-breaking, and trigger are explanatory tools for the dynamics of early child language as evidenced in the acquisition of compounding, case-marking, finiteness, V2, wh-questions, etc. The book addresses researchers from various theoretical camps: generative, functional, connectionist, by giving new answers to old questions in the light of a novel challenging theory: self-organization.