262 Revwws

about the individual contributions, both collectively and separately, and 1 feel fairly
gloomy about the picture of syntax presented here. One o f the most worrying things,
in my opinion, is the shortage of good analyses which make one feel that the analyst
has really done his job well. Far too many contributors offer general principles which
may or may not make sense, but have nothing much to offer when it comes to
analysis, especially when it comes to all those boring little details which we can't
just wish away. I cannot believe either that a good theory or framework should lead
to bad analyses, or that a linguist who can produce the latter is likely to produce the
former. We must all try harder, because there is surely nothing inevitable about this
state of affairs. And one obvious direction in which we could concentrate our eftbrts
(including our teaching) is towards becoming better at learning from each other, which
may be one of the hardest challenges facing us at the moment.

References

Berry, M., 1975. An introduction to systemic linguistics. 2 vols. London: Batsford.

Bresnan, J., 1978. A realistic transformational grammar. In : M. Halle et al. (eds.), Linguistic
theory and psychological reality, 1-59. Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press.
Dik, S., 1978. Functional grammar. Amsterdam: North-Holland.
Gazdar, G., 1981. Unbounded dependencies and coordinate structure. Linguistic lnquirv 12,
155-184.
Halliday, M. A. K., 1970. Language structure and language function. In: J. Lyons (ed.), New
horizons in linguistics, 140-165. Harmondsworth: Penguin.
Hudson, R.A., forthcoming. Word grammar. Oxford: Blackwell.
Kac, M., 1978. Corepresentation of grammatical structure. London : Croom Helm.
Starosta, S., 1978. The one per sent solution. In: W. Abraham (ed.), Valence, semantic case
and grammatical relation, 459-576. Amsterdam: Benjamins.
Starosta, S., 1979. The end of phrase-structure as we know it. University of Hawaii Working
Papers in Linguistics 11(1), 59-76.
Stockwell, R.P., P. Schachter, B.H. Partee, 1973. The major syntactic structures of English.
New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

Melvyn C. Resnick, Introducci6n a la historia de la lengua espa~ola. Georgetown

Univ. Press, Washington, D.C.r 1981. xii, 203 pp. $8.95.
Reviewed by: Frank Nuessel, Univ. of Louisville, Dept. of Classical and Modern
Languages, Louisville, K Y 40292, USA.

Comprehensive is the most appropriate term to describe this book. The inter-
spersion of rhetorical questions throughout the seven units, the introduction of new
and important concepts and terminology in large capitals, the inclusion of specific
 Reviews 263

phonological, morphological and word formation practices and subsequent answers

for these directed exercises (pp. 158-163), provocative content questions at the end
of each chapter, and a final chrestomathy (pp. 164-185) of selected passages from
the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries all make this book a pedagogical grammar
comparable to Canfield and Davis' (1975) textbook. At the same time, the highly
synthetic nature of this fact-filled text, the broad historical spectrum of the Spanish
language with its numerous regional varieties, thoroughly documented notes and a
comprehensive bibliography (pp. 186-203) remind the reader of other outstanding
though more complete discursive treatises on the diachronic aspects of this language
(Entwistle 1936; Lapesa 1980; Mateos M. 1974; Men6ndez Pidal 1965; Spaulding
1943).
At this point, a brief review of the contents of the seven individual sections is in
order. Chapter 1 ('Historical Introduction', pp. 1-11) provides an overview of the
place of Spanish language within the scheme of world languages (Indo-European,
Neo-Latin or Romance). A chronological "presentation of the formation of Spanish
together with major foreign linguistic influences (3000 B.C.-A.D. 1492) is sketched.
Excellent charts and maps, a lucid prose style and clear and concise explanations
combine to produce an eminently legible and comprehensive text.
Chapter 2 ('Foreign Influences', pp. 12-18) specifies the conventional non-Latin
lexical influences on Spanish: Celtiberian, Celtic, Basque, Germanic and Arabic.
In the realm ofonomastics, toponyms and anthroponyms are discussed and exemplified.
A relatively short discussion about the so-called substratum theory ensues. Resnick
(henceforth R.) fails, however, to take a firm position on this polemical topic. 1
In the next chapter ('Some Details', pp. 19-29), a brief sketch of Latin phonology
and prosody is presented. The notions of learned, semi-learned and popular lexical
items are discussed and exemplified. Many of the examples are fresh and therefore
interesting.
The fourth chapter ('From Latin to Spanish: Phonology', pp. 30-78) is the longest
of the entire book. Again, R.'s treatment is thorough and accurate, albeit routine.
The illustrative data are refreshing because they are not repetitions of the standard
fare found in many other introductory texts. R.'s approach to the Latin-Hispanic
phonological changes is in a traditional philological or structuralist format. Much of
this chapter consists of a series of item and process statements 2 which lack the
rigorous (hence empirical) formalism of generative phonological rules such as those
found in Hartman (1974) or Otero (1971, 1976). Furthermore, it is unfortunate
that R. has not given any consideration to the computational analyses of Spanish
and the Romance languages that are beginning to appear (Burton-Hunter 1976;
Eastlack 1977; Hartman 1981, 1982; cf. also Keil 1974). Innovative applications of
computer software are taking place that will soon revolutionize the teaching of
historical linguistics. Such ancillary programs used in conjunction with this text would
enhance its instructional efficiency and effectiveness considerably.
Chapter 5 ('Grammatical Changes', pp. 79-108) provides an accurate, succinct and
264 Reviews

established explanation for the transformation of Latin from a synthetic to an analytic

syntactic system (loss of postpositional case distinctions conditioned by various phon-
ological modifications and a consequent reliance on prepositions and word order to
express grammatical relations). Once more the examples are fresh and original.
The following chapter ('History and Dialectology', pp. 109-132) is especially well-
conceived. R. (1975) has already established himself as a recognized authority in the
field of Latin American dialectology. This chapter demonstrates that expertise con-
vincingly. R. furthermore proves his knowledge of generative grammatical theory in
this section in his brief mentions of Harris's (1969) explanation of the sixteenth-
century Spanish sibilant shift and Foley's (1977) hierarchy of phonological strength
applied to intervocalic stop consonants. Despite these brief references to current
linguistics theory, R. chooses, in general, to employ a more traditional exposition of
the facts. Finally, an exceptional presentation of the concept of phonological restruc-
turing appears in this chapter (pp. 118-119). In the area of syntax, R. provides an
excellent syntactic example of 'push chains' and 'drag chains' (cf. Martinet 1955;
King 1969).
The last chapter ('Lexical Expansion', pp. 133-156) treats the impact of native
American languages (Arawak, Carib, Nahuatl, Quechua, Aymara, Araucanian and
Tupi-Guarani). Other more recent foreign influences (Portuguese, French, Italian,
Occitan and English) are discussed in order to exemplify direct borrowings, caiques
and semantic shifts. Finally, productive and non-productive word formation patterns
are presented.
In his prologue (p. xi), R. states that the purpose of this book is ",.. to be a minimum
introduction to the internal and external history of the Spanish language. It presents
the development of the language in terms of its Latin origins and the foreign influences
that have contributed to its formation [translation mine, F.N.]". The extent to which
the author has achieved his stated objectives is one way to measure a book's success.
R., in fact, manages to attain his goals rather easily. Furthermore, R.'s scholarship
is accurate, precise and comprehensible. R. has a true facility for clear , succinct and
intelligible explanations of difficult concepts. The author's virtual avoidance of the
several transformational generative accounts of historical changes in Spanish in favor
of the more conventional philological discussions may be problematic for some linguists.
The text fills a recognized gap in the curriculum because it provides a current synthesis
of information on Hispanic historical linguistics in a well-written format.

Notes

1 Classical evidence against a substratum influence on Spanish phonology may be found

in Elcock (1960: 181) and the references cited in note 2. The fact that such sound changes
as f > h may be found throughout Romania and not exclusively in Northeastern Spain is
an argument against this hypothesis.
 Reviews 265

2 To a certain extent, R.'s approach is similar to Donegan and Stampe's (1979) view of
phonology as inventories of processes (cf. Zwicky 1982 : 877).

References

Burton-Hunter, S. K., 1976. Romance etymology: A computerized model. Computers and the
Humanities 10, 217-220.
Canfield, D. Lincoln, J. Cary Davis, 1975. An introduction to Romance linguistics. Carbondale
and Edwardsville, IL: Southern Illinois Univ. Press.
Donegan, Patricia J., David Stampe, 1979. The study of natural phonology. In: Daniel
A. Dinnsen (ed.), Current approaches to phonological theory, 126--173. Bloomington and
London: Indiana Univ. Press.
Eastlack, C. L., 1977. lberochange: A program to simulate systematic sound change in Ibero-
Romance. Computers and the Humanities 11, 81-88.
Entwistle, W.J., 1936. The Spanish language together with Portuguese, Catalan and Basque.
London: Faber and Faber.
Foley, James W., 1977. Foundations of theoretical phonology. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ.
Press.
Grandgent, Charles H., 1962. An introduction to vulgar Latin. New York: Hafner Publishing
Company.
Hall, Robert A., Jr., 1974. External history of the Romance languages. New York : American
Elsevier Publishing Company.
Harris, James W., 1969. Spanish phonology. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Hartman, Steven Lee, 1974. An outline of Spanish historical phonology, Papers in Lin-
guistics 7, 123-191.
Hartman, Steven Lee, 1981. A universal alphabet for experiments in comparative phonology.
Computers and the Humanities 15, 75-82.
Hartman, Steven Lee, 1982 (MS). A computer model of Spanish historical sound change.
Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois Univ.
KeiI, G.C., 1974. Narrow phonetic transcription on the computer: Taking the phone off
the hook. Computers and the Humanities 8, 217-229.
King, Robert D., 1969. Historical linguistics and generative grammar. Englewood Cliffs, N J:
Prentice-Hall.
Lapesa, Rafael, 1980. Historia de la lengua espafiola. Madrid: Gredos.
Martinet, Andr6, 1955. I~conomie des changements phon6tiques. Berne: A. Francke.
Mateos M., Agustln, 1974. Etimologlas latinas del espahol. 14th ed. M6xico, D.F., M6xico:
Editorial Esfinge.
Men~ndez Pidal, Ram6n, 1965. Manual de gram~itica hist6rica espafiola. 6th ed. Madrid:
Espasa-Calpe.
Otero, Carlos-Peregrin, 1976. Evoluci6n y revoluci6n en romance. Vol. 2. Barcelona: Seix
Barral.
Otero, Carlos-Peregrin, 1971. Evoluci6n y revoluci6n en romance. Vol. 2. Barcelona: Seix
Barral.
Posner, Rebecca, 1966. The Romance languages: A linguistic introduction. Garden City, NY:
Anchor Books.
266 Rev~n~

Resnick, Melvyn C., 1975. Phonological variants and dialect differences in Latin American
Spanish. The Hague: Mouton.
Spaulding, Robert K., 1943. How Spanish grew. Berkeley, CA : Univ. of California Press.
Zwicky, Arnold M., 1982. Review of Daniel A. Dinnsen (ed.), 1979. Current issues in phon-
ological theory. Bloomington and London: Indiana Univ. Press. Language 58, 873-889.

Alexander Issatschenko, Geschichte der russischen Sprache. 1. Band: Von den An-
f,ingen bis zum Ende des 17. Jahrhunderts (Slavica). Carl Winter, Heidelberg,
1980. 348 S. DM 132 (brosch.)/150 (geb.).
Reviewed by: Herbert Galton, Soviet East-European Studies, The University of
Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA.

Diese Besprechung wird nicht Issatschenkos (Isa6enko, kurz: I.) Anordnung des
Buches folgen, welche chronologisch ist, wie es sich for die Geschichte einer Sprache
ziemt. Dies aus dem kurz hier vorwegzunehmenden Grunde, dass mit all seiner
historischen Gliederung das Buch in zwei Teile zerfallt, welche untereinander nicht
sehr innig zusammenh~ingen, und zwischen denen eine Liicke klafft. Es besteht n~imlich
einerseits aus diachronischer Lautlehre und andererseits aus dem, was man gemeiniglich
~iussere Sprachgeschichte zu nennen pflegt - einer IJbersicht der Entwicklung der in
der Literatur, aber auch zu allen m6glichen anderen Zwecken schriftlich niedergelegten
Formen der Sprache, gegen einen sehr reichlich ausgestatteten Hintergrund der Ge-
schichte Russlands, ja in gewissem Ausmass der politischen und Geistesgeschichte
Europas. Bis dereinst marxistische oder andere Historiker einen Zusammenhang
zwischen der Entwicklung der Sprachlaute und den Schicksalen eines Volkes auffinden
m6gen (von allf~illigen offenkundigen Adstratwirkungen abgesehen), bleiben diese
Aspekte voneinander getrennt, und sollen hier auch so behandelt werden. Ihre gemein-
same Bearbeitung in 6inem Buche, noch dazu aus der Feder eines Einzelnen, stellt
gewiss ein Novum dar, das geh6rig gew~irdigt werden soil, bei aller Meinungs-
verschiedenheit im Einzelnen. Dabei liegt I.'s Schwerpunkt auf der erw~ihnten ausseren
Sprachgeschichte, wit wollen aber unsere Kritik mit der Lautgeschichte beginnen und
uns dann h6heren Sprachebenen zuwenden, mit dem Abschluss in der ~iusseren
Geschichte des Russischen.
Der erste Hinweis auf das urslavische Lautsystem erfolgt auf S. 14, wo unter
anderem das Zeichen ~ eingef'tihrt wird, ohne irgend eine Erkl~irung dessen, was man
sich im Ursl. darunter etwa vorzustellen hat, abgesehen davon, dass seine palatali-
sierende Wirkung auf vorangehende Velare erw~hnt wird. Es kann nicht genug betont
werden, dass die Verwendung des Graphems ~ in der slav. Lautgeschichte von zweifel-
haftem Wert ist. An und for sich geht es auf die b6hmische Rechtschreibungsreform
des Jan Hus (gest. 1415) zuriick, w~ihrend ihm im heutigen (~echischen kein bestimmter