Dependent-Head Synthesis in Nivkh

“In this masterly, detailed analysis of the phonology-syntax interface in Nivkh (Gilyak), a language isolate of eastern most Asia, Johanna Mattissen succeeds in showing how phonological and other evidence force an analysis whereby many constructions that would be phrases in other languages must be treated as single words. She thereby demonstrates that Nivkh represents a new type of dependent-head synthesis, one that leads the language to make a number of other unusual choices, for instance in the syntax of relative clauses. This work is essential reading for anyone concerned with how empirical evidence and close analysis of little described languages can lead to new insights in grammatical theory.”
Bernard Comrie, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology

“Mattissen's book is strongly recommended. Drawing on a comprehensive range of secondary sources, it fills a long-standing gap by making available the first monograph-length treatment, in English, of this fascinating and unusual language — until now, the most substantial material has been available only in Russian or Japanese. Her novel analysis of Nivkh morphosyntax in terms of dependent-head synthesis,by which modifiers are morphologically joined to their heads, and governees to their governors, makes a compelling case for recognizing a type of morphological complexity that, although it partly resembles polysynthesis, does not fit easily into existing typological categories.”
Nick Evans, University of Melbourne

“It is out of question that Dependent-Head Synthesis in Nivkh is a 'must' to read for all who are interested in the question of intra-clausal concatenation strategies from a typological point of view. In addition, the book serves another important purpose, namely to introduce the linguistics of Nivkh to the general audience in a way that brings the book close to a 'functional description' of Nivkh. Sure, the book is not a reference grammar of the language. For this, the reader should for instance turn to Gruzdeva 1998.
Still, the amazing wealth of data presented by J.M. allows the reader to get a deep insight into the linguistics of Nivkh that goes far beyond other comparable studies.
We have to thank Johana Mattissen for having prepared this wonderful and stimulating book, which is formally well-done and accurate in the presentation of both data and analyses.”
Wolfgang Schulze on Linguist List 15.1249, 2004

“Mattissen succeeds in introducing a new quality to the inventory of morphological types. She also convincingly demontrates that dependent-head synthesis is most probably not restricted to Nivkh. Her findings provide a valuable platform for reconsidering the issues of polysynthesis, incorporation and compounding. At any rate Mattissen's interpretation of the Nivkh data is a challenge to the current views of the structure of polysynthetic languages. The book is generally carefully edited...an outstanding exemplar of this genre.”
STUF 57(4), 2004

“This volume contains a lot of data that may be of use to typologists, as well as interesting analyses of a broadly functional and cognitive nature. The linguistic expression of motion, direction, and location offers a wealth of material for typological analysis, and this volume is a welcome contribution to the field.”
Linguistic Typology, Vol. 9(1), 2005