5-1256msg1.txt

运用贝叶斯网编的一个识别垃圾邮件的程序

Subject: sum : size adjs and quantifiers

about a month ago , i post the follow query : i ' m look for example , from any language , of quantifier that be formally relate to size adjective . so far , i be familiar with the follow three example : english : little > a little lao : nohy5 > nohy5 neu : ng2 little little one " little " " a little " minangkabau : ketek > saketek little one-little " little " " a little " is anybody familiar with more such example ? in spite of the typological and geographical diversity of these three language , the above construction be strikingly similar . this raise the follow further question : ( 1 ) be there any analogous example where " many " be derive from " big " ? ( 2 ) be there any example where the derivation be in the other direction , ie . where a size adjective , eg . " little " be derive from a quantifier , eg . " a few " ? * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * the above query trigger numerous interest response , for which i be grateful to the follow resident of the global virtual village : robert beard , steven berbeco , jonathan david bobaljik , john cowan , jane edward , f . gladney , arthur holmer , knut lambrecht , pierre larrivee , ann lindvall , edith moravcsik , geoffrey s . nathan , chri pountain , ine shaw , nancy stenson , frit stuurman , cynthium vakareliyska , 0ystein alexander vangsn , peansirus vongvipanond , and a person who wish to remain anonymous . in a nutshell , all of the response but one provide datum from european language . i do not know enough to say whether this areal pattern be of the phenomenon in question , or rather of the respondent to the query , and the language that they be familiar with . however , the datum suggest that formal relationship between quantifier and size adjective be indeed widespread , and provide an affirmative answer to the first specific query , with example of the derivation of " many " from " big " . in what follow , i provide a selection of typical response ( if anybody want the response in their entirety , they can contact me directly ) . some more example of " little " > " a little " : swedish : liten > lite " little " " a little " irish : beag > beaga ' n " little " " a little " french : petit > un petit " little " " a little " russian : mal / malo / malum > malo " little " " a little " ( short predicate form ) polish : maly > malo " little " " a little " bulgarian : maluk / malko / malka > malko " little " " a little " some respondent offer interest diachronic comment : " [ t ] he latin adjective for ' little ' , parvus and paulus , be replace by what be often see as an ' onomatopoeic ' creation ( * pittinnus for spanish ) . the adverb parum , which be morphologically relate to parvus be replace by a form * paucu , which exist in classical latin only in the plural ( pauci ) with the mean ' ( a ) few ' . in the medieval romance language , old spanish _ poco _ , old catalan _ poc _ and old occitan _ pauc _ be however attest in the mean of ' little ' . " [ chri pountain ] " [ t ] he latin root be from ie * pou / pau , which give english few , foal , as well as latin ( and english ) pauper , poverty , not to mention greek pae ` child ' ( paediatrician etc . ) so all the ` small ' and ` few ' meaning be intermingle throughout all the ie etyma . " [ geoffrey s . nathan ] and now , in response to question ( 1 ) , some example of " big " > " many " : quebec french : gro > gro gro " big " " a lot " irish : mo ' r > mo ' ra ' n " big " " a lot " ( negative polarity ) polish : duzy > duzo " big " " a lot " and a general diachronic comment : " slavic _ comparative _ quantifier " more " have the same root ( bol - ) as adj " big " ( old church slavonic bolius , modern russian bol 's hoj ) . " many / much " be mnogo / mnogus in the slavic language , root * minog - ( short i ) - - there 's no etymologically relate adj mean " big " . ( the root in the comparative show up as * bolj - in the comparative quantifier and adj , but i be assume the j be a suffix [ . . . ] . i think russian be the only modern language where this root still show up in the adj . " big " , though all of them except modern bulgarian ( and probably macedonian ) still have the comparative quantifier in bol . vasmer 's etymological dictionary of the russian language relate the root to sanskrit baliyan ( acute accent on first a , long mark over i and second a ) , " stronger " , balistha ( acute over first a , dot under first s and t ) , " strongest " , " balam " ( acute over first a ) " strength " . russian have two different comparative form with this root in addition to the adj " big " ( bol 's hoj ) : comparative quantifier bol 's he ( as in " more money " ) and adverb bolee ( as in " more interest " ) . " [ cynthium vakareliyska ] as for question ( 2 ) , pertain to derivation in the opposite direction ( from quantifier to size adjective ) , here the evidence be still less clear . one respondent [ ann lindvall ] suggest some possible example from swedish and greek . in fact , in the above slavic example , the directionality be not immediately clear , and may perhap be most appropriately characterize as a nondirectional identity of ( neuter-form ) adjective and quantifier . however , i still have n't encounter any uncontroversial example of size adjective that be derive from quantifier . finally , two interest comment on relate phenomenon : " hungarian : ' a little ' or 's omewhat ' ( such as in " she be a little late . " or " a somewhat over-ripe pear be lie on the table . " ) : _ kicsit _ , which consist of _ kicsus _ ( predicative form of the the adjective for 's mall ' ) plus _ t _ , the accusative marker ' very ' , ' extremely ' ( such as in the above sentence , with " little " / " somewhat " replace with " very " / " extremely " ) : _ nagyon _ , which consist of _ nagy _ ' big ' and _ on _ , a de - adjectival adverbializer . these be ad-verbal and ad-adjectival quantifier . adnominal quantifier such as ' many ' and ' few ' do not have to do with size adjective . " [ edith moravcsik ] " i suspect that the thaus and lao adverb ( ? ) nak " great deal , a lot " and the adjective nak " heavy " be derivative of one another ( strange ? ) through grammaticalization . this verbal quantifier be more prevalent in lao , lanna thaus dialect and isan dialect ( all geographically and historically relate ) than in bangkok thaus . " [ peansirus vongvipanond ]