What allows children to acquire language so effortlessly, with such speed, and with such amazing accuracy? Capitalizing on the most recent developments in linguistics and cognitive psychology, this volume sheds new light on the what, why, and how of the child's ability to acquire one or more languages. The "Handbook" is one of a kind in a number of respects. It includes state-of-the-art treatments of acquisition from a variety of theoretical viewpoints ranging from functionalist approaches and the implications of the creolization of languages for the study of acquisition to the relevance of...

This is a complete grammatical description of Panjabi, an Indo-European language spoken in India and Pakistan, as well as in other countries outside Asia (particularly in the United Kingdom and Canada) by approximately 45 million people, either as a first or a second language. It is recognized as one of the 15 official languages of India. Primarily written in three distinct scripts (Gurumukhi, Perso-Arabic, and Devanagari), a unique feature of the language is that it is tonal in nature. Along with Lahanda and the Western Pahari (Himalayan) dialects, Panjabi is the only modern Indo-European...

Colloquial Urdu provides a step-by-step course in Urdu as it is written and spoken today. Combining a user-friendly approach with a thorough treatment of the language, it equips learners with the essential skills needed to communicate confidently and effectively in Urdu in a broad range of situations. No prior knowledge of the language is required.

Key features include:

• progressive coverage of speaking, listening, reading and writing skills
• structured, jargon-free explanations of grammar
• an...