Tondano

Brickell offers a comprehensive account of Tondano, an Austronesian language of northern Sulawesi, Indonesia, which is at risk of disappearing and has received little prior documentation. Adapted from a PhD thesis submitted to La Trobe University in Bundoora, Victoria, Australia, in 2015, the book opens with the social and historical background of the Tondano community. It then examines the language's sounds, how words are formed, and how phrases and sentences are constructed.

The author draws on fieldwork carried out in situ between 2011 and 2015. The analysis does not adopt a single theoretical model, although its terminology, methods and reasoning partly follow Basic Linguistic Theory. Examples at every level of structure come mainly from spontaneous conversation, gathered and analysed with speakers of the community. The author aims for thoroughness while openly acknowledging gaps caused by limited data, unclear analysis or constraints of length.

Issues of Austronesian typology and broader cross-linguistic typology appear where they are needed but are not the book's main concern. It is intended for linguists and students of language, as well as readers interested in the anthropology and linguistics of Austronesian cultures in Maritime Southeast Asia.