Constance Kutsch Lojenga
Degrees
- Ph.D. African Linguistics, University of Leiden, (1994)
- M.A. African Linguistics, University of Leiden, (1984)
- Teaching qualification French, (1969)
- Teaching qualification, (1965)
Current positions
- International Linguistics Consultant (1997–)
- Lecturer/Researcher at the Dept. of Languages and Cultures of Africa, Leiden University (1997–)
Other experience
- Supervision of MA and PhD theses at Leiden University.
- Member of Committee at PhD defences, Leiden University and Free University of Amsterdam.
- Led workshops on various aspects in all domains: linguistics, literacy, translation principles, incl. a phonology workshop for a 10-language cluster project.
- Linguistics and Literacy Consultant Eastern Africa Group and Eastern Congo Group (1984 – 1997) and Ivory Coast Branch (1980 – 1983).
- Translation: Attié, Ivory Coast (1980 – 1983) and Ngiti, DRCongo (1991 – 1996)
- Itinerant linguistic/literacy expert: phonologies (incl. tone), orthographies, reading primers, teacher training, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Togo (1975 – 1983).
- Teaching (Primary Schools), the Netherlands (1964 – 1974)
Language proficiency
- Dutch (mother tongue)
- English 5
- French 5
- German 4
- Danish 4
- Swahili 3
- Lingala 1+
Research interests
- Phonology, Morphology, Orthography, Tone, Tone Orthography and Tone Teaching.
- Worked on all 4 African language families; particular interest and expertise in Bantu languages.
Selected publications
2007. Minimality and Morae in Malila (M.24). In Selected Proceedings of the 37th Annual Conference on African Linguistics. Doris L. Payne and Jaime Peña, eds. Pp. 77-87. Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Proceedings Project. www.lingref.com, document#1597.
2007. Coreference in Ngiti. In Advances in Nilo-Saharan Linguistics. Mechthild Reh and Doris L. Payne, eds. Pp. 143-161. Nilo-Saharan Linguistic Analyses and Documentation vol. 22. Köln, Rüdiger Köppe Verlag.
2006. The Role of Tone in Lendu Locatives. In Insights into the Nilo-Saharan Language, History and Culture. Al-Amin Abu-Manga, Leoma Gilley and Anne Storch, eds. Pp. 279-294. Nilo-Saharan Linguistic Analyses and Documentation vol. 23. Köln, Rüdiger Köppe Verlag
2003. Bila (D32). In The Bantu Languages. Derek Nurse and Gérard Philippson, eds. Pp. 450-474. (Routledge Language Family Series). London: Routledge.
1996. “Participatory Research in Linguistics. ”Notes on Linguistics Vol. 73(2):13-27. Dallas, TX: SIL.
1994. Ngiti: A Central-Sudanic Language of Zaire. Nilo-Saharan Linguistic Analyses and Documentation vol. 9. Köln, Rüdiger Köppe Verlag. 517pp. (Doctoral Dissertation).
“KiBudu: A Bantu Language with Nine Vowels. ”Africana Linguistica vol. XI : 127-133. Tervuren, Belgium, Koninklijk Museum voor Midden-Afrika.
1993. Word Boundaries: Key Factors in Orthography Development. / Les frontières du mot: facteurs-clés dans le développement d’une orthographe. In Alphabets of Africa / Alphabets de langues africaines. Rhonda Hartell, ed. Pp. 3-20 / 3-22. Dakar: UNESCO and SIL.
1993. “The Writing and Reading of Tone in Bantu Languages. ” In Notes on Literacy Vol. 19(1):1-19. Dallas, TX: SIL.
Selected papers presented
2007. “Vowel Shortening in the Noun Phrase in Malila. ” Paper presented at the Bantu Conference in Gothenburg, Sweden.
2006. “Lexical and Postlexical Vowel Harmony in Fur. ” Paper presented at the 5th World Congress of African Linguistics, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
2003. “The Noun-Class System of YAKA (C.10). ” Paper presented at the ACAL/WOCAL Conference, Rutgers University, New Jersey.
2002. “Vowel Harmony: The vowel /a/ in [+ATR] environment.” Presented at the Workshop on the Phonology of African Languages, Vienna.
2001. “Class 9/10 morphophonology and the two /v/-sounds in Giryama.” Presented at the 32nd Annual Conference on African Linguistics, Berkeley, CA.
2000. “Depressor Consonants in African Languages.” Presented at the Conference on Tone and Pitch Accent, Tromsø, Norway.
1999. “The Vowel system of Lika: First Impressions. ” Paper presented at the 29th Conference on African Languages and Linguistics, Leiden, The Netherlands.
1997. “ Verbal Derivation in Ngiti and Lendu. ”Paper presented at the 2nd World Congress of African Linguistics, Leipzig, Germany.