First Language Acquisition of Austrian German

This research project investigates how children acquire the grammar of their native language, Austrian German. The investigation of linguistically unimpaired children yields a basis of comparison for the diagnostics and therapy of linguistic impairment. The project aims at filling the present gap with respect to systematic studies of grammar acquisition in Austrian German. It is an aim of this project to capture the range of interindividual variation in acquisition. Accordingly, the language development of several children is investigated. To determine which language specific factors govern the acquisition path, the project makes use of crosslinguistic comparison. Specifically, we use acquisition data from slavic languages, mainly Croatian, and also Polish and Russian. Longitudinal studies constitute the database for this project. The project focusses on the following areas of grammar: syntax and morpho-syntax in the verbal domain, functional verbs, null subjects, negation, complex sentences, and the syntax of noun phrases. Selected topics will be chosen for crosslinguistic comparison. International cooperations provide access to child language data and close interaction with collleagues specialized in the syntax and acquisition of slavic languages.