Dialectometrization of the Linguistic Atlas AIS

The project aims the dialectometrization of the geolinguistic data of the Linguistic Atlas of Italy and Southern Switzerland AIS (Sprach- und Sachatlas Italiens und der Südschweiz, ed. by Karl Jaberg and Jakob Jud, Zofingen 1928-1940, 8 vols.) This research goal requires the previous (computer-assisted) codification (according to phonetic, morphosyntactic and lexical principles) of practically the whole amount of the 1705 dialect maps of the AIS, and the subsequent storage of the coded data in an appropriate data base. Finally we will apply to these data a well defined choice of taxometric methods which all are implementd in a powerfull computer program called VDM ("Visual DialectoMetry") at our disposal since several years. This project represents the logical continuation of a previous project (also granted by the FWF) which coped with the dialectometrization of the ALF ("Atlas linguistique de la France"), which is beside the AIS the other most important Romance Linguistic Atlas.

In the period going from 2005 to 2010 we have analyzed in the frame of our project not only - as foreseen at the beginning - the Linguistic Atlas of Italy and Southern Switzerland AIS, but also - as a result of some advantageous human and administrative circumstances - two further Romance Linguistic Atlases (the one volume of the pan- Iberian Atlas ALPI and the hitherto four volumes of the Catalan Atlas ALDC) and four Linguistic Atlases of English speaking areas: England (with AES, LAE und WGE) und USA (with LANE). From the methodical point of view our analysis followed the principles of the "Salzburg School of Dialectometry" and has been done empirically by using our well tested dialectometry software "Visual Dialectometry" (VDM) which allows a very comfortable and rapid execution of all numercal calculations and their subsequent (very multiform) vizualisations. With one exception (LANE) we could show, in the depth of the data of all the remnant six Linguistic Atlasses, the existence of very well and clearly shaped "deep structures" which we consider as being the result of a particular semiotic behavior of man with respect to the space he inhabits. Since a couple of years we call the aforementioned special semiotic behavior of man "basilectal mangement of space by man". We presume that it is conducted by special laws which also refer to geographic space. AES: Atlas of English Sounds, Bern 1979. AIS: "Atlante italo-svizzero", Zofingen 1928-1940. ALDC: Atles Lingüstic del Domini Català, Barcelona 2005-2009. ALPI: Atlas Lingüstico de la Pennsula Ibérica, Madrid 1962. LAE: Linguistic Atlas of England, London 1978. LANE: Linguistic Atlas of New England, New York 1939-1943. WGE: Word Geography of England, London 1978.