SIL Publications by Category
Textbooks

Analyzing Discourse: A Manual of Basic Concepts by Robert A. Dooley and Stephen H. Levinsohn, 2001, 173 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-115-2, $20.95

A practical introduction to discourse analysis for linguistic field workers addressing issues commonly confronted by field linguists.

Articulatory Phonetics: Tools for Analyzing the World's Languages, Fourth Edition, by Anita C. Bickford and Rick Floyd, 2006, 229 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-165-7, $28.50

A revision and expansion of A Manual for Articulatory Phonetics, including materials from courses as taught in the training schools of SIL International and much information from sources outside of SIL.

Beginning Morphology and Syntax by Velma B. Pickett; Benjamin F. Elson, 1988, 242 pp., ISBN 978-0-88312-925-8, $22.00

Prepares students with no linguistic background to discover the grammatical structure of an unwritten language. The “Laboratory Manual for Morphology and Syntax” is a practical supplement to accompany the textbook.

Bible Translation Basics: Communicating Scripture in a Relevant Way, by Harriet Hill, Ernst-August Gutt, et. al., 2011, 304 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-269-2 $29.00

This book utilizes advances in human communication theory, focusing on the intended meaning and received meaning in their application to effective, relevant Bible translation.

Bible Translation: An Introductory Course in Translation Principles by Katharine Barnwell, 2002, 266 pp., ISBN 978-0-88312-651-6 $39.95

A manual for those who are preparing to translate the Bible into their own mother tongue. It can be used as a textbook for formal courses or for training individuals.

Case Grammar Applied by Walter A. Cook, PL 127, 1998, 290 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-046-9, $30.50

An unusually clear, simple guide for sentence analysis which lends itself well to displaying the way syntactic features are associated with semantic structures.

Discourse Features of New Testament Greek: A Coursebook on the Information Structure of New Testament Greek, Second Edition, by Stephen H. Levinsohn, 2000, 330 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-093-3, $33.50

Discusses discourse features of Koine Greek from the perspective of descriptive linguistics.

A Field Manual of Acoustic Phonetics by Joan L. G. Baart, 2010, 133 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-232-6, $22.00

This provides a practical and easy-to-understand introduction to acoustic speech analysis. It explains commonly used methods for displaying aspects of a speech wave. It illustrates how the results of acoustic analysis can be interpreted and used.

Globe Trotting in Sandals: A Field Guide to Cultural Research by Carol V. McKinney, 2000, 353 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-086-5, $34.00

Provides guidance in the practical aspects of fieldwork and gives suggestions for collecting both qualitative and quantitative cultural data.

Holistic Discourse Analysis by Robert E. Longacre and Shin Ja J. Hwang, 2012, 264 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-266-1, $39.95

The central idea of this volume is the simple insistence that the structure of a part of a discourse (or text) needs to be explained in light of the structure of the whole. The book can be used both as a textbook and field manual for discourse analysis.

Holistic Discourse Analysis, Second Edition by Robert E. Longacre and Shin Ja J. Hwang, 2012, 264 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-329-3, $48.95

The central idea of this textbook is that the structure of a part of a discourse needs to be explained in light of the structure of the whole. This second edition employs the color-coding of example texts to aide in understanding the discourse structure.

Introduction to Semantics and Translation by Katharine Barnwell, 1984, 272 pp., ISBN 978-0-95036-545-9 $42.95

A basic introduction to the study of semantics, prepared mainly for those approaching, for the first time, the study of this discipline and its application to Bible translation.

Laboratory Manual for Morphology and Syntax, 7th edition, edited by Merrifield, Story, Rensch, & Naish, 2003, 269 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-149-7, $30.50

A laboratory manual for introductory grammar courses with 298 sets of problems taken from languages spoken all over the world.

Instructor's Guide to Laboratory Manual for Morphology and Syntax, 1987, PDF file

An instructor's guide to Laboratory Manual for Morphology and Syntax is only available to course instructors who have purchased the Laboratory Manual.

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LiFE-Style Translating: A Workbook for Bible Translators, Second Edition, by Ernst R. Wendland, PTT 2, 2011, 478 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-243-2, $49.95

This workbook is intended to introduce translators, exegetes, Bible students and communicators of the Scriptures to some of the main forms and functions of biblical literature, prose as well as poetry.

LinguaLinks Library 5.0 Plus for Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2000. Includes SIL Language Development Tools 2009 DVD, ISBN 978-1-55671-123-7, Retail price $89.00

The library is a collection of resources for fieldworkers and language and culture learners. It is organized into 8 bookshelves with 149 book-length works and 223 journal issues. Includes other software.

LinguaLinks Library 5.0 Plus for Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2000. Includes SIL Language Development Tools 2009 DVD, ISBN 978-1-55671-123-7, Academic and Humanitarian discounted price $64.25

The library is a collection of resources for fieldworkers and language and culture learners. It is organized into 8 bookshelves with 149 book-length works and 223 journal issues. Includes other software.

LinguaLinks Library 5.0 Replacement DVD with new installer for Windows 7, Vista, XP (both 32-bit, 64-bit). Only for those who already own LLL 5.0 ©2003. 978-1-55671-123-7

Available to those who already own LLL 5.0 ©2003. Required: During checkout, enter your current product key-code (license number) or invoice number as proof of purchase in the "Special Instructions" box.

Local Literacies: Theory and Practice by Glenys Waters, 1998, 437 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-038-4 $49.99

Details how to plan and carry out a community literacy project, including tackling the additional barriers of language, culture and logistics in developing countries… a "must" for the pioneering literacy worker.

A Manual for Problem Solving in Bible Translation by Mildred Larson, 1975, 245 pp., ISBN 978-0-88312-917-3, $16.00

Designed to give practice in solving the various problems which the Bible translator faces. Through drill and practice, the student will develop skill in applying the principles of translation.

Meaning-Based Translation: A Guide to Cross-Language Equivalence, 2nd edition, by Mildred L. Larson, University Press of America, 1998, ISBN 978-0-7618-0971-5, 586 pp., $61.00

Textbook designed to show the difference between the structure of meaning and the various ways languages have to code meaning and to show how this affects the translation process.

Meaning-Based Translation Workbook: Biblical Exercises, 2nd edition, by Mildred L. Larson, University of Press of America, 1998, 307 pp., ISBN 978-0-7618-0948-7, $45.50

A companion manual to be used along with " Meaning-Based Translation" which provides biblical drill material for the content taught in the same chapter of the textbook.

Morphology and Syntax: Tools for Analyzing the World’s Languages by J. Albert Bickford, 1998, 410 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-047-6, $42.00

A textbook and practical guide for acquiring skills necessary to analyze the morphology and syntax of languages around the world.

The Phonicon 1.0, 1 CD-ROM, developed jointly by Dr. M. Stanley Whitley & Bakhit Kourman, and produced & published by SIL, 2004, ISBN 978-1-55671-136-7, $39.95

The Phonicon is an electronic encyclopedia of the speech sounds or phones of the world’s languages and ways those sounds are described and analyzed. This product is for Windows only.

Phonological Analysis: A Functional Approach by Donald A. Burquest, 3rd edition, 2006, 335 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-168-8, $34.95

Intended for use in an upper division introductory course in phonology, preparing the student to further study aspects of current theory.

The Semantic Structure of Written Communication, Fifth Revision, by John Beekman, John C. Callow, Michael F. Kopesec, 1981, 147 pp., $14.00

A basic text about Semantic Structure Theory, used widely in translation work.

Studying and Describing Unwritten Languages by Jacqueline M. C. Thomas; Luc Bouquiaux; translated by James Roberts, 1992, 737 pp., ISBN 978-0-88312-814-5, $52.50

A one-volume English translation of a three-volume French work with techniques for gathering and processing data from unwritten languages.

A Survey of Grammatical Structures, Second Edition by Charles W. Peck, 1981, 338 pp. $12.50

A textbook for advanced grammar classes that uses tagmemics as the underlying theory.

A Survey of Linguistic Theories, Third Edition by Donald A. Burquest; Jerold A. Edmondson, 1998, 273 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-068-1, $30.50

A textbook that presents a sample of the more popular approaches to linguistic theorizing.

Teacher's Manual to accompany the Bible Translation: Introductory Course in Translation Principles by Katharine Barnwell, 1987, 264 pp., $12.00

A teacher's manual to accompany Bible Translation: An Introductory Course in Translation Principles.

Translating the Literature of Scripture by Ernst R. Wendland, PTT 1, 2004, 533 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-152-7, $39.95

This book proposes the implementation of a literary functional-equivalence (LiFE) method of the translation that seeks to represent or recreate in a given language the variety of expressive and affective dynamics of the diverse texts of Scripture.

Understanding Language Choices: A Guide to Sociolinguistic Assessment by Ken Decker and John Grummitt, 2012, 278 pp., ISBN 978-1-55671-331-6 $29.00

This introductory textbook is for anyone studying the motivations behind language use choices. It includes numerous examples and case studies from around the world to illustrate the realities of sociolinguistic field research.

A Workshop Guide for Primer Construction compiled by Katharine Barnwell, 1979, 189 pp., $16.00

For use in workshops where participants are mother tongue speakers of the languages involved and have had no linguistic training.