| Acknowledgement |
I began my career as a Primary School Teacher in Nagaland without any teaching experience. I am deeply indebted to the Department of Education, in particular, and the Govt. of Nagaland, in general, for deputing me to the Nagaland College of Education, Kohima, in 1977 to pursue the degree of the Bachelor of Education and thereafter to Osmania University, Hyderabad for M.A. in Linguistics. Soon after I returned from the University, the Govt of Nagaland elated my position and put me in the State Council of Educational Research & Training (SCERT), Govt. of Nagaland, to carry on my researches in language education.
I am also grateful to the Ministry of Education, Govt. of India for suggesting my name to the Union Public Service Commission to enable me associate with this prestigious Institute, the Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore (CIIL), in the year, 1984. When I joined the Institute, Professor N. Ramaswamy, who later became my tutor in preparation of my Ph.D. thesis, shared the office Chamber with me. Thus, we became not only colleagues, but also office roommates and a very intimate friend. A quiet and calm nature with least words, but quick in grasping the situation, a quality most of us do not have.
Although a degree holder in linguistics, my earlier researches were fully engrossed in education related fields. Moreover, I had already registered for my doctoral researches in the William Carew International University, USA, on the topic totally different from descriptive linguistics, but could not pursue it since I preferred to join C.I.I.L. As such, I almost ignored my linguistics background and had even forgotten the most basic terms in linguistics. Professor Ramaswamy fully tolerated my weaknesses in the subject and was instrumental for my revisit to linguistics. He motivated me to the extent of reregistering for my doctoral studies in the University of Mysore, in descriptive linguistics. He was not only my tutor in Ph.D researches, but also a mentor of my new career. Words of appreciation cannot suffice my gratitude to him.
My colleagues, Dr. M.R. Ranganatha, Dr. P.P. Giridhar and Prof (Dr.) D.N.S. Bhat, to mention a few, are selfless in giving discussions to me. My sincere thanks are due to them. Prof. Bhat did not end from there. As there was no more spare copy of the thesis he made a photocopy on his own expense and sent it to Prof. Frank Palmer for the latter to go through and comment on my work. I am very grateful to Prof. Palmer too, for showing his interest on the thesis and a few comments he made are so valuable to me, and an eye-opener for me in many ways. My gratitude also goes to the members of the Board of Examiners of the thesis, Prof. G. Srinivasa Verma, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar and Prof. Tsuyoshi Nara, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Tokyo, for encouraging me to publish the thesis as early as possible and hence took pain reviewing the thesis page by page. Prof. Verma has been so kind to offer the thesis to be published by his own University.
I also wish to express my gratitude to my superior, Prof. J.C.Sharma, for his humane touches, not only in our official dealings, but his brotherly concerns for me in various ways. I am also grateful to CIIL Library staff, particularly Mr Mir Nisar Hussain who has been amazingly quick in tracing out the books I wanted for reference. This kind of precious assistance is not possible by routine official duties alone without personal commitment.
My wife, Mrs. Rongsenla Kapfo, certainly is not a mere housewife in shouldering the household responsibilities and thus enabling me to be free from our domestic problems, but whose unceasing encouragement and support enable me to accomplish this work. I owe her a lot.
Lastly and most importantly, I wish to dedicate this work to someone who dearly loves me. Dr. Ditsolo Kapfo, my beloved elder brother, had been instrumental throughout my studies not only in term of his financial supports, but whose brotherly advice and encouragement enable me to become what I am today. Memory remains eternal when I recall the way he shared his scholarship with me when he was a medical student, besides his financial supports after he took up a job. A rare quality one finds in a woman is my sister-in-law, Mrs. Kekhronguloe Kapfo, who later became his wife, totally devoted to my higher studies by leaving aside all their financial constraints and enjoyments of a newly married couple. Word of gratitude is not sufficient to compensate the loves and affections they have illustrated for my future. I wish the example they have set, becomes a role model for every family.
19-11-2004 Kedutso Kapfo