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<h1>GF Resource Grammar Library</h1>
<p>
Second Version, Gothenburg, 1 March 2005
<br>
First Draft, Gothenburg, 7 February 2005
</p><p>
Aarne Ranta
</p><p>
<tt>aarne@cs.chalmers.se</tt>
</p></center>
<!-- NEW -->
<h2>GF = Grammatical Framework</h2>
A grammar formalism based on functional programming and type theory.
<p>
Designed to be nice for <i>ordinary programmers</i> to use.
<p>
Mission: to make natural-language applications available for
ordinary programmers, in tasks like
<ul>
<li> software documentation
<li> domain-specific translation
<li> human-computer interaction
<li> dialogue systems
</ul>
Thus <i>not</i> primarily another theoretical framework for
linguists.
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<h2>Multilingual grammars</h2>
<b>Abstract syntax</b>: language-independent representation
<pre>
cat Prop ; Nat ;
fun Even : Nat -> Prop ;
</pre>
<b>Concrete syntax</b>: mapping from abstract syntax trees to strings in a language
(English, French, German, Swedish,...)
<pre>
lin Even x = {s = x.s ++ "is" ++ "even"} ;
lin Even x = {s = x.s ++ "est" ++ "pair"} ;
lin Even x = {s = x.s ++ "ist" ++ "gerade"} ;
lin Even x = {s = x.s ++ "är" ++ "jämnt"} ;
</pre>
We can <b>translate</b> between language via the abstract syntax.
<p>
Is it really so simple?
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<h2>Difficulties with concrete syntax</h2>
Most languages have rules of <b>inflection</b>, <b>agreement</b>,
and <b>word order</b>, which have to be obeyed when putting together
expressions.
<p>
The previous multilingual grammar breaks these rules in many situations:
<p><i>
2 and 3 is even<br>
la somme de 3 et de 5 est pair<br>
wenn 2 ist gerade, dann 2+2 ist gerade<br>
om 2 är jämnt, 2+2 är jämnt<br>
</i>
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<h2>Solving the difficulties</h2>
GF has tools for expressing the linguistic rules that are needed to
produce correct translations in different languages.
<p>
Instead of just strings, we need <p>parameters</b>, <b>tables</b>,
and <b>record types</b>. For instance, French:
<pre>
param Mod = Ind | Subj ;
param Gen = Masc | Fem ;
lincat Nat = {s : Str ; g : Gen} ;
lincat Prop = {s : Mod => Str} ;
lin Even x = {s =
table {
m => x.s ++
case m of {Ind => "est" ; Subj => "soit"} ++
case x.g of {Masc => "pair" ; Fem => "paire"}
}
} ;
</pre>
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<h2>Language + Libraries</h2>
Writing natural language grammars still requires
theoretical knowledge about the language.
<p>
Which kind of a programmer is easier to find?
<ul>
<li> one who can write a sorting algorithm
<li> one who can write a grammar for Swedish determiners
</ul>
<p>
In main-stream programming, sorting algorithms are not
written by hand but taken from <b>libraries</b>.
<p>
In the same way, we want to create grammar libraries that encapsulate
basic linguistic facts.
<p>
Cf. the Java success story: the language is just a half of the
success - libraries are another half.
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<h2>Example of library-based grammar writing</h2>
To define a Swedish expression of a mathematical predicate from scratch:
<pre>
Even x =
let jämn = case &lt;x.n,x.g> of {
&lt;Sg,Utr> => "jämn" ;
&lt;Sg,Neutr> => "jämnt" ;
&lt;Pl,_> => "jämna"
}
in
{s = table {
Main => x.s ! Nom ++ "är" ++ jämn ;
Inv => "är" ++ x.s ! Nom ++ jämn ;
Sub => x.s ! Nom ++ "är" ++ jämn
}
}
</pre>
To use library functions for syntax and morphology:
<pre>
Even = predA (regA "jämn") ;
</pre>
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<h2>Questions in grammar library design</h2>
What should there be in the library?
<br>
<li> morphology, lexicon, syntax, semantics,...
<p>
How do we organize and present the library?
<br>
<li> division into modules, level of granularity
<br>
<li> "school grammar" vs. sophisticated linguistic concepts
<p>
Where do we get the data from?
<br>
<li> automatic extraction or hand-writing?
<br>
<li> reuse of existing resources?
<p>
Extra constraint: we want open-source free software.
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<h2>The scope of the resource grammar library</h2>
All morphological paradigms
<p>
Basic lexicon of structural, common, and irregular words
<p>
Basic syntactic structures
<p>
Currently,<br>
<li> <i>no</i> semantics,<br>
<li> <i>no</i> language-specific structures if not necessary for expressivity.
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<h2>Success criteria</h2>
Grammatical correctness
<p>
Semantic coverage: you can express whatever you want.
<p>
Usability as library for non-linguists.
<p>
(Bonus for linguists:) nice generalizations w.r.t. language
families, using the module system of GF.
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<h2>These are not our success criteria</h2>
Language coverage: you can parse all expressions. Example:
the French <i>passé simple</i> tense, although covered by the
morhology, is not used in the language-independent API, but
only the <i>passé composé</i> is.
<p>
Semantic correctness
<pre>
colourless green ideas sleep furiously
the time is seventy past forty-two
</pre>
<p>
(Warning for linguists:) theoretical innovation in
syntax (and it will all be hidden anyway!)
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<h2>So where is semantics?</h2>
GF incorporates a <b>Logical Framework</b> and is therefore
capable of expressing logical semantics <i>à la</i> Montague
or any other flavour, including anaphora and discourse.
<p>
But we do <i>not</i> try to give semantics once and
for all for the whole language.
<p>
Instead, we expect semantics to be given in
<b>application grammars</b> built on semantic models
of different domains.
<p>
Example application: number theory
<pre>
fun Even : Nat -> Prop ; -- a mathematical predicate
lin Even = predA (regA "even") ; -- English translation
lin Even = predA (regA "pair") ; -- French translation
lin Even = predA (regA "jämn") ; -- Swedish translation
</pre>
How could the resource predict that just <i>these</i>
translations are correct in this domain?
<p>
Application grammars are built by experts of these domains
who - thanks to resource grammars - do no more need to be
experts in linguistics.
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<h2>Languages</h2>
The current GF Resource Project covers ten languages:
<ul>
<li><tt>Dan</tt>ish
<li><tt>Eng</tt>lish
<li><tt>Fin</tt>nish
<li><tt>Fre</tt>nch
<li><tt>Ger</tt>man
<li><tt>Ita</tt>lian
<li><tt>Nor</tt>wegian
<li><tt>Rus</tt>sian
<li><tt>Spa</tt>nish
<li><tt>Swe</tt>dish
</ul>
The first three letters (<tt>Dan</tt> etc) are used in grammar module names
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<h2>Library structure 1: language-independent API</h2>
<li> syntactic <tt>Categories</tt> (parts of speech, word classes), e.g.
<pre>
V ; NP ; CN ; Det ; -- verb, noun phrase, common noun, determiner
</pre>
<li> <tt>Rules</tt> for combining words and phrases, e.g.
<pre>
DetNP : Det -> CN -> NP ; -- combine Det and CN into NP
</pre>
<li> the most common <tt>Structural</tt> words (determiners,
conjunctions, pronouns), e.g.
<pre>
and_Conj : Conj ;
</pre>
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<h2>Library structure 2: language-dependent modules</h2>
<li> morphological <tt>Paradigms</tt>, e.g.
<pre>
mkN : Str -> Str -> Str -> Str -> Gender -> N ; -- worst-case nouns
mkN : Str -> N ; -- regular nouns
</pre>
<li> irregular <tt>Verbs</tt>, e.g.
<pre>
angripa_V = irregV "angripa" "angrep" "angripit" ;
</pre>
<li> <tt>Lexicon</tt> of frequent words
<pre>
man_N = mkN "man" "mannen" "män" "männen" masculine ;
</pre>
<li> <tt>Ext</tt>ended syntax with language-specific rules
<pre>
PassBli : V2 -> NP -> VP ; -- bli överkörd av ngn
</pre>
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<h2>How much can be language-independent?</h2>
For the ten languages we have considered, it <i>is</i> possible
to implement the current API.
<p>
Reservations:
<ul>
<li> does not necessarily extend to all other languages
<li> does not necessarily cover the most idiomatic expressions
of each language
<li> may not be the easiest API to implement (e.g. negation and
inversion with <i>do</i> in English suggest that some other
structure would be more natural)
<li> does not guarantee that same structure has the same semantics
in different languages
<p>
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<h2>Library structure: language-independent API</h2>
<center>
<img src="Resource.gif">
</center>
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<h2>Library structure: test bed for the language-independent API</h2>
<center>
<img src="Lang.gif">
</center>
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<h2>API documentation</h2>
<a href="Categories.html">Categories</a>
<p>
<a href="Rules.html">Rules</a>
<p>
Alternative views on sentence formation:
<a href="Clause.html">Clause</a>,
<a href="Verbphrase.html">Verbphrase</a>
<p>
<a href="Structural.html">Structural</a>
<p>
<a href="Time.html">Time</a>
<p>
<a href="Basic.html">Basic</a>
<p>
<a href="Lang.html">Lang</a>
<p>
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<h2>Paradigms documentation</h2>
<a href="ParadigmsEng.html">English paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="BasicEng.html">example use of English oaradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="VerbsEng.html">English verbs</a>
<p>
<a href="ParadigmsFre.html">French paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="BasicFre.html">example use of French paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="VerbsFre.html">French verbs</a>
<p>
<a href="ParadigmsIta.html">Italian paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="BasicIta.html">example use of Italian paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="BeschIta.html">Italian verb conjugations</a>
<p>
<a href="ParadigmsNor.html">Norwegian paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="BasicNor.html">example use of Norwegian paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="VerbsNor.html">Norwegian verbs</a>
<p>
<a href="ParadigmsSpa.html">Spanish paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="BeschSpa.html">Spanish verb conjugations</a>
<p>
<a href="ParadigmsSwe.html">Swedish paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="BasicSwe.html">example use of Swedish paradigms</a>
<br>
<a href="VerbsSwe.html">Swedish verbs</a>
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<h2>Use as top-level grammar: testing</h2>
Import a set of $LangX$ grammars:
<pre>
i english/LangEng.gf
i swedish/LangSwe.gf
</pre>
Test with random generation, translation, morphological analysis...
<pre>
</pre>
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<h2>Use as top-level grammar: language learning quizzes</h2>
Morpho quiz with words:
<pre>
i
</pre>
Morpho quiz with phrases:
<pre>
</pre>
Translation quiz with sentences:
<pre>
</pre>
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<h2>Use as library</h2>
Import directly by <tt>open</tt>:
<pre>
concrete AppNor of App = open LangNor, ParadigmsNor in {...}
</pre>
No more dummy <tt>reuse</tt> modules and bulky <tt>.gfr</tt> files!
<p>
If you need to convert resource category records to/from strings, use
<pre>
Predef.toStr : (L : Type) -> L -> Str ;
</pre>
<tt>L</tt> must be a linearization type. For instance,
<pre>
toStr LangNor.CN (ModAP (PositADeg old_ADeg) (UseN car_N))
---> "gammel bil"
</pre>
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<h2>Use as library through parser</h2>
Use the parser when developing a resource.
<pre>
> p -cat=S -v "jag ska åka till Chalmers"
unknown tokens [TS "åka",TS "Chalmers"]
> p -cat=S "jag ska gå till Danmark"
UseCl (PosTP TFuture ASimul)
(AdvCl (SPredV i_NP go_V)
(AdvPP (PrepNP to_Prep (UsePN (PNCountry Denmark)))))
</pre>
Extend vocabulary at need.
<pre>
åka_V = lexV "åker" ;
Chalmers = regPN "Chalmers" neutrum ;
</pre>
<!-- NEW -->
<h2>Example application: a small translation system</h2>
You can say things like the following:
<pre>
who chases mice ?
whom does the lion chase ?
the dog chases cats
</pre>
Source modules:
<p>
<a href=example/Animals.gf>Animals</a>
<p>
<a href=example/AnimalsEng.gf>AnimalsEng</a>
<p>
<a href=example/AnimalsFre.gf>AnimalsFre</a>
<p>
<a href=example/AnimalsSwe.gf>AnimalsSwe</a>
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<h2>Compiling the example application</h2>
The resources are bulky, and it takes a therefore a lot of
time and memory to load the grammars. However, they can be
compiled into the <tt>gfcm</tt>
(<b>GF canonical multilingual</b>) format,
which is almost one thousand times smaller and faster to load
for this set of grammars.
<p>
Just issue the following GF commands
<pre>
i -src AnimalsEng.gf ;; s
i -src AnimalsFre.gf ;; s
i -src AnimalsSwe.gf ;; s
pm | wf animals.gfcm
</pre>
and you get an end-user grammar <tt>animals.gfcm</tt>.
<p>
You can also write the commands in a <tt>gfs</tt> (<b>GF script</b>)
file, say
<a href=mkAnimals.gfc><tt>mkAnimals.gfs</tt></a>,
and then call GF with
<pre>
gf &lt;mkAnimals.gfs
</pre>
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<h2>Further simplifications of the application grammar</h2>
Step 1: use a simplified access to present-tense sentences,
<tt>SentenceX</tt> (to be written...)
<p>
Step 2: factor out the categories and purely combinational
rules into an <tt>incomplete</tt> module (to be shown... but
this does not work for French, which uses different structures:
e.g. <i>Qui aime les lions ?</i> with a definite phrase
where English has <i>Who loves lions?</i>
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<h2>Implementation details: the structure of low-level files</h2>
<center>
<img src="Low.gif">
</center>
<!-- NEW -->
<h2>The use of parametrized modules</h2>
In two language families:
<ul>
<li> Romance: French, Italian, Spanish
<li> Scandinavian: Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
</ul>
<center>
<img src="Scand.gif">
</center>
<!-- NEW -->
<h2>Current status</h2>
<table border=1>
<tr><td>Language</td> <td>v0.6</td> <td>API</td> <td>Paradigms</td> <td>Basic lex</td> <td>Verbs</td></tr>
<tr><td>Danish</td> <td> </td> <td>X</td> <td> </td> <td> </td> <td> </tr>
<tr><td>English</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</tr>
<tr><td>Finnish</td> <td>X</td> <td> </td> <td> </td> <td> </td> <td> </tr>
<tr><td>French</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</tr>
<tr><td>German</td> <td>X</td> <td> </td> <td>*</td> <td> </td> <td> </tr>
<tr><td>Italian</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</tr>
<tr><td>Norwegian</td> <td> </td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</tr>
<tr><td>Russian</td> <td>X</td> <td>*</td> <td>*</td> <td> </td> <td> </tr>
<tr><td>Spanish</td> <td> </td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td> </td> <td>X</tr>
<tr><td>Swedish</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</td> <td>X</tr>
</table>
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<h2>Obtaining it</h2>
Now on CVS at Chalmers:
<pre>
cvs -d /users/cs/aarne/cvs checkout GF2.0/lib
</pre>
<p>
To appear later at GF Homepage:<p>
<a href="http://www.cs.chalmers.se/%7Eaarne/GF">
<tt>http://www.cs.chalmers.se/~aarne/GF</tt></a>
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