用大模型分析僧伽罗语八百年语义演变,发现变化集中于少数关键语境。
Dynamics of meaning: Towards the Evaluation of Diachronic Semantic Change in Sinhala

- 结合动态词嵌入与上下文模型,追踪13至20世纪僧伽罗语语义变迁
- 发现语义漂移并非均匀发生,而是由少量高影响力语境驱动
- 适合对低资源语言历史语义研究感兴趣的学者参考
由于数据稀缺和静态嵌入对齐的局限,长期跨度下低资源语言的语义演变追踪面临巨大挑战。本研究利用多阶段计算框架,分析了从13世纪到20世纪的僧伽罗语语义演化。首先采用基于相似性矩阵的对齐(SMA)与正交普鲁斯特对齐(OP)技术,对不同时期的Word2Vec和FastText嵌入进行对齐,结果显示OP方法在识别时间序列相似性下降方面更具稳定性。为进一步突破整体度量的局限,引入基于微调Llama-3.1-8B的双向语义影响剪枝方法,结合留一法(LOO)诊断,尝试分离出具有影响力的句子,以区分系统性语义变迁与临时性的多义扩展。结果表明,微调后的Llama-3.1-8B中语义漂移并非均匀分布,其主要由一小部分高影响力语境实例推动,而非所有使用情况的渐进式变化。该工作为低资源语境下的历时分析提供了初步框架,凸显了模型敏感性与数据可用性之间的权衡。
原文摘要 · Abstract (English)
Tracking semantic change in low-resource languages across extensive historical timelines presents significant challenges due to data scarcity and the limitations of static embedding alignments. This study investigates the diachronic evolution of the Sinhala language from the 13th to the 20th century using a multi-stage computational framework. We first align century-specific Word2Vec and FastText embeddings using Similarity Matrix Based Alignment (SMA) and Orthogonal Procrustes (OP) techniques, finding that OP alignment provides more stable neighbourhood tracking for identifying temporal similarity dips. To move beyond aggregate measures, we introduce a Bidirectional Semantic Impact Pruning approach using contextualised embeddings from a fine-tuned Llama-3.1-8B. By applying Leave-One-Out (LOO) diagnostics, we attempt to isolate influential sentences to distinguish between systemic semantic shifts and transient polysemic expansion. Our results show that semantic drift in the fine-tuned Llama-3.1-8B is not evenly distributed across all usages. Instead, a significant part of the change is driven by a smaller set of high-impact contextual instances, rather than gradual and uniform change across all occurrences. This work provides a preliminary framework for diachronic analysis in low-resource contexts, highlighting the trade-offs between model sensitivity and data availability.
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