Complexity and the age of languages
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Umberto Ansaldo
Abstract
This paper addresses the issue of complexity in language creation and the time it takes for ‘complex’ structures to emerge in the history of a language. The presence of morphological material is often equated to a certain degree of complexity or is taken to signify a certain time-depth in the history of a language (e.g. Dahl 2004; McWhorter 2005). Though this assumption may be seen as trivial in the absence of a theoretically-based definition of complexity (Muysken 1988), or even misleading (Aboh and Ansaldo 2007; Farquharson 2007), we here put it to a test by looking at morphology in a relatively ‘young’ language, namely Sri Lanka Malay (SLM). SLM is a mixed language which shows considerably more morphological material and other signs of old age than ‘prototypical’ creoles. We explain this by arguing (a) that structural output in language genesis is closely motivated by the typology of the input languages and (b) that our understanding of rate of change needs to be revised to take into account ecological matters.
Abstract
This paper addresses the issue of complexity in language creation and the time it takes for ‘complex’ structures to emerge in the history of a language. The presence of morphological material is often equated to a certain degree of complexity or is taken to signify a certain time-depth in the history of a language (e.g. Dahl 2004; McWhorter 2005). Though this assumption may be seen as trivial in the absence of a theoretically-based definition of complexity (Muysken 1988), or even misleading (Aboh and Ansaldo 2007; Farquharson 2007), we here put it to a test by looking at morphology in a relatively ‘young’ language, namely Sri Lanka Malay (SLM). SLM is a mixed language which shows considerably more morphological material and other signs of old age than ‘prototypical’ creoles. We explain this by arguing (a) that structural output in language genesis is closely motivated by the typology of the input languages and (b) that our understanding of rate of change needs to be revised to take into account ecological matters.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgments vii
- Simplicity, simplification, complexity and complexification 1
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Part I. Morpho-phonology
- Initial vowel agglutination in the Gulf of Guinea creoles 29
- Simplification of a complex part of grammar or not? 51
- Reducing phonological complexity and grammatical opaqueness 75
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Part II. Verbal morphology
- Verb allomorphy and the syntax of phases 99
- The invisible hand in creole genesis 115
- Complexification or regularization of paradigms 159
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Part III. Nominals
- The Mauritian Creole determiner system 173
- Demonstratives in Afrikaans and Cape Dutch Pidgin 201
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Part IV. The selection of features in complex morphology
- Contact, complexification and change in Mindanao Chabacano structure 223
- Morphosyntactic finiteness as increased complexity in a mixed negation system 243
- Contact language formation in evolutionary terms 265
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Part V. Evaluating simplification and complexification
- Economy, innovation and degrees of complexity in creole formation 293
- Competition and selection 317
- Complexity and the age of languages 345
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Part VI. Postscript
- Restructuring, hybridization, and complexity in language evolution 367
- Language index 401
- Subject index 405
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgments vii
- Simplicity, simplification, complexity and complexification 1
-
Part I. Morpho-phonology
- Initial vowel agglutination in the Gulf of Guinea creoles 29
- Simplification of a complex part of grammar or not? 51
- Reducing phonological complexity and grammatical opaqueness 75
-
Part II. Verbal morphology
- Verb allomorphy and the syntax of phases 99
- The invisible hand in creole genesis 115
- Complexification or regularization of paradigms 159
-
Part III. Nominals
- The Mauritian Creole determiner system 173
- Demonstratives in Afrikaans and Cape Dutch Pidgin 201
-
Part IV. The selection of features in complex morphology
- Contact, complexification and change in Mindanao Chabacano structure 223
- Morphosyntactic finiteness as increased complexity in a mixed negation system 243
- Contact language formation in evolutionary terms 265
-
Part V. Evaluating simplification and complexification
- Economy, innovation and degrees of complexity in creole formation 293
- Competition and selection 317
- Complexity and the age of languages 345
-
Part VI. Postscript
- Restructuring, hybridization, and complexity in language evolution 367
- Language index 401
- Subject index 405
