Mayan negation cycles
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Clifton Pye
Abstract
The Jespersen Cycle (1917) remains the definitive example of the linguistic cycle. A reconstruction of the history of negation marking in the Mayan languages shows that while some Mayan languages exhibit the beginning of a typical Jespersen Cycle, the majority of Mayan languages evidence different types of negation cycles. Differences in the domain of negation strengthening and the absence of postverbal negation strengthening provide evidence of the unique structure of Mayan languages. This evidence suggests that constraints on negation cycles are just as important as the cycles themselves in examining cross-linguistic variation in the structure of negation.
Abstract
The Jespersen Cycle (1917) remains the definitive example of the linguistic cycle. A reconstruction of the history of negation marking in the Mayan languages shows that while some Mayan languages exhibit the beginning of a typical Jespersen Cycle, the majority of Mayan languages evidence different types of negation cycles. Differences in the domain of negation strengthening and the absence of postverbal negation strengthening provide evidence of the unique structure of Mayan languages. This evidence suggests that constraints on negation cycles are just as important as the cycles themselves in examining cross-linguistic variation in the structure of negation.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of contributors vii
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Part I Characteristics of Cycles
- Cyclical change continued 3
- What cycles when and why 19
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Part II Macro-cycles
- Is radical analyticity normal 49
- An analytic-synthetic spiral in the history of English 93
- The interaction between the French subject and object cycles 113
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Part III The Negative Micro-Cycles
- The negative existential cycle viewed through the lens of comparative data 139
- Jespersen cycles in the Mayan, Quechuan and Maipurean languages* 189
- Mayan negation cycles 219
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Part IV Pronominal, Quantifier, and Modal Micro-cycles
- The diachrony of pronominal agreement 251
- The degree cycle 287
- Modality and gradation 319
- All you need is another ‘Need’ 351
- The grammaticalization of 要 Yao and the future cycle from Archaic Chinese to Modern Mandarin* 395
- Author Index 419
- Subject and Language Index 425
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of contributors vii
-
Part I Characteristics of Cycles
- Cyclical change continued 3
- What cycles when and why 19
-
Part II Macro-cycles
- Is radical analyticity normal 49
- An analytic-synthetic spiral in the history of English 93
- The interaction between the French subject and object cycles 113
-
Part III The Negative Micro-Cycles
- The negative existential cycle viewed through the lens of comparative data 139
- Jespersen cycles in the Mayan, Quechuan and Maipurean languages* 189
- Mayan negation cycles 219
-
Part IV Pronominal, Quantifier, and Modal Micro-cycles
- The diachrony of pronominal agreement 251
- The degree cycle 287
- Modality and gradation 319
- All you need is another ‘Need’ 351
- The grammaticalization of 要 Yao and the future cycle from Archaic Chinese to Modern Mandarin* 395
- Author Index 419
- Subject and Language Index 425
