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Gender and noun inflection

The fate of ‘vulnerable’ categories in Northern Norwegian
  • Hilde Sollid , Philipp Conzett and Åse Mette Johansen
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Stability and Divergence in Language Contact
This chapter is in the book Stability and Divergence in Language Contact

Abstract

Research has predicted an uncertain future for gender and noun inflection in Northern Norwegian varieties. Gender is expected to disappear and the noun inflection system to undergo simplification. The driving force is said to be contact between Norwegian, a gender language, and Sámi and Kven, non-gender languages. On the basis of data from the Nordic Dialect Corpus, we argue that these predictions are not borne out. Gender is a stable category and noun inflection has divergent patterns. These findings are interpreted in light of the sociohistorical background of language contact and shift characterising the region.

Abstract

Research has predicted an uncertain future for gender and noun inflection in Northern Norwegian varieties. Gender is expected to disappear and the noun inflection system to undergo simplification. The driving force is said to be contact between Norwegian, a gender language, and Sámi and Kven, non-gender languages. On the basis of data from the Nordic Dialect Corpus, we argue that these predictions are not borne out. Gender is a stable category and noun inflection has divergent patterns. These findings are interpreted in light of the sociohistorical background of language contact and shift characterising the region.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Introduction 1
  4. Part I: Theoretical aspects
  5. Linguistic stability and divergence 13
  6. Convergence vs. divergence from a diasystematic perspective 39
  7. Part II: Empirical studies
  8. Stability and convergence in case marking 63
  9. Towards a typological classification of Judeo-Spanish 77
  10. Despite or because of intensive contact? 109
  11. Stability in Chinese and Malay heritage languages as a source of divergence 141
  12. Does convergence generate stability? 163
  13. Gender and noun inflection 179
  14. Dialect stability and divergence in southern Spain 207
  15. The Bergen dialect splits in two 239
  16. Diachronic convergence and divergence in differential object marking between Spanish and Portuguese 265
  17. Person index 291
  18. Subject index 295
https://doi.org/10.1075/silv.16.09sol

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Introduction 1
  4. Part I: Theoretical aspects
  5. Linguistic stability and divergence 13
  6. Convergence vs. divergence from a diasystematic perspective 39
  7. Part II: Empirical studies
  8. Stability and convergence in case marking 63
  9. Towards a typological classification of Judeo-Spanish 77
  10. Despite or because of intensive contact? 109
  11. Stability in Chinese and Malay heritage languages as a source of divergence 141
  12. Does convergence generate stability? 163
  13. Gender and noun inflection 179
  14. Dialect stability and divergence in southern Spain 207
  15. The Bergen dialect splits in two 239
  16. Diachronic convergence and divergence in differential object marking between Spanish and Portuguese 265
  17. Person index 291
  18. Subject index 295
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