Gradual change and continual variation
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Oliver Currie
Abstract
This article contrasts two different analyses – a diachronic Construction Grammar (CxG) approach and the Principles & Parameters approach of Willis (1998) – of the development of a verb-initial construction, Absolute-initial verb (AIV) order, in Early Modern Welsh. The P&P approach attributes the rise of AIV order in Early Modern Welsh to an abrupt and discrete change in the grammaticality of V1 following the resetting of the V2 parameter. We argue, on the basis of a detailed corpus study of the period c.1550–c.1750, that the historical data shows a gradual increase as well as significant sociolinguistic variation in the frequency of use of AIV order. We further argue that a diachronic Construction Grammar approach can better account for gradual syntactic change and syntactic variation, since, unlike P&P approaches, it does not seek to model gradual historical data in terms of discrete grammars and grammatical categories, but has a gradient conception of grammaticality and grammatical categories and can thus propose gradual mechanisms of change and integrate sociolinguistic variation directly in grammatical description.
Abstract
This article contrasts two different analyses – a diachronic Construction Grammar (CxG) approach and the Principles & Parameters approach of Willis (1998) – of the development of a verb-initial construction, Absolute-initial verb (AIV) order, in Early Modern Welsh. The P&P approach attributes the rise of AIV order in Early Modern Welsh to an abrupt and discrete change in the grammaticality of V1 following the resetting of the V2 parameter. We argue, on the basis of a detailed corpus study of the period c.1550–c.1750, that the historical data shows a gradual increase as well as significant sociolinguistic variation in the frequency of use of AIV order. We further argue that a diachronic Construction Grammar approach can better account for gradual syntactic change and syntactic variation, since, unlike P&P approaches, it does not seek to model gradual historical data in terms of discrete grammars and grammatical categories, but has a gradient conception of grammaticality and grammatical categories and can thus propose gradual mechanisms of change and integrate sociolinguistic variation directly in grammatical description.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- List of contributors ix
- Synchrony and diachrony 1
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Part I. The role of analogy and constructions in the synchrony-diachrony interface
- Gradualness in language change 27
- Gradual change and continual variation 43
- Can you literally be scared sick ? 79
- The reputed sense of be meant to 105
- Gradualness in analogical change as a complexification stage in a language simplification process 125
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Part II. Synchronic variation and language change
- Semantic maps, for synchronic and diachronic typology 153
- Synchronic gradience and language change in Latin genitive constructions 177
- Double agreement in the Alpine languages 201
- On variation in gender agreement 237
- Synchronic Variation and Grammatical Change 261
- A case study on the relationship between grammatical change and synchronic variation 283
- Grammaticalization in the present – The changes of modern Swedish typ 313
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Part III. Gradualness in language change
- Gradualness in change in English (augmented) absolutes 341
- Grammatical encoding of referentiality in the history of Hungarian 367
- Gradualness in contact-induced constructional replication 391
- Binding Hierarchy and peculiarities of the verb potere in some Southern Calabrian varieties 419
- Author index 441
- Subject index 447
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- List of contributors ix
- Synchrony and diachrony 1
-
Part I. The role of analogy and constructions in the synchrony-diachrony interface
- Gradualness in language change 27
- Gradual change and continual variation 43
- Can you literally be scared sick ? 79
- The reputed sense of be meant to 105
- Gradualness in analogical change as a complexification stage in a language simplification process 125
-
Part II. Synchronic variation and language change
- Semantic maps, for synchronic and diachronic typology 153
- Synchronic gradience and language change in Latin genitive constructions 177
- Double agreement in the Alpine languages 201
- On variation in gender agreement 237
- Synchronic Variation and Grammatical Change 261
- A case study on the relationship between grammatical change and synchronic variation 283
- Grammaticalization in the present – The changes of modern Swedish typ 313
-
Part III. Gradualness in language change
- Gradualness in change in English (augmented) absolutes 341
- Grammatical encoding of referentiality in the history of Hungarian 367
- Gradualness in contact-induced constructional replication 391
- Binding Hierarchy and peculiarities of the verb potere in some Southern Calabrian varieties 419
- Author index 441
- Subject index 447
