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Englishes, English creoles and their negative indefinites

Abstract

This is a typological study of negative indefinites, i.e., the counterparts to standard English nobody and nothing, in Englishes, primarily the New Englishes, and in English Creoles. Particular attention goes to “Negative Concord” (“NC”), i.e. the exponence of negation through both a negative indefinite and a verbal negator. The study confirms that NC is widespread in both Englishes and English Creoles and claims that although this holds for both Englishes and English Creoles, they have to be considered separately and that there is a lot of variation with respect to NC subtypes. Important, but mostly for the New Englishes, is whether or not the British English input allowed NC. For Creoles special attention goes to the fact that they typically have created a new verbal negator (no).

Abstract

This is a typological study of negative indefinites, i.e., the counterparts to standard English nobody and nothing, in Englishes, primarily the New Englishes, and in English Creoles. Particular attention goes to “Negative Concord” (“NC”), i.e. the exponence of negation through both a negative indefinite and a verbal negator. The study confirms that NC is widespread in both Englishes and English Creoles and claims that although this holds for both Englishes and English Creoles, they have to be considered separately and that there is a lot of variation with respect to NC subtypes. Important, but mostly for the New Englishes, is whether or not the British English input allowed NC. For Creoles special attention goes to the fact that they typically have created a new verbal negator (no).

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Preface and acknowledgements vii
  4. Introduction 1
  5. Towards a diachronic reconstruction of Colloquial Singapore English 11
  6. NEG-raising and long-distance licensing of negative polarity items 33
  7. A positive polarity focus particle under negation 63
  8. What is Strict Negative Concord? 81
  9. Englishes, English creoles and their negative indefinites 115
  10. Negative raising in Singapore English 151
  11. Quantification under negative scope in Singapore English 171
  12. Subject index 207
Negation and Contact
This chapter is in the book Negation and Contact
https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.183.06van

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Preface and acknowledgements vii
  4. Introduction 1
  5. Towards a diachronic reconstruction of Colloquial Singapore English 11
  6. NEG-raising and long-distance licensing of negative polarity items 33
  7. A positive polarity focus particle under negation 63
  8. What is Strict Negative Concord? 81
  9. Englishes, English creoles and their negative indefinites 115
  10. Negative raising in Singapore English 151
  11. Quantification under negative scope in Singapore English 171
  12. Subject index 207
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