A diachronic perspective on alienability splits in Icelandic attributive possession
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Susanne Schuster
Abstract
Icelandic makes use of different morphosyntactic patterns for different kinds of possessive relations both in predicative and attributive possession. The fact that this differentiation is at least partly motivated by the semantics of the possessum suggests an alienability split in the Icelandic possession system (Stolz 2008). There are various approaches to explain the formal distinctions in the system, one of them depending on grammaticalization processes. Following this approach, a diachronic perspective needs to be taken in order to understand how splits arise. Accordingly, this paper presents the results of a corpus-linguistic and frequency-based analysis of the attributive pronominal possessive system of Icelandic. The most significant finding to emerge is that splits in the possessive system do not only manifest in a different synchronic behaviour but also in different degrees of susceptibility to language-internal and/or contact-induced changes.
Abstract
Icelandic makes use of different morphosyntactic patterns for different kinds of possessive relations both in predicative and attributive possession. The fact that this differentiation is at least partly motivated by the semantics of the possessum suggests an alienability split in the Icelandic possession system (Stolz 2008). There are various approaches to explain the formal distinctions in the system, one of them depending on grammaticalization processes. Following this approach, a diachronic perspective needs to be taken in order to understand how splits arise. Accordingly, this paper presents the results of a corpus-linguistic and frequency-based analysis of the attributive pronominal possessive system of Icelandic. The most significant finding to emerge is that splits in the possessive system do not only manifest in a different synchronic behaviour but also in different degrees of susceptibility to language-internal and/or contact-induced changes.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
- Expressing ‘possession’ 7
- Predicative possession in revived Cornish 27
- Possessive chains and Possessor Camouflage 51
- On Turkish non-canonical possessives 85
- Predicative possession in South Saami 103
- Predicative possession in Oghuz and Kipchak Turkic languages 125
- Pronominal and adjectival attributive possession in spoken Czech 149
- Predicative possession in North Saami and Norwegian 169
- Possession and ownership in Modern Uyghur 187
- Superlative readings of possessive constructions in Turkic 205
- Possession in Khinalug 239
- A diachronic perspective on alienability splits in Icelandic attributive possession 267
- Grammaticalization of possessive markers in the Beserman dialect of Udmurt 291
- On belonging 313
- Competing possessive constructions in Late Latin documents from Italy 365
- Languages and language families and areas 393
- Name index 397
- Subject index 401
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
- Expressing ‘possession’ 7
- Predicative possession in revived Cornish 27
- Possessive chains and Possessor Camouflage 51
- On Turkish non-canonical possessives 85
- Predicative possession in South Saami 103
- Predicative possession in Oghuz and Kipchak Turkic languages 125
- Pronominal and adjectival attributive possession in spoken Czech 149
- Predicative possession in North Saami and Norwegian 169
- Possession and ownership in Modern Uyghur 187
- Superlative readings of possessive constructions in Turkic 205
- Possession in Khinalug 239
- A diachronic perspective on alienability splits in Icelandic attributive possession 267
- Grammaticalization of possessive markers in the Beserman dialect of Udmurt 291
- On belonging 313
- Competing possessive constructions in Late Latin documents from Italy 365
- Languages and language families and areas 393
- Name index 397
- Subject index 401
