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Chapter 3. Deconstructing teleology

The place of synchronic usage patterns among processes of diachronic development
  • Marianne Mithun
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Typological Hierarchies in Synchrony and Diachrony
This chapter is in the book Typological Hierarchies in Synchrony and Diachrony

Abstract

A central issue in typology is the role of implicational hierarchies in shaping individual languages. One view is that the hierarchies guide language change, or at least constrain it: “Since a hierarchy constrains what is a possible language, it is also a constraint on language change, because languages move from one possible state to another” (Corbett 2011). Other approaches take a different perspective: “Hierarchies simply capture the outputs of independent diachronic processes” (Cristofaro & Zúñiga this volume). Here the relationship between typology and diachrony is examined with respect to the most frequently-cited hierarchies, the cluster of Referential/Topicality/Animacy/Empathy hierarchies. While such hierarchies might appear to drive diachronic development in some single-step changes, multi-step developments are a different matter.

Abstract

A central issue in typology is the role of implicational hierarchies in shaping individual languages. One view is that the hierarchies guide language change, or at least constrain it: “Since a hierarchy constrains what is a possible language, it is also a constraint on language change, because languages move from one possible state to another” (Corbett 2011). Other approaches take a different perspective: “Hierarchies simply capture the outputs of independent diachronic processes” (Cristofaro & Zúñiga this volume). Here the relationship between typology and diachrony is examined with respect to the most frequently-cited hierarchies, the cluster of Referential/Topicality/Animacy/Empathy hierarchies. While such hierarchies might appear to drive diachronic development in some single-step changes, multi-step developments are a different matter.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Part I. Setting the stage
  4. Synchronic vs. diachronic approaches to typological hierarchies 3
  5. Part II. Foundational issues
  6. Chapter 1. Evolutionary Phonology and the life cycle of voiceless sonorants 31
  7. Chapter 2. The Obligatory Coding Principle in diachronic perspective 59
  8. Chapter 3. Deconstructing teleology 111
  9. Part III. Hierarchical effects and their origins
  10. Chapter 4. The development of referential hierarchy effects in Sahaptian 131
  11. Chapter 5. Diachrony and the referential hierarchy in Old Irish 191
  12. Chapter 6. From ergative case-marking to hierarchical agreement 217
  13. Chapter 7. The direction(s) of analogical change in direct/inverse systems 257
  14. Chapter 8. Are the Tupi-Guarani hierarchical indexing systems really motivated by the person hierarchy? 289
  15. Chapter 9. Incipient hierarchical alignment in four Central Salish languages from the Proto-Salish middle 309
  16. Part IV. Conflicting hierarchical patterns and how to deal with them
  17. Chapter 10. Deictic and sociopragmatic effects in Tibeto-Burman SAP indexation 345
  18. Chapter 11. Morphosyntactic coding of proper names and its implications for the Animacy Hierarchy 377
  19. Chapter 12. Generic person marking in Japhug and other Gyalrong languages 403
  20. Author index 425
  21. Language Index 429
  22. Subject Index 433
https://doi.org/10.1075/tsl.121.03mit

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Part I. Setting the stage
  4. Synchronic vs. diachronic approaches to typological hierarchies 3
  5. Part II. Foundational issues
  6. Chapter 1. Evolutionary Phonology and the life cycle of voiceless sonorants 31
  7. Chapter 2. The Obligatory Coding Principle in diachronic perspective 59
  8. Chapter 3. Deconstructing teleology 111
  9. Part III. Hierarchical effects and their origins
  10. Chapter 4. The development of referential hierarchy effects in Sahaptian 131
  11. Chapter 5. Diachrony and the referential hierarchy in Old Irish 191
  12. Chapter 6. From ergative case-marking to hierarchical agreement 217
  13. Chapter 7. The direction(s) of analogical change in direct/inverse systems 257
  14. Chapter 8. Are the Tupi-Guarani hierarchical indexing systems really motivated by the person hierarchy? 289
  15. Chapter 9. Incipient hierarchical alignment in four Central Salish languages from the Proto-Salish middle 309
  16. Part IV. Conflicting hierarchical patterns and how to deal with them
  17. Chapter 10. Deictic and sociopragmatic effects in Tibeto-Burman SAP indexation 345
  18. Chapter 11. Morphosyntactic coding of proper names and its implications for the Animacy Hierarchy 377
  19. Chapter 12. Generic person marking in Japhug and other Gyalrong languages 403
  20. Author index 425
  21. Language Index 429
  22. Subject Index 433
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