2 Isolation, complexification, and development of unusual features: A case study from some Gallo-Italian dialects of Northern Italy
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Lorenzo Ferrarotti
Abstract
One of the main tenets of sociolinguistic typology is that complexification typically occurs in isolated varieties. While typologically well-known, even within the Romance domain, complexification patterns have not yet been described in Northern Italian dialects. This paper discusses peculiar cases of complexification that take place in some Gallo-Italian dialects spoken in Eastern Piedmont. These varieties display a substantial array of phonological, morphological, and syntactic innovations, along with some considerably conservative features. These innovations are mostly idiosyncratic and unique compared not only to neighboring dialects but also to the Gallo-Italian group and possibly to the Romance languages as a whole. Some of these unusual features have already been described per se, but they can be more profitably understood together as increasing the morphophonological opacity and syntactic eccentricity of the dialects under scrutiny, as well as their overall linguistic complexity. As will be argued, these features arise in closed societies as a result of low adult language contact, small community size, and stable social networks.
Abstract
One of the main tenets of sociolinguistic typology is that complexification typically occurs in isolated varieties. While typologically well-known, even within the Romance domain, complexification patterns have not yet been described in Northern Italian dialects. This paper discusses peculiar cases of complexification that take place in some Gallo-Italian dialects spoken in Eastern Piedmont. These varieties display a substantial array of phonological, morphological, and syntactic innovations, along with some considerably conservative features. These innovations are mostly idiosyncratic and unique compared not only to neighboring dialects but also to the Gallo-Italian group and possibly to the Romance languages as a whole. Some of these unusual features have already been described per se, but they can be more profitably understood together as increasing the morphophonological opacity and syntactic eccentricity of the dialects under scrutiny, as well as their overall linguistic complexity. As will be argued, these features arise in closed societies as a result of low adult language contact, small community size, and stable social networks.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- 1 Analyzing language variation: Where sociolinguistics and linguistic typology meet 1
- 2 Isolation, complexification, and development of unusual features: A case study from some Gallo-Italian dialects of Northern Italy 29
- 3 On typological shift in Inner Anatolian Greek 53
- 4 Social factors in mixed language emergence: Solving the puzzle of Amish Shwitzer 85
- 5 Socio-linguistic effects on conditional constructions: A quantitative typological study 121
- 6 Counterfactual conditionals: Linguistic variation in Italian and beyond 155
- 7 Syntactic elaboration in the domain of periphrasticity: Evidence from Spanish 197
- Index 219
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- 1 Analyzing language variation: Where sociolinguistics and linguistic typology meet 1
- 2 Isolation, complexification, and development of unusual features: A case study from some Gallo-Italian dialects of Northern Italy 29
- 3 On typological shift in Inner Anatolian Greek 53
- 4 Social factors in mixed language emergence: Solving the puzzle of Amish Shwitzer 85
- 5 Socio-linguistic effects on conditional constructions: A quantitative typological study 121
- 6 Counterfactual conditionals: Linguistic variation in Italian and beyond 155
- 7 Syntactic elaboration in the domain of periphrasticity: Evidence from Spanish 197
- Index 219