Third-person singular present tense inflectional variation in Medieval and Early Modern English scientific texts: a corpus-based study
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Ana Mondéjar-Pérez
Abstract
The present study analyses the morphological variation of the third-person singular present tense inflection in English scientific texts from the Late Middle English to the Early Modern English period. This study delves into the historical development of this inflectional variation, focusing first on the rivalry between the interdental fricative -(e)th and the alveolar fricative -(e)s, by examining how these inflections competed and evolved in scientific prose, particularly medical recipes and treatises. Data retrieved from The Málaga Corpus of Late Middle English Scientific Prose and The Málaga Corpus of Early Modern English Scientific Prose allows the analysis of the use, distribution and frequency of these inflections from the fifteenth to the seventeenth century. The results shed light on the importance of period development and text-type in the process of morphological standardisation.
List of manuscripts from MCLMESP arranged by text-type.a
| MS | Date | Title | Author | Dialectal features | Running words |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Late Middle English recipes | |||||
|
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| Hunter 497 ff. 1r–92r | Late 15th c. | De viribvs herbarvm (Translation of Macer’s Herbary) | John Lelamour | East Midlands and South (Calle-Martín and Miranda-García 2012) | 353,31× |
| Sloane 404 ff. 3v–319v | Late 15th c. | (A general pharmacopoeia) | – | Norfolk – Midland and Western features (Moreno-Olalla 2020) | 795,21× |
| Sloane 2463 ff. 153v–193v | Early 15th c. | Antidotarie | – | – | 258,50× |
| Wellcome 404 ff. 1r–43v | Late 15th c. | Leech book I | – | Leicestershire, Midlands, Norfolk/Suffolk and northern East Anglia (Marqués-Aguado 2013) | 227,81× |
| Wellcome 405 ff. 7r–40v | Early 15th c. | Leechbook receipts | – | North of England | 6,710× |
| Wellcome 409a ff. 16r–48v | 15th c. | (Recipes) | – | Devonshire (Moreno-Olalla 2014) | 124,60× |
| Wellcome 409c ff. 88r–108v | 15th –16th c. | (Recipes) | – | Devonshire (Moreno-Olalla 2014) | 6,712× |
| Wellcome 542 ff. 1r–20v | Early 15th c. | (Recipes) | – | north-west Norfolk | 253,01× |
| Wellcome 5262 ff. 1r–59r | 1st quarter of 15th c. | (Recipes) | – | West Midlands (Marqués-Aguado and Esteban-Segura 2020). | 127,59× |
| Total | 2,274,25× | ||||
|
|
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| Late Middle English treatises | |||||
|
|
|||||
| Hunter 95a ff. 156r–184r | 15th c. | Treatise of Yuhanna Ibn Masawaih’s antidotary | – | – | 258,11× |
| Hunter 307p ff. 1r–146v | Early 15th c. | System of physic Gilbertus Anglicus | – | – | 950,86× |
| Hunter 307g ff. 149v–166v | Early 15th c. | (Anonymous gynaecological treatise and a version of Guy de Chauliac) | – | – | 114,70× |
| Hunter 328 ff. 1r–44v | Late 15th c. | Corbeil’s Treatise on urines | John Ardene | – | 251,44× |
| Hunter 503 pp. 1–137 | 15th c. | Treatise on the use of the eyes | Benuomicius Grapheus | Midlands (Marqués-Aguado et al. 2008) | 152,79× |
| Hunter 509 ff- 1r–171v | Early 15th c. | System of physic | Robert Beverley | – | 1,180,16× |
| Hunter 513a ff. 37v–96v | 1424–1475 | The book of antidotarie | – | – | 256,87× |
| Hunter 513e ff. 1r–37r | Mid-15th c. | De probatissima arte oculorum | – | Midlands (Marqués-Aguado et al. 2008) | 171,55× |
| Sloane 340 ff. 39r–62v | 15th c. | Treatise of urines | – | – | 121,74× |
| Wellcome 290c ff. 1r–41v | Mid-15th c. | Constantinus Africanus, venerabilis anatomia | – | – | 114,36× |
| Wellcome 290g ff. 42r–49v | Mid-15th c. | Galen, Anatomy | – | – | 1,914× |
| Wellcome 397p ff. 53r–66v | Mid-15th c. | Treatise of powders, pills and electuaries | – | – | 8,527× |
| Wellcome 397h ff. 71v–86r | Mid-15th c. | Treatise on the qualities of herbs from Matthaeus Platearius, Circa instans | – | – | 5,339× |
| Wellcome 409u ff. 55r–66r | Late 14th – Early 15th c. | De urinis | – | – | 4,440× |
| Wellcome 411u ff. 4r–9r | Late 15th c. | On lucky and unlucky days | – | – | 5,036× |
| Wellcome 411a ff. 32r–37v | Late 15th c. | The wise book of astronomy and philosophy | – | – | 5,497× |
| Wellcome 411b ff. 56r–61v | Late 15th c. | Cure of biting | – | – | 4,357× |
| Wellcome 799 ff. 2r–24r | Early 15th c. | William de Congenis’ Treatise of surgery | – | – | 182,63× |
| Wellcome 8004 pp. 113–133 | Mid-15th c. | – | – | Lincolnshire (Pérez-Guillén 2017) | 5,758× |
| Total | 4,163,89× | ||||
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aThe information found is provided by the MCLMESP and MCEMESP as well as the Glasgow University Library, Wellcome Library and Manchester University Library catalogues, except when studies are explicitly mentioned.
List of manuscripts from MCEMESP arranged by text-type.
| MS | Date | Title | Author | Running words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Early Modern English recipes | ||||
|
|
||||
| Hunter 64 ff. 1r–150v | 17th c. | Book of receipts | Bartholomew Blogate | 1,485,97× |
| Wellcome 213 ff. 1r–164v | 17th c. | – | Mrs Corlyon | 665,44× |
| Wellcome 373 ff. 4r–133r | 1642 | Remedybook | Jane Jackson | 846,04× |
| Wellcome 762 ff. 6r–12r; 104r–115r; 199r–208r; 292r–296v | Mid-late 17th c. | Remedybook | Philip Stanhope | 270,89× |
| Wellcome 3724 pp. 105–181 | Late 17th c. | A booke of Preserues cookerie and phisicall medicines | Sir Thomas Osborne | 192,12× |
| Wellcome 3769 ff. 62v–84v | 1651 | Parker, Jane | Jane Parker | 7,433× |
| Total | 3,534,79× | |||
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| Early Modern English treatises | ||||
|
|
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| Ferguson 7 ff.23r–48v, 59r | Early 17th c. | Niewe herball | Rembert Dodoens (Translator: anonymous) | 182,18× |
| Hunter 43 pp. 1–38 | 1679–1755 | The secrets and experiments of Mathewe | Christopher White Junior | 104,06× |
| Hunter 92 ff. 1r–25v | 17th c. | The anatomy of the eye | John Browne | 104,66× |
| Hunter 135 ff. 34r–73v | 16th c. | De chirvrgia libri IV | – | 202,75× |
| Hunter 303 pp. 1–144 | 1630–1640 | Treatise on the diseases of women | Jean Liébault in 1582 (W. H. translator). | 466,91× |
| Rylands 1310 ff. 1r–21r | Mid- 16th c. | On urines | – | 193,32× |
| Total | 1,253,88× | |||
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