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Introduction to the special issue on ʻalreadyʼ expressions

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Published/Copyright: September 2, 2025

Abstract

In this introduction, we outline the research question underlying this special issue: how do languages express ʻalreadyʼ and related notions, and how does this relate to the typological debate around the typological validity of the proposed category of “iamitive”? We also present the four studies in this issue, which, focusing on languages from diverse families and regions, offer contrasting perspectives on the iamitive hypothesis and contribute new data and criteria for its cross-linguistic assessment.


Corresponding author: Bastian Persohn, Anglistik/Amerikanistik, 9378 FSU Jena , Jena, Germany, E-mail:

Award Identifier / Grant number: 453412235

Funding source: Endangered Languages Documentation Programme

Award Identifier / Grant number: IPF0270

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Received: 2025-04-22
Accepted: 2025-06-04
Published Online: 2025-09-02

© 2025 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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