Variation and Change in French Morphosyntax

Variation and Change in French Morphosyntax PDF Author: Anna Tristram
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351537857
Category : Foreign Language Study
Languages : en
Pages : 189

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Book Description
Collective nouns such asmajorite or foulehave long been of interest to linguists for their unusual semantic properties, and provide a valuable source of new data on the evolution of French grammar. This book tests the hypothesis that plural agreement with collective nouns is becoming more frequent in French. Through an analysis of data from a variety of sources, including sociolinguistic interviews, gap-fill tests and corpora, the complex linguistic and external factors which affect this type of agreement are examined, shedding new light on their interaction in this context. Broader questions concerning the methodological challenges of studying variation and change in morphosyntax, and the application of sociolinguistic generalisations to the French of France, are also addressed.

Variation and Change in French Morphosyntax

Variation and Change in French Morphosyntax PDF Author: Anna Tristram
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351537857
Category : Foreign Language Study
Languages : en
Pages : 189

Get Book Here

Book Description
Collective nouns such asmajorite or foulehave long been of interest to linguists for their unusual semantic properties, and provide a valuable source of new data on the evolution of French grammar. This book tests the hypothesis that plural agreement with collective nouns is becoming more frequent in French. Through an analysis of data from a variety of sources, including sociolinguistic interviews, gap-fill tests and corpora, the complex linguistic and external factors which affect this type of agreement are examined, shedding new light on their interaction in this context. Broader questions concerning the methodological challenges of studying variation and change in morphosyntax, and the application of sociolinguistic generalisations to the French of France, are also addressed.

Variation and Change in French Morphosyntax

Variation and Change in French Morphosyntax PDF Author: Anna Tristram
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351537849
Category : Foreign Language Study
Languages : en
Pages : 205

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Book Description
Collective nouns such asmajorite or foulehave long been of interest to linguists for their unusual semantic properties, and provide a valuable source of new data on the evolution of French grammar. This book tests the hypothesis that plural agreement with collective nouns is becoming more frequent in French. Through an analysis of data from a variety of sources, including sociolinguistic interviews, gap-fill tests and corpora, the complex linguistic and external factors which affect this type of agreement are examined, shedding new light on their interaction in this context. Broader questions concerning the methodological challenges of studying variation and change in morphosyntax, and the application of sociolinguistic generalisations to the French of France, are also addressed.

Grammatical Variation across Space and Time

Grammatical Variation across Space and Time PDF Author: Martin Elsig
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027290377
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 301

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Book Description
Interrogative clauses in French show abundant variation, especially with regard to the position of the subject vis-à-vis the finite verb, the placement of the wh-word, and the use of question markers such as est-ce que and ti/tu. This book presents a comprehensive study of the evolution and use of French interrogative constructions across a time span of approximately five hundred years by drawing on written sources (15th to 17th century) and oral data (19th and 20th century). Special attention is paid to the regional variation between European French and Quebec French. A variationist analysis reveals the relevant sociolinguistic factors conditioning variant choice. On the basis of the results obtained, the syntax of the different variants is modeled within the framework of generative grammar. In particular, the progressive diachronic decline and restriction of subject-verb inversion is argued to mirror the loss of verb movement. This book is of interest to anyone concerned with syntactic variation and change.

Morphosyntactic Change

Morphosyntactic Change PDF Author: Olga Fischer
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199267049
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 397

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Book Description
This book presents a critical comparison of the two leading theories of linguistic change. After introducing the aims and methods of historical linguistics, Olga Fischer provides an exposition of the main theories used to describe morphosyntactic change and a full account of the causes and mechanisms by which their leading exponents seek to explain it. She measures the effectiveness of rival theories and methods in different contexts and in the process throws fresh light on the balance of factors influencing linguistic change. Professor Fischer emphazises the unity of form and meaning in the linguistic sign and examines the role played by analogy. She looks at how changes in discourse, lexicon, semantics, pragmatics, and sound interact with changes in morphosyntax, and explores the relationship between external and internal causes of change. She considers whether morphosyntactic change is gradual or abrupt and discusses how far rates of change reflect the degree to which grammar is innate or learned. She uses detailed case studies to illustrate different types of morphosyntactic change, and to show how each theory fares when put into practice. The author's clear style and her balanced approach to this fascinating and complex subject combine to make this a book that will be of central interest and value to scholars and students of linguistic change, at graduate level and above.

Syntax and Variation

Syntax and Variation PDF Author: Leonie Elise Alexandra Cornips
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9789027247797
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 328

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Book Description
As such, it offers novel approaches to three key areas of current linguistic debate, viz. (1) Methodological practices, (2) Theoretical applications and (3) Modularity."--BOOK JACKET.

The Cambridge Handbook of English Historical Linguistics

The Cambridge Handbook of English Historical Linguistics PDF Author: Merja Kytö
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1316472914
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 1092

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Book Description
English historical linguistics is a subfield of linguistics which has developed theories and methods for exploring the history of the English language. This Handbook provides an account of state-of-the-art research on this history. It offers an in-depth survey of materials, methods, and language-theoretical models used to study the long diachrony of English. The frameworks covered include corpus linguistics, historical sociolinguistics, historical pragmatics and manuscript studies, among others. The chapters, by leading experts, examine the interplay of language theory and empirical data throughout, critically assessing the work in the field. Of particular importance are the diverse data sources which have become increasingly available in electronic form, allowing the discipline to develop in new directions. The Handbook offers access to the rich and many-faceted spectrum of work in English historical linguistics, past and present, and will be useful for researchers and students interested in hands-on research on the history of English.

Morphosyntactic Categories and the Expression of Possession

Morphosyntactic Categories and the Expression of Possession PDF Author: Kersti Börjars
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027255822
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 354

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Book Description
The analysis of constructions denoting possession (particularly, but not exclusively, in English) has long presented a challenge to morpho-syntactic theory and has been a topic of debate for some time. The papers presented here afford thought-provoking insights into the morphosyntactic nature of possessive markers under a variety of theoretical frameworks. The distribution of phrases expressing possession is explored in a range of languages (including English, Swedish, Urdu and West Flemish), with rigorous exploitation of corpus data and careful statistical analysis. Descriptions and analyses represent the state of the art in research into possessive constructions. Particular attention is paid to the English possessive 's, both synchronically and diachronically. This volume is essential for scholars interested in theoretical and corpus-based linguistics, morphosyntactic constructions, and the expression of possession.

Historical and Sociolinguistic Approaches to French

Historical and Sociolinguistic Approaches to French PDF Author: Janice Carruthers
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192647075
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 481

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Book Description
This volume brings together two particularly dynamic areas of contemporary research on the French language. The chapters showcase the most innovative current scholarship in historical linguistics, sociolinguistics, and in the burgeoning field of historical sociolinguistics which lies at their intersection. The research across the volume is strongly data-centred, drawing on a wide range of both well-established and more novel theoretical and methodological approaches in order to open up new perspectives on the study of the French language in the twenty-first century. Although it is written in English, the work presented here is underpinned by a range of different approaches from across the Francophone and Anglophone worlds. Particular emphasis is placed on combining quantitative and qualitative approaches, on diversifying tools, methods, and objects of inquiry, and on adopting comparative and multilingual perspectives where these shed new light on important questions relating to French. In these ways, Historical and Sociolinguistic Approaches to French highlights some of the most exciting new directions for linguistic research on the French language.

The Acquisition of French

The Acquisition of French PDF Author: Philippe Prévost
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027253129
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 481

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Book Description
This book presents a thorough description of morphosyntactic knowledge developed by learners of French in four different learning situations first language (L1) acquisition, second (L2) language acquisition, bilingualism, and acquisition by children with Specific Language Impairment within the theoretical framework of generative grammar. This approach allows for multiple comparisons across acquisition contexts, which provides the reader with invaluable insights into the nature of the acquisition process. The book is divided into four parts each dealing with a major morphosyntactic domain of acquisition: the verbal domain, the pronominal domain, the nominal domain, and the CP domain. Each part contains four chapters, the first one presenting an overview of the basic facts and analyses of the relevant properties of French, and the next three focusing on the different acquisition contexts. This book will be useful to anyone interested in the acquisition of French and in language development in general. It is also meant to stimulate cross-linguistic research from a theoretical perspective."

Heritage Languages and Their Speakers

Heritage Languages and Their Speakers PDF Author: Maria Polinsky
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107047641
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 433

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Book Description
A pioneering study of heritage languages, from a leading scholar in this area of study world-wide.