Generative Grammar and Historical Linguistics: what cycles tell us

Elly van GelderenOslo, 9 August 2013

International Conference on Historical Linguistics XXI

Outline

A. Generative (Historical) Linguistics

B. The healthy tension between generative grammar and historical linguistics, in both directions

C. The Minimalist Program and how it is conducive to looking at gradual, unidirectional change.

D. Examples of Linguistic Cycles

E. Explanations and some challenges.

Model of language acquisition/change(based on Andersen 1973)

Generation n Generation n+1UG UG+ +experience experience n

= =I-language n I-language n+1

E-language n E-language n+1+ innovations

Internal Grammar

Reanalysis is crucial

(1) Paul said, "Starting would be a good thing to do. How would you like to begin?“ (COCA 2010 Fiction) (cartoon is on Handout)

As for the tension: (A) Introspection vs text/corpora

Generative syntax has typically relied on introspective data. For historical periods, such a method of data gathering is obviously impossible.

Generative grammar places much emphasis on the distinction between competence and performance, i.e. on I(nternal)- and E(xternal)-language.

Currently: use of corporaSince the 1990s, a group of generative linguists

has worked on the creation of parsed corpora (see http://www.ling.upenn.edu/histcorpora/).

Result: much better descriptions of changes in the word order (e.g. work by Pintzuk, Haeberli, Taylor, van Kemenade and others), changes in do-support (e.g. Kroch and Ecay), Adverb Placement (Haeberli, van Kemenade, and Los), and pro drop (Walkden).

Corpus work has reinvigorated Historical Linguistics.

(B) The unidirectional and gradual question

(B) Is change gradual or abrupt?

Most functionalist explanations assume change is gradual.

Early generative approaches emphasize a catastrophic reanalysis of both the underlying representation and the rules applying to them.

Change = catastrophic

Lightfoot (1979), for instance, argues that the category change of modals is an abrupt one from V to AUX, as is the change from impersonal to personal verbs (the verb lician changing in meaning from `please’ to `like’).

Newmeyer (1998: 237); Roberts & Roussou (2003: 2) and others argue that “grammaticalization is a regular case of parameter change … [and] epiphenomenal”, i.e. all components also occur independently.

Current Minimalist issues that bear on unidirectional + gradual change

The role of UG:

Language-specific or third factor or pre-linguistic? Economy predicts one direction!

The role of features:

semantic ones innate?

The emphasis on features is favorable to gradual change!

How to see the role of UG?

In the 1960s, UG consists of substantive universals, concerning universal categories (V, N, etc) and phonological features, and formal universals relating to the nature of rules. The internalized system is very language-specific.

“[S]emantic features ..., are presumably drawn from a universal ‘alphabet’” (Chomsky 1965: 142), “little is known about this today”.

Principles and Parameters of the 1980s/1990s

Headedness parameter

OV to VO

Inventory of Functional Categories

C-oriented (V2) to T-oriented

Verb-movement

Pro-drop

Minimalism of the1990s-2013Parameters now consist of choices of

feature specifications as the child acquires a lexicon (Chomsky 2007).

Baker, while disagreeing with this view of parameters, calls this the Borer-Chomsky-Conjecture (2008: 156):

"All parameters of variation are attributable to differences in the features of particular items (e.g., the functional heads) in the lexicon."

Shift

With the shift to parametric parameters, it becomes possible to think of gradual change through reanalysis as well (e.g. Roberts 2009 and van Gelderen 2008, 2009, 2010).

Word order change in terms if features e.g. Breitbarth 2012, Biberauer & Roberts (2008).

Three factors, e.g. Chomsky 2007

(1) genetic endowment, which sets limits on the attainable languages, thereby making language acquisition possible;

(2) external data, converted to the experience that selects one or another language within a narrow range;

(3) principles not specific to [the Faculty of Language]. Some of the third factor principles have the flavor of the constraints that enter into all facets of growth and evolution, [...] Among these are principles of efficient computation"

EconomyLocality = Minimize computational burden

(Ross 1967; Chomsky 1973)

Use a head = Minimize Structure (Head Preference Principle, van Gelderen 2004)

Late Merge = Minimize computational burden (van Gelderen 2004, and others)

The latter two can be seen in terms of Feature Economy

Types of minimalist features

The semantic features of lexical items (which have to be cognitively based)

The interpretable ones relevant at the Conceptual-Intentional interface.

Uninterpretable features act as `glue’ so to speak to help out merge. For instance, person and number features (=phi-features) are interpretable on nouns but not on verbs.

Formal features are: interpretable and uninterpretable (1995: 277):

airplane build

Interpr. [nominal] [verbal]

[3 person] [assign [non-human]

accusative]

Uninterpr [Case] [phi]

Merge and AGREE

(1) TP

T’

T VP[u-phi][i-pr] DP V’

many buffaloes V PP[i-3] [i-P] live

in this room

Semantic and formal overlap:Chomsky (1995: 230; 381) suggests: "formal

features have semantic correlates and reflect semantic properties (accusative Case and transitivity, for example)."

I interpret this: If a language has nouns with semantic phi-features, the learner will be able to hypothesize uninterpretable features on another F (and will be able to bundle them there).

Radford (2000): in acquisition from + > -

Feature Economy

(a) Utilize semantic features: use them as for functional categories, i.e. as formal features (van Gelderen 2008; 2011).

(b) If a specific feature appears more than once, one of these is interpretable and the others are uninterpretable (Muysken 2008).

Features and grammaticalization

Grammaticalization is a change from semantic to formal features.

For instance, a verb with semantic features, such as Old English will with [volition, expectation, future], can be reanalyzed as having only the grammatical feature [future].

Cycles tell us which features matterSubject and Object Agreement (Givón)demonstrative > third ps pronoun > agreement > zeronoun > first and second person > agreement > zeronoun > noun marker > agreement > zero

Copula Cycle (Katz)demonstrative > copula > zerothird person > copula > zeroverb > aspect > copula

Noun Cycle (Greenberg)demonstrative > definite article > ‘Case’ > zeronoun > number/gender > zero

And about processing/economyNegative Cycle (Gardiner/Jespersen

see van der Auwera)a negative argument > negative adverb > negative

particle > zerob verb > aspect > negative > C(negative polarity cycle: Willis)

CP CycleAdjunct AP/PP > ... > C

Future and Aspect Auxiliary A/P > M > T (> C)V > ASP

Cycles in all 3 layers of the clause

CP

C’

C TP

T’

Neg T vP

TMA v’

v ...

Cycle is an old idea: Bopp (1816) and von der Gabelentz (1901)

Nun bewegt sich die Geschichte der Sprachen in der Diagonale zweier Kräfte: des Bequemlichkeitstriebes, der zur Abnutzung der Laute führt, und des Deutlichkeitstriebes, der jene Abnutzung nicht zur Zerstörung der Sprache ausarten lässt. Die Affixe verschleifen sich, verschwinden am Ende spurlos; ihre Funktionen aber oder ähnliche drängen wieder nach Ausdruck.

ctd

Diesen Ausdruck erhalten sie, nach der Methode der isolierenden Sprachen, durch Wortstellung oder verdeutlichende Wörter. Letztere unterliegen wiederum mit der Zeit dem Agglutinationsprozesse, dem Verschliffe und Schwunde, und derweile bereitet sich für das Verderbende neuer Ersatz vor ... ; immer gilt das Gleiche: die Entwicklungslinie krümmt sich zurück nach der Seite der Isolation, nicht in die alte Bahn, sondern in eine annähernd parallele. Darum vergleiche ich sie der Spirale. (von der Gabelentz 1901: 256)

The history of language moves in the diagonal of two forces: the impulse toward comfort, which leads to the wearing down of sounds, and that toward clarity, which disallows this erosion and the destruction of the language. The affixes grind themselves down, disappear without a trace; their functions or similar ones, however, require new expression. They acquire this expression, by the method of isolating languages, through word order or clarifying words. The latter, in the course of time, undergo agglutination, erosion, and in the mean time renewal is prepared: periphrastic expressions are preferred ... always the same: the development curves back towards isolation, not in the old way, but in a parallel fashion. That's why I compare them to spirals.

Comfort + Clarity = Grammaticalization + Renewal

Von der Gabelentz’ examples of comfort: the unclear pronunciation of everyday

expressions, the use of a few words instead of a full

sentence, i.e. ellipsis (p. 182-184),“syntaktische Nachlässigkeiten aller Art”

(`syntactic carelessness of all kinds’, p. 184),

and loss of gender.

Von der G’s examples of clarityspecial exertion of the speech organs (p. 183),

“Wiederholung” (`repetition’, p. 239),

periphrastic expressions (p. 239),

replacing words like sehr `very’ by more powerful and specific words such as riesig `gigantic’ and schrecklich `frightful’ (243),

using a rhetorical question instead of a regular proposition,

and replacing case with prepositions (p. 183).

Grammaticalization = one stepHopper & Traugott 2003: content item >

grammatical word > clitic > inflectional affix. The loss in phonological content is not a

necessary consequence of the loss of semantic content (see Kiparsky 2011; Kiparsky & Condoravdi 2006; Hoeksema 2009).

Kiparsky (2011: 19): “in the development of case, bleaching is not necessarily tied to morphological downgrading from postposition to clitic to suffix.” Instead, unidirectionality is the defining property of grammaticalization and any exceptions to the unidirectionality (e.g. the Spanish inflectional morpheme –nos changing to a pronoun) are instances of analogical changes.

Renewal is the other stepIn acknowledging weakening of pronunciation (“un

affaiblissement de la pronunciation”), Meillet (1912: 139) writes that what provokes the start of the (negative) cycle is the need to speak forcefully (“le besoin de parler avec force”).

Kiparsky & Condoravdi (2006) similarly suggest pragmatic and semantic reasons. A simple negative cannot be emphatic; in order for a negative to be emphatic, it needs to be reinforced, e.g. by a minimizer.

Four cycles I will mention/look atNegative Cycles

negative argument > negative adverb > negative particle > zeronegative verb > auxiliary > negative > zero

Subject Agreement Cycledemonstrative/emphatic > pronoun > agreement > zero

Copula Cyclesdemonstrative/verb/adposition > copula > zero

Nominal Cyclesdemonstrative > article/copula/tense markernoun > gender/number marker

Two kinds of Negative CyclesIndefinite phrase > negative = Jespersen’s Cycle. See EyÞórrson (2002) about ON ne; Bondi Johannessen (2000)

and Sollid (2002) about modern stages.

(1) er hjör né rýðr Old Norsethat sword not redden`that do not redden a sword.' (Fáfnismál 24)

(2) Þat mæli ek eigithat say-1S I not

`I am not saying that.’ (Njalssaga, 219, Faarlund 2004: 225)(3) Trøtt...jeg? Ha'kke tid Norwegian

tired ... me? have-not time`Me, tired? I don't have the time.’ (google)

(4) USA bør ikke ALDRIG være et forbilde ...The US should not never) be an example ...’ (google)

Verb > negative

(5) is-i ba-d-o Kooreteshe-NOM disappear-PF-PST`She disappeared' (Binyam 2007: 7).

(6) ‘is-i dana ‘ush-u-wa-nni-koshe-NOM beer drink-PRS-not.exist-3FS-FOC

‘She does (will) not drink beer.’ (Binyam 2007: 9).

but also Chinese mei < `not exist’ ... and S Min (Yang 2009)

Fail to ... (in COHA)

Neg Cycle in terms of structure

NegP

Neg’

Neg VPne

V DP/APno thing

Please see (2) on Handout and then (1) for more detail.

and in terms of features

DP in the VP > Specifier of NegPsemantic > [i-neg]

> Head Neg > negative affix> [u-neg]

and then renewal is needed from another lexical element

The Subject Cycle

A. demonstrative > third person pronoun > clitic > agreement

B. noun/oblique pronoun > first/second pron > clitic > agreement

"agreement and pronominalization ... Are fundamentally one and the same phenomenon“ (Givón 1978: 151).

Just a few examplesThe Basque verbal prefixes n-, g-, z- are identical to the

pronouns ni ‘I’, gu ‘we’, and zu ‘you.’ (Gavel & Henri-Lacombe 1929-37),

As early as the 19th century, Proto Indo-European verbal endings -mi, si, -ti are considered to arise from pronouns (e.g. Bopp 1816).

Hale (1973: 340): in Pama-Nyungan inflectional markers are derived from independent pronouns: “the source of pronominal clitics in Walbiri is in fact independent pronouns”.

Mithun (1991): Iroquoian agreement markers derive from Proto-Iroquoian pronouns

Haugen (2004: 319): Nahuatl agreement markers derive from pronouns.

Tunica prefixes: Ɂi- [1S], wi-[2SM], hi-/ he-[2SF], Ɂu- [3SM], ti- [3SF]

pronouns: Ɂima, ma', hɛ'ma, Ɂu'wi, ti'hči (Haas 1946: 346-7)

Donohue (2005): Palu’e, a Malayo-Polynesian language of Indonesia: no agreement but the first person aku can be cliticized.

(1) ‘úwa > ‘úwa > -‘ú Utedemonstrative pronoun article/agreementinvis-animate (Givón 2011)

(2) Shi diné bizaad yíní-sh-ta' NavajoI Navajo language 3-1-study‘As for me, I am studying Navajo.’

Because of the cycle: pronominal stages

Japanese, Mauwake, Urdu/Hindi: full pronoun

(1) watashi-wa kuruma-o unten-suru kara.

I-TOP car-ACC drive-NONPST PRT

‘I will drive the car'. (Yoko Matsuzaki p.c.)

(2) Ni fain=ke ekap-eka!

2P this-CFoc come-IMP.2P

`You here, come!’ (Berghäll 2010: 81)

(3) ham log `we people‘

(4) mẽy or merii behn doonõ dilii mẽy rehtee hẽ

I and my sister both Delhi in living are

Arabic pronouns and PF agreement(table adapted from Albuhayri 2013)

Ɂanaa 1أنا S

naħnu ْح�ُن� 1ن P

Ɂanta �َت ن 2أ SM

Ɂanti �َت� ن 2أ SF

Ɂantumaa �ما �ُت ن 2أ PM

Ɂantunna �ُن� �ُت ن 2أ PF

Huwa 3هَو SM

Hiya 3هَي SF

Hum 3ه�م PM

Hunna 3ه�ُن� PF

-tu 1ـَت� S-

-naa 1ـنا P

-ta 2ـَت SM

-ti 2ـَت� SM

-tum �م 2ـُت PM

-tunna �ُن� 2ـُت PF

-(a) 3SM

-at 3SF

-wa/-uu/ 3ـَو PM

-na- 3َن PF

What’s clear

(a) First person changed in Arabic:Akkadian Arabic Ethiopian Semitic1S -(a)ku -tu -ku2SM -(a)ta -ta -ka(Dimmendaal 2011: 96, based on Hetzron

1976)Akkadian differs in both vowel and consonant

and the other 2 branches kept the vowel difference but neutralized the consonantal distinction, in different ways.

(b) Third person has a different development; only gender/number is marked (Huehnergard & Pat-El 2012); probably derives from nominal inflection (Pat-El p.c).

Russell (1984: 119): first and second person of the suffix conjugation are “clearly related to the pronominal forms”; third person has its origin in “the system of nominal inflection and modification.”

What were the pronouns that became the affixes?

Semitic free pronouns have a demonstrative base: in- (Egyptian) and an- (Arabic) so not clear that the affixes arose from them.

Perfective verbs could have been nominals. Givón (1976: 183-4): personal endings in Arabic first develop on the participial (nominal) and the suffixes develop from the inflected copulas.

Other challenges: Noun class/gender markers

English: start??(a) Modification, (b) coordination, (c) position, (d) doubling, (e) loss of V-movement, (f) Code switching

Coordination (and Case)(1) Me and Kitty were to spend the day.(2) %while he and she went across the hall.

Position(3) She’s very good, though I perhaps I shouldn’t say

so.(4) You maybe you've done it but have forgotten.

Doubling and cliticization(1) Me, I've tucking had it with the small place.

(BNC H0M 1608)(2) Me, I think I'd like a change. (COHA 2001. fiction)(3) %Him/Her, s/he shouldn’t do that (not

attested in COCA or BNC; once in COHA)(4) What I'm gonna do?

`What am I going to do'

CSE-FAC:uncliticized cliticized total

I 2037 685 (=25%) 2722you 1176 162 (=12.1%) 1338he 128 19 (=12.9%) 147

Problem in English: why so slow!

French: Lambrecht 1981; Schwegler 1990; Fuß 2005

(1) Se je meïsme ne li di Old French

If I myself not him tell

`If I don’t tell him myself.’ (Franzén 1939:20, Cligès 993)

(2) Renars respond: “Jou, je n’irai”

‘R answers “Me, I won’t go”.’

(Coronnement Renart, A. Foulet (ed.) 1929: 598, from Roberts 1993: 112)

Foulet (1961: 330): all personal pronouns can be separated from the verb in Old French. Compare Modern French:

(3)a. *Je heureusement ai vu çaI probably have seen that`I’ve probably seen that.’

b. Kurt, heureusement, a fait beaucoup d'autres choses.Kurt fortunately has done many other things`Fortunately, Kurt did many other things’ (google search of French websites)

(4) Où vas-tu Standard Frenchwhere go-2S

(5) tu vas où Colloquial French2S go where ‘Where are you going?'

Loss of pre-verbal objects and ne(6) j'ai pas encore démontré

çaI-have NEGyet proven that‘I haven't yet proven that.’

Code-switching:(7) nta tu vas travailler Arabic-French

you you go work‘You go to work.’ (from Bentahila and

Davies 1983: 313)

Subject CycleFull phrase move to Spec TP >

Head moves to T

Reanalysis as to what the head is: pronoun or agreement.

Once the pronoun is agreement, a new pro/nonominal is needed.

Challenges: Niger-Congo and speed ...

As treeTP

T’

T VP

DP V’a D

b V DP

with features

Adjunct/Argument > Specifier > Heademphatic/noun full pronoun weak/clitic [semantic] [i-phi] [u-1/2] [i-3]

> affix> agreement

[u-phi][u-#]

See (3) and (4) on handout for more detail.

Copula cycle, sourcesVerbsDemonstratives = Reanalysis of Prepositions/adverbs location, identity,

and aspect features

English flavors: be, become, go, fall, turn, seem, appear, stay, and remain.

semantic features be remain, stay seem, appear [location] [duration] [visible][equal]

Old Egyptian (1) > Middle (2)(1) a. rmt p-n

man MS-PROX `this man.’

b. ntr-w jp-w

god-P MP-DIST `those gods.’

(2) ̩tmj-t pw jmn-t

city-F be west-F

`The West is a city.’

(Loprieno 1995; 2001)

(3) p -w > pw

[i-3MS] [distal] [loc]

[u-phi]

Demonstrative and adverbial source of copulas

(1) a. Mi da i tatá Saramaccan I am your father

‘I am your father.’ (McWhorter 1997: 87)

b. Hεn dà dí Gaamá

he is the chief

‘He's the chief.’ (McWhorter 1997: 98)

(2) Dí wómi dε a wósu

the woman is at house

`The woman is at home.’ (McWhorter 1997: 88)

Identification vs locationSaramaccan

equative – locative

identificational da dɛ

class membership da/dɛ(McWhorter 2005: 117-8; 171)

NigerianPidgin

be/na - de

(Mazzoli 2013: )

Structurally (see (6) on HO)TP

. T’

T VP

DP V’Dthat V DP

Not everything is the agreement cycle, e.g.Galo (Post), and Zoque (Faarlund)

(1) bɨɨ L ŋó-kə L azèn əə3S 1S-GEN friend ART →3S 1S-GEN friend COP‘He is my friend.’ (Post 2007 : 429)

In Galo, əə functions as topic marker as well as unmarked copula and derives from a (proximal) demonstrative.

(2) Te’ tuwi kanaŋbüdete’ tuwi 0-kanaŋ=pü=teDET dog 3B-old=REL=PRED‘The dog is old’ (Faarlund 2012: 141-2)

Greenberg’s Demonstrative Cycle and additions

Demonstrative

[i-phi]/ [loc]

 article Dem C copula

[u-phi] [i-phi] [u/i-T] [u-phi]

[loc] [loc]

Also: degree adverb and tense marker (Tibeto-Burman) and noun class marker.

Old English: demonstratives, pronouns, and pro-drop

(1) þæt fram ham gefrægn Higelaces þegn, god mid Geatum, Grendles dæda; se wæs moncynnes mægenes strengest on þæm dæge þysses lifes, æþele ond eacen.

`Hygelac’s thane heard about Grendel’s deeds while in Geatland; he (=Hygelac’s thane) was mankind’s strongest man on earth, noble and powerful.

Old English ctdHet him yðlidan godne gegyrwan, cwæð, he

guðcyning ofer swanrade secean wolde, mærne þeoden, þa him wæs manna þearf. ðone siðfæt him snotere ceorlas lythwon logon, þeah he him leof wære.

(He) ordered himself a good boat prepared and said that he wanted to seek the king over the sea since he (=the king) needed men. Wise men did not stop him (=Hygelac’s thane) though he was dear to them.’ (Beowulf 194-98)

Three stages in the Peterb Chron

(1) Brittene igland is ehta hund mila lang. & twa hund brad. & her sind on þis iglande fif geþeode. Englisc. & Brittisc. & Wilsc. & Scyttisc. & Pyhtisc. & Boc Leden.

`The island Britain is 800 miles long and 200 miles broad. And there are in the island five nations; English, Welsh, Scottish, Pictish, and Latin’. (omacl.org)

Still first stage(2) Erest weron bugend þises landes

Brittes. þa coman of Armenia. & gesætan suþewearde Bryttene ærost. þa gelamp hit þæt Pyhtas coman suþan of Scithian. mid langum scipum na manegum.

`The first inhabitants were the Britons, who came from Armenia, and first peopled Britain southward. Then happened it, that the Picts came south from Scythia, with long ships, not many’.

Transition

(3) Đis geares wæs se mynstre of Cantwarabyri halgod fram þone ærcebiscop Willelm þes dæies iiii Nonæ MAI. Đær wæron þas biscopes...

`This year was the monastery of Canterbury consecrated by the Archbishop William, on the fourth day before the nones of May. There were the Bishops ...’ (1130)

Dem > article(4) ðis gære for þe king Stephne ofer sæ to

Normandi & ther wes underfangen forþi ðæt hi uuenden ðæt he sculde ben alsuic alse the eom wes. & for he hadde get his tresor. ac he todeld it & scatered sotlice. `This year, (the) King Stephen crossed the sea to go to Normandy and was received there because they thought he was like the uncle (i.e. his uncle). And because he still had his treasury, but he divided and scattered it stupidly. King Henry has gathered much gold and silver and no good did men with it for his soul.’ (PC 1137)

Around 1200: a reanalysis(1) & gaddresst swa þe clene corn

`and so you gather the clear wheat.’ (Ormulum 1484-5, Holt edition)

(2) 3ho wass … Elysabæþ 3ehatenn `She was called Elisabeth.’ (Ormulum 115)

(3) & swa þe33 leddenn heore lif Till þatt te33 wærenn alde `and so they led their lives until they were old.’ (Ormulum 125-6)

(4) þin forrme win iss swiþe god, þin lattre win iss bettre. `Your earlier wine is very good, your later wine is better.’ (Ormulum 15409)

Reduction of the article also in PC and Ormulum, according to Nykiel

(5) 7 begæt thare priuileges, an of alle þe

And obtained their proviledges one of all the lands of þabbotrice 7 oþer of þe lands ...

lands of the-abbey and other of the lands

‘and obtained their privileges, one for all the lands of the abbey, and another for the lands (that adjoin to the churchyard).’ (from Nykiel 2013  Peterborough Chron. an.1137)

What happens?

Externally: a `strengthening’ of the third person features in the pronoun and a shift in the relationship with the demonstrative.

This reinforcement through external pronouns, she and they, brought about a reanalysis of the features of the pronoun as deictic.

Internal Externalse --> the --> shehim/her --> himself/herself --> they

a.se/that > the[loc]/[i-phi] [u-ps]

b.he/hi is replaced by heheo/ha is replaced by she

(possibly via seo)hi/hie is replaced by they

Typical DP Cycle

DP > DP

that D’ D NP[loc] the

3S[i-ps] D NP [u-phi]

3S

Loss of Pro dropWalkden 2011; 2012; van Gelderen 2000; 2013; Rusten

2010.Starts with first and second person, e.g. Lindisfarne:1S 9/212 (=96% overt pronouns)2S 16/103 (=87%) 3S 445/116 (=21%) (Berndt 1956)First, the agreement features are reanalyzed from

interpretable to uninterpretable, with the inevitable result that a subject becomes obligatory. This is a typical stage in the subject cycle.

Secondly, pronouns and demonstratives undergo two types of change, internal and external. The demonstratives lose features in a grammaticalization process and pronouns are renewed externally.

Noun > # Lehmann (2002: 50-54, quoting Heine & Reh

1984: 273): 3 sources of nominal number marking:

(a) from a noun, as with Chinese men meaning `class’,

(b) from a pronoun, numeral, or quantifier(c) from a numeral classifier: the classifier ge is the

main classifier now in spoken Mandarin and is becoming used as singular, instead of yi-ge `one-CL’ (Lehmann 2002: 54; see also Serzisko 1982: 24).

Cycle of dual and pluralOn (pro)nouns

The Germanic dual –t is a remnant of the numeral (Brugmann); its loss is `well-behaved’: dual is lost first on verbs before pronouns, but Slavic is not: verbal agreement is lost first. In OE, lost first in the N with objective and renewed there first, as in (1), but what does that mean for features?

On verbs: not much evidence for a cycle. Problem in Early Slavic: agreement disappears later than dual pronouns.

Early renewal in English(1) and git æton þa beorhtan blæda ...

and 2DU ate the bright fruitWæs se atola beforan,  se inc bam was that terrible before that 2DU bothforgeaf balewe geþohtas. gave wicked thoughts

`and you (two) ate the bright fruit ... was the terrible one next to you, who gave you both these terrible thoughts.’ (Junius, Christ and Satan ll. 481; 485-8)

but never systematic!

Innate vs acquiredsemantic interpretable

shapes grammatical number

negatives negation

`if’

real-unreal irrealis

+/-individuated mass-count

duration progressive

The various cycles in terms of features

The cycle of agreementnoun > emphatic > pronoun > agreement > 0[sem] [i-phi] [i-phi]/[u-phi] [u-phi]

The cycles of negationAdjunct/Argument Specifier Head (of NegP) affix

semantic > [i-NEG]> [u-NEG] > --

Modal CycleVerb > AUX[volition, expectation, future] [future]

Demonstrative

[i-phi]

[i-loc]

 

article pronoun C copula

[u-phi] [i-phi] [u-phi] [i-loc]

[u-T]

Explanations of the CycleRecent shift towards third factors and parametric

features: we need to be careful how many mechanisms we allow.

Therefore, Feature Economy makes sense

All change is in the lexicon: sem>i-F>u-F

Why?– Maximize syntax?– Keep merge going?– Lighter?

Acquisition, Sign Language, ...Unidirectional change in sign language

e.g. Aronoff et al; Fisher & Gough; Pfau & Steinbach: V>ASP, N > AGR,

and L1 Acquisitione.g. Brown (1973); Josefsson & Håkansson (2000)

Interlanguage: debate as to featuresLardiere (2007), Hawkins (2005), Tsimpli et al (2004)

Pre-human features: place, duration, negation ...

ConclusionsGenerative Grammar and Historical Linguistics

provide insights to each otherIntrospection and corpora/textsGradual, unidirectional change

provides a window on the language facultyRole of UG determines what changes:

PS rules > parameters > featuresWe looked at four cycles in terms of Economy

and some challenges

New directions with cycles

25-26 April 2014:

Linguistic Cycle Workshop II at ASU; deadline for abstracts is 31 October 2013; http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-conf-action.cfm?ConfID=163258