Giving is receiving: The polysemy and multi-functionality of the GET/GIVE verb [tie53] 得 in the Shaowu dialect (Min-Gan, Sinitic)

INALCO - Salle 131  -  2, rue de Lille  -  75007 Paris
This talk looks at the polysemous, multifunctional Shaowu verb [tie53] which means ‘to get’ in a mono-transitive construction, and which is relexified to mean ‘to give’ in a ditransitive construction through the process of semantically-coerced syntactic change. The morpheme then grammaticalises along a bifurcated pathway to become a possibility modal suffix, a verb complement marker, as well as dative, benefactive, causative and passive markers, among other uses. This polyfunctionality may in part be due to language-internal change, but may also be attributed to contact-induced grammaticalisation. Historical documents will be examined to pinpoint these diachronic changes, while languages from other dialect groups and language families will be considered for the likelihood of areal diffusion of certain constructions and functions of the Shaowu GET/GIVE verb.
Date
  • le mercredi 28 mai 2014 à 16h
Contacts
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