Reconstructing Grammar: Comparative Linguistics and Grammaticalization (Typological Studies in Language) - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 155619658X ISBN 13: 9781556196584

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company, 2000

Synopsis

Comparative linguistics and grammaticalization theory both belong to the broader category of historical linguistics, yet few linguists practice both. The methods and goals of each group seem largely distinct: comparative linguists have by and large avoided reconstructing grammar, while grammaticalization theoreticians have either focused on explaining attested historical change or used internal reconstruction to formulate hypotheses about processes of change. In this collection, some of the leading voices in grammaticalization theory apply their methods to comparative data (largely drawn from indigenous languages of the Americas), showing not only that grammar can be reconstructed, but that the process of reconstructing grammar can yield interesting theoretical and typological insights.

Edition details

• Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 155619658X
• ISBN 13: 9781556196584
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 281
• Editor: Gildea Spike