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The Evolution of Grammar: Tense, Aspect, and Modality in the Languages of the World
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Bibliographic Detail
Publisher
Univ of Chicago Pr
Publication date
July 1, 1994
Binding
Hardcover
Book category
Adult Non-Fiction
ISBN-13
9780226086637
ISBN-10
0226086631
Dimensions
1.25 by 6.50 by 9.50 in.
Weight
1.65 lbs.
Availability§
Out of Print
Original list price
$90.00
Other format details
university press
§As reported by publisher
Summaries and Reviews
(view table of contents)
Amazon.com description: Product Description:
Joan Bybee and her colleagues present a new theory of the evolution of grammar that links structure and meaning in a way that directly challenges most contemporary versions of generative grammar. This study focuses on the use and meaning of grammatical markers of tense, aspect, and modality and identifies a universal set of grammatical categories. The authors demonstrate that the semantic content of these categories evolves gradually and that this process of evolution is strikingly similar across unrelated languages.
Through a survey of seventy-six languages in twenty-five different phyla, the authors show that the same paths of change occur universally and that movement along these paths is in one direction only. This analysis reveals that lexical substance evolves into grammatical substance through various mechanisms of change, such as metaphorical extension and the conventionalization of implicature. Grammaticization is always accompanied by an increase in frequency of the grammatical marker, providing clear evidence that language use is a major factor in the evolution of synchronic language states.
The Evolution of Grammar has important implications for the development of language and for the study of cognitive processes in general.
Through a survey of seventy-six languages in twenty-five different phyla, the authors show that the same paths of change occur universally and that movement along these paths is in one direction only. This analysis reveals that lexical substance evolves into grammatical substance through various mechanisms of change, such as metaphorical extension and the conventionalization of implicature. Grammaticization is always accompanied by an increase in frequency of the grammatical marker, providing clear evidence that language use is a major factor in the evolution of synchronic language states.
The Evolution of Grammar has important implications for the development of language and for the study of cognitive processes in general.
Editions
Hardcover
The price comparison is for this edition
from Univ of Chicago Pr (July 1, 1994)
9780226086637 | details & prices | 6.50 × 9.50 × 1.25 in. | 1.65 lbs | List price $90.00
About: Joan Bybee and her colleagues present a new theory of the evolution of grammar that links structure and meaning in a way that directly challenges most contemporary versions of generative grammar.
About: Joan Bybee and her colleagues present a new theory of the evolution of grammar that links structure and meaning in a way that directly challenges most contemporary versions of generative grammar.
Paperback
from Univ of Chicago Pr (November 15, 1994)
9780226086651 | details & prices | 6.50 × 9.25 × 1.00 in. | 1.30 lbs | List price $40.00
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