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Article published In: Functions of Language
Vol. 32:3 (2025) ► pp.314–338

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A computational approach to mapping replacement processes in language change

ORCiD logo with link | Freie Universität Berlin
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Available under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license.

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This work was supported by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Program (EXREAN, Grant Agreement No. 101123544). Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. Open Access publication of this article was funded through a Transformative Agreement with Freie Universität Berlin.

Published online: 29 January 2026
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https://doi.org/10.1075/fol.24026.ros
Abstract
This paper explores the advantages of using Latent Class Analysis (LCA) as a computational approach to mapping replacement in language change. Historical linguistics assumes that when a construction replaces another construction, this process is gradual, affecting certain usage contexts before others. This model of replacement predicts that these usage contexts play a greater role for the decrease in usage frequency of the replaced construction than other contexts. As a case study, I examine the replacement of the perfect auxiliary ser ‘be’ with haber ‘have’ in the history of Spanish using a combination of LCA and regression analysis. Starting from the eight usage contexts identified with LCA, I observe changes in the preference for ser or haber to be used in these contexts. By using the predicted probability of assignment to these contexts as a dependent variable, I provide proof of significant replacement of ser with haber, but also of haber with ser, in contexts with perfective meanings. The absence of replacement in the remaining contexts leads me to postulate that ser underwent both functional specialization and renewal as its usage frequency declined. From a theoretical perspective, this study provides empirical evidence for a key assumption in historical linguistics, namely that replacement processes occur locally.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The role of context in replacement processes
  • 3.Usage contexts of Old Spanish haber and ser + PP
  • 4.Replacement of ser with haber
  • 5.Conclusions
  • Acknowledgements
  • Note
  • References
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