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Article published In: Studies in Language
Vol. 42:3 (2018) ► pp.641–668

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Cyclic renewal of demonstratives

 | University of South-Eastern Norway
Published online: 19 October 2018
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https://doi.org/10.1075/sl.17047.vin
Abstract
Demonstratives, broadly defined as a subclass of deictic expressions used for exophoric reference, do not develop through direct grammaticalization (Diessel, H. 1999. Demonstratives: Form, Function and Grammaticalization. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar: 150). The renewal of demonstratives, and the mechanisms and motivations underlying such processes, have not received as much attention as the related negative cycle. Greenberg, J. H. 1978. How does a language acquire gender markers. Universals of human language 31. 47–82.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar observation that demonstratives are often replaced by reinforced forms might shed light on this diachronic process, and this study aims to explore this phenomenon further, as well as its connection with grammaticalization. Reinforcement of demonstratives can lead to the development of new demonstratives, which may catalyze the grammaticalization of old ones through paradigmatic competition (niche competition). The analysis presented here sees reinforcement as a possible driving force behind grammaticalization, and not vice versa, as suggested in Diessel ( 2006. Demonstratives, joint attention, and the emergence of grammar. Cognitive Linguistics 4(17).463–489.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar: 474) and van Gelderen (van Gelderen, E. 2011. The linguistic cycle: Language change and the language faculty. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar: 210), among others.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Demonstratives and their sources of renewal
    • 2.1Demonstratives
    • 2.2Cyclic renewal
  • 3.Demonstrative reinforcement
    • 3.1Lexical reinforcement
      • 3.1.1‘See’ as a reinforcing expression
      • 3.1.2Locational markers as reinforcing expressions
      • 3.1.3Other reinforcing expressions
    • 3.2Doubling
    • 3.3Affixation
    • 3.4Summary
  • 4.Demonstrative cycles
    • 4.1Schematic overview of stages and outcomes
    • 4.2Niche competition as a catalyst for grammaticalization
    • 4.3Jespersen’s cycle vs. the demonstrative cycle
  • 5.Summary
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Bibliography
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