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In:Insubordination
Edited by Nicholas Evans and Honoré Watanabe
[Typological Studies in Language 115] 2016
► pp. 393–422

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Chapter 15. Routes to insubordination

A cross-linguistic perspective

ORCiD logo with link | University of Pavia
Published online: 18 November 2016
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/tsl.115.15cri
Cross-linguistic data suggest that we still know relatively little on the possible origins of insubordination, that is, what source constructions give rise to particular types of insubordinate clauses, through what mechanisms, and why. Insubordinate clauses can develop through a wider range of mechanisms than assumed so far, and many clause types are actually compatible with different developmental mechanisms and source constructions. Also, the various mechanisms are quite different in nature, and do not exclusively apply to subordinate clauses. This suggests that insubordination might actually be a result of several different processes pertaining to clause combining in general, rather than a unified process specifically pertaining to subordination.
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