Papers by Antje Casaretto
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), Jun 22, 2023
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), Jun 30, 2023
In the literature, it is often assumed that ergative constructions originate in passive construct... more In the literature, it is often assumed that ergative constructions originate in passive constructions. The present contribution explores the likelihood of such a passive-toergative analysis for one language (Tima, Niger-Congo, Sudan), showing that this analysis cannot be substantiated and suggesting an origin in active constructions instead. This study is situated in its areal context (outlining similarities to split case marking systems across the region, especially in the Southern branch of Eastern Sudanic) and against the background of discussions in the Indo-Iranian family (from where the passive-to-ergative hypothesis presumably spread).
Studies in African Linguistics, 2020
In the literature, it is often assumed that ergative constructions originate in passive construct... more In the literature, it is often assumed that ergative constructions originate in passive constructions. The present contribution explores the likelihood of such a passive-to-ergative analysis for one language (Tima, Niger-Congo, Sudan), showing that this analysis cannot be substantiated and suggesting an origin in active constructions instead. This study is situated in its areal context (outlining similarities to split case marking systems across the region, especially in the Southern branch of Eastern Sudanic) and against the background of discussions in the Indo-Iranian family (from where the passive-to-ergative hypothesis presumably spread).
Diachronica, 2018
Recent decades have seen a surge of interest in grammaticalization. In this paper, however, we ar... more Recent decades have seen a surge of interest in grammaticalization. In this paper, however, we are not concerned with reaching a better understanding of the nature of grammaticalization phenomena or their triggering factors, but we ask under what circumstances grammaticalization does not take place, even if it would have seemed likely to – a topic that has scarcely been addressed in the literature. Based on a comparative investigation of the historical development of a class of Indo-European spatial adverbs, we argue that mismatches between layers of linguistic structure present one type of situation in which grammaticalization may be blocked. For grammaticalization to occur, the outer semantic-syntactic boundaries of the potentially grammaticalizing construction must be matched by prosodic boundaries. If prosodic chunking is shifted in relation to semantic-syntactic chunking, grammaticalization may be prevented.
This paper explores the morpho-syntactic and semantic properties of secondary predicates in Vedic... more This paper explores the morpho-syntactic and semantic properties of secondary predicates in Vedic Sanskrit based on a corpus of about 1.500 sentences collected from the Rigveda and various prose texts. The features discussed include, among others, possible combinations with main predicates and controllers, word order, and semantic range of secondary predicates. Regarding word order, two tendencies stand out: edge-placement, possibly in connection with heaviness, and post-controller position, especially in Vedic prose, with exceptions being at least partly due to information structure. The semantic range expressed by secondary predicates is very broad with many expressions located in a continuum between participant and event orientation, putting some of them semantically into the vicinity of event-oriented adverbials. This study is situated within an overall research on alignment change in Indo-Aryan: our hypothesis is that the main-clause use of the past passive participles or ta-fo...
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), Jun 30, 2023
International Journal of Diachronic Linguistics and Linguistic Reconstruction, 2020
This paper explores the morpho-syntactic and semantic properties of secondary predicates in Vedic... more This paper explores the morpho-syntactic and semantic properties of secondary predicates in Vedic Sanskrit based on a corpus of about 1.500 sentences collected from the Rigveda and various prose texts. The features discussed include, among others, possible combinations with main predicates and controllers, word order, and semantic range of secondary predicates. Regarding word order, two tendencies stand out: edge-placement, possibly in connection with heaviness, and post-controller position, especially in Vedic prose, with exceptions being at least partly due to information structure. The semantic range expressed by secondary predicates is very broad with many expressions located in a continuum between participant and event orientation, putting some of them semantically into the vicinity of event-oriented adverbials. This study is situated within an overall research on alignment change in Indo-Aryan: our hypothesis is that the main-clause use of the past passive participles or ta-forms, i.e. the forms that in later historical stages trigger ergative alignment, may have originated in subordinate usages as secondary predicates.
Studies in African Linguistics, 2020
In the literature, it is often assumed that ergative constructions originate in passive construct... more In the literature, it is often assumed that ergative constructions originate in passive constructions. The present contribution explores the likelihood of such a passive-to-ergative analysis for one language (Tima, Niger-Congo, Sudan), showing that this analysis cannot be substantiated and suggesting an origin in active constructions instead. This study is situated in its areal context (outlining similarities to split case marking systems across the region, especially in the Southern branch of Eastern Sudanic) and against the background of discussions in the Indo-Iranian family (from where the passive-to-ergative hypothesis presumably spread).
Language Change at the Syntax-Semantics Interface, 2015
Diachronica , 2018
Recent decades have seen a surge of interest in grammaticalization. In this paper, however, we ar... more Recent decades have seen a surge of interest in grammaticalization. In this paper, however, we are not concerned with reaching a better understanding of the nature of grammaticalization phenomena or their triggering factors, but we ask under what circumstances grammaticalization does not take place, even if it would have seemed likely to – a topic that has scarcely been addressed in the literature. Based on a comparative investigation of the historical development of a class of Indo-European spatial adverbs, we argue that mismatches between layers of linguistic structure present one type of situation in which grammaticalization may be blocked. For grammaticalization to occur, the outer semantic-syntactic boundaries of the potentially grammaticalizing construction must be matched by prosodic boundaries. If prosodic chunking is shifted in relation to semantic-syntactic chunking, grammaticalization may be prevented.
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Papers by Antje Casaretto