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By means of the study of Latin focus-sensitive negation nec (‘furthermore not’; ‘neither’; ‘not even’), I address a more general question on the scope and the cyclicity of semantic change. I review Lehmann’s syntagmatic parameters of grammaticalization (structural scope, bondedness, syntagmatic variability) with the aim of evaluating to what extent they are reflected in some types of semantic change. With nec we see the evolution, from Latin to Romance, of a discourse-structuring particle with an additive component into the building block of new emphatic (scalar) negative polarity items, which in turn are later reanalyzed as elements of Negative Concord (endowed with uninterpretable formal features). I argue that an important aspect of this change concerns the way alternatives to the focused element are retrieved in the context. I propose that increase in bondedness and decrease in syntagmatic variability correlate with a change in the form taken by alternatives, which decrease in scope from discourse units to individual alternatives.

El llatí clàssic disposa de partícules negatives com ara neque / nec i ne … quidem ‘ni, ni tan sols’, que poden expressar la negació oracional i, alhora, presentar focus estret en algun component de l’oració. Aquestes partícules són elements multifuncionals que poden expressar diversos tipus de focus (additiu o escalar) i, en el cas de neque / nec, també tenen una funció coordinativa i d’estructuració del discurs. En aquest treball investigo la complexa interacció dels factors semàntics i sintàctics que regeixen la seva distribució i interpretació. Destaco les condicions estructurals i les contextuals relacionades amb el significat que afavoreixen la interpretació additiva o l’escalar, i proposo una anàlisi de l’estructura interna complexa de les partícules. També tracto de les implicacions diacròniques de la meva anàlisi, en concret amb relació al paper que tenen les continuacions romàniques de nec., Classical Latin displays negative particles, like neque / nec and ne…quidem ‘neither, not even’, that can express sentential negation while at the same time narrowly focusing on some constituent of the clause. These particles are multifunctional elements that can express various types of focus (additive or scalar) and, in the case of neque / nec, also have a coordinative and a discourse-structuring function. In this work I investigate the complex interplay of semantic and syntactic factors that govern their distribution and interpretation. I single out the structural and meaning-related contextual conditions favoring the additive or the scalar interpretation, and I propose an analysis of the complex internal structure of the particles. I also discuss the diachronic implications of my analysis, in particular with respect to the role played by the Romance continuations of nec.

The volume under review is the fourth and last in the series New perspectives on historical Latin syntax, edited by Philip Baldi and Pierluigi Cuzzolin for De Gruyter Mouton.

Theoretical research on cognate nouns focuses on the question whether they are arguments or adjuncts. Greek has figured prominently in the discussion: primarily cognate nouns in the accusative case have been investigated, and the existence of different subclasses has been proposed. In this paper, we discuss cognate nouns marked with dative case in Classical and Koiné (Biblical) Greek, and argue that alternation in case morphology correlates with a twofold distinction, between arguments and adjuncts on the one hand, and between different kinds of adjuncts on the other. We propose that certain dative cognates are focused adverbials.

How can linguists studying ancient languages make sure that they are aware of register differences in their texts? How can they safely single out features of the spoken language in corpora that are by definition written? And how can they reach more fine-grained sociolinguistic classifications of ‘colloquial’ traits? Colloquial and Literary Latin aims to answer these questions. It deals with issues significant for any researcher in historical linguistics who has to work with Latin sources or with texts heavily influenced by Latin models. But its contribution goes beyond Latin studies and addresses foundational concerns of historical linguistics.

A comparative study of the syntax of adnominal arguments in the Greek original and in the Latin Vulgate translation of the Gospels shows that word order in this domain is strikingly parallel in the two languages. The fact that faithfulness in translating evidently extends to syntax, leveling Latin to the Greek model, must not lead to the conclusion that the language of the Latin translation is artificially shaped in conformity to the Greek; rather, it shows that Latin, at this diachronic stage, shared with New Testament Greek some significant parametric settings pertaining to nominal syntax.

This volume collects eight contributions that discuss the possibility of syntactic reconstruction, that is, tracing back by comparative analysis features of the syntax of an undocumented ancestor of extant daughter languages.

Tübingen, 11-13 Feb 2012 Universität Tübingen, p. 31-34

This work is an attempt to give a formal account of the syntax of the Latin nominal phrase within the Principles & Parameters framework and to detect, during the history of the language, some crucial stages bearing witness of a complex chain of parameter-resetting operations, which prelude to future pan-Romance developments.

This chapter reviews the role played by linguistic evidence from the Romance languages in shaping contemporary semantic research. The discussion focuses on a selection of phenomena that have important ramifications for the form–meaning mapping (presupposition, anaphora, (in)definiteness, deixis, tense, negation). For each phenomenon some particularly remarkable cases are discussed, for which research into Romance languages has substantially contributed to theoretical models and analytical advances in the field of semantics. At the same time, a number of outstanding issues are singled out, for which Romance data may prove decisive in future research. From the non-exhaustive overview provided in this chapter, two conclusions emerge most clearly. First, Romance linguistics has proven to be very influential for semantic research thanks to the wide display of microvariation within the Romance family, which represents an ideal testing ground for theories of the form–meaning interface. Second, the diachronic depth that can be reached in examining Romance data is instrumental in opening up new perspectives for research into the historical development of semantic categories.

This chapter investigates the sequence of changes leading from the Latin system of negation to the various Romance outcomes. While Classical Latin is a Double Negation language, the earliest Romance varieties show a Negative Concord grammar. In the proposed analysis, this seemingly paradoxical development is explained by situating the prerequisites for Negative Concord already at the Late Latin stage. In Late Latin, a featural and structural reanalysis of the negative marker entails the activation of a projection in the clause where sentential negation has to be identified. This, in turn, triggers the grammaticalization of new negatively marked indefinites licensed in the scope of negation. These indefinites establish a syntactic relation first with the Focus Phrase (as negation strengtheners) and subsequently with the Negation Phrase, yielding a Negative Concord system. This study highlights the importance of generative research on the nature and format of syntactic features for our understanding of diachrony.

This chapter is dedicated to the morpho-syntactic properties of markers of sentential negation, and to the relation between such properties and other aspects of the syntax of negation. It reviews the results of cross-linguistic research and describes the different forms of negative markers (affixes, particles, auxiliary verbs, complementizers). It also discusses a number of correlations between the form of the sentential negative marker and more general structural aspects (doubling, pre- vs. postverbal negation, presence of Negative Concord).

The dative-marked argument of the verb dokéō ‘seem’ in Classical Greek displays syntactic, semantic and pragmatic properties that qualify it as a non-canonical sub- ject. To substantiate this claim, three phenomena are analyzed, all involving corefer- ence resolution across clause boundaries: long-distance reflexivization, interclausal coreference, and case mismatch in participial constructions. For the latter phenom- enon, the observed mismatch between case marking and referential properties is captured by positing the same coreference mechanism for finite clauses and for a class of participial constructions that qualify as a full clausal domain.

Classical Latin displays negative particles, like neque / nec and ne…quidem 'neither, not even', that can express sentential negation while at the same time narrowly focusing on some constituent of the clause. These particles are multifunctional elements that can express various types of focus (additive or scalar) and, in the case of neque / nec, also have a coordinative and a discourse-structuring function. In this work I investigate the complex interplay of semantic and syntactic factors that govern their distribution and interpretation. I single out the structural and meaning-related contextual conditions favoring the additive or the scalar interpretation, and I propose an analysis of the complex internal structure of the particles. I also discuss the diachronic implications of my analysis, in particular with respect to the role played by the Romance continuations of nec. El llatí clàssic disposa de partícules negatives com ara neque / nec i ne … quidem 'ni, ni tan sols', que poden expressar la negació oracional i, alhora, presentar focus estret en algun component de l'oració. Aquestes partícules són elements multifuncionals que poden expressar diversos tipus de focus (additiu o escalar) i, en el cas de neque / nec, també tenen una funció coordinativa i d'estructuració del discurs. En aquest treball investigo la complexa interacció dels factors semàntics i sintàctics que regeixen la seva distribució i interpretació. Destaco les condicions estructurals i les contextuals relacionades amb el significat que afavoreixen la interpretació additiva o l'escalar, i proposo una anàlisi de l'estructura interna complexa de les partícules. També tracto de les implicacions diacròniques de la meva anàlisi, en concret amb relació al paper que tenen les continuacions romàniques de nec.

In this paper I investigate the interplay between sentential negation and indefinites in some Late Latin texts (since the 3rd century AD), with the aim of tracing back to this stage later developments affecting the early Romance languages. I argue that the persistence of Object-Verb order with negative indefinites in Late Latin is a sign of an early restructuring in the system of sentential negation, preluding to the early Romance systems. I propose a parsimonious interpretation of this diachronic process in terms of one crucial change in the formal features of the negative marker nōn, with a number of significant consequences for its relationship with the indefinite pronouns. Dans cette étude, j’examine l’interaction entre la négation phrastique et les indéfinis négatifs dans des textes latins tardifs (à partir du iiie siècle av. J.-C.), avec le but de repérer, à cette époque, des traces des développements qu’on peut retrouver par la suite dans les langues romanes anciennes. Je propose que la persistance de l’ordre Objet-Verbe avec les indéfinis négatifs du latin tardif est un signe d’une restructuration précoce dans le système de la négation phrastique, qui prélude aux systèmes des langues romanes. Je présente une interprétation économique de ce processus diachronique, que j’interprète comme un changement crucial des traits formels du marqueur de négation nōn, changement qui a eu des conséquences significatives pour son rapport avec les pronoms indéfinis.

The paper discusses the phenomenon of Late Latin intransitivizations, where a morphologically active form of a transitive verb is used with a middle-passive function. Intransitivizations are present throughout the history of the language, but their number increases significantly in the 3rd-4th century CE. They are instances of patient-preserving lability and represent one of the possible means to express the anticausative alternation. The analysis casts intransitivizations into the broader context of voice fluctuations in Late Latin, by comparing them with competing constructions and by examining the possible causes for their increase in frequency during the Late Latin stage. © 2014 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin/Boston.

The Greek of the New Testament displays an almost exclusively postnominal positioning of genitives within the noun/determiner phrase (henceforth, DP). The few prenominal instances are usually considered to be residues of the Classical Greek grammatical system, which allowed both pre- and postnominal genitives. In this work I focus on a subset of such instances, extraposed genitives, which are syntactically characterized by the fact that the genitive not only is prenominal, but also precedes the determiner heading the DP to which the genitive is semantically linked. The first goal of this work is to further substantiate Havers’ (1911) claim that extraposed genitives in New Testament Greek take the place of the receding dativus sympatheticus of Indo-European ancestry and, therefore, come close to the functional domain of external possessors. The second goal is to connect this development to a more general revolutionary process in the history of Greek, by arguing that the specialization of the extraposed genitive construction with pronominal forms is an important step towards the syncretism of genitive and dative case.

The occasion for this review is offered by the publication in 2008 of the paperback edition of J. N. Adams’s Bilingualism and the Latin language, following the first hardback edition in 2003. While no changes or additions have been made (which indirectly attests a very accurate editing work on such complicated material in the first place), the appearance of the new paperback edition will favor a wider distribution for the book, and its presence also on the shelves of non-specialists. This is, therefore, a good opportunity to acknowledge and discuss recent, highly qualified research on the history of Latin in the broader setting of theoretical diachronic linguistics and typological investigation, thus going beyond the field of sociolinguistic studies that Adams has in mind.

In this paper we discuss the status of three compelling questions, which impinge on parameter theory: a. What are the actual parameters of UG? b. What is the form of a possible parameter? c. How are parameter values distributed in space and time? With respect to the first question, we present the guidelines of a heuristic methodology to discover the parameters of UG, Modularized Global Parametrization, first proposed by Longobardi (2003). Building on the potential of such an approach, we pursue a Minimalist critique of the general form of parameters and sketch the programmatic lines of a Principles&Schemata model of UG. To address the third problem, we begin to investigate the implications of a parametric approach for the study of phylogenetic relationships among languages and, more broadly, of cognitive approaches to the study of history.

The two monographs under review are recent contributions by eminent scholars in historical linguistics, both written with the intent of summarizing the main results and the new perspectives offered by decades of formal studies in diachronic syntax.

SummaryThe aim of this paper is to draw a sketch of the verbal voice system in Latin and possibly to shed more light on some controversial points (in particular, the status of deponent verbs (DVs)), by means of a comparison between middle voice (MV) and Split Intransitivity.