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The Diachrony of Subjunctive-Infinitive Competition in Balkan Slavic
- Source :
- Balcania et Slavia, Vol 3, Iss 2, Pp - (2023)
- Publication Year :
- 2023
- Publisher :
- Fondazione Università Ca' Foscari, 2023.
-
Abstract
- The paper analyses the phenomenon of infinitive loss in Balkan Slavic in the context of the broader cross-linguistic process of subjunctive-infinitive competition (SIC). I adopt a diachronic perspective, analysing the historical developments pertaining to SIC in languages ranging from Old Church Slavonic to present-day Bulgarian and Serbian. The main goal of the paper is to distinguish between those instances of Balkan-Slavic infinitive loss that are a result of broader typological processes and those that can be viewed as genuine Balkan-sprachbund innovations. The specific Balkan innovation in this context was the replacement of infinitives by finite subjunctives in obligatory subject-control environments. I analyse this diachronic development as the result of a formal reanalysis affecting the syntactic status of the Balkan-Slavic subjunctive marker, which allowed it to spread to obligatory-control structures.
Details
- Language :
- English, Italian, Russian
- ISSN :
- 27853187
- Volume :
- 3
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- Directory of Open Access Journals
- Journal :
- Balcania et Slavia
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- edsdoj.0ddbc972ebaf4e7b9090ba1a77e2ce18
- Document Type :
- article
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.30687/BES/2785-3187/2023/02/005