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Perspectives on Language Structure and Language Change: Studies in honor of Henning Andersen
Edited by Lars Heltoft, Iván Igartua, Brian D. Joseph, Kirsten Jeppesen Kragh and Lene Schøsler
[Current Issues in Linguistic Theory 345] 2019
► pp. 295–309

Morphosyntactic reanalysis in Australian languages

Three studies

This paper discusses three examples of reanalysis in the Pama-Nyungan languages of Australia, affecting word, clause, and sentence level constructions respectively. The elimination of a morpheme boundary, with absorption of an erstwhile suffix into the nominal stem, in Western Desert dialects revisits and amplifies earlier discussion from Koch (1995), canvassing various motivations and finding supporting data more recent data from Langlois (2004). Secondly, the gradual implementation of the effects of a change from ergative to accusative alignment in Panyjima, as established by Dench (1982), are explored within Andersen’s framework of actualisation. The third study shows, on the basis of the etymology of formal markers, how, in the Arandic languages, biclausal structures have developed via auxiliarisation into inflectional markers of imperfective aspect, but also into a set of inflections realising contrasting values within a new morphosyntactic category of “associated motion”. This section articulates the diachronic developments behind the synchronic system, building on earlier suggestions by Koch (1984) and Wilkins (1991).
Keywords: Australian, Pama-Nyungan, case, alignment, anti-passive, passive, auxiliarisation, imperfective, associated motion
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction and overview
  • 2.Boundary loss with creation of morphological zero
  • 3.Reanalysis of alignment: Ergative to accusative
  • 4.Clause fusion to auxiliary constructions and inflections marking Associated Motion
  • 5.Summary and conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 18 June 2019
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/cilt.345.13koc
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Cited by (3)

Cited by three other publications

Koch, Harold
2020. Development of aspect markers in Arandic languages, with notes on associated motion. Journal of Historical Linguistics 10:2 ► pp. 209 ff. DOI logo
Koch, Harold
2022. Development of aspect markers in Arandic languages, with notes on associated motion. In Development of Tense and Aspect Systems [Benjamins Current Topics, 123], ► pp. 63 ff. DOI logo
Panther, Forrest & Mark Harvey
2020. Associated Path in Kaytetye. Australian Journal of Linguistics 40:1 ► pp. 74 ff. DOI logo

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