Article published In:
NOWELEVol. 71:1 (2018) ► pp.56–98
Verb-third in Otfrid’s Evangelienbuch
This article investigates the status of so-called verb-final declaratives in Otfrid’s
Evangelienbuch, with a focus on whether clauses in which there is no apparent subordinator and the finite verb occurs later than the expected verb-first or verb-second position can be treated as verb-third (V3) clauses, as they are defined for Old High German in works such as
Axel (2007) and
Tomaselli (1995). Drawing on a set of 746 clauses, I argue that there is no evidence that the finite verbs in these clauses have undergone verb movement, as is claimed in the aforementioned works, nor are the asyndetic verb-late clauses with a verb in surface third position consistent with the patterns identified in the generative literature for the V3 type.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.A review of literature that deals with the V3 clause type in OHG
- 3.A clausal typology of Otfrid’s Evangelienbuch
- 3.1Determining clause type in Otfrid
- 3.2Clause types and their frequencies
- 3.2.1V1/V2 and Verb-late clauses – clauses with unambiguous left or right bracket finite verbs
- 3.2.2Ambiguous clauses
- 3.2.3Asyndetic verb-late clauses
- 4.Are there V3 clauses in Otfrid’s Evangelienbuch?
- 4.1Verb movement in V3 clauses?
- 4.2Is there a V3 clause type in Otfrid?
- 4.2.1Claim 1: Violations of verb-second in OHG are V3 and show the order XP-SubjPro-Vfin
- 4.2.2Claim 2: Pronominal subjects, pronominal objects and light adverbs are most frequently attested in V3(+) clauses, full DP/NP subjects and objects more rarely, PPs not at all
- 4.2.3Claim 3: Intervening constituents in V3 (and V4(+)?) constructions are discourse-given
- 5.Conclusions
- Notes
-
References
References (43)
References
Antonsen, E. 1975. A concise grammar of the older runic inscriptions. Tübingen: Niemeyer. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bech, K. 2001. Word order patterns in Old and Middle English: A syntactic and pragmatic study. Ph.D. dissertation. University of Bergen.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Behaghel, O. 1932. Deutsche Syntax. vol. IV1. Heidelberg: Winter.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bible Gateway, ESV Bible. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. [URL].
Bostock, J. K. 1976. A handbook on Old High German literature. Oxford: Clarendon.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dal, I. 1966. Kurze deutsche Syntax auf historischer Grundlage. 3rd edn. Tübingen: Niemeyer.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dresher, E. B., Lahiri, A. 2003. Main stress left in Early Middle English. Paper presented at the 16th International Conference on Historical Linguistics. University of Copenhagen, 11th–15th August 2003.
Ebert, R. P. 1978. Historische Syntax des Deutschen. Stuttgart: Metzler. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Eggers, H. (ed.). 1964. Der althochdeutsche Isidor. Tübingen: Niemeyer.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Eggenberger, J. 1961. Das Subjektpronomen im Althochdeutschen. Ein syntaktischer Beitrag zur Frühgeschichte des deutschen Schrifttums. Grabs: Selbstverlag.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Ekerot, L. 1988. Så-konstruktionen i svenskan: konstruktionstypen “om vädret tillåter, så genomföres övingen” i funktionellt grammatiskt perspektiv. Lund: Lund.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Eythórsson, T. 1995. Verbal syntax in the early Germanic languages. Ph.D. dissertation. Cornell University.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Harbert, W. 2007. The Germanic languages. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Hinterhölzl, R., Petrova, S. 2010. From V1 to V2 in West Germanic. Lingua 1201. 315–328. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Hopper, P. 1975. The syntax of the simple sentence in Proto-Germanic. The Hague: Mouton. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Jaeggli, O., Safir, K. 1989. The null-subject parameter and parametric theory. In O. Jaeggli, K. Safir (eds.), The null subject parameter. Dordrecht: Kluwer. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Jäger, A. 2005. Negation in Old High German. Zeitschrift für Sprachwissenschaft 241. 227–262. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Koopman, W. 1997. Another look at clitics in Old English. Transactions of the Philological Society 951. 73–93. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Lenerz, J. 1985. Diachronic syntax: Verb position and COMP in German. In J. Toman (ed.), Studies in German grammar, 103–132. Dordrecht: Foris. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Lockwood, W. 1968. Historical German syntax. Oxford: Clarendon.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Magoun, F. 1943a. Otfrid’s Ad Liutbertum
. PMLA 58(4). 869–890. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Magoun, F. 1943b. Otfrid’s Ad Liutbertum and OHG Tatian. Modern Languages Notes 58(5). 357–361. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Näf, A. 1979. Die Wortstellung in Notkers Consolatio. Berlin: De Gruyter. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Petrova, S. 2006. A discourse-based approach to verb placement in Early West-Germanic. In S. Ishihara, M. Schmitz, A. Schwarz (eds.), Interdisciplinary studies on information structure (ISIS) 5, 1–32. Potsdam: Universitätsverlag.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Piper, P. (ed.). 1884. Otfrids Evangelienbuch. II. Teil: Glossar und Abriss der Grammatik. Freiburg: Akademische Verlagsbuchhandlung.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Robinson, O. W. 1997. Clause subordination and verb placement in the Old High German ‘Isidor’ translation. Heidelberg: Winter.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Russom, G. 2001. Metrical evidence for subordinate stress in Old English. Journal of Germanic Linguistics 131. 39–64.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Schrodt, R. 2004. Althochdeutsche Grammatik II: Syntax. Tübingen: Niemeyer. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Sievers, E. (ed.). 1961. Tatian: Lateinisch und altdeutsch mit ausführlichem Glossar. 2nd edn. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Somers, K., Dubenion-Smith, S. 2014. The intersection between syntax and meter in the Old Saxon Hêliand
. Amsterdamer Beiträge zur älteren Germanistik 721. 83–134. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Somers Wicka, K. 2009. From phonology to syntax: Pronominal cliticization in Otfrid’s Evangelienbuch. Tübingen: Niemeyer. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Sundquist, J. 2007. Variable use of negation in Middle Low German. In J. Salmons, S. Dubenion-Smith (eds.), Historical linguistics 2005: Selected papers from the 17th International Conference on Historical Linguistics, Madison, 31 July–5 August 2005. Amsterdam: Benjamins. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
TITUS edition of Otfrid Evangelienbuch. Last modified August 23, 2010. [URL].
Tomaselli, A. 1995. Cases of verb-third in Old High German. In A. Battye, I. Roberts (eds.), Clause structure and language change, 345–69. Oxford: Oxford University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Vollmann-Profe, G. (ed.). 1987. Otfrid von Weissenburg. Evangelienbuch. Althochdeutsch/Neuhochdeutsch. Stuttgart: Reclam.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Walkden, G. 2014. Syntactic reconstruction and Proto-Germanic. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wissmann, W. 1960. Zum althochdeutschen Tatian. In W. Krause (ed.), Indogermanica. Festschrift für Wolfgang Krause, 249–267. Heidelberg: Winter.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wöllstein-Leisten, A., Heilmann, A., Stepan, P., Vikner, S. 1997. Deutsche Satzstruktur. Grundlagen der syntaktischen Analyse. Tübingen: Niemeyer.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wunder, D. 1965. Der Nebensatz bei Otfrid. Untersuchungen zur Syntax des deutschen Nebensatzes. Heidelberg: Winter.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Cited by (2)
Cited by two other publications
Petrova, Svetlana
2023.
Hauptsätze mit Verbspäterstellung im Althochdeutschen: Bestand, Distribution, Interpretation
.
Beiträge zur Geschichte der deutschen Sprache und Literatur 145:4
► pp. 515 ff.
![DOI logo](//benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
Somers, Katerina
2021.
On the Grammaticality of Poetry: The Asyndetic Verb-Late Clause in Otfrid’sEvangelienbuch.
Journal of Germanic Linguistics 33:4
► pp. 358 ff.
![DOI logo](//benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 10 july 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
Any errors therein should be reported to them.