Cover not available
Part of
Diachronic Corpus Pragmatics
Edited by Irma Taavitsainen, Andreas H. Jucker and Jukka Tuominen
[Pragmatics & Beyond New Series 243] 2014
► pp. 53–76

Grammaticalisation of the Finnish stance adverbial muka, ‘as if, supposedly, allegedly’

ORCID logo | University of Helsinki
 | University of Helsinki
This article discusses the evolution of the Finnish stance adverbial muka, ‘as if, allegedly, supposedly’, in light of diachronic corpus pragmatics. The particle muka currently always implies a dubitative stance adopted by the speaker, and it is used as an evaluative response to a former discourse. Muka appeared in written Finnish as late as in the nineteenth century, since it is an element that is typical of eastern dialects, while the earlier texts were mainly based on western dialects. Nineteenth-century corpora and dialect data from recorded interviews show that the current meanings of muka can be traced back to causal and reportative contexts. The article also demonstrates that a parallel analysis of both written and spoken data has methodological advantages especially with phenomena that are rather recent or pragmatically complicated.
Published online: 11 March 2014
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.243.06nor
References (58)
References
Primary sources: Electronic corpora
Eukl1847 = Kilpinen, Wolmar. 1847. Neljä ensimäistä Kirjaa ynnä viidennen määritykset Euklideen alkeista mittaustieteessä [text corpus]. KAINO; included in the corpus Varhaisnykysuomen korpus: Kilpinen. Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland. Online: [URL] (accessed 12.3.2009).
KAINO. Freely accessible online data service. Helsinki: Institute for the Languages of Finland. [URL] (in Finnish).
LaX = Lauseopin X-arkisto [Syntax Archives]. Research Institute for the Languages of Finland and School of Languages and Translation Studies, University of Turku. Online: [URL] (accessed 1 September, 2010).
Logiikka1882 = Rein, Thiodolph. 1882. Oppikirja muodollisessa logiikassa [text corpus]. KAINO; included in the corpus Varhaisnykysuomen korpus: Rein. Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland. Online: [URL] (accessed 20.4.2009).
MA = Muoto-opin arkisto [Morphological Archives of Finnish dialects]. Department of Finnish, Finno-Ugrian and Scandinavian Studies, University of Helsinki.
Physikki1856 = Innain, Jaakko (trans.). 1856. Luonnonkirja, kotona ja kouluissa luettava. 1:nen Osa: Physikki [text corpus]. KAINO; included in the corpus Varhaisnykysuomen korpus: Innain. Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland. Online: [URL] (accessed 10.3.2009).
SKST = Salmelainen, Eero. 1852–1866. Suomen Kansan Satuja ja Tarinoita [text corpus]. KAINO; included in the corpus Varhaisnykysuomen korpus: Salmelainen. Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland. Online: [URL] (accessed 17.12.2012).
Väki1859 = Tikkanen, Paavo. 1859. Väki-luvun ja Asukas-vaiheiden suhteita Suomessa [text corpus]. KAINO; included in the corpus Varhaisnykysuomen korpus: Tikkanen. Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland. Online: [URL] (accessed 20.4.2009).
Zoologia1866 = Lütken, C. J. 1866. Zoologia eli Eläinkunnan Luonnonhistoria [text corpus]. KAINO; included in the corpus Varhaisnykysuomen korpus: Anonyymi. Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland. Online: [URL] (accessed 3.3.2009).
Primary sources: Printed and Internet material
Bergroth, J.E. 1865. Begynnelsegrunderna af zoologien eller djurrikets naturhistorie . Utarbetade af C. F. Lütken; och till den finska skolungdomens tjenst öfversatte från tredje danska upplagan af J. E. Bergroth. Helsingfors: Finska litteratursällskapet.Google Scholar
Keskisuomalainen. [URL]. Published 3.10.2011 (accessed 3.1.2012).
Studio55.fi. [URL]. Published 25.12.2011 (accessed 3.1.2012).
Secondary sources
Aikhenvald, Alexandra Y. 2003. “Evidentiality in Typological Perspective.” In Studies in Evidentiality , ed. by Alexandra Y. Aikhenvald, and R.M.W. Dixon, 1–31. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Aikhenvald, Alexandra Y., and R.M.W. Dixon (eds). 2003. Studies in Evidentiality . Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bauman, Richard, and Charles L. Briggs. 2000. “Language Philosophy as Language Ideology.” In Regimes of Language: Ideologies, Polities, and Identities , ed. by Paul V. Kroskrity, 139–204. Santa Fe, NM: School of American Research Press.Google Scholar
Brinton, Laurel J. 2000. “The Importance of Discouse Types in Grammaticalization: The Case of Anon.” In Textual Parameters in Older Languages , ed. by Susan C. Herring, Pieter van Reenen, and Lene Schøsler, 139–162. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Bybee, Joan. 2003. “Mechanisms of Change in Grammaticization: The Role of Frequency.” In The Handbook of Historical Linguistics , ed. by Brian D. Joseph, and Richard D. Janda, 602–623. Malden, MA/Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
. 2006. “From Usage to Grammar: The Mind’s Response to Repetition.” Language 82 (4): 711–733. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
, and Paul Hopper (eds). 2001. Frequency and the Emergence of Linguistic Structure . Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bybee, Joan, Revere Perkins, and William Pagliuca. 1994. The Evolution of Grammar: Tense, Aspect, and Modality in the Languages of the World . Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Chafe, Wallace, and Johanna Nichols (eds). 1986. Evidentiality: The Linguistic Coding of Epistemology . Norwood, NJ: Ablex.Google Scholar
DeLancey, Scott. 2001. “The Mirative and Evidentiality.” Journal of Pragmatics 33 (3): 369–382. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Forsberg, Hannele. 1998. Suomen murteiden potentiaali: Muoto ja merkitys [The potential mood in Finnish dialects; includes an abstract in English]. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
Frawley, William. 1992. Linguistic Semantics . Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Givón, Talmy. 1982. “Evidentiality and Epistemic Space.” Studies in Language 6 (1): 23–49. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Haiman, John. 1989. “Alienation in Grammar.” Studies in Language 13 (1): 129–170. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Häkkinen, Kaisa. 2004. Nykysuomen etymologinen sanakirja [Etymological dictionary of Present-day Finnish]. Helsinki: WSOY.Google Scholar
Hakulinen, Auli. 1984. “Ensimmäinen suomen kielen väitös Joensuussa [The first doctoral dissertation on Finnish in Joensuu].” Virittäjä 88: 360–366.Google Scholar
Hakulinen, Auli, Maria Vilkuna, Riitta Korhonen, Vesa Koivisto, Tarja Riitta Heinonen, and Irja Alho (eds). 2004. Iso suomen kielioppi [Comprehensive grammar of Finnish]. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
Heine, Bernd. 2002. “On the Role of Context in Grammaticalization.” In New Reflections on Grammaticalization: International Symposium, Potsdam, 17–19 June, 1999 , ed. by Ilse Wischer, and Gabriele Diewald, 83–101. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins.DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Herlin, Ilona, and Lari Kotilainen. 2005. “Itsenäistyvä infinitiivi: 2. infinitiivin inessiivin kehitys kirjakielen aikana [The evolution of the 2nd infinitive inessive in written Finnish].” In Elävä kielioppi: Suomen infiniittisten rakenteiden dynamiikkaa , ed. by Ilona Herlin, and Laura Visapää, 258–291. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
Itkonen, Terho. 1955. “Eero Salmelaisen sadut [The fairy tales of Eero Salmelainen].” Virittäjä 59: 290–291.Google Scholar
Itkonen, Terho, Heikki Leskinen, Heikki Paunonen, and Tapani Lehtinen. 1983 (1969). Muoto-opin keruuopas [Guide to the Morphological Archives]. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
Jaffe, Alexandra. 2009. “Introduction: The Sociolinguistics of Stance.” In Stance: Sociolinguistic Perspectives , ed. by Alexandra Jaffe, 1–28. Oxford: Oxford University Press.DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Jussila, Raimo. 1998. Vanhat sanat: Vanhan kirjasuomen ensiesiintymiä [The first appearances of words in Old Finnish]. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
Kangasniemi, Heikki. 1992. Modal Expressions in Finnish . Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
Karhu, Anna. 1995. “Murrehaastattelu vuorovaikutustilanteena [Dialect interview as a communicative situation].” In Murteiden matkassa , ed. by Ilkka Savijärvi, Marjatta Palander, and Hannele Forsberg, 92–109. Joensuu: Joensuun yliopisto.Google Scholar
Kolehmainen, Leena, and Taru Nordlund. 2011. “Kielellinen muutos tutkimuksen kohteena: Kieltenvälinen vertailu, kieliopillistuminen ja kielikontaktien tutkimus [Linguistic change as the subject of research: Language comparison, grammaticalisation and contact-induced research; includes an English abstract].” Virittäjä 115 (1): 5–35.Google Scholar
Koskinen, Yrjö. 1860. Finska språkets satslära: Ett försök [Finnish syntax]. J. W. Lilja: Åbo.Google Scholar
Kuiri, Kaija. 1984. Referointi Kainuun ja Pohjois-Karjalan murteissa [Reported speech in the Finnish dialects of Kainuu and North Carelia; includes an English abstract]. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
Laitinen, Lea. 1993. Välttämättömyys ja persoona: Suomen murteiden nesessiivisten rakenteiden semantiikkaa ja kielioppia [Necessity and person: The semantics and grammar of necessitative structures in Finnish dialects; includes an English abstract]. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
. 1995. “Metonymy and the Grammaticalization of Necessity in Finnish.” SKY – Yearbook of the Linguistic Association of Finland 1995: 79–102.Google Scholar
Laitinen, Lea, and Taru Nordlund. 2012. “Performing Identities and Interaction through Epistolary Formulae.” In Letter Writing in Late Modern Europe , ed. by Marina Dossena, and Gabriella del Lungo Camiciotti, 65–88. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Matthews, Stephen, and Virginia Yip. 2009. “Contact-induced Grammaticalization: Evidence from Bilingual Acquisition.” Studies in Language 33 (2): 366–395. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Moore, Colette. 2006. “The Use of videlicet in Early Modern Slander Depositions: A Case of Genre-specific Grammaticalization.” Journal of Historical Pragmatics 7 (2): 245–263. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Nordlund, Taru. 2005. “Suomen kielen kvasirakenne ja kieliopillistunut moniäänisyys [The Finnish quasi-construction and the grammaticalisation of polyphony].” In Referointi ja moniäänisyys , ed. by Markku Haakana, and Jyrki Kalliokoski, 338–359. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
. 2011. “Perustelevasta referoivaksi: Suomen partikkelin muka merkityksenmuutos 1800-luvun tekstiaineistojen valossa [From an explanatory particle to a marker of reported speech: The semantic shift of the Finnish particle muka ‘apparently, as if’ in the light of 19th century texts; includes an abstract in English].” Virittäjä 115 (4): 484–514.Google Scholar
Palmer, F.R. 1986. Mood and Modality . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Pekkarinen, Heli. 2003. “From Subject to Object: Case Studies on Finnish.” In Historical Linguistics 2001: Selected Papers from the 15th International Conference on Historical Linguistics , Melbourne, 13–17 August 2001, ed. by Barry J. Blake, and Kate Burridge, 339–350. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
. 2011. Monikasvoinen TAVA-partisiippi: Tutkimus suomen TAVA-partisiipin käyttökonteksteista ja verbiliittojen kieliopillistumisesta [The multifaceted passive present participle in Finnish; includes an abstract in English]. Helsinki: Department of Finnish, Finno-Ugrian and Scandinavian Studies, University of Helsinki. Also available online: [URL] .
Pitkänen-Heikkilä, Kaarina. Forthcoming. “Tietokirjojen suomentajat terminologian kehittäjinä ja vakiinnuttajina [Translators as terminologists].” In Suomennetun tietokirjallisuuden historia 1800-luvulta 2000-luvulle , ed. by Outi Paloposki, and H.K. Riikonen. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.
Rintala, Päivi. 1998. “Kielikäsitys ja kielenohjailu [Language attitudes and language planning].” Sananjalka 40: 47–64.Google Scholar
Salminen, Taru.1998. “Grammaticalization of Complex Verbal Constructions in Finnish.” In Historical Linguistics 1997: Selected Papers from the 13th International Conference on Historical Linguistics , Düsseldorf, 10–17 August 1997, ed. by Monika S. Schmid, Jennifer R. Austin, and Dieter Stein, 363–376. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
. 2000. Morfologiasta moniäänisyyteen: Suomen kielen kvasirakenteen merkitys, käyttö ja kehitys [From morphology to polyphony: Meaning, function and evolution of the quasi-construction in Finnish; includes an abstract in English]. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.Google Scholar
. 2002. “Retention of Abstract Meaning: The Essive Case and Grammaticalization of Polyphony in Finnish.” In New Reflections on Grammaticalization: International Symposium , Potsdam, 17–19 June, 1999, ed. by Ilse Wischer, and Gabriele Diewald, 293–307. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Suomen sanojen alkuperä: Etymologinen sanakirja [The origin of Finnish words: Etymological dictionary]. 1992–2000. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura/Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus.Google Scholar
Trousdale, Graeme, and Elizabeth Closs Traugott. 2010. “Preface.” In Gradience, Gradualness and Grammaticalization , ed. by Elizabeth Closs Traugott, and Graeme Trousdale, 1–18. Amsterdam/Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cited by (2)

Cited by two other publications

Kaiser, Elsi
2022. Evidentiality in Finnish. Journal of Uralic Linguistics 1:1 ► pp. 67 ff. DOI logo
Kaiser, Elsi
2024. Evidentials and dubitatives in Finnish: perspective shift in questions and embedded contexts. Folia Linguistica DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 20 september 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.