Cover not available
Article published In:
Review of Cognitive Linguistics
Vol. 19:2 (2021) ► pp.363–402

Potentials for grammaticalization

Sensitivity to position and event type

| Beihang University
| Beihang University
This paper discusses the grammaticalization of motion verbs in Mandarin. A class of motion verbs in Mandarin that regularly appears at either V1 or V2 position in the V1+V2 construction is only grammaticalized at the V2 position, where the verb becomes a directional complement. We provide a cognitive semantic account and propose a new hypothesis that we call the syntactic position and event type sensitivity hypothesis in grammaticalization. We analyze corpus data across five historical stages for 11 simplex directional complements. The analysis draws on Talmy’s macro-event theory and Lehmann’s grammaticalization parameters. It is concluded that motion verbs at the V1 position are most likely to have agentive subjects, which foregrounds the idea of motion in V1, while V2 focuses on the Agent’s purpose. Motion verbs at V2 are relatively more likely to have non-agentive subjects, which foregrounds the Path element in V2 and complements the action of V1, rather than the purpose of the Agent. What triggers the grammaticalization of the V2 is the foregrounding of the Path element in V2, which complements the action of V1, and its non-agentive subject.
Keywords: path, directional complement, macro-event, grammaticalization, Mandarin
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Macro-events and directional complements in Mandarin
  • 3.Methodology
  • 4.Proportion of V1 and V2 in the V1+V2 construction
    • 4.1C1 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.2C2 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.3C3 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.4C4 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.5C5 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.6C6 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.7C7 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.8C8 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.9C9 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.10C10 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.11C11 at V1 and V2 position
    • 4.12A summary of C1-C11
  • 5.Event types expressed by C at the V1 and V2 position
    • 5.1Formulation of hypothesis: A case study of C1 at V1 and V2 position
    • 5.2Event types expressed by V1 and V2 in stage III
    • 5.3Event types expressed by V1 and V2 in Stage IV
    • 5.4Event types expressed by V1 and V2 in stage V
    • 5.5Parameters of grammaticalization
    • 5.6Summary
  • 6.Conclusions
  • Acknowledgments
  • Note
  • List of abbreviations
  • References
Published online: 11 October 2021
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/rcl.00088.li
References (31)
References
Beavers, J., Levin, B., & Tham, S. W. (2010). The typology of motion expressions revisited. Journal of Linguistics, 461, 331–377. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Chor, W. (2018). Directional particles in Cantonese: Form, function, and grammaticalization. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Croft, W., Barðdal, J., Hollmann, W., Sotirova, V., & Taoka, C. (2010). Revising Talmy’s typological classification of complex event constructions. In H. C. Boas (Ed.), Contrastive studies in Construction Grammar. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Detges, U., & Waltereit, R. (2002). Grammaticalization vs. reanalysis. A semantic-pragmatic account of functional change in grammar. Zeitschrift für Sprachwissenschaft, 211, 151–195. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Feng, M. (2014). Stories old and new. Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company. (冯梦龙，(2014)，《喻世明言》，陈熙中校注，北京：中华书局｡)Google Scholar
Hu, Z. (1996). Zuo’s commentary. Changsha: Hunan People’s Publishing House. 胡志辉（英译），陈克烱（今译），(1996)，《左传》，长沙：湖南人民出版社。Google Scholar
Huang, Z. & Zhang, Q. (1997). The annotation of Dunhuang literature. Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company. (黄征，张涌泉编，(1997)，《敦煌变文校注》，北京：中华书局｡)Google Scholar
Lehmann, C. (2015). Thoughts on grammaticalization (3rd edition). Berlin: Language Science Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Liang, Y. (2007). The grammaticalization of directional verbs in Chinese. Shanghai: Xuelin Press. (梁银峰，(2007)，《汉语趋向动词语法化》, 上海: 学林出版社｡)Google Scholar
Li, T. F. (2018). Extending the Talmyan typology: A case study of the macro-event as event integration and grammaticalization in Mandarin. Cognitive Linguistics, 29(3), 585–621. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2019). Evolutionary order of macro-events in Mandarin. Review of Cognitive Linguistics, 17(1), 155–186. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Liu, Q. (2011). A new account of tales of the world. Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company. (刘义庆，(2011)，《世说新语》，沈海波译，北京：中华书局｡)Google Scholar
Liu, Y. (1998). A comprehensive account of directional complements. Beijing: Beijing Language and Culture University Press. (刘月华，(1998)，《趋向补语通释》, 北京：北京语言大‍学出版社｡)Google Scholar
Muansuwan, N. (2000). Directional serial verbs construction in Thai. In D. Flickinger, & A. Kathol (Eds.), Proceedings of the 7th international HPSG conference, 229–246. UC Berkeley: CSLI Publications.Google Scholar
Naidu, V., Zlatev, J., Van De Weijer, J., Devylder, S., Duggirala, V. & Blomberg, J. (2018). Holistic spatial semantics and post-Talmian motion event typology: A case study of Thai and Telugu. Cognitive Semiotics, 11(2), 1–27. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Norde, M. (2012). Lehmann’s parameters revisited. In K. Davidse, T. Breban, L. Brems, & T. Mortelmans (Eds.), Grammaticalization and language change: New reflections, 73–110. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Peyraube, A. (2006). Motion events in Chinese: A diachronic study of directional complements. In M. Hickmann & S. Robert (Eds.), Space in languages: Linguistic systems and cognitive categories, 121–135. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2013). On the history of Chinese directionals. In G. Peng & F. Shi (Eds.), Eastward flows the great river: Festschrift in honor of Professor William SY. WANG on his 80th Birthday, 415–429. Hong Kong: City University of Hong Kong Press.Google Scholar
Slobin, D. I. (2004). The many ways to search for a frog: Linguistic typology and the expression of motion events. In S. Strömqvist & L. Verhoeven (Eds.), Relating events in narrative: Typological and contextual perspectives, 219–257. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Slobin, D. I., & Hoiting, N. (1994). Reference to movement in spoken and signed languages: Typological consideration. In Proceedings of the twentieth annual meeting of the Berkeley Linguistics Society: General session dedicated to the contributions of Charles J. Fillmore, 487–505. Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Linguistics Society. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tabor, W., & Traugott, E. C. (1998). Structural scope expansion and grammaticalization. In A. Giacalobe-Ramat & P. J. Hopper (Eds), The limits of grammaticalization, 229–272. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Talmy, L. (2000a). Toward a Cognitive Semantics. Volume I: Concept structuring systems. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Google Scholar
(2000b). Toward a Cognitive Semantics. Volume II: Typology and process in concept structuring. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Google Scholar
von Mengden, F. (2008). The modules of grammatical change. Paper presented at New reflections on grammaticalization 4 , Leuven, July 16th-19th, 2008.
Wang, S. (2004). I am your father. Yuannan People’s Publishing House. (王朔，(2004)，《我是你爸爸》，昆明：云南人民出版社)。Google Scholar
Wang, Y. (2011). Study on the orientation of verbs and the pedagogy of directional verbs. Beijing: Beijing Language and Culture University Press. (王媛，(2011)，《动词的方向性研究与趋向动词教学》, 北京：北京语言大学出版社｡)Google Scholar
Wu, S-L. (2011). Learning to express motion events in an L2: The case of Chinese directional complements. Language Learning, 61(2), 414–454. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Yiu, C. (2005). Spatial extension: Directional verbs in Cantonese. PhD dissertation. University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong.Google Scholar
(2013). The typology of motion events: An empirical study of Chinese dialects. Portland: Walter de Gruyter.Google Scholar
Zlatev, J., & Peerapat, Y. (2004). A third way to travel: The place of Thai in motion event typology. In S. Strömqvist & L. Verhoeven (Eds.), Relating events in narrative, vol. 2: Typological and contextual Pmrspectives, 159–190. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Zuo, Q. (translated by Guo Dan). (2016). Zuo’s commentary on spring and autumn annals. Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company. (左丘明，(2016)，《春秋左氏传》，郭丹译，中华书局｡)Google Scholar
Cited by (2)

Cited by two other publications

Liu, Na & Fuyin Thomas Li
2024. Event integration as a driving force of language change: evidence from Chinese 使-shǐ-make. Language and Cognition 16:2 ► pp. 307 ff. DOI logo
Torres-Martínez, Sergio
2023. Grammaire agentielle cognitive de constructions. Signata :14 DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 28 october 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.