Article published in:
On multiple source constructions in language changeEdited by Hendrik De Smet, Lobke Ghesquière and Freek Van de Velde
[Studies in Language 37:3] 2013
► pp. 515–533
An inquiry into unidirectionality as a foundational element of grammaticalization
On the role played by analogy and the synchronic grammar system in processes of language change
Olga Fischer | University of Amsterdam/ACLC
This paper assumes that in order to explain rather than describe language change, historical linguists should not only consider what happens diachronically at the language output level but also, crucially, what speaker-listeners do at the processing level. The reason for this is that the structure of the language is shaped by the properties of the neurolinguistic mechanism underlying both language use and language learning. It will be argued that analogy as an important principle in grammar formation is the main mechanism in grammaticalization and in change in general when looked at from a processing point of view. The paper discusses the workings of analogy in a number of cases in the history of English which have traditionally been interpreted as unidirectional cases of grammaticalization . It will be shown instead that multiple source constructions were involved, which influenced one another and thus gave direction to the change.
Keywords: unidirectionality, grammaticalization, analogy, syntactic change, processing errors, language processing, pragmatic markers, epistemic modals
Published online: 07 October 2013
https://doi.org/10.1075/sl.37.3.03fis
https://doi.org/10.1075/sl.37.3.03fis
Cited by
Cited by 39 other publications
No author info given
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 366 ff. 
No author info given
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 399 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 1 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 23 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 34 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 463 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 476 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 489 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 517 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 612 ff.
No author info given
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
► pp. 622 ff.
No author info given
2021.
In Corpora, Constructions, New Englishes [Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 100],
Aaron, Jessi Elana
2016. The road already traveled.
Studies in Language 40:1 ► pp. 26 ff.
Aarts, Bas
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 54 ff.
Adamson, Sylvia
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 210 ff.
Allen, Cynthia L.
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 130 ff.
Brinton, Laurel J.
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 190 ff.
Börjars, Kersti & Nigel Vincent
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 283 ff.
Fischer, Olga
2020.
In The Handbook of Historical Linguistics,
► pp. 314 ff.
Fischer, Olga & Hella Olbertz
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 253 ff.
Gillmann, Melitta
2021. Analogy as driving force of language change: a usage-based approach to wo and da clauses in 17th and 18th century German.
Cognitive Linguistics 32:3 ► pp. 421 ff.
Hartmann, Stefan
2021. Diachronic Cognitive Linguistics.
Yearbook of the German Cognitive Linguistics Association 9:1 ► pp. 1 ff.
Heine, Bernd, Heiko Narrog & Haiping Long
2016. Constructional change vs. grammaticalization.
Studies in Language 40:1 ► pp. 137 ff.
Heller, Benedikt & Benedikt Szmrecsanyi
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 315 ff.
Kuteva, Tania, Bernd Heine, Bo Hong, Haiping Long, Heiko Narrog & Seongha Rhee
2019.
In World Lexicon of Grammaticalization,
Kytö, Merja & Erik Smitterberg
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 234 ff.
Los, Bettelou
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 149 ff.
Mair, Christian
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 336 ff.
McColm, Dan & Graeme Trousdale
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 81 ff.
Miura, Ayumi
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 170 ff.
Neels, Jakob & Stefan Hartmann
2018.
In Grammaticalization meets Construction Grammar [Constructional Approaches to Language, 21],
► pp. 137 ff.
Noël, Dirk
2016. For a radically usage-based diachronic construction grammar.
Belgian Journal of Linguistics 30 ► pp. 39 ff.
Noël, Dirk
2017. The development of non-deontic be bound to in a radically usage-based diachronic construction grammar perspective.
Lingua 199 ► pp. 72 ff.
Payne, John
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 25 ff.
Rhee, Seongha & Hyun Jung Koo
2015. Analogy-driven inter-categorial grammaticalization and (inter)subjectification of -na in Korean.
Lingua 166 ► pp. 22 ff.
Taverniers, Miriam
2018. Grammatical metaphor and grammaticalization.
Functions of Language 25:1 ► pp. 164 ff.
Traugott, Elizabeth Closs
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 105 ff.
Nuria Yáñez-Bouza, Emma Moore, Linda van Bergen & Willem B. Hollmann
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
Yáñez-Bouza, Nuria, Emma Moore, Linda van Bergen & Willem B. Hollmann
2019.
In Categories, Constructions, and Change in English Syntax,
► pp. 1 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 18 april 2022. 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.