Meaning in the History of English

Words and texts in context

Editors

Andreas H. Jucker

| University of Zurich

Daniela Landert

| University of Zurich

Annina Seiler

| University of Zurich

Nicole Studer-Joho

| University of Zurich

Hardbound – Available

ISBN 9789027206152 | EUR 99.00 | USD 149.00

e-Book –

ISBN 9789027270894 | EUR 99.00 | USD 149.00

Uncovering the meaning of individual words or entire texts is a complex process that needs to take into consideration the multiple interactions of linguistic organization including orthography, morphology, syntax and, ultimately, pragmatics. The papers in this volume pay close attention to these interactions and assess both the details of the texts and entire texts within their relevant contexts. All the papers deal with data from the history of English, and they cover a wide range from Old English manuscripts to Early Modern English letters and medical texts to Late Modern English cant vocabulary.

[Studies in Language Companion Series, 148] 2013. vii, 348 pp.

Publishing status: Available

https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.148

Table of Contents

Preface	vii–viii
Uncovering layers of meaning in the history of the English language Andreas H. Jucker, Daniela Landert, Annina Seiler and Nicole Studer-Joho	1–16
Part I. Graphemics and phonology
Layers of reading in the Old English Bede: The case of Oxford Corpus Christi College 279B Christine Wallis	19–38
Unlikely-looking Old English verb forms Eric Gerald Stanley	39–60
On the importance of noting uncertainty in etymological research: Some implications of a re-examination of the etymology of road Philip Durkin	63–80
Part II. Lexicology and semantics
“A Wiltshire word, according to Kennett” The contribution of MS Lansd. 1033 to Halliwell’s Dictionary of Archaic and Provincial Words (1847) Javier Ruano-García	81–98
Enforcing or effacing useful distinctions? Imply vs. infer Don Chapman	99–128
The role of context in the meaning specification of cant and slang words in eighteenth-century English Roxanne But	129–154
Part III. Syntax
Let’s talk about uton Linda van Bergen	157–184
Exploring part-of-speech profiles and authorship attribution in Early Modern medical texts Jukka Tyrkkö	185–210
The positioning of adverbial clauses in the Paston letters Yoko Iyeiri	211–230
Part IV. Genres
Complexity and genre conventions: Text structure and coordination in Early Modern English proclamations Anu Lehto	233–256
Formulaic discourse across Early Modern English medical genres: Investigating shared lexical bundles Joanna Kopaczyk	257–300
“Treasure of pore men”, “countrymans friend” or “gentlewomans companion”? On the use of interpersonal strategies in the titles of Early Modern English medical texts Marta Sylwanowicz	301–318
“I saw ye Child burning in ye fire” Evidentiality in Early Modern English witness depositions Peter J. Grund	319–342
Name index	343–344
Subject index	345–348

“There is much excellent scholarship, and intriguing directions for English historical linguistics are opened up by papers spanning different linguistic domains, such as parts of speech for author identification, or semantic change and prescriptivism.”

David Denison, University of Manchester

“This volume opens new vistas for various aspects of the historical study of English. It is significant that the textual evidence for most of the articles is derived from historical corpora. Meaning in the History of English offers extremely useful and inspiring reading both to senior scholars and to young researchers at the beginning of their scholarly career.”

Matti Rissanen, University of Helsinki, in Journal of Historical Pragmatics 16(2): 304-309

Cited by

Cited by 3 other publications

No author info given

2014. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED. English Language and Linguistics 18:3 ► pp. 599 ff.

Dossena, Marina

2019. In Politeness in Nineteenth-Century Europe [Pragmatics & Beyond New Series, 299], ► pp. 197 ff.

Los, Bettelou & Patrick Honeybone

2022. In English Historical Linguistics [Current Issues in Linguistic Theory, 358], ► pp. 2 ff.

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 17 january 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.

Subjects & Metadata

Linguistics

English linguistics

Historical linguistics

Theoretical linguistics

BIC Subject: CF/2AB – Linguistics/English

BISAC Subject: LAN009000 – LANGUAGE ARTS & DISCIPLINES / Linguistics / General

ONIX Metadata

ONIX 2.1

ONIX 3.0

U.S. Library of Congress Control Number: 2013037575 | Marc record