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Optional and alternating case marking: Typology and diachrony
Author(s) -
Chappell Hilary,
Verstraete JeanChristophe
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
language and linguistics compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.619
H-Index - 44
ISSN - 1749-818X
DOI - 10.1111/lnc3.12311
Subject(s) - typology , referent , linguistics , markedness , context (archaeology) , computer science , section (typography) , domain (mathematical analysis) , history , mathematics , archaeology , mathematical analysis , philosophy , operating system
This paper presents a survey of the typology and diachrony of optional and alternating case marking, in the context of related phenomena such as referent‐ and construction‐based splits. While there is much recent work in this area, driven by text‐based approaches to language description, as well as quantitative and areal approaches to typology, the domain remains somewhat scattered, conceptually and terminologically. We chart the relevant phenomena, and we provide a typological survey of optional and alternating marking for A and O arguments. We also highlight some of the questions that remain, including problems with the classic model of case marking based on markedness reversal. A final section investigates the diachronic origins of optional case markers. These are largely similar to those for non‐optional systems, apart from certain source domains, as well as factors related to information structure, both in the form of source domains and as constructional contexts playing a role in the development of the markers.