The diachronic typology of differential argument marking

Description

While there are languages that code a particular grammatical role (e.g. subject or direct object) in one and the same way across the board, many more languages code the same grammatical roles differentially. The variables which condition the differential argument marking (or DAM) pertain to various properties of the NP (such as animacy or definiteness) or to event semantics or various properties of the clause. While the main line of current research on DAM is mainly synchronic the volume tackles the diachronic perspective. The tenet is that the emergence and the development of differential marking systems provide a different kind of evidence for the understanding of the phenomenon. The present volume consists of 18 chapters and primarily brings together diachronic case studies on particular languages or language groups including e.g. Finno-Ugric, Sino-Tibetan and Japonic languages. The volume also includes a position paper, which provides an overview of the typology of different subtypes of DAM systems, a chapter on computer simulation of the emergence of DAM and a chapter devoted to the cross-linguistic effects of referential hierarchies on DAM. Differential argument marking: Patterns of variation Alena Witzlack-Makarevich, Ilja A. Seržant Some like it transitive Remarks on verbs of liking and the like in the Saami languages Seppo Kittilä, Jussi Ylikoski The partitive A On uses of the Finnish partitive subject in transitive clauses Tuomas Huumo Differential subject marking and its demise in the history of Japanese Yuko Yanagida Differential A and S marking in Sumi (Naga) Synchronic and diachronic considerations Amos Teo Structural case and objective conjugation in Northern Samoyedic Melani Wratil The diachronic development of Differential Object Marking in Spanish ditransitive constructions Klaus von Heusinger The rise of differential object marking in Hindi and related languages Annie Montaut Emergence of optional accusative case marking in Khoe languages William B. McGregor Nominal and verbal parameters in the diachrony of differential object marking in Spanish Marco García García A diachronic perspective on Differential Object Marking in pre-modern Japanese Old Japanese and Early Middle Japanese Bjarke Frellesvig, Stephen Horn, Yuko Yanagida Verbal semantics and differential object marking in Lycopolitan Coptic Åke Engsheden From suffix to prefix to interposition via Differential Object Marking in Egyptian-Coptic Eitan Grossman Spanish indexing DOM, topicality, and the case hierarchy Chantal Melis The evolution of differential object marking in Alor-Pantar languages Marian Klamer, František Kratochvíl Differential object marking in Chichewa Laura J. Downing The emergence of differential case marking Sander Lestrade