Explaining alienability contrasts in adpossessive constructions: Predictability vs. iconicity
This paper argues that alienability contrasts in adnominal possessive constructions should not be explained by iconicity of distance, but by predictability due to the higher relative frequency of possessed occurrences of inalienable nouns. While it is true that when there is an alienability split,...
| Published in: | Zeitschrift für Sprachwissenschaft |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | German |
| Published: |
De Gruyter
2017-11-01
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1515/zfs-2017-0009 |
| Summary: | This paper argues that alienability contrasts in adnominal possessive constructions should not be explained
by iconicity of distance, but by predictability due to the higher relative frequency of possessed occurrences of
inalienable nouns. While it is true that when there is an alienability split, the alienable construction typically has
an additional marker which often separates the possessor from the possessed noun, the broader generalization
is that additional marking is found when the possessive relationship is less predictable. This generalization also
extends to cases of antipossessive marking and impossessibility. The diachronic mechanisms responsible for
the development of alienability contrasts are differential reduction and differential inhibition of a new construction. |
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| ISSN: | 0721-9067 1613-3706 |