Full text loading...
-
Existentials and possessives in Modern Hebrew
Variation and change
-
View Affiliations Hide Affiliations
- Source: Studies in Language. International Journal sponsored by the Foundation “Foundations of Language”, Volume 42, Issue 2, Jan 2018, p. 389 - 417
-
- 06 Jun 2018
Abstract
This paper considers the relationship between synchronic variation and language change in the context of the existential and possessive constructions in Modern Hebrew, which exhibit a normative – colloquial alternation. The study examines usage patterns across age groups and time periods, as represented in spoken-language corpora. It shows that the non-normative construction is used extensively in the contemporary speech of adults. Moreover, a comparison of the use of the normative – colloquial alternations by two populations, children and adults, in different time periods, provides evidence to suggest that these constructions are undergoing language change. A cross-linguistic perspective lends additional support: across languages the expression of existence involves non-canonical structures, which are particularly susceptible to language variation and, possibly, language change.