1887
  1. Home
  2. e-Journals
  3. Asian Languages and Linguistics
  4. Volume 5, Issue 1
  5. Article
Volume 5, Issue 1
  • ISSN 2665-9336
  • E-ISSN: 2665-9344
USD
Buy:$35.00 + Taxes

Abstract

Abstract

We describe the various uses of the Vietnamese morpheme which appears in excessive constructions. Unlike most other degree morphemes in Vietnamese, can precede or follow its gradable predicate, and we argue that these two different uses convey excess in very different ways: pre-predicate encodes purpose-oriented excessive truth conditions, whereas post-predicate is a comparative which projects a not-at-issue malefactive inference. We propose that the two constructions trace back to pre- and post-predicate 過 in Middle Chinese, motivated by comparisons with cognate constructions in contemporary Chinese languages. We also describe two other uses of , as an intensifier with speaker commitment and as an exclamative marker, and explain how they developed from the excessives. This study thus offers an explanatory account of the various uses of this multifunctional expression and the relationships between them, grounded in the history of the language and in principles of semantic change.

© 2024 John Benjamins Publishing Company
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1075/alal.23002.erl
2024-07-05
2025-04-30

  • From This Site

    /content/journals/10.1075/alal.23002.erl
    dcterms_title,dcterms_subject,pub_keyword
    -contentType:Journal -contentType:Contributor -contentType:Concept -contentType:Institution
    10
    5
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Alves, Mark J.
    (2001) What’s so Chinese about Vietnamese?InProceedings of SEALS 9, ed.Graham W. Thurgood, 221–242.
     [Google Scholar]
  2. (2005) Sino-Vietnamese grammatical vocabulary and triggers for grammaticalization. InThe 6th Pan-Asiatic International Symposium on Linguistics, 315–332.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. (2007) Sino-Vietnamese grammatical borrowing: An overview. InGrammatical borrowing in cross-linguistic perspective, ed.Yaron Matras and Jeanette Sakel, 343–362. Mouton de Gruyter. 10.1515/9783110199192.343
     https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110199192.343 [Google Scholar]
  4. Bolinger, Dwight
    (1972) Degree words. Mouton. 10.1515/9783110877786
     https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110877786 [Google Scholar]
  5. Chen, Weirong
    (2020) A grammar of Southern Min: The Hui’an dialect. Walter de Gruyter. 10.1515/9781501511868
     https://doi.org/10.1515/9781501511868 [Google Scholar]
  6. Cresswell, Max J.
    (1976) The semantics of degree. InMontague Grammar, ed.Barbara Hall Partee, 261–292. Academic Press. 10.1016/B978‑0‑12‑545850‑4.50015‑7
     https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-545850-4.50015-7 [Google Scholar]
  7. Downer, Gordon B.
    (1959) Derivation by tone-change in Classical Chinese. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies221:258–290. 10.1017/S0041977X00068701
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0041977X00068701 [Google Scholar]
  8. Duffield, Nigel
    (2013) Head-first: On the head-initiality of Vietnamese clauses. InLinguistics of Vietnamese: an international survey, ed.Daniel Hole and Elisabeth Löbel, 127–154. de Gruyter. 10.1515/9783110289411.127
     https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110289411.127 [Google Scholar]
  9. Erlewine, Michael Yoshitaka
    (2017) Low sentence-final particles in Mandarin Chinese and the Final-over-Final Constraint. Journal of East Asian Linguistics261:37–75. 10.1007/s10831‑016‑9150‑9
     https://doi.org/10.1007/s10831-016-9150-9 [Google Scholar]
  10. (2023) A syntactic universal in a contact language: The story of Singlish already. InDiscourse particles in Asian languages, ed.Hiroki Nomoto and Elin McCready, volume21: Southeast Asia, 91–120. Routledge. 10.4324/9781351057752‑5
     https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351057752-5 [Google Scholar]
  11. (2024) On the role of causation in sufficiency and excess. Manuscript, University of Helsinki and National University of Singapore.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Erlewine, Michael Yoshitaka, and Anne Nguyen
    (2023) Pre-and post-predicate degree morphemes in Vietnamese: Heads vs phrases. Manuscript, University of Helsinki and National University of Singapore.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. Erlewine, Michael Yoshitaka and Anne Nguyen
    (2024) Varieties of polar question bias: Lessons from Vietnamese. Manuscript, University of Helsinki and National University of Singapore.
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Fortuin, Egbert
    (2013) The construction of excess and sufficiency from a crosslinguistic perspective. Linguistic Typology171:31–88. 10.1515/lity‑2013‑0002
     https://doi.org/10.1515/lity-2013-0002 [Google Scholar]
  15. Grano, Thomas
    (2022) Enough clauses, (non)finiteness, and modality. Natural Language Semantics301:115–153. 10.1007/s11050‑022‑09190‑w
     https://doi.org/10.1007/s11050-022-09190-w [Google Scholar]
  16. Heine, Bernd, Ulrike Claudi, and Friederike Hünnemeyer
    (1991) Grammaticalization: A conceptual framework. University of Chicago Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Institute of Linguistics, CASS
    Institute of Linguistics, CASS (ed.) (1999) Gǔdài Hànyǔ xūcí cídiǎn [Dictionary of Ancient Chinese function words]. Shangwu Yinshuguan.
     [Google Scholar]
  18. Johanson, Lars
    (2002) Contact-induced change in a code-copying framework. InLanguage change: The interplay of internal, external and extra-linguistic factors, 285–313. Mouton de Gruyter. 10.1515/9783110892598.285
     https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110892598.285 [Google Scholar]
  19. Kaplan, David
    (1999) The meaning of ‘ouch’ and ‘oops’. Presented at theCornell conference on context dependency.
     [Google Scholar]
  20. Le, Giang Ha
    (2015) Vietnamese sentence-final particles. Master’s thesis, University of Southern California.
     [Google Scholar]
  21. Lemon, Tyler
    (2020) Vietnamese subcomparatives, the grammar of degrees, and comparative deletion. InProceedings of Sinn und Bedeutung 24, ed.Michael Franke, Nikola Kompa, Mingya Liu, Jutta L. Mueller, and Juliane Schwab, volume11, 497–514.
     [Google Scholar]
  22. Liu, Chi-Ming Louis
    (2014) Mandarin comparative constructions. InPeaches and plums, ed.C.-T. James Huang and Feng-Hsi Liu, 135–152. Institute of Linguistics, Academia Sinica.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Lucas, Christopher
    (2012) Contact-induced grammatical change: Towards an explicit account. Diachronica291:275–300. 10.1075/dia.29.3.01luc
     https://doi.org/10.1075/dia.29.3.01luc [Google Scholar]
  24. Luo, Qiongpeng, and Fan Liu
    (2018) The expressive content of the ad-adjectival tai ‘too’ in Mandarin Chinese: Evidence from large online corpora. InProceedings of the 19th Chinese Lexical Semantics Workshop (CLSW 19), ed.Jia-Fei Hong, Qi Su, and Jiun-Shiung Wu, 311–320. Springer. 10.1007/978‑3‑030‑04015‑4_26
     https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-04015-4_26 [Google Scholar]
  25. Lü, Shuxiang
    (1980) XiàndàiHànyǔ bābǎi cí [800 words in Modern Chinese]. Shangwuyin.
     [Google Scholar]
  26. Maspero, Henri
    (1920) Le dialecte de Tchang-ngan sous le T’ang. Bulletin de l’Ecole française d’Extrême-Orient201:1–124. 10.3406/befeo.1920.5549
     https://doi.org/10.3406/befeo.1920.5549 [Google Scholar]
  27. Matthews, Stephen, and Virginia Yip
    (2011) Cantonese: A comprehensive grammar. Routledge, 2nd edition.
     [Google Scholar]
  28. Meier, Cécile
    (2003) The meaning of too, enough, and so…that. Natural Language Semantics111:68–107. 10.1023/A:1023002608785
     https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1023002608785 [Google Scholar]
  29. Michaelis, Laura A.
    (2001) Exclamative constructions. InLanguage typology and language universals, ed.Martin Haspelmath, Ekkehard König, Wulf Oesterreicher, and Wolfgang Raible, volume21, 1038–1050. Walter de Gruyter.
     [Google Scholar]
  30. Nadathur, Prerna
    (2019) Causality, aspect, and modality in actuality inferences. Doctoral Dissertation, Stanford University.
  31. Nguyen, Anne
    (2021) Formal analysis of the Vietnamese sentence-final particle cơ. Doctoral Dissertation, National University of Singapore.
  32. Nouwen, Rick
    (2018) Notes on moderate excess. InA coat of many colours, ed.Jan Ceuppens, Hans Smessaert, Jeroen van Craenenbroeck, and Guido Vanden Wyngaerd, volume61.
     [Google Scholar]
  33. Phan, John Duong
    (2013) Lacquered words: The evolution of Vietnamese under Sinitic influences from the 1st century BCE through the 17th century CE. Doctoral Dissertation, Cornell University.
  34. Pulleyblank, Edwin G.
    (1991) Lexicon of reconstructed pronunciation: In Early Middle Chinese, Late Middle Chinese, and Early Mandarin. University of British Columbia Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  35. Quirk, Randolph, Sidney Greenbaum, Geoffrey Leech, and Jan Svartvik
    (1985) A comprehensive grammar of the English language. Longman.
     [Google Scholar]
  36. Rett, Jessica
    (2011) Exclamatives, degrees, and speech acts. Linguistics and Philosophy341:411–442. 10.1007/s10988‑011‑9103‑8
     https://doi.org/10.1007/s10988-011-9103-8 [Google Scholar]
  37. Rett, Jessica, and Sarah Murray
    (2013) A semantic account of mirative evidentials. InProceedings of SALT 23, ed.Todd Snider, 453–472. 10.3765/salt.v23i0.2687
     https://doi.org/10.3765/salt.v23i0.2687 [Google Scholar]
  38. Roberts, Ian
    (2012) Diachrony and cartography: Paths of grammaticalization and the clausal hierarchy. InFunctional heads, ed.Laura Brugè, Anna Cardinaletti, Giuliana Giusti, Nicola Munaro, and Cecilia Poletto, 351–367. Oxford University Press. 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199746736.003.0027
     https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199746736.003.0027 [Google Scholar]
  39. Roberts, Ian, and Anna Roussou
    (2003) Syntactic change: A Minimalist approach to grammaticalization. Cambridge University Press. 10.1017/CBO9780511486326
     https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511486326 [Google Scholar]
  40. Ross, Malcolm
    (2020) Syntax and contact-induced language change. InThe Oxford handbook of language contact, ed.Anthony P. Grant, 123–154. Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  41. Sadock, Jerrold M., and Arnold M. Zwicky
    (1985) Speech act distinctions in syntax. InLanguage typology and syntactic description, ed.Timothy Shopen, volume11, 155–196. Cambridge University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  42. Schwarzschild, Roger
    (2008) The semantics of comparatives and other degree constructions. Language and Linguistics Compass21:308–331. 10.1111/j.1749‑818X.2007.00049.x
     https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-818X.2007.00049.x [Google Scholar]
  43. Simons, Mandy, Judith Tonhauser, David Ian Beaver, and Craige Roberts
    (2010) What projects and why. InProceedings of SALT 20, ed.Nan Li and David Lutz, 309–327. 10.3765/salt.v20i0.2584
     https://doi.org/10.3765/salt.v20i0.2584 [Google Scholar]
  44. von Stechow, Arnim
    (1984) Comparing semantic theories of comparison. Journal of Semantics31:1–77. 10.1093/jos/3.1‑2.1
     https://doi.org/10.1093/jos/3.1-2.1 [Google Scholar]
  45. von Stechow, Arnim, Sveta Krasikova, and Doris Penka
    (2004) The meaning of German um zu: Necessary condition and enough/too. Presented at theWorkshop on Modal Verbs and Modality, University of Tübingen.
     [Google Scholar]
  46. Thomason, Sarah G., and Terrence Kaufman
    (1988) Language contact, creolization, and genetic linguistics. University of California Press. 10.1525/9780520912793
     https://doi.org/10.1525/9780520912793 [Google Scholar]
  47. Trinh, Tue
    (2005) Aspects of clause structure in Vietnamese. Master’s thesis, Humboldt University.
     [Google Scholar]
  48. van Coetsem, Frans
    (1988) Loan phonology and the two transfer types in language contact. Foris. 10.1515/9783110884869
     https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110884869 [Google Scholar]
  49. Waksler, Rachelle
    (2012) Super, uber, so, and totally: Over-the-top intensification to mark subjectivity in colloquial discourse. InSubjectivity in language and discourse, ed.Nicole Baumgarten, Inke DuBois, and Julianne House, 17–32. Emerald. 10.1163/9789004261921_003
     https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004261921_003 [Google Scholar]
  50. Wang, Li
    (1948) Hànyuèyǔ yánjiū [Sino-Vietnamese research]. Lingnan Xuebao91:1–96.
     [Google Scholar]
  51. Wei, Pei-Chuan
    (2013) “V-guò-lái/qù” de lìshǐ fāzhǎn [The historical development of “V-guo-lai/qu”]. Bulletin of Chinese Linguistics71:1–34.
     [Google Scholar]
  52. Zanuttini, Raffaella, and Paul Portner
    (2003) Exclamative clauses: At the syntax-semantics interface. Language791:39–81. 10.1353/lan.2003.0105
     https://doi.org/10.1353/lan.2003.0105 [Google Scholar]
  53. Zhang, Linmin
    (2018) Enough, too, and causal dependence. InProceedings of Sinn und Bedeutung221, ed.Uli Sauerland and Stephanie Solt, 481–498. 10.21248/zaspil.61.2018.508
     https://doi.org/10.21248/zaspil.61.2018.508 [Google Scholar]
/content/journals/10.1075/alal.23002.erl
Loading
Ingredients of excess
Asian Languages and Linguistics 5, 1 (2024); https://doi.org/10.1075/alal.23002.erl
/content/journals/10.1075/alal.23002.erl
/content/journals/10.1075/alal.23002.erl
Loading

Data & Media loading...

  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): comparative; constructional borrowing; degree constructions; diachronic semantics; excessive; exclamative; grammaticalization; language contact; malefactive; Middle Chinese; mirative; multifunctionality; not-at-issue meaning; semantic change; Sino-Vietnamese; Vietnamese

Most Cited

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error