Studies in Language. International Journal sponsored by the Foundation “Foundations of Language” - Volume 49, Issue 4, 2025

This article introduces the special issue on valency-related phenomena, with a focus on the areal dimension in the cross-linguistic distribution of argument-coding patterns. A central concern is how areal effects shape these distributions and how they can be distinguished from genealogical effects. We review current approaches, data sources, and new quantitative methods for identifying areal signals, emphasizing the need to combine them with detailed qualitative analysis. The contributions to this issue show that argumentcoding is both unstable and highly responsive to convergence, highlighting the diverse ways in which language contact influences morphosyntactic systems.

Sinitic languages are known for their SVO order and mostly isolating morphology. This study addresses eleven languages of four different areas in Hunan, Yunnan, Sichuan, and Qinghai/Gansu provinces in China that possess SOV order and developed a postnominal flagging system. This study presents a synchronic description as well as a diachronic analysis of the flagging systems in these languages, focusing on typological properties (ergative or secundative alignment) and the role of language contact. The existence of four separate areas with limited mutual contact allows a contrastive approach and inferences on the role of different contact languages (Tibetic, Mongolic, Tujia) or different types of language contact (borrowing of flags, shared grammaticalization). The study argues against OV order and postnominal flagging as defining features of the “Amdo Sprachbund”, showing that these are universally present in all four areas and are better understood as the result of contact between two Eurasian macro areas.

In this paper, we address valency patterns in seven Mande languages with various degrees of genealogical proximity. Our study is based on the BivalTyp questionnaire focusing on 130 two-place predicates (Say 2020). While belonging to two distinct genetic groupings, two languages of the set, i.e. Mano (Southern Mande) and Kpelle (Southwestern Mande), are in intense contact with one another. We found that although Mano verbal stems are virtually unaffected by contact, the patterns of valency expression, including construction types and choice of postposition, but also the semantics of complex verbs are strongly influenced by Kpelle. This study thus adds further evidence for the predominance of pattern borrowing in multilingual settings.

This paper examines the effects of language contact on valency patterns by comparing Romani dialects with their contact languages. Due to their wide dispersion and extensive contact with diverse European languages, Romani dialects provide an excellent testing ground for exploring the interplay of genealogical and areal factors in valency encoding. Using data from the Romani morpho-syntax database (RMS) and BivalTyp, a typological database of bivalent verbs, we analyzed valency patterns in 43 predicates across 119 Romani varieties and 18 contact languages. Despite their relatively recent divergence (600–700 years), Romani dialects exhibit greater variation in valency patterns than some genealogical groups with a 2000-year history. These patterns align more closely with current geographic distribution and contact languages than with traditional genealogical classifications. The findings suggest that language contact is the primary driver of rapid changes in Romani valency systems, as some dialects resemble their contact languages more than other Romani varieties.

The article assesses claims made in the previous studies regarding the increase in the number of identical transitive and intransitive verbs with patient-like arguments, that is, patientively labile (P-labile) verbs, in Macedonian in comparison with the other South Slavic languages. Based on an extensive sample of 130 varieties from different parts of the South Slavic dialectal continuum, this study confirms the observations regarding increased lability in Western and some Southeastern Macedonian dialects. Additionally, outside the labile hotbed, lability remains low with relatively homogenous patterning.

The paper deals with variation in argument encoding attested in Evenki dialects. Evenki (Tungusic) is spoken in a large area throughout Siberia and manifests a high dialectal diversity. I consider 9 verbs with variable argument encoding strategies across 15 Evenki dialects. The main data on 6 dialects were obtained from two corpora of Evenki, supplementary data come from grammatical descriptions. The cluster analysis of variation in argument encoding shows the following results. Clusters of dialects based on valency patterns do not match the existing classification of Evenki dialects. At the same time, they correlate much better with the areal distribution of the dialects and with the presence/absence of contact with other languages. This supports the claim that valency patterns are diachronically unstable and tend to be easily borrowed.