Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Palgrave Macmillan

Language Structure, Variation and Change

The Case of Old Spanish Syntax

  • Book
  • © 2019

Overview

Authors:
  1. Ian E. Mackenzie

    1. School of Modern Languages, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK

    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

  • Provides data-informed models that describe the evolution of Old Spanish syntax and enable broader conclusions to be drawn on the nature of language change

  • Deconstructs and critically examines the term ‘Old Spanish’, placing it within its proper historical context

  • Applies a combination of quantitative data mining and theoretical analysis to a large component of the medieval prose corpus

  • Addresses the intriguing question of ‘failed change’ in language evolution

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this book

Log in via an institution
eBook USD 79.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book USD 99.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

Licence this eBook for your library

Institutional subscriptions

Table of contents (7 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xii
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Preliminary Concepts: Old Spanish, How to Measure the Speed of Change and the Structure of the Corpus

    • Ian E. Mackenzie
    Pages 1-21

  3. Constituent Fronting: Focus, Discourse and Fashion

    • Ian E. Mackenzie
    Pages 23-73

  4. Clitic Linearization: A Tale of Successful and Failed Changes

    • Ian E. Mackenzie
    Pages 75-121

  5. DP Structure: From Multiple Determiners to Just One

    • Ian E. Mackenzie
    Pages 123-161

  6. The wh-System: Free Relatives, Double Articulation and Free Choice

    • Ian E. Mackenzie
    Pages 163-203

  7. Negation: Dispensing with the Clutter

    • Ian E. Mackenzie
    Pages 205-245

  8. Conclusion: Change and Continuity

    • Ian E. Mackenzie
    Pages 247-256

  9. Back Matter

    Pages 257-291
    Download chapter PDF
Back to top

Keywords

About this book

This book offers an original account of the dynamics of syntactic change and the evolving structure of Old Spanish that combines rigorous manuscript-based investigation, quantitative analysis and a syntactic approach grounded in Minimalist thinking. Its analysis of both successful and failed changes demonstrates the degree of unpredictability caused by the interaction of competing factors and will shed fresh light on the assumed unidirectionality of linguistic change. Importantly, it reveals that Old Spanish and modern Spanish are more similar to one another than is usually supposed and demonstrates that many of the differences between the two varieties are quantitative rather than qualitative. This theoretically sophisticated examination of historical corpora will provide an invaluable resource for students and scholars of Old and modern Spanish, historical linguistics, sociolinguistics and syntax.



Reviews

“In his latest book, Ian E. Mackenzie marries grammatical theory and quantitative methods to make significant advances in the analysis of a range of syntactic phenomena in Old Spanish. Alongside meticulous corpus-based empirical work, he critically engages with recent concepts in the theory of quantitative historical linguistics to great effect. This book is highly recommended to anyone interested in the history of the Spanish language and indeed in language change more broadly.” (Richard Waltereit, Professor of Romance Linguistics, Humboldt University Berlin, Germany)

Authors and Affiliations

  • School of Modern Languages, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK

    Ian E. Mackenzie

About the author

Ian E. Mackenzie is Professor of Spanish Linguistics at Newcastle University, UK. He is the author of seven books, as well as numerous articles in the fields of syntax, semantics and diachronic linguistics.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Language Structure, Variation and Change

  • Book Subtitle: The Case of Old Spanish Syntax

  • Authors: Ian E. Mackenzie

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10567-9

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham

  • eBook Packages: Social Sciences, Social Sciences (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2019

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-10566-2Published: 19 March 2019

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-10567-9Published: 09 March 2019

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XII, 291

  • Number of Illustrations: 21 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Syntax, Language Change, Romance Languages, Historical Linguistics, Sociolinguistics

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Back to top

Search

Navigation