HomeTense, Aspect, Modality and Evidentiality
Tense, Aspect, Modality and Evidentiality
Construction and deconstruction
Published on Wednesday, March 04, 2015
Abstract
The verb phrase is a central locus of grammaticalisation in the world’s languages where information, crucial to the interpretation of the utterance, is encoded. Many scholars (Givón, 1982 inter alia) use the acronym TAM to refer to the semantic domains typically grammaticalised in the verb phrase (Tense, Aspect and Modality), but the discovery of evidentiality as a fourth notion questions the universality of this taxonomy. A close observation of the cross-linguistic data can lead to another deconstruction of TAM(E), as it is often difficult to propose a consistent description of each category of this acronym, as well as clear criteria for their borders. The fusional encoding of semantic features belonging in tense, aspect, modality and evidentiality, and the evolution of verb affixes or constructions from one semantic domain to another illustrates further the porosity of these categories. (Nuyts 2014 inter alia)
Announcement
Argument
The verb phrase is a central locus of grammaticalisation in the world’s languages where information, crucial to the interpretation of the utterance, is encoded. Many scholars (Givón, 1982 inter alia) use the acronym TAM to refer to the semantic domains typically grammaticalised in the verb phrase (Tense, Aspect and Modality), but the discovery of evidentiality as a fourth notion questions the universality of this taxonomy. A close observation of the cross-linguistic data can lead to another deconstruction of TAM(E), as it is often difficult to propose a consistent description of each category of this acronym, as well as clear criteria for their borders. The fusional encoding of semantic features belonging in tense, aspect, modality and evidentiality, and the evolution of verb affixes or constructions from one semantic domain to another illustrates further the porosity of these categories. (Nuyts 2014 inter alia)
This workshop will explore the verb phrase from a cross-linguistic perspective by examining the universals in the semantic domains that are typically encoded in it, as well as some of the underlying cognitive processes that might explain the recurrent patterns of its evolution.
Workshop programme
Friday 3rd April 2015
Institut du Monde Anglophone (Paris 3) 5, rue de l’école de Médecine 75006 Paris Métro: Cluny - La Sorbonne / Odéon RER: Saint-Michel - Notre-DameROOM 16
- 10.00 - 11.00 Jan Nuyts (University of Antwerp) - Deconstructing Evidentiality
- 11.00 - 11.40 Eric Corre and Debra Ziegeler (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle) - Weird Features of Habitual Aspect: From Slavic to Singlish
- 11.50 - 12.30 Pierre-Yves Modicom (Université Paris-Sorbonne) - From Aspectual to Modal Scales? A tale of three Germanic modal particles
- 12.30 - 13.10 Eric Melac (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle) - The Evolution of the Verb Phrase: Expressiveness and economy as motivators for language change
Guest speaker: Jan Nuyts (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Organization committee
- Eric Melac
- Guillaume Jaudhuin
Organised by SeSyLiA / PRISMES EA 4398
Subjects
- Language (Main category)
- Mind and language > Language > Linguistics
Places
- Room 16 - 5, rue de l'Ecole de Médecine
Paris, France (75006)
Date(s)
- Friday, April 03, 2015
Attached files
Keywords
- tense, aspect, modality, evidentiality
Contact(s)
- Guillaume Jaudhuin
courriel : snugls2016 [at] gmail [dot] com
Information source
- Guillaume Jaudhuin
courriel : snugls2016 [at] gmail [dot] com
License
This announcement is licensed under the terms of Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal.
To cite this announcement
« Tense, Aspect, Modality and Evidentiality », Study days, Calenda, Published on Wednesday, March 04, 2015, https://doi.org/10.58079/s4j
