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Books > Language & Literature > Language & linguistics > Grammar, syntax, linguistic structure
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Syntactic Change in Akkadian - The Evolution of Sentential Complementation (Hardcover)
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Syntactic Change in Akkadian - The Evolution of Sentential Complementation (Hardcover)
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Akkadian is one of the earliest attested languages and the oldest
recorded Semitic language. It exists in written record between
2500BC and 500BC, much of it in letters and reports concerned with
domestic and business matters, and written in colloquial language.
It provides a unique and valuable source for the study of
linguistic change but which, perhaps because of the impenetrability
of its writing system, has rarely been exploited by linguists. In
this book, Guy Deutscher examines the historical development of
subordinate structures in Akkadian. A case study comprises the
first two parts of the book, presenting an historical grammar of
sentential complementation. Part I traces the emergence of new
structures and describes how the finite complements first emerged
in Babylonian. It also explains the grammaticalization of the
quotative construction. Part II is a functional history which
examines the changes in the functional roles of different
structures. It shows how, during the history of the language,
finite complements and embedded questions became more widespread,
whereas other structures (e.g. infinite complements, parataxis,
etc.) receded. Part III seeks to explain the historical
developments in a theoretical light, showing how the development in
Akkadian is mirrored in many other languages. It goes on to suggest
that the emergence of finite complementation may be seen as
'adaptive' and related to the development of more complex
communication patterns. This book will be of interest to both
specialists and general linguists alike. For specialists it offers
a contribution towards a badly-needed historical grammar of the
Akkadian language. For general linguists this book will be of
interest not only for the questions which it raises about the
nature of complementation, but also for the window which it
provides on to this little-known language.
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