160088 VO Historical morphology (2010S)

Changes in the form and function of morphological units, together with changes in their distribution and frequency of usage, make up the majority of what is stated in historical grammars of individual languages. Thorough knowledge of the forms and types of morphological change is therefore indispensable for any linguist working with historical data, and is at the same time part and parcel of general linguistic erudition.
In this course, which builds on the introduction to morphology taught in the preceding term, the phenomenon of mophological change will be examined in all its dimensions, from the expansion, reorganization and reduction of categorial patterns and the evolution of morphological processes to the semiotically grounded stability and variability of morphological markers and the interaction of phonological, syntactic and semantic factors of morphogenesis and grammaticalization. Special regard will be paid to the typological aspect of morphological patterning.