Verb valency in Germanic: diachronic analysis and reconstruction of protolinguistic scenario

ongoing

Verbal valency is the number of core arguments a verb can take, hence instantiating a particular valency frame. There are for instance zero-valent verbs e.g. to rain (Eng. it rains); monovalent verbs e.g. to sleep (Eng. I sleep); bivalent verbs e.g. to kiss (Eng. the girl kisses the boy); trivalent verbs e.g. to give (Eng. the boy gives a present to the girl); etc. The present project’s overarching aim is to map out and analyze the valency patterns of Germanic. This is done by selecting a number of representative language varieties within Germanic (= Gmc), and by tracing the evolution and variation of valency patterns for a selection of verb meanings, following the methodological golden standard set out by the ValPaL project. The to-be-researched languages are: Gothic (East Gmc); English, German, Dutch, and Frisian (West Gmc); Icelandic and Swedish (North Gmc). The present project contributes to advancing that methodology and it is inscribed in the research activity carried out by the Pavia Linguistics Team within the Pavia Verbs Database project (PaVeDa). The overarching aim of my project is made up of the following objectives: 1) gather all elicited data in a digital resource; 2) pursue a diachronic analysis of valency patterns within the history of single languages; 3) carry out a synchronic analysis of valency patterns in the Germanic languages at different language stages; and hence 4) reconstruct valency patterns of Germanic in prehistoric times. The most relevant direct outcomes of the project are: 1) make the data available to other researchers; 2) contribute to the actual research in diachronic morphosyntax; 3) expand the PaVeDa database with diachronic data for Germanic; and hence 4) establish a well-defined benchmark within the addressed research area, by implementing a standard tool designed at the host institution.