Reanalysis and regularisation: the development of morphological structure
- Gwilym Lockwood, SOAS
- Glendinning Lecture Theatre 2D67, UWE Bristol
My presentation explores the changing nature of English morphology by examining the tendency of English verbs to “regularise” - that is, the tendency of irregular verbs to be gradually reanalysed into regular verbs according to English morphological structures. The regular English past tense is the suffix "-ed", although historically there was a far more complicated system of rules for forming the past tense, such as word-internal vowel change. However, this irregular system is gradually being replaced by the regular past tense.
In order to show this, I will give an Government Phonology account of analytic and non-analytic morphology and how it interacts with phonology. I will then show that when a word is morphologically reanalysed, it almost always shifts from non-analytic (or irregular) to analytic (or regular) morphology. Furthermore, new verbs, such as loanwords and verbs derived from nouns or onomatopoeia, are also analysed with analytic morphology. Finally, I will explore the idea that the reanalysis of a word’s morphology is inherently linked to the frequency of its use. By referring to previous studies on evolutionary linguistics, I will show that more commonly used words have “stickier” morphology, which is reluctant to shift from non-analytic to analytic, while less commonly used words tend to shift from non-analytic to analytic much more quickly.
In order to show this, I will give an Government Phonology account of analytic and non-analytic morphology and how it interacts with phonology. I will then show that when a word is morphologically reanalysed, it almost always shifts from non-analytic (or irregular) to analytic (or regular) morphology. Furthermore, new verbs, such as loanwords and verbs derived from nouns or onomatopoeia, are also analysed with analytic morphology. Finally, I will explore the idea that the reanalysis of a word’s morphology is inherently linked to the frequency of its use. By referring to previous studies on evolutionary linguistics, I will show that more commonly used words have “stickier” morphology, which is reluctant to shift from non-analytic to analytic, while less commonly used words tend to shift from non-analytic to analytic much more quickly.