When the Mass Was Counted: English as Classifier and Non-Classifier Language  

Oleh:

Toyota, Junichi

Jenis: Article from Journal
Dalam koleksi: SKASE: Journal of Theoretical Linguistics vol. 6 no. 1 (Jan. 2009), page 118-130.
Topik: classifier; non-classifier; language contact; cognition and world-view
Fulltext: Junichi Toyota.pdf (204.41KB)

Isi artikel

In this paper, the counting system in English is analysed diachronically, especially in terms of classifier and non-classifier language types. Earlier English did not make a clear distinction between mass and count nouns, and such a distinction emerged around late Middle English/early Modern English. Proto-Indo-European, the parent language of Present-day English, lacked such a distinction and the state of earlier English can be considered as the residue of Proto-Indo-European. The development could be partly a result of language contact particularly with French or Latin, but it is also possible that the speakers’ world-view had changed, which triggered the change in counting system. It is also suggested that by studying other grammatical features, such as locational or temporal relationships, the change in the speakers’ world-view can be much more clearly identified.

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