Evolution in Romance verbal systems

Résumé En

The focus of this book is the verbal domain. In the wake of Bybee's (1985, 1994) and Dahl's (1985) studies, it advocates the benefits of adopting a cross-linguistic and diachronic approach to the study of linguistic phenomena. Within the scope of the Romance family, similar cross-linguistic evolution paths will be explored as related languages may be at different stages of grammaticalisation and development featured in one language may shed light on what is happening in another. As argued in Bybee et al. (1994:3-4), a diachronic dimension also proves desirable for several reasons. First, a diachronic approach significantly enhances the explanatory power of linguistic theory by showing how a specific form came to convey a certain function. Second, change is better revealed in diachronic movement than in static synchrony. Third, meaning constantly evolves and a one-off probe will be less revealing than a sustained study through time. All the chapters of this volume participate in their own way to that cross-linguistic and diachronic approach.