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Im Deutschen gibt es mehrere Formen der Kopula+Infinitiv-Struktur, deren Bedeutungen sich zum Teil decken, zum anderen Teil jedoch trennen. Die vorliegende Diskussion geht zum einen der Frage nach, wie bei solchen Formen die Absentivbedeutung (de Groot 2000, ) zustande kommt - ob sie nach rein lexikalischen Voraussetzungen zustande kommt, nachgrammatischen oder nach origo-pragmatischen Diskursvoraussetzungen - undinwieweit sich die unterschiedlichen Konstruktionsformen hinsichtlich derAbsentivbedeutung unterscheiden und vor welchem genauen Hintergrund siedies tun. Die Hauptfrage gilt jedoch Diesings Annahme, dass sich Geschehensphasenprädikate (stage level predicates/SLP ) mithilfe einer eigenen davidsonschen Ereignisvalenz von Essenzprädikaten (individual level predicates/ILP) unterscheiden lassen. Hier wird postuliert, dass sich statt eigener Lexikoneinträge für SLP und ILP die typologisch häufig vorkommende grammatische Unterscheidung einer vP-Kopula- sein ( seinser) und adverbiell eingeschränkten vP-vP-Kopula- sein ( seinestar) verwenden lässt. Voraussetzung dafür wäre allerdings, dass der lexikalische Eintrag von Verben beider Klassen (Phasen- ebenso wie Essenz-) als seinser/estar+Vnichtfinit erscheint. Die Frage ist dann, welche der nichtfiniten Verbformen für diesen Lexikoneintragtypus in Frage kommen. Die Entscheidung fällt zugunsten der mittelalter-modistischen universalgrammatischen Lösung, also generell für alle Prädikate . In German, there are several forms of the copula+nonfinite verbal structure, for some of which the meanings converge in parts, but for the remainder of which they differ greatly. The present discussion pursues the question whether the absentive meaning emerges, and if so, how - whether it is a purely lexical phenomenon in accordance with grammatical or origo-pragmatic conditions of discourse, to what extent the copula+infinitive construction differs with respect to the Absentive criterion, and against which precise origo background it does this. The main question refers to Diesing's assumption that event phase predicates (stage level predicates/SLP can be distinguished with reference to a Davidsonian event valence built of essential predicates (individual level predicates/ILP). In the present study, it is postulated that instead of assuming lexicon entries for SLP and ILP in their individual own right, the distinction should be based on distinguishing two types of copula construals: one is of the type vP copula-be (seinser), while the other is the adverbially limited type vP-vP copula-be (seinestar). However, the precondition is that the lexical predicate occurs as a homonymy between event and essential readings: as seinser+Vnon-finite as well as seinestar+Vnon-finite. The question, then, is which of the non-finite verb forms should appear as the dictionary entry. It will be argued that the decision be taken in favor of the mediaeval Modistic concept . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates modality elements in German dependent clauses. We demonstrate that although modal adverbial elements can appear freely in matrix clauses, they have a limited distribution in dependent clauses - showing up, for example, in non-factive complement clauses, but not in factive complement clauses. More generally, the modality potential comes to exist, in ways still to be explained, in what may be called 'peripheral' subordinate clauses rather than 'central' dependent clauses. To explain this distribution, we argue that for this distinction of dependent clauses phasehood should be extended beyond CP to embrace Force. From this point we continue to distinguish a proper left edge to the Force phase from a defective one with the result that the empirical status of dependent clauses is accounted for appropriately in Minimalist terms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to provide a picture of Upper German as an oral variant of German. The main differences German and its history of the preterite loss display as compared to Afrikaans was elucidated. However, what remains as a possible line of research for German is the fact that the historical scenario in Afrikaans was rooted firmly in its development as a spoken means of communication.

This article aim to elucidate on what has come to be called the "Upper German decay of the preterite." Focus is given to the cause, or causes, that lead to this decay in Southern German, which took place during the 15th century only in the southern part of the German speaking area. The question of whether the preterite decay took place also in languages other than the Upper German is pursued.

Presents an introduction to the January 1, 1999 issue of the journal "Folia Linguistica."

There exists an interesting correlation between aspect realizations and typological ergativity in those languages that exhibit ‘split ergativity’: the ergative properties (morphological, sometimes and never totally, also syntactic) are displayed only in the past and the perfect tenses or perfective aspect (among which dominantly the periphrastic perfects), as opposed to the present tense where the nominative-accusative system is adhered to. In typological research, this phenomenon has been known to be restricted to what has been called ‘Type-B ergativity’, i.e. only in languages with an ergativity split (Trask 1979:388). Type-A languages of the ergative type, do not exhibit this strict correlation. The question why this should be of such overwhelming empirical evidence has not received an answer (Trask 1979:396: ‘[...] why should the perfective so often be constructed on an creative basis?’). In this article, such a link is drawn. It is claimed that the type of ‘syntactic ergativity’ (or ‘unaccusativity’) discussed in generative syntax in fact boils down to perfective predicates and constructions which are expressed in terms of object predicates (‘predicatives’ or ‘small clauses’). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents the introduction to the January 1996 special issue of the journal "Folia Linguistica."

This article contests two main claims still held in pertinent literature: that by the theory of the "double-blind," developed by Bateson; the "double-blind" theory hypothesizes the schizophrenia is caused by undue parental behavior, particularly that by the mother such that the child is confronted with an illogical attitude of his mother's that (s)he cannot solve or compensate him/herself; and, second, Navrati's claim that schizophrenic psychosis stimulates the ill person in such a way that (s)he develops creative faculties equal to that of "normal" poetic writers. The contention rests on two types of support: one by recent insight into the nature of the illness; and research psychologists making use of computer implementation of detailed linguistic and psychological parameters which are then tested empirically. Based on such insights, the nature of literary explanation of the work of schizophrenic authors such as Kafka and Herbeck is rejected.