Fourteen articles on the mechanisms of syntactic change.

Syncretism - where a single form serves two or more morphosyntactic functions - is a persistent problem at the syntax-morphology interface. It results from a 'mismatch' whereby the syntax of a language makes a particular distinction but the morphology does not. This pioneering book provides a full-length study of inflectional syncretism, presenting a typology of its occurrence across a wide range of languages. The implications of syncretism for the syntax-morphology interface have long been recognised: it argues either for an enriched model of feature structure (thereby preserving a direct link between function and form), or for the independence of morphological structure from syntactic structure. This book presents a compelling argument for the autonomy of morphology and the resulting analysis is illustrated in a series of formal case studies within Network Morphology. It will be welcomed by all linguists interested in the relation between words and the larger units of which they are a part.

- Collects twelve new papers that explore the syntax of Chinese in comparison with other languages.
- Opens up new avenues of research, connecting studies of Chinese with work being carried out on other languages.
Chinese Syntax in a Cross-linguistic Perspective is a collection of sixteen original papers by leading experts in Chinese syntax. The papers focus on a broad range of topics, demonstrating how the analysis of Chinese can inform our understanding of syntactic phenomena in other languages, and how insights gained in the study of other languages can in turn shed interesting new light on patterns in Chinese. Each chapter compares a specific major phenomenon in Chinese syntax with related patterns in at least one other language from Asia, Europe, North America or Africa, resulting in a series of fresh perspectives on Chinese and what the study of Chinese can offer linguists working on other, genetically unrelated languages.
The volume is divided into three thematic sections, on the nominal domain, the predicate domain, and the C-domain. In addition to chapters on synchronic, adult syntax, the book includes chapters on Chinese diachronic syntax in a comparative perspective and the acquisition of syntax in Chinese, in comparison with that of other languages. The collection is a tribute to Professor C.-T. James Huang's lifelong work on the syntax of Chinese and his attempts to demonstrate how the comparative analysis of Chinese reveals important properties of Universal Grammar. With its broad, cross-linguistic focus and its detailed, new studies of Chinese, this book is essential reading for researchers of all language backgrounds in modern generative syntax.

This book presents a critical comparison of the two leading theories of linguistic change. After introducing the aims and methods of historical linguistics, Olga Fischer provides an exposition of the main theories used to describe morphosyntactic change and a full account of the causes and mechanisms by which their leading exponents seek to explain it. She measures the effectiveness of rival theories and methods in different contexts and in the process throws fresh light on the balance of factors influencing linguistic change. Professor Fischer emphazises the unity of form and meaning in the linguistic sign and examines the role played by analogy. She looks at how changes in discourse, lexicon, semantics, pragmatics, and sound interact with changes in morphosyntax, and explores the relationship between external and internal causes of change. She considers whether morphosyntactic change is gradual or abrupt and discusses how far rates of change reflect the degree to which grammar is innate or learned. She uses detailed case studies to illustrate different types of morphosyntactic change, and to show how each theory fares when put into practice. The author's clear style and her balanced approach to this fascinating and complex subject combine to make this a book that will be of central interest and value to scholars and students of linguistic change, at graduate level and above.

Comparison across formal languages is an essential part of formal linguistics. The study of closely-related varieties has proven extremely useful in comparing differences that might otherwise appear unrealted, and has helped to identify the core principles of Universal Grammar. This comprehensive handbook serves two functions. It will provide a general and theoretical introduction to comparative syntax, its methodology, and its relation to other domains of linguistic inquiry; and it will provide a systematic selection of the best comparative work being done today on those language groups and families where substantial progress has been achieved. With top-notch editors and contributors from around the world, this volume will be an essential resource for scholars and students in formal linguistics.

Complex hierarchic syntax is a hallmark of human language. The highest level of syntactic complexity, recursive-embedded clauses, has been singled out by some for a special status as the evolutionary apex of the uniquely - human language faculty - evolutionary yet mysteriously immune to Darwinian adaptive selection. Prof. Givón's book treats syntactic complexity as an integral part of the evolutionary rise of human communication. The book first describes grammar as an adaptive instrument of communication, assembled upon the pre-existing platform of pre-linguistic object- and-event cognition and mental representation. It then surveys the two grand developmental trends of human language: diachrony, the communal enterprise directly responsible for fashioning synchronic morpho-syntax and cross-language diversity; and ontogeny, the individual endeavor directly responsible for acquiring the competent use of grammar. The genesis of syntactic complexity along these two developmental trends is compared with second language acquisition, pre-grammatical pidgin and pre-human communication. The evolutionary relevance of language diachrony, language ontogeny and pidginization is argued for on general bio-evolutionary grounds: It is the organism's adaptive on-line behavior- invention, learning and skill acquisition - that is the common thread running through all three developmental trends. The neuro-cognitive circuits that underlie language, and their evolutionary underpinnings, are described and assessed. Recursive embedding turns out to be not an adaptive target on its own, but the by-product of two distinct adaptive moves: (i) the recruitment of conjoined clauses as modal operators on, or referential specifiers of, other clauses; and (ii) the subsequent condensation of paratactic into syntactic structures.

Thinking Syntactically: A Guide to Argumentation and Analysis is a textbook designed to teach introductory students the skills of relating data to theory and theory to data. * Helps students develop their thinking and argumentation skills rather than merely introducing them to one particular version of syntactic theory. * Structured around a wide range of exercises that use clear and compelling logic to build arguments and lead up to theoretical proposals. * Data drawn from current media sources, including newspapers, books, and television programs, to help students formulate and test hypotheses. * Generative in spirit, but does not focus on specific theoretical approaches but enables students to understand and evaluate different approaches more easily. * Written by an established author with an international reputation.

《话题的结构与功能》一书曾于1998年首印，时印2150本，今已售罄。该书自出版以来在语法学界产生了很大的影响，读者反响好，引用率也很高。今准备在修订本中补充作者的两篇新作《同一性话题：话题优先语言一项更典型的属性》和《亚洲语言中的话题化现象》，以反映该领域的研究新成果。
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目录
序言
1 话题的概念
2 话题的结构位置
3 话题标记
4 话题的语义关系及其句法表现
5 话题的指称特点
6 话题的话语功能与话语环境
7 话题结构与汉语的语序类型
参考文献
引例书目
索引
亚洲语言中的话题化现象
同一性话题：话题优先语言一项更典型的属性

Product Description
Since its first publication in 1991 Liliane Haegeman's Introduction to Government and Binding Theory has become established as the most authoritative introduction to the Principles and Parameters approach to syntactic theory. This new edition has been extensively updated throughout. Major structural changes include new chapters on Functional Heads and Head Movement and on Relativized Minimality. Discussions of a number of topics missing from or not paid due attention in the first edition have been integrated or expanded, for example: the structure of small clauses (in chaprer 2), chain formation (in chapter 6), and reconstruction, multiple movement, wh-absorption, Full Interpretation, and expletive replacement (in chapter 9). The copious exercises have been revised to increase potential for creativty and flexibility of approach. New exericases highlight further controversial issues. In short, this book offers a complete, updated introduction to the current state of Government and Binding Theory, suitable for readers with some basic knowledge of generative linguistics.
From the Back Cover
Since its first publication in 1991 Liliane Haegeman's Introduction to Government and Binding Theory has become established as the most authoritative introduction to the Principles and Parameters approach to syntactic theory. This new edition has been extensively updated throughout. Major structural changes include new chapters on Functional Heads and Head Movement and on Relativized Minimality. Discussions of a number of topics missing from or not paid due attention in the first edition have been integrated or expanded, for example: the structure of small clauses (in chaprer 2), chain formation (in chapter 6), and reconstruction, multiple movement, wh-absorption, Full Interpretation, and expletive replacement (in chapter 9). The copious exercises have been revised to increase potential for creativty and flexibility of approach. New exericases highlight further controversial issues.
In short, this book offers a complete, updated introduction to the current state of Government and Binding Theory, suitable for readers with some basic knowledge of generative linguistics.

《汉语双宾语结构句法及其语义的历时研究》，本书全面讨论汉语各个时期双宾语句式的发展状况，对历时汉语双宾语句式之间的相关性作了分析，揭示了历时汉语双宾语的共性格个性特点，可以为现代汉语、方言、语言学理论界从事相关课题研究提供语言本体、跨方言、跨语言类型等方面研究成果，有具有类型学和汉语史上双重价值。

《汉语历时句法学论稿》是汉语史方面的语法化专著、是我国（乃至国际)用形式语言学解决汉语历史句法现象的首部专著。本书涉及国内外有关语言演变基本问题与概念，如语法化、语言演变、语言恒定性、语言变异性、历时演变的习得机制、二言变异的语体转换等。在此基础上，本书就汉语史的前沿性热点 问题提出新的理论分析（汉语史的形态分期）和解决方案（词汇化的韵律动因及模式）。在方法论上，本书使用形式科学和生成语法的基本理论、结合传统训诂理论以及作者自己建立的韵律语法和语体语法理论，发掘出许多未曾注意的新现象（如字形（ ）中的语法信息）、突破了一向未曾打通的古今句法（如轻动词句法的古今异同、核心重音的建立与并列结构的消失等）。 本书既是语法化研究的必备参考书、也可作为汉语史课程的教科书。

This book is based on the results of research in language typology, and motivated by the need for a theory to explain them. Croft proposes intimate links between syntactic and semantic structures, and argues that the basic elements of any language are not syntactic but rather syntactic-semantic "Gestalts." He puts forward a new approach to syntactic representation and a new model of how language and languages work.