[Lingtyp] Reminder: Call for book chapters/Workshop participation

Sun Sep 25 08:58:36 UTC 2016

*Call for book chapters/Workshop participation*

Apologies for cross-posting

The evolution of negation is often discussed in terms of a
grammaticalization process dubbed *Jespersen Cycle* by Dahl (1979). Within
this process, negation markers are seen to originate from emphatic elements
in the negative phrase which gradually lose their sense of emphasis and are
eventually interpreted as general verbal negators. Croft (1991) has
suggested negative existentials as another source for negation markers.
This author presented his hypothesis under the name *Negative Existential
Cycle *(NEC). Despite renewed interest in cyclical processes in language
change cf. (van Gelderen 2008, 2009, Willis, Lucas & Breitbath 2013), see
also earlier work (Ramat 1994, Bernini & Ramat 1996), the NEC has received
little attention. In order to examine its realizations from a wider
cross-linguistic perspective we, Ljuba Veselinova (U of Stockholm) and Arja
Hamari (U of Helsinki), have started a collaborative effort; we are hereby
inviting other scholars to join in.

Veselinova has devoted several articles to a critical examination of the
NEC cf. (Veselinova 2014, 2015, 2016). In these works she tests the NEC by
applying it to comparative data from six families: Slavic, Uralic, Turkic,
Dravidian, Berber and Polynesian. The main results of these tests can be
summarized as follows

(i)                 The most common way for negative existentials to break
into the domain of standard/verbal negation is via their uses with
nominalized verb forms.

(ii)               In the typical case, negative existentials take over
only parts of verbal negation e.g. a specific tense-aspect category. These
partial take-overs tend to last for very long periods of time and thus come
to look like stable states.

(iii)             Negative existentials are most likely to take over the
whole domain of standard negation in languages where predicate
concatenation is very productive

(iv)             Negative existentials are constantly renewed.

A functional explanation is suggested for these facts: specifically, the
distinction between negation of actions and negation of states, existence
in particular, is very important. This is why is it steadily maintained;
full-take overs of the standard negation domain by negative existentials
appear to be rare, while partial-take overs are common and long-lasting. A
more detailed overview of the generalizations outlined here is presented at
the workshop website www.ling.su.se/negative.existentials.cycle.

Lexington Books, https://rowman.com/LexingtonBooks are interested in
publishing a peer-

reviewed book on this topic. Following their interest, we are planning an
edited volume where the NEC is tested on a family based sample with a
world-wide coverage. To this end we are now seeking collaboration with
other scholars who have expertise on specific language families and have an
interest in in issues similar to those outlined below:

n  processes whereby negative existentials or other lexicalizations of
negation break into the domain of standard negation

n  the time duration of the stages in a negative existential cycle

n  are there any language specific characteristics which trigger or halt
the cycle

n  the constant renewal of negative existentials

The compilation of the planned volume will be preceded by a 2 day workshop
in Stockholm in May of 2017 (please note that the dates from the previous
announcement have been changed).

If you are interested in participating, please send one page abstract
(500-700 words) to negative.existential.cycle at gmail.com.

*Important dates*

Deadline for abstract submission: October 15, 2016

Notification of acceptance: November 1, 2016

Workshop: May 4-5, 2017, Dept of Linguistics, U of Stockholm

Confirmed participants: Prof. Elly van Gelderen, U of Arizona

Prof. Johan van der Auwera, U of Antwerpen

The details for the planned volume will be discussed at the workshop.
Please note that your submission can be considered for the volume even if
you do not participate in the workshop.

*References*

Bernini, G. & P. Ramat (eds.) 1996. Negative Sentences in the Languages of
Europe. Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter.

Croft, W. 1991. The Evolution of Negation. *Journal of Linguistics*
27.1-39.

Dahl, Ö. 1979. Typology of sentence negation. *LINGUISTICS* 17.79-106.
Ramat, P. 1994. Negation. in  Asher, R.E. & J. M. Y. Simpson (eds.) *The
 Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics*, . Pergamon Press, vol. 5, 1994,
2769-74.
van Gelderen, E. 2008. Negative Cycles. *Linguistic Typology* 12.195-243.

van Gelderen, E. (ed.) 2009. *Cyclical change*. Amsterdam: John Benjamins
Publishing Company.

Veselinova, L. 2014. The Negative Existential Cycle Revisited. *LINGUISTICS*
 52.1327-69.

Veselinova, L. 2016. The Negative Existential Cycle through the lens of
comparative data. *The Linguistic Cycle Continued*, ed. by E. van Gelderen,
139-87. Amsterdam/New York: John Benjamins Publishing Co.

Veselinova, L. (with H. Skirgård). 2015. Special Negators in the Uralic
Languages: Synchrony, Diachrony and Interaction with Standard
Negation. *Negation
in Uralic Languages*, ed. by M. Miestamo, A. Tamm & B. Wagner-Nagy, 547-99.
Amsterdam/New York: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Willis, D., C. Lucas & A. Breitbath. 2013. Comparing diachronies of
negation. *The History of Negation in the Languages of Europe and the
Mediterranean*, ed. by D. Willis, C. Lucas & A. Breitbath, 1-50. Oxford:
Oxford University Press.

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Ljuba Veselinova, Associate Professor
Dept of Linguistics, Stockholm University, S-10691 Stockholm, Sweden
Phone: +46-8-16-2332 Fax: +46-8-15 5389
URL  : http://www.ling.su.se/ljuba.veselinova

"We learn by going where we want to go."
                                          Julia Cameron
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