5 Experiential Constructions in Late Latin and Old Italian: A Corpus-based Investigation into Diachronic Syntax

Abstract

This chapter addresses some issues concerning the diachronic development of certain argument structure constructions employed in Classical Latin to express experiential situations. It provides detailed diagnostics of two constructions that grammaticalized or underwent radical restructuring change between Classical and Late Latin. Linguistic strategies for the expression of experiential situations do not vary drastically between Classical and Late Latin. The chapter explores the diachronic development of the experiential constructions and tests predictions about their productivity by focusing on the changes that occurred in the transition from Classical and Late Latin to Old Italian. The view of productivity holds that both broad and specific schematic constructions are expected to be productive over time, their difference in productivity being one of degrees of semantic generality. Broad schematic patterns such as the transitive one are likely to attract new types irrespective of semantic constraints, thus leading to generalization processes.Keywords: Classical Latin; diachronic syntax; experiential constructions; Late Latin; Old Italian