Abstract
A survey of the functions of the existential verb in Chinese in temporal and spatial perspectives reveals a closer typological similarity between the oracle-bone inscription language and the Southern Sinitic languages, and a grammaticalization process observable from archaic time shows the formation of a marker for ‘affirming existence’ which provides residual evidence in the Book of Odes and the Eastern Min dialects for possible language contact between a ‘to-have’ language and a ‘to-be’ language.
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