Abstract
It is standardly assumed that Arabic copula constructions with present tense interpretation involve either a null copula or a pronominal copula. This paper provides evidence that some Arabic vernaculars are developing a three-way split, with an additional copula form occurring in some predicational copula clauses. This form has grammaticalised out of the active participle form of the posture verb meaning ‘sit’. While at different stages of development in different varieties of Arabic, this emergent copula shows the characteristics of a locative (temporary and/or permanent, depending on the variety) or contingent state (stage-level) copula, standing in contrast with the use of a null copula strategy, which marks characterising/defining individual-level properties. We propose a grammaticalisation trajectory for this copula in the Arabic varieties based on the comparative patterns of variation across those dialects, showing that the trajectory postulated for other, typologically distinct languages is also applicable to Arabic and hence providing further support for it. We suggest that there is also evidence of a distinct but related trajectory in some varieties which have developed a semantically bleached lexical existential predicate from this same form. We provide further evidence of the importance of the temporary/permanent split in the copula systems of Arabic arguing that the developing split copula system based on the active participle of the ‘sit’ verb is in alignment with the development of two other parallel split copula systems in other geographically diverse Arabic varieties, which use different bases/strategies for grammaticalisation.
Highlights
Arabic is generally described as a language in which present tense copula clauses exhibit a null copula in predicational copula constructions and a pronominal copula in identity or equative copula clauses
We provide further evidence of the importance of the temporary/permanent split in the copula systems of Arabic arguing that the developing split copula system based on the active participle of the ‘sit’ verb is in alignment with the development of two other parallel split copula systems in other geographically diverse Arabic varieties, which use different bases/strategies for grammaticalisation
7 Conclusion In this paper we have argued that a number of Arabic vernaculars are developing an additional split in the copula system with the emergence of a new copula form derived from the active participle of a posture verb root with the etymological meaning of ‘sit’, gāʕid that has itself bleached and desemanticised, and given rise to additional lexical senses associated with this active participle form
Summary
Arabic is generally described as a language in which present tense copula clauses exhibit a null (or zero) copula in predicational copula constructions and a pronominal copula in identity or equative copula clauses. This paper argues that this picture is too simple for a number of dialects and overlooks some of the empirical data We focus on this data, and provide a more comprehensive picture of the real state of affairs as it is developing, synchronically, where in at least some Arabic dialects, an additional overt copula is emerging in the present tense non-verbal predicational constructions. We argue that a further lexical/semantic development has taken place in some dialects, from the same source, and propose a trajectory of change for this distinct but related development Neither of these particular grammaticalisation path has, to our knowledge, been discussed previously for Semitic.
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