The Modal Auxiliarieshave toandmustin theCorpus of Early Ontario English: Gradient Change and Colonial Lag

Abstract

AbstractThe notion ‘drift’ plays an important role in the development of the modalshave toandmustin early Canadian English in relation to British and American English during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.Have tois first found in texts that reflect informal usage, and for the period in question (1750–1849),have tois only attested with deontic readings; the data suggest that its rise was not exclusively conditioned by the defective paradigm ofmust. Mustmaintains its epistemic function in relation to its Late Modern English competitors. In early Canadian English, changes progress gradually, with individual variables following different directions. Canadian English epistemicmustlags behind, while deontichave tohas spread more quickly in North America, with Canadian English more progressive than British English varieties, but less so than American English. Within a more general drift towardshave to, Canadian English shows independent development in successive periods.