The Role of Discourse Markers in the Variational Axis ‘Oral-Written Discourse’ in 17th-Century Colonial Documents

Abstract

The aim of this research is to analyse the role of a paradigm of discourse markers—the consecutive connectors—in the Spanish of 17th-century colonial documents. We intend to show how their variation in the stylistic continuum is due to the different communicative situations in which they can be produced. The methodology and approaches considered comprise the oral and written variational axis, the grammaticalisation process as a linguistic change and the traditional dichotomy between the semasiological and onomasiological perspectives. The analysis of discourse markers is restricted to three units: y asi, por lo qual and conque, chosen because of the different uses that they show in a corpus composed of 22 cartas oficiales (official letters) and 22 informaciones de oficio y parte (informations pertaining to service to the Spanish kingdom) from the districts governed by the audience of Quito.