The English possessive -s morpheme from a diachronic, a synchronic and a cross-linguistic perspective

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F61989592%3A15210%2F20%3A73604072" target="_blank" >RIV/61989592:15210/20:73604072 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="http://pdf.uhk.cz/hkjas/pi/pdf/vol7nr1_2020.pdf#page=57" target="_blank" >http://pdf.uhk.cz/hkjas/pi/pdf/vol7nr1_2020.pdf#page=57</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

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Result language

angličtina

Original language name

The English possessive -s morpheme from a diachronic, a synchronic and a cross-linguistic perspective

Original language description

This article shows the diachronic development of the English possessive morpheme. It explains that the present day -s morpheme can be best analyzed as a special clitic as in Anderson (“The English Group-genitive”). Although the possessive -s morpheme diachronically goes back to the genitive case, in modern English its characteristics are different. The treatment of the possessive -s morpheme in traditional grammars does not satisfactorily account for the above-mentioned distinction. Therefore, the criteria for distinguishing between inflectional affixes and special clitics are stipulated and they include: head and non-head marking, agreement within NPs, the promiscuous attachment and no idiosyncratic shapes. Subsequently, when the criteria are applied, the comparison between the -s morpheme and its Old English ancestor, the genitive case can be made. Also, further stages in the diachronic development of the -s morpheme are analyzed. Finally, on the basis of our criteria, the -s morpheme is contrasted crosslinguistically with Swedish and Czech possessives. It has been suggested that the English -s morpheme patterns alike with its Swedish counterpart, while Czech possessives and Old English genitives reveal characteristics typical for inflectional affixes. At the same time, Czech possessives differ in some respects from Old English inflectional genitives and share some similarities with the English possessive -s morpheme. More concretely, Czech possessives enter into competition with genitive constructions and there are several restrictions imposed on their productivity.

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

J_ost - Miscellaneous article in a specialist periodical

CEP classification

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OECD FORD branch

60203 - Linguistics

Project

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Continuities

S - Specificky vyzkum na vysokych skolach

Publication year

2020

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Hradec Králové Journal of Anglophone Studies

ISSN

2336-3347

e-ISSN

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Volume of the periodical

7

Issue of the periodical within the volume

1

Country of publishing house

CZ - CZECH REPUBLIC

Number of pages

13

Pages from-to

57-69

UT code for WoS article

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EID of the result in the Scopus database

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