Research seminar: Kasper Boye, University of Copenhagen

Abstract

Grammar plays a key role in linguistic communication, but what is its raison d’être, and what drives grammaticalization – the development of new grammatical structures? For example, why do some languages possess both lexical inceptive verbs like English begin and grammatical inceptive markers, like Tatar baʃ la- (Kuteva et al. 2019)? And what motivates the development of grammatical inceptive markers from lexical inceptive verbs?

I address these questions based on a theory that views grammatical structures as the result of conventionalization of attentional asymmetries in language use (e.g. Boye & Harder 2012; Boye 2023).

I begin by outlining this usage-based theory and presenting evidence from psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic research that supports it (e.g. Boye et al. 2023). I then explore its implications for how we understand grammaticalization. Returning to the initial questions, I argue that while grammar facilitates coordination of attention within complex messages, grammar is not required for coordination to take place, and grammaticalization is therefore not driven by the need to fill a functional gap. Instead, grammar is a natural result of processes of conventionalization that are influenced by a range of predictable factors.

The seminar is held in English and is interpreted into Swedish sign language.