Collaborative Research on Syntactic Change: A Cross Linguistic Approach

这是基于三个欧亚语系（芬兰-乌戈尔语系、印欧语系和高加索语系）研究的跨语言概括和历史句法变化原则的继续工作；以及三个中美洲家族：玛雅人、乌托-阿兹特克人和米斯-佐昆人。具体目标是：1)描述句法演变（变化的机制、变化的实施、语法其他部分的伴随变化），2)陈述句法变化的形式约束，3)确定哪些类型的句法变化是可能的，4)解释变化，5)当前工作与各种竞争的语法理论的关系。这个项目已经产生了近12种出版物和更多的公开演讲，研究人员现在正在编写一本书，其中将包含对历时性句法变化的全面处理。这项工作将满足语言学的基本需要，在语言学中，只有六年前出版的另一种对该主题的处理，而且范围更有限。两位调查人员都受到同事的高度尊重，特别是他们提出的数据和论证的清晰性。

This is continuing work on cross-linguistic generalizations and principles of historical syntactic change based on research in three Eurasian language families: Finno-Ugric, Indo-European, and Caucasian; and three Mesoamerican families: Mayan, Uto- Aztecan, and Mixe-Zoquean. Specific goals are 1) characterization of syntactic evolution (mechanisms of change, implementation of change, concomitant change in other parts of the grammar), 2) statement of formal constraints on syntactic change, 3) determination of what sort of syntactic changes are possible, 4) explanation of change, and 5) relation of the current work to various competing theories of grammar. This project has already generated nearly a dozen publications and an even larger number of public presentations, and the investigators are now at work on a major volume which will contain a comprehensive treatment of diachronic syntactic change. This work will meet a basic need in linguistics, where there is only one other treatment of the topic, published six years ago and of more limited scope. Both investigators are accorded profound respect from their colleagues, in particular for the clarity of their presentation of data and of their argumentation.