Reversive constructions in Latin: the case of re- (and dis-)

This paper proposes a cognitive account on re- and dis- verbs based on the scrutiny of the Plautine corpus and Cato’s De agricultura. Re- and dis- exhibit significant differences as to the manner in which they come to a reversive function, and these differences can be traced back to the basic conceptual import of the two prefixes: while dis- is schematically connected with the idea of separation into two parts, re- basically refers to a rearward/reditive trajectory, connecting a point that has already been reached to the starting point. On the basis of this description, I analyze the semantic network of re- and dis- and the role of their conceptual structure in the spread from spatial to reversive values

THE SEMANTIC NETWORK OF THE LATIN PREPOSITION PER: A DIACHRONIC INVESTIGATION

The article proposes a corpus-based analysis of the semantics of the Latin preposition per ‘through’ from the 3rd century BCE to the 4th century CE. Based on the insights of Cognitive Grammar, it will be argued that the diachronic shifts occurred within the semantic network of the preposition can be explained in the light of its basic spatial content. Starting from the original spatial meaning, the whole semantic network of per develops in diachrony along a continuum from spatial to abstract values via metonymical shifts. We will discuss these paths of development, focusing attention on the causal roles and on the feature of Animacy

The semantic network of the Latin preposition per : a diachronic investigation

Proponiamo qui i risultati di uno studio corpus-based sugli slittamenti diacronici osservabili nel network semantico della preposizione per in latino. Sulla base della Cognitive Grammar, descriviamo la semantica di per situandola lungo un continuum che procede dal concreto all’astratto, a partire da un contenuto schematico originario; discutiamo, quindi, i percorsi attraverso i quali i nuovi significati astratti emergono attraverso slittamenti metonimici, focalizzando la nostra attenzione sui ruoli causali e sulla caratteristica di animatezza.We present here the results of a corpus-based study on the diachronic shifts observed in the semantic network of the preposition per in Latin. On the basis of Cognitive Grammar, we describe the semantics of per by situating it along a continuum that proceeds from the concrete to the abstract, starting from an original schematic content; we then discuss the pathways through which new abstract meanings emerge through metonymic slips, focusing on the causal roles of the metonymic meanings of per. metonymic shifts, focusing our attention on the causal roles and the animacy feature. the characteristic of animacy

Verbal compounding in Latin: the case of -MAKE verbs

This paper aims at describing Latin compound verbs (CVs) whose second member is a verbal constituent connected with facio ‘to make’. Though there is a large literature on CVs in other languages, little has been said on Latin (Flobert 1978; Fruyt 2001 inter al.). CVs are extremely interesting in several respects. First, compared to Latin nominal compounds, whose core consists of exocentric formations, -MAKE CVs are endocentric constructions (Brucale 2012). Second, they represent an island of productivity in the generally unproductive area of verbal compounding in Latin. Third, they can be compared to analogous constructions in other Indo-European languages, viz. Persian and Hindi, which exhibit the same pattern. Two subclasses of -MAKE CVs can be found: 1) -fico verbs, whose first constituent can be either a noun, e.g. aedifico ‘to erect a building’, or an adjective, e.g. beatifico ‘to make happy’. In the former case, the noun is syntactically the direct internal argument of the verb. In the latter, the adjective has a predicative function and the compound conveys the causative meaning ‘make Q’ (or ‘factitive’, Lehmann fc.), where Q is a quality/state/condition (Kulikov 2001). 2) -facio verbs, which includes many types of compounds, the most productive of which is the so-called Causative subtype (Hahn 1947). This subtype is further divisible into three classes: a) CVs quite regularly connected to intransitive verbs in -eo (e.g. caleo ‘to be hot’) denoting states/conditions. This type is particularly productive and is used in causative CVs (e.g. calefacio ‘to make hot’), sharing with the -fico compounds above the meaning ‘make Q’. b) CVs in which the presence of facio does not yield any causative meaning nor introduces any semantic change in the first member, which already possesses a causative meaning, e.g. perterrefacio ‘to terrify’. c) compounds not related to any existent verb in -eo: - CVs connected with inchoative -sco verbs (e.g. assuesco ‘to become accustomed’/assuefacio ‘to accustom’). These are often ‘labile verbs’ which can be employed both as causatives and corresponding non-causatives with no overt formal change in the verb. The meaning of the corresponding -facio CV, therefore, will equal the meaning at work in the causative use of the verb in the first member. - CVs involving verbs of 1st (e.g. maturo ‘to ripen’/maturefacio ‘to ripen’) and 3rd conjugation (e.g. expergo ‘to arouse’/expergefacio ‘to arouse’). In this group are listed many causative verbs whose meaning is not altered by the compounding operation with –facio. In this work, we intend to provide an accurate description of the range of Latin -MAKE CVs, in order to find a rationale allowing for a perspicuous classification of these data. In particular, we attempt to clarify the morpho-syntactic status of causative CVs, and to further investigate which kind of causativization strategies they instantiate (Lehmann fc). References Brucale, Luisa 2012. Latin Compounds. Probus 24/1 : 93-117. Flobert, Pierre 1978. La composition verbale en latin. In: Etrennes de septantaine: travaux de linguistique et de grammaire comparee offerts a Michel Lejeune par un groupe de ses eleves, 85–94. Paris. Fruyt, Michèle 2001, Réflexions sur la notion de mot en latin: les verbes du type calefacio. In: Claude Moussy (ed.), De lingua Latina novae quaestiones. Actes du Xe Colloque International de Linguistique Latine, 81-94. Louvain. Hahn, Adelaide 1947. The Type calefacio. Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 78: 301–335. Kulikov, Leonid 2001. Causatives. In: Martin Haspelmath, Ekkehard Konig, Wulf Oesterreicher, Wolfgang Raible (eds), Language Typology and Language Universals. Vol. 2, 886–898. Berlin-New York. Lehmann, Christian (fc). Latin causativization in typological perspective. In: Muriel Lenoble & Dominique Longrée (eds.), Actes du 13ème Colloque International de Linguistique Latine. Louvain

The semantic network of the Latin preposition per: a diachronic investigation.

This paper explores the semantic network of the Latin preposition per (“through”) in a diachronic perspective derived from the analysis of two electronic corpora of 3rd century BCE – 4th century CE (PHI5; Intratext Digital Library). Drawing upon the insights of Cognitive Grammar (e.g. Langacker 1991), we analyze the role of the schematic import of per in the spread from basic to abstract meanings, thus accounting for the interconnections among the various senses of the polysemous entity. This theoretical position is integrated with Croft’s (1991) model of causal structure of events, as well as the results of an extensive analysis of Early Latin (Brucale & Mocciaro fc.), in order to address the following issues: 1. the diachronic shifts in the ratio of spatial to abstract meanings: spatial meanings are predominant in Early Latin (e.g. per urbem ire, Pl., Poen 522; per cribrum transire, Cat., De Agr. 76.3.4), while the only abstract values which are fully grammaticalized at this stage are MEANS (a less prototypical and abstract instrument: per vim retinere, Pl., Bacch. 843; see Croft 1991: 178) and REASON (the motivation for an agent to act: per metum mussari, Pl., Aul. 131; see Pinkster 1990). We aim at tracing back the path(s) through which new abstract meanings arise. 2. the role of Animacy: MEANS and REASON involve non-animate (abstract) participants, whereas the spread to Animacy represents a secondary development within the area of Causation, documented in Early Latin in a few instances of CAUSE (the motivation of a non- agentive event: per aliquem vivere, Pl., Poen. 1187) and INTERMEDIARY (per me interpretem, Pl., Mil. 910). Out of the causal domain, however,, Animacy is a rather ancient feature, represented in the expressions of Appeal (with performative verbs such as iuro, e.g. per Iovem iurare, Pl. Amph. 435) and Judgment of licitness (per me licet, Pl., Merc., 989). On the other hand, the expression of (concrete) INSTRUMENT represents a later development (cf. Luraghi 2010: per nauiculam uenire, Itala, cod. d., Ioh. 21, 8). In other words, the spread from concrete to abstract meanings appears to be non-unidirectional, rather drawing the following trajectory: SPATIAL (CONCRETE) > ABSTRACT > ANIMATE > INANIMATE (CONCRETE). 3. the grammaticalization of the expression of PURPOSE: another later development, which is based on an extension of Reason: “The objects we aspire for are usually also the cause for our aspiration” (Radden 1989: 562; see also Croft 1991: 293). Finally we propose a semantic map of the range of values conveyed by per, showing that they do not arrange on a linear continuum, but rather represent a multi-directional configuration originating from the progressive (metonymical) extension of a prototypical nucleus over time. Brucale, L. & Mocciaro, E. (fc.), Continuity and discontinuity in the semantics of the Latin preposition per: a cognitive hypothesis, in STUF 63/1. Croft, W. (1991), Syntactic Categories and Grammatical Relations. Chicago: Chicago University Press. Hewson, J. & Bubenik, V. (2006), From Case to Adposition: The development of configurational syntax in Indo-European Languages. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. Langacker, R. (1991), Foundations of Cognitive Grammar. Stanford: Stanford University Press. Luraghi, S. 2010, Adverbial Phrases, in P. Baldi & P. Cuzzolin (eds), New Perspectives on Historical Latin Syntax, 2. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. Pinkster, H. (1990), Latin Syntax and Semantics. London: Routledge. Radden, G. (1989), Semantic roles, in R. Dirven, & R. Geiger (eds), A User’s Grammar of English. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 421–471

Open source platform for the execution and analysis of mechanical refolding experiments

Abstract Motivation: Single-molecule force spectroscopy has facilitated the experimental investigation of biomolecular force-coupled kinetics, from which the kinetics at zero force can be extrapolated via explicit theoretical models. The atomic force microscope (AFM) in particular is routinely used to study protein unfolding kinetics, but only rarely protein folding kinetics. The discrepancy arises because mechanical protein refolding studies are more technically challenging. Results: We developed software that can drive and analyse mechanical refolding experiments when used with the commercial AFM setup 'Picoforce AFM', Bruker (previously Digital Instruments). We expect the software to be easily adaptable to other AFM setups. We also developed an improved method for the statistical characterization of protein folding kinetics, and implemented it into an AFM-independent software module. Availability: Software and documentation are available at http://code.google.com/p/refolding under Apache License 2.0. Contact: [email protected] Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online

Approximation through suffixation:-ḍḍu/-a in Sicilian

This article investigates the use of the Sicilian suffix -ḍḍu/-afor the expression of ap-proximation. On the basis of a survey of a corpus of ethnotexts and the outputs of a translation questionnaire, we propose that approximation is a core value in the semantic network of the suffix, expressing a certain distance fromthe default values conveyed by the base. In terms of prototypi-cality, this distance may occur from the categorial centre (internal approximation): the suffix mod-ifies the semantics of the base but does not alter the categorial status of the referent. Alternatively, the suffix may impact on categorial membership tout court (external approximation), questioning the categorial properties of the base. Based on this classification, the semantic cores of the suffix are represented in a map showing the connections between the various meanings identified in the corpus

Conditional connection explored: the case of Sicilian "cusà"

Stemming from a wh-question, the Sicilian marker cusà (cu sa ‘who knows’) expresses several epistemic meanings, which can also reach the realm of conditionality. The paper explores the discourse profile of cusà as it emerges from the analysis of diachronic data (18th-19th centuries) and present-day spoken written Sicilian (web data). These data suggest the possible development path leading from the wh-question to new functions. We propose that the origin of this development can be explained in the light of the strategy of “impossible question”, while the diverse functions of cusà emerged through concomitant processes of desemantisation, reanalysis and subjectification

Le costruzioni condizionali coordinate in italiano contemporaneo

Si propone l'analisi di un gruppo di costruzioni che veicolano una semantica condizionale di tipo predittivo pur essendo codificate come strutture di tipo non subordinato (Mangia e ingrasserai; Mangi, ingrassi; Smettila di mangiare o ingrasserai; (Tanto) più mangi, (quanto) più ingrassi). Si fornisce una descrizione delle caratteristiche formali e semantiche delle costruzioni in esame che consenta di indagarne i confini funzionali e le relazioni che esse intrattengono sia reciprocamente sia con la costruzione condizionale canonica. Particolare attenzione sarà dedicata alle costruzioni ‘comparative’, ancora prive di una descrizione sistematica concernente l’italiano. Sono infine alcune ipotesi interpretative.We propose the analysis of a group of constructions that convey a predictive conditional semantics even though they are coded as non-subordinate structures (Eat and you'll get fat; Eat, you'll get fat; Stop eating or you'll get fat; (The more you eat, the more you'll get fat). A description of the formal and semantic characteristics of the constructions under examination will be provided in order to investigate their functional boundaries and the relations they have both with each other and with the canonical conditional construction. Particular attention will be devoted to 'comparative' constructions, which still lack a systematic description concerning Italian. Finally, some interpretative hypotheses are presented

Modalità e dintorni in siciliano: status quaestionis e prospettive di ricerca

The paper proposes a review of studies on modality and modal encoding in Sicilian that takes into account both traditional dialectological works and those that have been concerned with investigating, in an in-depth and theoretically oriented manner, some specific areas of the modal domain. A collection of essays dedicated to the “surroundings” of modality, within which the peripheries of the category are explored, is also introduced here. In the surroundings of modality, its contiguity with other notional domains and its interactions with a variety of pragmatic domains are investigated by considering the studies of recent decades that have devoted increasing attention to these topics