Old English Case System

Kirsten Middeke, Ph.D. (2018), Freie Universität Berlin, is a postdoc at that university. She researches and teaches both synchronic and diachronic linguistics and is particularly interested in empirical methods for studying the semantics and evolution of grammatical constructions.

• List of Figures and TablesAbbreviationsAcknowledgements1 Introduction: And gefnǣs þone tōþ …1.1 Studying Old English Argument Structure from a Construction-Grammar Perspective1.2 The Lexicon Is Not Boring! Cognitive Historical Linguistics1.3 Objectives1.4 Organization1.5 Notes on the Text2 Not Balanced: The Database2.1 Corpora and Methods of Data Collection and Analysis2.2 The Verb as a Diagnostic for Constructional Meaning2.3 Doing Cognitive Linguistics with Historical Corpora3 Theoretical Preliminaries3.1 Constructions3.2 Valency3.3 Construal3.4 Semantic Roles3.5 Formalism4 Origins, Wholes, Stimuli—and Aspect? The Genitive4.1 Introduction: Genitivus is gestrȳnendlīc4.2 The Old English Genitive as a Family-Resemblance Category4.3 Functions of Arguments and Adjuncts in the Genitive4.4 Synthesis: The Functions of the Old English Genitive5 Place, Time and Manner: The Instrumental5.1 Introduction: A Case or Not a Case Any More?5.2 The Old English Instrumental: Forms and History5.3 Distributional Analysis: Frequencies and Collexemes5.4 Fixed Formulae or Productive Pattern?5.5 Factors Influencing the Frequency of the Instrumental5.6 The Semantic Networks of the Instrumental5.7 Synthesis: The Functions of the Old English Instrumental6 Recipients and Addressees, Beneficiaries and Experiencers: The Dative6.1 Introduction: Dativus is forgyfendlīc6.2 Functions of Arguments and Adjuncts in the Dative6.3 Functions of Datives with Nouns and Adjectives6.4 Formally Assigned Datives6.5 Synthesis: The Functions of the Old English Dative7 Patients, Targets, Direct Objects? The Accusative7.1 Introduction7.2 Functions of Arguments and Adjuncts in the Accusative7.3 Discussion: The Accusative in Semantic Space7.4 Evaluation: Semantic and Syntactic Case?7.5 Synthesis: The Functions of the Old English Accusative8 Affectees: Oblique Case and Impersonal Constructions8.1 Introduction: Impersonal Constructions Are Not Quirky!8.2 Old English Impersonal Clause Patterns and their Associated Event Types8.3 Discussion: How many Impersonal Constructions are there, and where do they Come from?8.4 Synthesis: The Functions of the Old English Oblique Affectee Constructions9 Agent, Topic, Subject? The Nominative9.1 Introduction: The Case of the Subject?9.2 Functions of Arguments in the Nominative9.3 Functions of hit and þæt9.4 Synthesis: The Functions of the Old English Nominative10 Synthesis and Theoretical Implications10.1 Introduction10.2 Construction Grammar: Case Constructions and Argument Structure Constructions10.3 Valency: Verbs and Argument Structures, Integration and Coercion10.4 The Construct-i-con: Contextual Neutralization, Constructional Synonymy and Co-extensive Categories10.5 Conclusion: A Construction Grammar Approach to Old English Argument StructureAppendix to Chapter 4Appendix to Chapter 5Appendix to Chapter 6Appendix to Chapter 8ReferencesIndex