The pre-verbal i- in Early Middle English: An analysis of the formal parameters of the prefixed verbs
Loading...
Date
2007
Authors
Advisor
Editor
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Adam Mickiewicz University
Title alternative
Abstract
In contrast to the majority of works on the pre-verbal i-/y- in Middle English which usually attempt
to explain the loss of the prefix, the present study focuses on the formal traits of the prefixed
verbs. The intended aim of the study is to ascertain whether in the early Middle English
period verbs had to meet any formal criteria for the use of the prefix. The linguistic data collected
from seven prose texts composed at the beginning of the thirteenth century in West Midlands
show that the morphological status of the EME i- extends beyond that of the preterite participle
marker. The morphological dualism of the prefix – often blurred by its opaque semantics – becomes
even more evident in a comparative analysis of the verbs taking the pre-verbal ge- in Modern
Dutch and German with those preceded by i- in Early Middle English.
Description
Sponsor
Keywords
Citation
Studia Anglica Posnaniensia, vol. 43 (2007), pp. 141-166
Seria
ISBN
ISSN
0081-6272