The combination of words as a requirement for the emergence of grammar

The combination of words as a requirement for the emergence of grammar

• Grammar emerged when noun-type words were combined with verb-type words.
• Two possible ways by which nouns and verbs could have been combined:
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• 1. ‘build-up’-route
• 2. ‘re-analysis’ -route

The build-up route

• ....assumes that a large number of single words accumulated. These were words of different types, some involving things, others actions. At a later stage these words were combined.
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• e.g. child: “mummy open” as a request for “Mummy please open this”

The re-analysis route

• ...assumes that words, mainly nouns, were already being combined, but that sometimes more than one interpretation was possible
• e.g. the word ‘singsing’ in Tok Pisin (pidgin, Papua New Guinea)
• (singsing = any festival which involves dancing and singing)
• ð  “mi singsing” means “I went to the song and dance festival” or “I sang and danced”