From Exclamation to Subjective Large Quantity——The Evolution of"NP zhi(之)VP"Structure in Southwestern Mandarin
With a case study of Hongya(洪雅)dialect in Sichuan(四川)province,this paper intends to discuss the semantic evolution of constructions with ts(η)(之)in southwestern mandarin.It points out that the special ts(η)(之)is not derived from demonstrative,but from pragmatic inference of"NP zhi(之)VP"structure as an independent sentence under the condition of exclamatory mood.The pragmatic meaning of"NP zhi(之)VP"structure is mismatched to ts(η)(之),and thusts(η)(之)is reinterpreted as expressing subjective large quantity.The cognitive process of the evolution is context-induced metonymy from the act of exclamation to the cause of exclamation.
Hongya(洪雅)dialectts(η)(之)"NP zhi(之)VP"ExclamationSubjective large quantityPragmatic inference