The Evolution of the Slavic Dual: A Biolinguistic Perspective

(Hardback)

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The dual number in Slavic has always puzzled linguists. In some Slavic languages, such as Russian, there is no dual number; there are only two categories of number, singular and plural. However, some Slavic languages, such as Slovenian, have three distinct categories of number: singular (1); dual (2); and plural (3 or more). Considering that all Slavic languages have evolved from a common Proto Slavic language, it is puzzling that there is such a difference in the category of number. In The Evolution of the Slavic Dual: A Biolinguistic Perspective, Tatyana G. Slobodchikoff explains the evolution of the category of number in Slavic languages. With the aid of tools from biolinguistics, Slobodchikoff develops a new theory of morphosyntactic feature economy within the distributed morphology framework. This is the first study to use a biolinguistic approach to the evolution of Slavic languages. Using newly digitized corpora of Old East Slavic, Old Slovenian, and Old Sorbian manuscripts spanning from the eleventh century through the present time, this book presents a complete analysis of the evolution of dual number in Slavic languages.

Reviews

There have already been multiple contributions to questions dealing with the category of dual in Slavic, and it is indeed difficult to say something new in this area of Slavic studies. However, using the principle of Morphosyntactic Feature Economy as the theoretical framework, Tatyana G. Slobodchikoff has succeeded in reaching insightful conclusions concerning the development of the Slavic dual. This monograph will prove indispensable for those who are interested in the evolution of the grammatical category of number in Slavic and beyond.

--Motoki Nomachi, Hokkaido University

Author Bio

Tatyana G. Slobodchikoff is lecturer of English at Troy University.