Relative Clauses in Private Letters Written in Australia from 1788 to 1900: A Sociolinguistic Approach

Ignacio Calle Rubio

Relative Clauses in Private Letters Written in Australia from 1788 to 1900: A Sociolinguistic Approach

Calle-Rubio, Ignacio ^[1]
1. [1] Universidad Complutense de Madrid
  
  Universidad Complutense de Madrid
  
  Madrid, España
Localización: Revista de Filología de la Universidad de La Laguna, ISSN 0212-4130, Nº 51, 2025, págs. 129-154
Idioma: inglés
DOI: 10.25145/j.refiull.2025.51.06
Títulos paralelos:
- Oraciones de relativo en cartas privadas escritas en Australia desde 1788 a 1900: un enfoque sociolingüístico
Enlaces
- Texto completo (pdf)
Resumen
- español
  El presente artículo analiza la distribución de estrategias de relativización marcadas (wh-) y no marcadas (that y zero) en cartas escritas en Australia entre 1788 y 1900. Las variables que se han considerado para determinar la selección de tales estrategias incluyen: nacionalidad, género, estatus, período, función sintáctica y animacidad del antecedente. Según los resultados, los relativos wh- son más frecuentes, aunque la posibilidad de utilizar partículas no marcadas aumenta a lo largo del siglo. Además, se ha demostrado que el estatus y el período son dos variables que influyen en la elección y, por el contrario, se determinó que el género y la nacionalidad no influyen. Finalmente, la posición sintáctica y la animicidad del antecedente también afectan a la estrategia utilizada en un contexto sintáctico específico.
- English
  This paper explores the distribution of marked and unmarked relativisation strategies in letters written in Australia from 1788 to 1900. The variables that have been considered to determine the selection of such strategies include: nationality, gender, status, period, syntactic function and animacy of the antecedent. According to the results, wh-relatives were more prevalent, although the possibility to use unmarked particles increases throughout the century. Furthermore, status and period are proven to be two variables that influence the choice of some markers and, by contrast, gender and nationality were determined not to have played a role. Finally, syntactic position and animacy of the antecedent also affect the relative marker utilised in a specific slot.
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