A Construction Grammar approach to WEs: now available online
On 11 and 12 May 2015 Professors Alexander Bergs, from the University of Osnabrück, and Thomas Hoffmann (Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt) gave a 12-hour seminar on Language Variation and Change in Construction Grammar at the Univesity of Vigo.
Prof. Hoffmann illustrated with great detail how Construction Grammar accounts for language variation and change in present-day English in combination with other domain-general cognitive principles such as end-weight, animacy and information structure. He applied Construction Theory to variation in present-day English, paying special attention to world-wide varieties of English derived from contact-language situations, such as pidgins, creoles, and L2 varieties of English. Prof. Thomas explained the different types of language contact scenarios and profiled the role of constructions in Schneider’s (2003, 2007) Dynamic Model of the evolution of Englishes.
Seminar avalable at http://tv.uvigo.es/serial/index?id=2363