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Prepositions in Old and Middle English : a study of prepositional syntax and the semantics of at, in and on in some Old and Middle English texts

Prepositions in English grammars until 1801 : with a survey of the Western European background

The first part of this study presents a broad outline of the establishment of the parts of speech, with special emphasis on prepositions, in Ancient Greece, and of the further development in the Roman age, including the long shadow cast by Donatus and Priscian. It then examines the works of two of the most prominent members of the group of Speculative Grammarians in the High Middle Ages, and those of some of the leading grammar writers of the Renaissance. The central part of the book focuses on a detailed analysis of prepositions in fifty English grammatical treatises from Bullokar (1586) to Dalton (1801). Here the author not only scrutinises the individual grammatical texts, but by dealing with them in chronological order he also provides a historical perspective and hence a valuable overview of the treatment of prepositions as well as of word classes more generally during the first two centuries or so of English grammar writing. Taken together, these various aspects make this an important contribution to the history of linguistics.

Prepositions in Old and Middle English : a study of prepositional syntax and the semantics of at, in and on in some Old and Middle English texts

The present book covers various aspects of prepositional syntax between c. 900-1400, including case relations and the range of prepositional complements; it also examines word order, both within the PP and at clause level, and it explores changes in clausal word order. Furthermore, it provides a detailed semantic analysis of the three prepositions at, in and on in selected Old and Middle English texts, which shows to what extent the relative distribution of these prepositions changed during that period and how they gradually acquired new, extended senses. The front cover illustration renders the 895 entry of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Parker Ms., and has been reproduced with the permission of the Master and Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.The present book covers various aspects of prepositional syntax between c. 900-1400, including case relations and the range of prepositional complements; it also examines word order, both within the PP and at clause level, and it explores changes in clausal word order. Furthermore, it provides a detailed semantic analysis of the three prepositions at, in and on in selected Old and Middle English texts, which shows to what extent the relative distribution of these prepositions changed during that period and how they gradually acquired new, extended senses.The front cover illustration renders the 895 entry of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Parker Ms., and has been reproduced with the permission of the Master and Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.

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