This paper investigates the grammatical and semantic-pragmatic features of the sentence-final particle de in the Wuhan dialect. The study reveals two distinctive usages of de in the Wuhan dialect that differ from Standard Mandarin: First, the confirmative de in the Wuhan dialect exhibits a broader functional scope, serving both to affirm the truthfulness of a proposition and to verify the occurrence of past events. Second, de can function as a tense marker, indicating either the immediate future or general future tense. The article also compares de with another sentence- final particle le in the Wuhan dialect, noting that although these particles permit interchangeable usage in certain contexts, they maintain distinct grammatical and pragmatic boundaries. Finally, employing the cartographic approach, the paper delineates the syntactic hierarchical relationships among different types of de in the Wuhan dialect.

This paper investigates applicative constructions in Northwestern Chinese dialects and compares them with those found in Mandarin Chinese. As in Mandarin, the applicative marker in Northwestern Chinese dialects typically derives from the verb gěi ‘give’, which is suffixed to the verb and serves to increase verbal valency. When occurring with trivalent verbs of giving, however, the applicative marker is optional and does not give rise to a valency-increasing effect. Applicative constructions in different Northwestern Chinese dialects display both shared and dialect-specific properties. The semantic roles of applicative objects are mainly beneficiaries and recipients. Influenced by contact with minority languages, the word-order patterns of applicative constructions across dialects show both convergence and divergence, forming a continuum in their distribution. Overall, applicative constructions marked by the suffix gěi ‘give’ constitute a salient grammatical feature of Northwestern Chinese dialect grammar.

This paper concentrates on the function, syntactic category, and layer of the sentence-final de in the left periphery in the Changde dialect. The sentence-final de is analyzed as the head of FocP, whose specifier can be occupied by a contrastive focus introduced by shi or identified by the stress it bears. A general hierarchy of the left periphery in the Changde dialect is “S.AspP < de (FocP) < iForceP < SQP < AttP”.

It is widely assumed that yi ‘one’-CL-NP phrases in Mandarin are consistently interpreted as indefinite, whereas numeral phrases with numbers greater than one can receive definite interpretations. This paper challenges that assumption, arguing instead that Mandarin numeral phrases do not intrinsically encode distinct semantic properties. The observed contrast in definiteness between yi-CL-NP and num(>1)-CL-NP phrases, as well as the apparent restrictions on the anaphoric use of yi-CL-NP, are best explained in terms of their competition with bare nouns. Adopting the principle Minimize DP! (Patel-Grosz & Grosz 2017), this paper proposes that when a yi-CL-NP phrase and a bare noun denote the same entity, and no independent factor licenses the former, the syntactically and semantically simpler bare noun is obligatorily preferred in definite contexts.

This paper describes the sentence-final particle keh in declarative and interrogative sentences in Jinhua Wu dialect. In declaratives, keh exclusively occurs in verbal predicate clauses but is barred from nominal predicate clauses, typically conveying confirmatory assertion. In interrogatives, keh optionally appears under pragmatic conditions to reinforce interrogative force, signalling high response expectations of the speaker. The study further compares functions of sentence-final de- type particles across seven Wu dialects, revealing their robust functional development in all cases, with Jinhua dialect being particularly prominent. Specifically, keh exhibits syntactic obligatoriness in assertions of confirmation, and its functionality has historically expanded to yes-no questions, alternative questions, and tag questions, serving to strenthen interrogative force and heighten interactive expectations.

The present study focuses on the syntax of the sentence-final particle gaa3 in Cantonese from a cartographic perspective. Gaa3 can be observed in three distinct constructions (exclamative, declarative and interrogative) with respect to five different contexts (plain statement, simple information-seeking question, exclamation, warning, and quick-answer-demanding question). By examining the grammatical properties and interpretations of each gaa3, this paper offers a unified syntactic analysis for the different occurrences of gaa3. We argue that Tang’s (2020) framework can well account for the different occurrences of gaa3, which involve different underlying movements. This adds weight to the neo-perfomative approach which aims at syntacticizing properties of speech acts with a fine-grained hierarchy at the left periphery.

Based on a tri-domain perspective (content, epistemic, and speech-act), this paper examines the differentiation of “V qilai” in modern Chinese and the generative mechanism of its connective function. Corpus analysis reveals that “V qilai” exhibits a progressive differentiation across the three domains. In the content domain, it functions as a verb-complement structure, connecting actions syntactically through temporal sequences. In the epistemic domain, it serves as the initial component of the “V qilai AP” construction, establishing a perspectivized evaluative framework for supra-sentential inferential connection. In the speech-act domain, it acts as a discourse marker, organizing text through stance negotiation. The study shows that the three domains of “V qilai” form a continuum across three parametric systems: syntactic hierarchy (syntactic → supra-syntactic → textual), subjectivity (objective → subjective → intersubjective), and functional orientation (propositional → inferential → discursive). The connective function of “V qilai” results from the interaction of cognitive domain shifts, subjectivization, and syntactic regulation.

The plural markers in the Guanzhong dialect primarily fall into four categories: the de type, the xie type, the men type, and the huo type. These plural markers exhibit certain differences in terms of geographical distribution, scope of application, and semantic expression. Among them, the plural marker men has the widest geographical distribution, while the plural marker xie has the narrowest. The plural markers men, de, huo, huoli, and xiege can only be attached to human-referring nominal elements to denote plurality, whereas the plural marker xie is not subject to this restriction and can also be attached to non-human-referring nominal elements to indicate plurality. The plural markers huo, huoli, and xiege can only express ordinary plural, while the plural markers men and de can express both ordinary plural and associative plural. The plural marker xie, on the other hand, can express ordinary plural, associative plural, and similative plural. The divergent origins of these plural markers are the primary reason for these observed differences.

Interrogatives can be categorized into polar questions and constituent questions based on the dichotomy of question types. The former seeks confirmation of the proposition put forth, while the latter seeks information specifically targeted by the interrogative constituent. In the Hanzhong dialect of Shaanxi, “…ba” interrogatives can also be divided into two types: the confirmation-seeking polar question with ba and the information-seeking constituent question “VP ba”. By analyzing the nature of ba and the usage, syntactic, and semantic characteristics of “VP ba”, we argue that “VP ba” essentially belongs to the category of A-not-A questions. Since the fact that the Hanzhong dialect is spoken in the transitional zone between Zhongyuan Mandarin and Southwest Mandarin, “VP ba” is inevitably influenced by multiple internal and external factors of the language system. There are four stages in the evolution from A-not-A questions to polar questions. “VP ba” is at the third stage of the evolution chain.

In the Xinbeng cluster of Zhongyuan Mandarin, the archaic rushenɡ characters including a voiced obstruent are currently articulated as yɑnɡpinɡ, whereas the rushenɡ characters with a voiceless consonant or sonorant present diverse results. These encompass arbitrary amalgamation into either yinpinɡ or yɑnɡpinɡ, or even transition to qushenɡ, among other alternatives. This paper examines the contemporary tonal patterns of ancient rushenɡ in Zhongyuan Mandarin and Jianghuai Mandarin, spoken in Henan and Anhui provinces, focusing on the types, geographical distribution, and underlying causes of the merging of ancient tone rushenɡ with voiceless consonants and sonorants. The research contends that the Xinbeng cluster of Zhongyuan Mandarin in Anhui was historically a component of the Hongchao cluster of Jianghuai Mandarin. Subsequent to the elimination of the glottal stop at the conclusion of rushenɡ syllables, the tone transitioned to a high-level tone (55), ultimately converging into a tonal pattern akin to either yɑnɡpinɡ or qushenɡ, both of which exhibit comparable pitch contours.

The resultative construction in the Haikou Min dialect predominantly adopts the “Verb-Object-Complement (VOC)” pattern, which significantly differs from Mandarin and most of the other Chinese dialects. This paper conducts a systematic investigation on the syntactic and semantic features, the applied range, and the nature of this construction. It is found that the VOC construction in the Haikou Min imposes relatively few restrictions on the object and allows flexible expression of modality, and that the construction is under the process of evolution, from a serial verb construction to a resultative construction, on a continuum of grammaticalization. Through cross-linguistic comparison and geographical distribution analysis, this paper reveals that the VOC construction in the Haikou Min bears a high degree of similarity to that of the neighbouring Kam-Tai languages such as Lingao. Moreover, it is widely distributed across multiple languages/dialects on the Hainan Island, having become an areal grammatical feature. The study demonstrates that the VOC construction in the Haikou Min dialect mainly derives from intense language contact with the Lingao language. The prevalence of the VOC construction in the Hainan region is a result of feature diffusion induced by language contact, rather than a simple retention of the split resultative construction in Archaic Chinese.

The diachronic evolution of “V→S” of Chinese motion events has received great attention. However, there is still a controversy regarding whether “V→S” has been completed or not in Chinese history. This study advocates that Chinese motion event has finished the change of “V→S”, displaying a cyclical pattern of “V→E→S→(V)” (V being in parentheses indicates that Modern Chinese has not become a typical V-language). Adopting both qualitative and quantitative research methodology, this study follows the grammaticalization cline of the PATH verbs in Chinese and constructs a model of “The Cyclical Change of Chinese Motion Events”. To test the feasibility of the model, we conduct a quantitative study of the diachronic change of the PATH verb lai. This paper reveals that the transition of “V→S” had already been completed during the Song and Yuan dynasties, and since then Chinese tended to change from S-language to V-language. V-framed representations are tending to be predominant in Modern Chinese. The cyclical change in the lexicalization pattern of Chinese motion events is the result of the interaction between “clarity” and “economy”, and also the outcome of the influence of multiple factors, such as disyllabification, grammaticalization, and lexicalization. This study is a preliminary attempt to observe the evolution pattern of Chinese language from the perspective of “linguistic cycle”, which will stimulate deeper understandings of the Chinese typology and its diachronic changes.

The “A huqi A/A'” structure is a unique pattern in Chinese for expressing semantic intensification, persisting from the pre-Qin period to the present day. Based on a constructional perspective, this paper systematically examines its historical evolutionary trajectory. The study finds that the constructionalization of this structure began with the trans-layered juxtaposition of hu and qi in the ancient period. It progressed through the initial framing and reanalysis in the medieval period, the deepening of construction and expansion of productivity in the early modern period, culminating in the convergence of schemas, prominence of prototypes, and complete constructionalization in the modern period. The constructional meaning evolved from early state depiction to the intensification of subjective extreme quantity and emotional expression. The core features of this constructional system are: a three-tier hierarchy of construction types, strong solidification of constants, components primarily being relative qualitative adjectives, and the intensifying constructional meaning emerging through juxtaposition, contrast, comparison, and pragmatic inference. Reanalysis, analogical extension, and conventionalization are important mechanisms for its formation, while the dual expressive needs of “elegance” and “popularity” serve as its motivation. Its success mainly stems from the effective expansion of extreme quantity expression, and the rise of vernacular Chinese was the ultimate force driving its complete constructionalization. During the process of constructionalization, the constant huqi exhibits infix-like features in form, but its nature and function must be understood within the construction as a whole, and it can be regarded as a constructional infix marker. This paper argues that the constructional perspective can provide a new analytical approach to the study of Chinese infixes.

In certain dialects of Qinlong and Guanzhong subgroups of the Zhongyuan Mandarin in the border area of Shaanxi, Gansu, and Sichuan, the modern pronunciations of nasal finals of the shen and zhen groups and zeng, geng, and tong groups in Middle Chinese show an incomplete merger between front and back nasal rhymes and their coda values. This differs from the mainstream Qinlong and Guanzhong dialects as well as the dialects of Chuanqian subgroup of Southwest Mandarin with which they are in contact. This regional language phenomenon stems from the partial merger of the Guanzhong dialect rhymes under dialect contact and the re-differentiation of coda values in the Qinlong dialect. It can be regarded as a typical example of the contact-induced evolution of the three major types of nasal finals of shen, zhen, zeng, geng, and tong groups across Chinese dialects (non-merger, complete merger, and partial merger). In this evolution, the combination of front high unrounded vowels and front nasal codas has gained absolute dominance by maximally conforming to the principle of linguistic economy.

This article explores the impact on the Chinese language of three major historical language contacts, using the formation of jialai/jiaqu ‘come home/go home’ as a guiding thread. The foreign languages involved in these contacts shared the same typological profile - all were SOV languages with case-marking systems. Consequently, their overall influence on Chinese grammar progressively deepened in a particular evolutionary direction. Via the Silk Road, ancient Indian languages - first introduced to China via Chinese translations of Buddhist sutras - exerted a profound influence on Chinese. Many syntactic features that later became characteristic of Chinese had already begun to emerge in these Buddhist translations, and were often more prominent than in contemporaneous native Chinese writings. Jialai/Jiaqu appeared only sporadically after the second contact, increased gradually during the third contact, and eventually became integrated into the common Chinese language. The emergence of jialai/jiaqu was subject to interference from postpositional locative words, which were themselves influenced by case marking in the contact languages. Once external influence waned, internal grammatical pressures within Chinese suppressed the further expansion of postpositional constructions; only then did jialai/jiaqu come into being.

The de-type compound marker gezai in early Wu dialect literature has tense-aspect functions. Compared to zai, gezai cannot report hot news in on-site context. In narrative discourse, VP+gezai can only show non-main event line and cannot advance the event chain forward, whereas VP+zai has no such restriction. This distinction indicates different tense-aspect meanings encoded by gezai and zai. Gezai denotes the relative-past tense and expresses the completion of an event before the reference time, while zai denotes the meaning of “change of event” besides relative-past tense.

Xiang serves as an incipient proximative marker in the Xuzhou dialect. Compared with fully grammaticalized proximative markers, it exhibits a wider range of syntactic and semantic properties characteristic of the early stages of grammaticalization. Drawing on the synchronic syntactic differences of xiang across its diverse semantic functions, a more comprehensive grammaticalization pathway from desiderative verbs to proximative markers can be constructed, enabling a deeper exploration of the evolutionary mechanism underlying this grammaticalization. Previous studies on proximative markers have rarely addressed the following syntactic features of xiang: (1) When the subject is a human and xiang is followed by a dynamic non-volitional situation, a distinction arises between subject-oriented and speaker-oriented readings, with the former encoding the subject’s perception; (2) When the subject is a human and xiang is followed by a dynamic volitional situation, xiang can convey the proximative reading only in highly constrained contexts, and in most cases retains its core desiderative meaning. According to feature (1), it is clear that the grammaticalization of desiderative verbs commences with the functional expansion of xiang to subsequent verbs. Taken together, features (1) and (2) demonstrate that the polysemous stage - where desiderative and proximative readings co-occur - emerges after the proximative has developed, rather than immediately following the desiderative verb stage.

This study employs sociolinguistic methods to examine the use of erhua words in the spoken language of 205 Beijing residents. It is found that erhua words are still active in the daily conversations of contemporary Beijing residents, although with significant individual differences in usage. Age and education are important social factors influencing the use of erhua words. Females, teenagers, and students use fewer erhua words, and their expressions are relatively standardized. Over the past 40 years, the use of erhua words has experience a noticible decline, with some vulgar erhua words nearly disappearing. Additionally, interpersonal differences in usage have also significantly decreased. However, the standardization of language use and the positive attitude of Beijing residents towards erhua words still ensure its continued use.

Echo reduplication is widely used in the Altaiс language family. Based on data from 40 Altaiс languages, this paper provides the first comprehensive analysis of its forms and functions. The forms are categorized into three types: C-type (consonant replacement), V-type (vowel alternation), and CV-type (initial syllable modification), among which C-type is the most common and exhibits different patterns depending on whether the base form begins with m-. Its primary function is to express similarity or plurality, which has extended to convey negative evaluative meanings, and it can be used across different word classes. Drawing on internal and external linguistic evidence, this paper hypothesizes that echo reduplication initially emerged in the Turkic branch and was subsequently borrowed into the Mongolic and Tungusic branches through language contact.

From the perspective of language contact, the current research adopts corpus method to examine whether Chinese plural marking of Chinese-English bilingual children is influenced by English. The results show that unlike Mandarin speakers from Gan-Qing areas and Mandarin learners, the Chinese plural marking in bilingual children is almost not influenced by English. This is because at the age of 1-4, children have not yet acquired the rule of adding plural affixes to nouns to indicate plurality, but instead have acquire words as whole lexical items. The current study also compares the expression of plurality in Ganqing Mandarin, Jin Chinese, Southwestern Mandarin, Mandarin as a second language, and Chinese in Chinese-English bilingual children, further revealing the micro-level changes that have occurred in Chinese spoken in Ganqing area during its contact with Altaic languages.

The causative verb zhuo in early modern Chinese has experienced a process of “to place>to use>to cause”. The change of “to place>to use” is semantically resulted from the metonymy. And semantic metaphor and syntactic reanalysis are involved in the change of “to use>to cause”. The latter change is quite typical in ancient Chinese, which can also be seen from shi in archaic Chinese, qian in medieval Chinese, and shi in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Evidence of dialects and typology demonstrates the relationship between semantic categories of instrumental and causative as well. The causative verb zhuo appeared in the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, developed in the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties, and declined quickly in the Qing Dynasty.

Through the analysis of dialect materials from the Tang and Song dynasties, the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the modern era in Northwest China, it is found that in the northwest dialects during the Tang Dynasty and the Song Dynasties, the de, mai, mo-II rhymes (three Middle Chinese rhyme categories) had already been merged, with the main vowel being [e]. In a few cases, [e] was raised to [i], which led to the merger with the zhi, xi, xi rhymes (three Middle Chinese rhyme categories). During the Western Xia period, after these vowels reached the highest degree of raising, they began to undergo breaking, following the pattern of e > i > iə > ie. Such phonetic changes continued and developed in the Lanyin Mandarin of the Ming and Qing dynasties and in the modern Jin dialect. From the perspective of the identity and difference of phonetic changes, this characteristic of the Northwest Chinese dialects is of a cognate nature, not a result of contact-induced convergence. Under the influence of the Central Plains Mandarin, this phonetic change in the northwest dialects gradually retreated. Nowadays, it is only limited to the Jin dialect and the Lanyin Mandarin, mostly involving labial initial characters, and shows a declining trend. Rounded syllables do not participate in this phonetic change, and the phonetic changes of yangsheng rhymes and rusheng rhymes are not synchronized.

By employing conceptual tools such as generalized quantity, upper/lower bound, and quasi-relation operation, this paper reinterprets the semantic functions of the adverbs cai and jiu: (1) Cai can associate with components on both sides or with right-side components, uniformly indicating “narrow reachability” - i.e., “the (left-side two-order) quantity quasi-relationally is less than or equal to (barely reaching) the right-side two-order quantity.” (2) Jiu is divided into jiu_a and jiu_b. Jiu_a is stressed and cannot be replaced by bian, associating solely with right-side components. It indicates “limitation”, meaning “the quantity quasi-relationally is less than or equal to (not exceeding) the right-side two-order quantity”. While sharing similarities with cai, it differs in that jiu_a tends to be static, whereas cai is dynamic. Jiu_b is unstressed and can be replaced by bian, associating with components on both sides. It indicates “easy accessibility” - i.e., “the left-side two-order quantity quasi-relationally is greater than or equal to (easily reaching) the right-side two-order quantity,” standing largely in opposition to cai and jiu_a.

There is a unique AAAA pattern in Hakka dialects. It is generated through quadruplication of a monosyllabic word (or morpheme), with tonal variation involving rises and falls in pitch. Such forms are typically used as adjectives that are characterized by vividness and emphasis. Comparative analysis shows that the tonal variation is not necessarily linked to tonal categories, but is related to tonal types. Combinations of suprasegmental features such as pitch and duration have solidified into prosodic patterns in Hakka dialects. With the expansion of the semantic range and the influence of analogical processes, AAAA words undergo lexicalization and become prosodic words. Subsequently, some verbs and a few adjectives enter this prosodic structure, and through quadruplication, they develop into adjectives that imitate the situation. While retaining some of the original semantic features of the base form A, the AAAA pattern acquires additional semantic properties, including [+imitative (including onomatopoeic)], [+dynamic], [+continuous process], and [+intensified degree]. AAAA patterns in Mandarin and other Chinese dialects serve as morphological devices. In contrast, they function as word-formation mechanisms in Hakka dialects.

This article explores the phonology of the dialect spoken in the Ailing area of Yangzhou during the Qing Dynasty, based on the analysis of a newly discovered dialectal rhyme dictionary. Building upon this historical foundation, modern dialect materials are employed to systematically trace the phonological evolution of the Ailing dialect since the Qing Dynasty. The results reveal that over the past century, the evolution of Ailing dialect is intricate, encompassing changes driven by both internal and external factors. Internal factors encompass phenomena such as *ɻ>l/__Hongyin, *ɻ>∅/i___, *ɻ>∅/i____,*ts^ʰ、s>tɕ^ʰ、ɕ/i____,*iʔ>ieʔ. External factors, conversely, account for phenomena such as the loss of aspiration in voiced initials with the oblique tone, alterations in the pronunciation of colloquial and literary readings of Division-Ⅲ rhymes within the Jia (假) rhyme group, the disappearance of the colloquial pronunciation of Division-Ⅰ nasal coda rhymes in the Xian and Shan rhyme groups, and the reclassification of shangsheng tone with voiced initials into qusheng tone. Particularly noteworthy is the evolution of the dialect in the Ailing area, which has undergone a transition from the Tairu dialect region to the Hongchao dialect region.

Hang and me in the Wenshui (Hulan) dialect in Shanxi Province have many commonalities in syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. However, there are also obvious differences in expression function. Hang and me belong to the typical subjective evaluative morphology and are related to the subjective quantity, which is the relevant motivation behind the commonality of the two. Hang belongs to the subjective decrement and me belongs to the subjective increment, which lead to the difference in usage between the two.

The modern Chinese sentence-final particle na has two origins: first, it derives from a phonetic change of a when the preceding word has an “-n” coda, denoted as na₁; second, it originates from the syllabic fusion of the sentence-final particles ne and a, denoted as na₂. Drawing on a series of Ho-Kian Fu dialect documents compiled by late Qing missionaries, and supplemented by Beijing dialect documents and contemporary Hebei dialect data, this study demonstrates from multiple perspectives the existence of the consecutive use of the sentence-final particles ne and a, thereby substantiating the plausibility of the syllabic fusion theory for na₂. After ne a fused into na₂, the mood expressed by na₂ has also developed from superimposed mood to composite mood. Specifically, in non-interrogative sentences, na₂ conveys a strong reminding mood; in interrogative sentences, it conveys a mitigated pragmatic force of reminder and inquiry (in information-seeking questions), or the speaker’s critical or reproachful stance (in rhetorical questions). Owing to its multifunctionality and high frequency, na₂ likely exerted an assimilative effect on na₁, which is homonymous and occupies the same syntactic position. This ultimately led to the merger of this portion of na₁ with na₂, together constituting the sentence-final particle na in modern Chinese.

The issue of how lexical words become coordinating conjunctions through grammaticalization has always interested scholars in linguistic typology, and, in recent years, many have examined the universal patterns of conjunction grammaticalization using cross-linguistic comparisons. This study is based on fieldwork from 2010 to 2025 and covers 1,533 coordinating conjunctions drawn from 426 languages and 367 Chinese dialects along the Silk Road, aiming to analyze their grammatical features and grammaticalization pathways. Two main findings are reported. (1) The grammaticalization pathways of coordinating conjunctions in Silk Road languages can be divided into “co-agent type” - which tends to link animate nouns - and “co-patient type” - which tends to combine inanimate nouns. (2) Many conjunctions in these languages are homophonous with numerals, leading to two subtypes: one where “and” corresponds to the numeral “one” (such as Georgian -dan ertad, Uyghur bilan), and the other where “and” aligns with the numeral “two” (such as Dongxiang guala in Gansu and Qinghai, and lia, liangge in some Mandarin dialects of the area). This research demonstrates the diversity of conjunctions in Silk Road languages, supplying important data and fresh insight for typological studies.

The particle [kɤ] (including its phonetic variants) is widely used as structural particles in southeastern Chinese dialects, showing a remarkable areal feature. [kɔ³³] in Yangchun Cantonese in western Guangdong can be used as classifier, demonstrative, structural particle, and sentence-final particle synchronically. In the construction “subject+copula+VP+[kɔ³³]+NP”, [kɔ³³] can be interpreted either as a structural particle or a sentence-final particle with the omission of the head NP. It has been conventionalized as a dedicated sentence-final particle eventually. Comparison with the other Chinese dialects and several non-Chinese languages in southeastern China indicates that allowing the omission of the head NP in the construction “subject+copula+VP+[kɤ]+NP” is the necessary but not sufficient condition for the formation of the sentence-final usage of [kɤ] as structural particles.

In the Xinjiang Jimusar Chinese dialect, the probability adverb haohao is placed before negative adverbs and the negative forms of the potential verb-complement construcitions, weakening the degree of negation. Similarly, the adverb shen in the Jimusar Chinese dialect can be employed as both a probability adverb and a degree adverb. Its function as a probability adverb can be attributed to the subsequent evolution of its usage as a degree adverb. It is hypothesized that the probability adverb haohao may have emerged through the following path: the degree adverb hao was placed berore the negative structure, then overlapped and underwent an evolutionary process parallel to that of shen. The evolution of henhen in the Donggan language provides evidence for the evolution of haohao.

Shaohan Su, a native of Kunming, revised the National Phonetic Alphabet system in his work Yuanlai Ruci by removing duplicate letters, clarifying the pronunciation of confusing letters, supplementing missing letters, and reconstructing the notation system. He reanalyzed the phonetic system using a rime table format with the newly formulated National Phonetic Alphabet to mark initials and finals. Comparison with the modern Kunming dialect shows that the book records the Kunming dialect of the 1920s. The revisions proposed in Yuanlai Ruci are grounded in the Kunming dialect, showcasing how scholars in regional dialect areas, inspired by the National Language Movement in the early Republic of China, actively explored using phonetic symbols to document living speech. The work ingeniously integrates phonetic notation with the traditional method of combining initials and finals in rime tables, a system with origins in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties. This book illuminates the intergenerational connections among rime table theories, phonetic and orthographic reform ideas of the late Qing Dynasty, and the National Phonetic Alphabet Movement. It also serves as a precious historical document for studying Kunming dialect phonology one hundred years ago.

In the Jiyuan dialect, the word lia ‘two’ may follow two or more elements linked by gei ‘and, with’, forming the frame “…gei…lia”. The connected elements can be nouns, verbs, pronouns, adjectives, or nominal and verbal phrases. The study finds that the grammatical function of lia is closely related to its phonetic form: when pronounced with its original tone [lia⁵¹], lia carries a concrete meaning of “two”, and the syntactic structure is […gei […lia]]; when pronounced as [lia²¹], its meaning becomes grammaticalized, with lia referring back to the entire phrase as a comitative case marker, and the syntactic structure is [[…gei…] lia]. The comitative case marker lia in the Jiyuan dialect is a result of contact with the Mongolian language, replicating the grammatical evolution path of Mongolian: “dual number > comitative case”. The grammaticalization path of the postposition liangge (lia) in Chinese dialects evolves from the concrete meaning of “two” to a comitative case marker, then to an expanded dual number marker, and ultimately to a redundant element with its grammatical function fully dissolved.

This paper provides a systematic analysis of the syntactic structure of the “NP₁ + V + you ‘have’ + NP₂” construction in the Jiyuan dialect, examining the grammatical functions of you ‘have’ and exploring its grammaticalization process and conditions. The research findings are as follows: (1) You ‘have’ serves multiple functions, including possession, existence, completion-persistence, and focus marking, forming a continuum that ranges from “spatial existence” to “temporal completion”. (2) It has undergone an evolution characterized by a progression from “possession > existence > completion-persistence > focus marking”. (3) In comparison to Mandarin, high transitive verbs such as duo ‘chop’, chi ‘eat’, and you ‘swim’ can freely enter this construction in the Jiyuan dialect. Additionally, the role of “NP₁” has expanded from locative expressions to include agent subjects. (4) The grammaticalization of you ‘have’ is influenced by several factors: the reduction of verb reduplication prompts a reanalysis of the structure (V^D + you ‘have’ →V⁰ + you ‘have’), semantic appropriateness facilitates its transition from spatial contexts to temporal ones, and frequent usage accelerates its grammaticalization process. The multifunctionality of you ‘have’ in the Jiyuan dialect illustrates its evolutionary trajectory from being spatially driven to temporally driven.

There is a sentence-final particle [kəʔ] that expresses realis existence in Haimen dialect. The nature of the particle differs from the focal marker [kəʔ] and the modal particle [kəʔ]. Depending on the semantic type of the predicate, [kəʔ] can be divided into three forms: [kəʔ]_past, which expresses the existence of past events, [kəʔ]_static, which indicates the existence of static states, and [kəʔ]_habitual, which denotes the existence of habitual events. All three forms are used obligatorily. Notably, [kəʔ]_habitual can appear in negative sentences, while [kəʔ]_past and [kəʔ]_static cannot. Functionally, all three forms encode the “existence” aspect, with [kəʔ]_past also indicating past tense and [kəʔ]_static conveying an affirmative tone. The sentence-final particle [kəʔ] in Haimen dialect demonstrates that the sentence-final particle ge in Wu dialect has a tense-aspect function.

We discuss a method of identifying verbal classifiers in archaic and early medieval Chinese based on the analysis of two groups of words: zā, zhuàng, bèi and fā, hé, xíng. We point out that the task of identifying verbal classifiers is to decide whether X in the sequence “Verb (+Obj) + Numeral + X” is a verbal classifier. We provide the syntactic structure of the sequence when X is a noun, a nominal classifier, a verb, or a verbal classifier respectively as the basis for deciding the grammatic identity of X. In contrast to previous work that views the two groups of words as verbal classifiers, we argue that the first group should be identified as nouns and the second group should be identified as verbs to better account for their distributions. Based on the analyses of the two groups of words, we suggest that one should rely on syntactic analysis instead of semantic interpretation of the sequence above to decide whether X is a verbal classifier.

This paper uses Teochew loanwords from Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia (recorded in Teochew dialect documents) as research material. By comparing syllable structure differences among overseas Teochew, Thai, Vietnamese, and Malay, it analyzes the selection mechanism adopted by consonants and vowels in different syllable positions during language contact, and summarizes the transformation rules and transliteration strategies of loanwords. The study finds that: (1) In Southeast Asian Teochew, loanwords are incorporated through syllable matching based on relative phonological similarity. (2) The phonological inventory and inventorial syllables of Teochew play a key role in the transliteration of loanwords. (3) Over the past century, the direction of phonetic evolution in Teochew has remained consistent both at home and abroad, reflecting frequent communication among Teochew communities worldwide.

The coordinative converb and the juxtaposed conjunction in Tongren Bonan language of Qinghai share the same form, ʥi, which can link VPs, NPs, clauses, and complex sentences. The coordinative converb -ʥi is a common form in Mongolic languages, but the juxtaposed conjunction ʥi did not arise through anti-grammaticalization of the converb. Rather, it developed through the deletion of ɡə from ɡəʥi, where ɡə is a verbalizer marker and ʥi a coordinative converb. ɡəʥi has long been used to construct juxtapositions of nominal derivative verbs, which, influenced by conjunction structures of local Amdo Tibetan, caused confusion over the nature of the juxtaposed constituents and the occurrence of reanalysis. The emergence of coordinate conjunctions has led to a transformation of the entire coordination type of Tongren Bonan, shifting it from a WITH-type language to an AND-type language.

The adverb guozhen carries an independent syntactic function. It deals with the relationship between the preceding information and the current sentence, whose core meaning is “the aforementioned information has been verified”. The semantic structure of guozhen includes three parts: the information to be verified, the act of verification, and the result of verification, which reflect respectively the speaker’s epistemic stance of uncertainty, intention to seek verification, and acceptance of the verified result. The information state therefore changes from unverified to verified. The difference between guozhen and guoran lies mainly in the speaker’s attitude and the semantic functions they perform. With guozhen, speakers tend to take a skeptical stance, intending to verify the preceding information. With guoran, speakers often assume a believing stance, and the subsequent propositions typically support the preceding information. In some discourses, the speaker’s attitude may be omitted and their stance is unknown, making guozhen and guoran interchangeable. However, the semantic structures they activate remain different.

This paper investigates sluicing-like constructions (SCs) in Mandarin, Mongolian, and Uyghur, contributing to ongoing debates concerning the nature of anaphoric elements in SCs. Through a comparative analysis, we challenge existing diagnostics for distinguishing between surface and deep anaphora, which draws on the availability of “sloppy” identity readings (contra Wang & Wu 2006) or on the c-command condition on such readings (contra Wei 2009). We expand the current discussion by considering the availability mix “sloppy” readings as a diagnostic test and its correlation with (anti-)case-matching effects and facts about extraction from SCs. Our findings suggest that SCs in Mandarin and Uyghur involve deep anaphora, while SCs in Mongolian exhibit characteristics of surface anaphora. This research offers new insights into the typology of anaphora in SCs.