Lexical Common Ground Management: Particles in Processing and Diachronic Development (B01)

• Subject Area: General and Comparative Linguistics, Experimental Linguistics, Typology, Non-European Languages ; Individual Linguistics, Historical Linguistics
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 538184825

B1 addresses the question of how lexical CG management devices are put to use in non-default CG updates. In the first funding period, discourse particles and focus particles will be the phenomena under investigation. By combining data from experimental and diachronic studies, we will in particular test the hypothesis that (putative) unidirectional diachronic developments in pragmaticalization are fueled by processing advantages. Whether these devices play a role in perspective-taking is a further research question that will be addressed.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1718: Common Ground: Cognition - Grammar - Communication
• Applicant Institution: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen
• Project Heads: Professorin Dr. Katrin Axel-Tober; Professorin Dr. Britta Stolterfoht