Classification of the Romance Languages: Evolution of Motion-Based Periphrases as a New Criterion

Abstract

Classical Latin had only one periphrastic construction with a motion verb. In contrast, its modern descendents have developed a wide range of such periphrases. The present article examines this typological shift and demonstrates that the grammaticalization of motion-based periphrastic constructions can serve as a criterion for the classification of the Romance languages. The study also highlights the importance of the diachronic dimension by illustrating that to achieve a valid classification we need to take into account not only the starting and the final points (i.e., Latin and the modern Romance varieties) but the intermediate stages as well.

Keywords:

• classification
• grammaticalization
• motion verbs
• periphrases
• Romance languages