Towards a complex analysis of Wayihî + T constructions in Biblical Hebrew
Date
2018
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Slovak Academic Press Ltd.
Abstract
This study analyses the complex behavioral profile of Biblical Hebrew constructions that are
formally characterized by the schematic sequence: wayhî + temporal expression (T) + a wayyiqtol
or qatal clause within the corpus of Genesis – 2 Chronicles. More specifically, this schema entails
the following construction types: 1) wayhî + T + wayyiqtol, 2) wayhî + T + (ו (+ X + qatal, and 3)
wayhî + T + qatal. In analyzing these constructions, this study utilizes a framework known as
Construction Grammar, in addition to other complementary frameworks that fall under the more
general rubric of Cognitive Linguistics. The constructions are analyzed according to the following
parameters: the formal and semantic profile of the temporal adjunct employed; the discourse
pragmatic function and distribution in discourse; and the TAM semantics of the wayyiqtol and
qatal verb forms. This empirical analysis reveals that, while sharing a prototypical discourse
function, these constructions differ with respect to their distribution in discourse. Moreover, this
study shows that the choice to use one construction over another is motivated by the simultaneous
interplay of several factors, among which the most relevant are: the morpho-syntactic and
semantic properties of the temporal adjuncts; the discourse pragmatic profile of each construction
type; the TAM properties of the verb; and the syntactic profile of the wayyiqtol and qatal clauses.
Overall, the behavior of the wayhî + T constructions epitomizes the complexity of Biblical
Hebrew, in particularly, the fuzziness of grammatical categories, their multilevel
interconnectivity, and dynamics.
Description
CITATION: Westbury, J. & Andrason, A. 2018. Towards a Complex Analysis of Wayihî + T constructions in Biblical Hebrew, Asian and African Studies, 27(1):50-79.
The original publication is available at http://orient.sav.sk/asian-and-african-studies
The original publication is available at http://orient.sav.sk/asian-and-african-studies
Keywords
Semitic languages, Construction grammar, Grammar, comparative and general, Grammaticalization, Discourse analysis, Semantics
Citation
Westbury, J. & Andrason, A. 2018. Towards a Complex Analysis of Wayihî + T constructions in Biblical Hebrew, Asian and African Studies, 27(1):50-79.