From theme to rheme: The evolution of causal conjunctions of temporal origin in Catalan

2017

AbstractWe trace the evolution of two causal conjunctions of temporal origin in Catalan,pus (que)‘since’ (laterpuix (que)), which ultimately derives from Latinpost‘after,’ andja que‘since,’ ultimately fromiam‘already.’ We focus on the different causal meanings that these connectors may express at different stages. The analysis of our Catalan corpus, which spans from the 13th to the 20th century, reveals a clear diachronic tendency for clauses headed by these conjunctions to be increasingly more frequently placed after the main clause. Given the expected correlation between clausal order and pragmatic function, we interpret these facts as showing that the thematic usage of clauses (primarily…