The system of pronouns of address in Madeira

Abstract

The system of forms and pronouns of address in European Portuguese presents great variation throughout the entire country. Although a tripartite and a bipartite paradigm exists in singular and plural, respectively, the dialect reality provides a more complex system that depends on geo and socio-linguistic factors. Despite the most recent studies on this phenomenon, there is little information about the actual usage of pronouns of address in the archipelagos. In this paper, I aim to pinpoint the current paradigm of pronouns of address in Madeira, by also establishing its geolinguistic, sociolinguistic, pragmatic and grammatical constraints, thanks to a quantitative corpus stemming from specific fieldwork. The main results show the elimination of vós as plural, the extension of vocês and its 3pl agreement pattern, as well as various pragmatic changes in progress regarding the conception of family and the spread of pragmatic solidarity.