On the markedness of tense-aspect stems in Classical Armenian

Abstract

The paper offers a synchronic and diachronic account of markedness of the oppositional tense-aspect stems in Classical Armenian. The synchronic part explores the correspondence between markedness and productivity of verb classes as attested in the Armenian Bible translation, as well as the correspondence between markedness and token frequency of a selection of fifty most frequent verbs in the same text. The default pattern, characterized by an unmarked present and marked aorist stems, constitutes some two-thirds of the entire dataset but is less common in the most frequent verbs. By contrast, the two patterns with the unmarked aorist are significantly better represented and the token frequency of their aorist stems is typically higher for such verbs. This evidence is discussed in the context of a typological generalization predicting the lower markedness of more frequently used forms. An outlook on the historical grammar of Classical Armenian suggests that the attested system reflects a transition from aspect- to tense-oriented marking of stems.