SYNTACTIC CONSTRUCTIONS: SOURCES, PATHS, MEANS AND MECHANISM OF GRAMMATICALIZATION

Abstract

The article examines the phenomenon of grammaticalization on the material of syntactic constructions. The authors reveal the sources (linguistic means) of grammaticalization, their linguistic nature (causes of grammaticalization), determine the grammaticalization degree of each source; have formed a typology of sources for free and phraseologized syntactic constructions, have determined universal and unique sources; justified the allocation of syntactic sources proper. The paths of grammaticalization are described. Two means of grammaticalization have been established: the main one is the deactualization of the indicator, the secondary means is actualization. At the same time, both means lead to a generalization of lexical, grammatical and functional semantics, to decategorization or transcategorization of the language sign. Thus, we argue that in the field of syntactic constructions there is only one mechanism of grammaticalization - generalization / abstraction / expansion of the language sign meaning. We formulated the following definition of syntactic construction grammaticalization: grammaticalization of the compulsory unchangeable component of the fixed phrase scheme is the transition of a functional or notional lexeme (or a combination of lexemes) into a compulsory component of a phraseologized syntactic construction as a result of complete or partial deactualization of its lexical-morphological and syntactic meaning, i.e. the transition of language signs from the lexical-morphological sphere to the syntactic (syntaxization). The grammaticalization of the syntactic construction ultimately leads to the formation of a new linguistic tool (syntactic phraseological unit: a fixed model, fixed phrase scheme or fixed phrase) with new grammatical indicators, as well as a new way of representing both grammatical and dictum-modus (a fixed model, fixed phrase scheme) or only modus (fixed phrase) meaning.