Bridging contexts in semantic change
The EXREAN project is the first of its kind to systematically examine reanalysis and actualization processes in a laboratory setting. It brings together and integrates insights from historical linguistics, psycholinguistics, and social psychology. Specifically, Rosemeyer and his team want to demonstrate the necessity of defining reanalysis as both a cognitive and a social process. The researchers will be investigating whether certain linguistic contexts are necessary for reanalysis to occur and the extent to which social familiarity between the speakers encourages reanalysis. “The results of the project will also enable us to draw conclusions as to why individual grammars developed differently,” says Rosemeyer. In doing so, EXREAN will contribute toward establishing a new historical linguistics that understands itself as a predictive science.
