Zusammenhang von Spracherwerb und Sprachwandel

Why and how does the phenomenon of language change occur? If all children were to fully acquire the grammar of their parents, the language would remain constant at different points in linguistic history. Historical language changes imply that children are capable of innovating the grammatical rule system of their mother tongue according to uniformly operating parameterization mechanisms. This work provides an introductory overview of the factors that contribute to linguistic innovations, comparing various language acquisition mechanisms. The main processes of language change are presented in the context of diachronic syntax. Subsequently, the spread of innovations among population groups is discussed, taking into account regularities, sociolinguistic, and political aspects. Building on this, a formal descriptive model that attempts to graphically represent the relationship between language acquisition and language change is explained in more detail. The book is a clearly written introduction to the topic, drawing on socio-, linguistic, and mathematical perspectives.