| Abstract [eng] |
The dissertation employs a cognitive grammar approach to analyze the referentiality of noun phrases and the way definiteness is marked in Late Latin, Romanian, and Italian languages. It operates on the premise that the meanings (types) of any grammatical category, including definiteness, are universally configured. This configuration can serve as a tertium comparationis for examining definiteness markers across various languages. The study introduces a new relational type of definiteness and refines the understanding of the modificative type (previously termed cataphoric in literature). The research suggests that Late Latin may have used a definiteness marker typologically similar to the Lithuanian articloid, often represented by the demonstrative pronouns ille and ipse. However, their frequent usage in the text Itinerarium Egeriae is more indicative of stylistic choices rather than definiteness marking. In both Romanian and Italian, despite their morphological differences in expressing definiteness, the employment of definite and indefinite articles marks the same types of definiteness. The variation in using these articles in the two languages stems not from their distribution but from how nouns are interpreted in terms of definiteness in specific constructions. |
