Auxiliary tun in Texas German

Date

2015-08

Authors

Blevins, Margaret Marie

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Abstract

This report explores the functions of auxiliary tun ('to do') in Texas German over the past 40 years using data from Gilbert (1965, 1972), Guion (1996), and the Texas German Dialect Project (Boas et al. 2010). It also compares auxiliary tun's uses in present-day Texas German with its uses in German dialects spoken in the regions from which the original Texas German settlers emigrated. The findings in this report suggest that auxiliary tun in present-day Texas German is used in many of the ways that it is used in Low and West Central German dialects. The broad use of auxiliary tun in Texas German could be due to the wide variety of uses of auxiliary tun in its donor dialects. Auxiliary tun's widespread usage may also indicate that Texas German is replacing synthetic with analytic forms as part of language death. The observations in this report can further our understanding of the functions of auxiliary tun in present-day Texas German and contribute to our understanding of language decay and language change within speech islands.

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