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Doctoral Project by Zilun Zhi

From First-Named Entities to Information Structure in Hittite Narratives: A Discourse-pragmatic Investigation of Hittite Syntax

The interaction between discourse pragmatics and syntax is a central issue in contemporary functional grammar. Although discourse pragmatics is a grammatical component in its own right, it plays a crucial role in the interface between syntax and semantics. Hittite, as one of the earliest attested Indo-European languages, illustrates this interplay, with certain syntactic positions being pragmatically motivated, especially with regard to information structure.

My dissertation examines Hittite narrative texts that contain rich information about time, place, participants, events and the author's perspective and are organized in specific structural patterns. These texts provide an excellent basis for exploring the interface between discourse pragmatics and syntax.

Based on the description and analysis of the variety and preferences of the former entities in terms of their form and syntactic position in Hittite narratives, this study investigates the pragmatic status of these discourse referents and analyzes the relationships between information units with an emphasis on topic and focus structures. Furthermore, discourse-related meanings are not only conveyed syntactically, but also through morphology and lexical choices. Where relevant, stylistic and diachronic dimensions are included in the analysis.