Grammaticalization Of Probability-Epistemic Modals In Chinese

Guided by grammaticalization theories, this thesis investigates the grammaticalization of probability-epistemic modal verbs in Chinese. It first probes diachronically into the grammaticalization of probability-epistemic modal verbs in Chinese and suggests that all the probability-epistemic modals in Modern Chinese follow the grammaticalization cline: lexical item > weak obligation modal > probability modal. Mechanisms involved are emphasized by investigating the local contexts and semantic suitability in the grammaticalization of each modal. In order to fully reflect the diachronic changes, the thesis also studies other weak obligation modals, which were not grammaticalized into probability-epistemic modal verbs, or, which had been grammaticalized into probability-epistemic modal verbs but fell out of use in Modern Chinese, and provides accounts for the incomplete grammaticalization path or the discard of probability sense. Second, the thesis probes into the question about how to determine the relative degrees of grammaticalization synchronically. Parameters brought forward by Lehmann are tested and all except one are proved to be either inapplicable or violated in cases including the present one. Some common constructions in Chinese are found to be of the function of determining the relative degrees of grammaticalization in Chinese. The applicability of these constructions in the present case and in some other cases in Chinese proves that these constructions can work as criteria to determine the degrees of grammaticalization in Chinese, which may be helpful for more inclusive and systematic framework. Finally, typological evidence from English, Baluchi and Greek proves that the grammaticalization cline proposed in Chinese from weak obligation modality to probability modality also applies in some other languages, and these two modalities are conceptually closely related.