It is widely accepted that Old English personal pronouns often turn up in ‘special’ positions, i.e. positions in which functionally equivalent nominals rarely, if ever, appear. Leading theories of Old English syntax (e.g. van Kemenade 1987, Pintzuk 1991, 1996, Hulk & van Kemenade 1997, Kroch & Taylor 1997) account for the syntax of specially placed pronouns in different ways, but all treat special placement as a freely available option. Focusing on pronominal objects of prepositions in particular, this thesis shows, firstly, that current theories fail to account for the variety of special positions in which these pronouns appear and argues that at least three special positions must be recognised. The central concern of this thesis, however, is whether special placement is the freely available option that leading theories assume. Drawing on evidence from a number of descriptive studies of the syntax of pronominal objects of prepositions (e.g. Wende 1915, Taylor 2008, Alcorn 2009), statistical evidence is presented to show that, in a number of contexts, the probability of special placement is either too high or else too low to be plausibly ascribed to free variation. The thesis explores the linguistic basis of each of the statistically significant parameters identified, finding answers in some cases and intriguing puzzles in others.

FundaÃÃo Cearense de Apoio ao Desenvolvimento Cientifico e TecnolÃgico / The present study analyzes the use of the imperative in the speech of Fortaleza, under the dome of Quantitative Sociolinguistics, using database NORPOFOR â Norma Oral do PortuguÃs Popular de Fortaleza, as a source of collection to the sample. The goal is to analyze the use of grammatical imperative in the speech of cearenseâs capital city, considering semantic and morphosyntactic motivation such as verbal conjugation, oblique pronouns position, polarity of sentence structure, semantic group and sentence verb as well as the ones of social nature like gender, education level and age range. Previous researches of Scherre (2007; 2005; 1999) and Cardoso (2009), which mention or directly work with data concerning Fortaleza, and Alves (2001), referring to JoÃo Pessoa, state of ParaÃba, indicate that subjunctive imperative finds in these speech communities a relatively significant percentage of use. The data of this research were put through GOLDVARB X software (SANKOFF; TAGLIAMONTE; SMITH, 2005), distributed among nine social and linguistic factor groups. The linguistic factor groups significantly selected by GOLDVARB X were verbal conjugation, polarity of the sentence structure and the oblique pronoun position, referring to the use of the subjunctive imperative variable. In general terms, the results revealed that imperative associated to indicative, with a 60% occurrence, was the most frequent form in the speech sample of Fortaleza. The subjunctive form showed 40% of use, opposing to our expectations, once we hoped that the imperative associated to this form should present higher frequency of use in the speech of the cearense capital. / O presente estudo analisa o uso do imperativo na fala de Fortaleza, à luz da SociolinguÃstica Quantitativa (WEINREICH; LABOV; HERZOG, 1968), utilizando como fonte de coleta para a amostra o banco de dados NORPOFOR â Norma Oral do PortuguÃs Popular de Fortaleza (ARAÃJO, 2011). O principal objetivo à analisar o uso do imperativo gramatical na fala da capital cearense, em que pesem motivaÃÃes semÃnticas e morfossintÃticas como conjugaÃÃo verbal, posiÃÃo do pronome oblÃquo Ãtono, polaridade da estrutura da oraÃÃo, grupo semÃntico e verbos da oraÃÃo, bem como motivaÃÃes de natureza social como sexo, escolaridade e faixa etÃria. Trabalhos anteriores como o de Scherre (2007; 2005; 1999) e Cardoso (2009) que citam ou trabalham diretamente com dados de Fortaleza, e Alves (2001), referente a JoÃo Pessoa â PB, indicam que o imperativo subjuntivo encontra nestas comunidades de fala um percentual de uso relativamente significativo. Os dados desta pesquisa foram submetidos ao programa Goldvarb X (SANKOFF; TAGLIAMONTE; SMITH, 2005), distribuÃdos entre nove grupos de fatores sociais e linguÃsticos. Os grupos de fatores linguÃsticos selecionados significativamente pelo GOLDVARB X foram conjugaÃÃo verbal, polaridade da estrutura da oraÃÃo e a posiÃÃo do pronome oblÃquo Ãtono quanto ao uso da variÃvel imperativo subjuntivo. Em termos gerais, os resultados demonstraram que o imperativo associado ao indicativo, com 60% das ocorrÃncias, foi a forma mais frequente na amostra de fala de Fortaleza. A forma do subjuntivo apresentou 40% de uso, contrariando nossa expectativa, uma vez que esperÃvamos que o imperativo associado a esta forma apresentasse maior frequÃncia de uso na fala da capital cearense.

The question of adverbs and the meaning of the present perfect across varieties of English is central to sociolinguistic variationist methodologies that have approached the study of the present perfect (Winford, 1993; Tagliamonte, 1997; van Herk, 2008, 2010; Davydova, 2010; Tagliamonte, 2013). This dissertation attempts to disentangle the effect of adverbial support from the three canonical readings of the present perfect (Resultative, Experiential and Continuative). Canadian English, an understudied variety of English, is used to situate the results seen in the Early Modern English data. Early Modern English reflects the time period in which English has acquired the full modern use of the present perfect with the three readings. In order to address both these questions and current controversies over statistical models in sociolinguistics, different statistical models are used: both the traditional Goldvarb X (Sankoff, Tagliamonte and Smith, 2005) and the newer mixed-effects logistic regression (Johnson, 2009). What is missing from the previous literature in sociolinguistics that advocates logistic mixed-effects models, and provided in this dissertation, is a clear statement of where they are inappropriate to use and their limitations. The rate of adverbial marking of the present perfect in Canadian English falls between rates reported for US and British English in previous studies. The data show in both time periods that while adverbs are highly favored in continuative contexts, they are strongly disfavored in experiential and resultative contexts. In Early Modern English, adverbial support functions statistically differently for resultatives and experientials, but that difference collapses in the Canadian English sample. Both this and the other linguistic contexts support a different analysis for each set of data with respect to adverbial independence from the meaning of the present perfect form. Finally, when the focus of the analysis is on linguistic rather than social factors, both the traditional and newer models provide similar results. Where there are differences, however, these can be accounted for by the number of tokens and different estimation techniques for each model.

O presente estudo trata dos processos fonológicos de elisão, degeminação e ditongação no falar de Florianópolis - Santa Catarina. Para tanto, descrevemos os processos de sândi vocálico externo à luz dos pressupostos da Teoria Variacionista, utilizando amostra composta de entrevistas do projeto VARSUL. Analisamos os três fenômenos de sândi vocálico externo separadamente. Para isso, ouvimos a fala de 16 informantes de Florianópolis e submetemos os dados coletados ao programa GoldVarb2001. As variáveis testadas foram sexo, idade, escolaridade, informante), domínio prosódico, acento, extensão dos vocábulos e categoria das vogais. Os nossos resultados da análise estatística apresentaram uma taxa de 33% de aplicação para a elisão, 61% para a degeminação e 33% para a ditongação. Observamos, através destes dados, que a aplicação dos fenômenos de sândi vocálico externo é favorecida pelo contexto de atonicidade máxima. Vimos ainda que a elisão é favorecida pelos fatores qualquer extensão dos vocábulos, grupo clítico e vogal posterior na categoria da segunda vogal. A degeminação, por sua vez, apresenta maior aplicação quando temos os fatores monomorfema+palavra, frase fonológica e vogais posteriores iguais. Já a ditongação é favorecida pelos fatores Vogal alta+Vogal nãoalta ou Vogal alta+Vogal alta, monomorfema+palavra e Vogal frontal+Vogal posterior. Além disso, as variáveis sociais - sexo, idade e escolaridade - mostraram não interferir nos processos de sândi vocálico externo, sendo excluídas pelo programa computacional GoldVarb2001. Apenas a variável idade foi selecionada para a análise da ditongação, mas acreditamos que isso tenha ocorrido pelo fato de alguns informantes mais jovens apresentarem uma aplicação maior da regra. Assim, cremos que o processo de sândi depende mais de uma escolha individual e das variáveis lingüísticas do que de fatores sociais. Durante a discussão dos resultados, procuramos nos amparar em estudos já feitos sobre o fenômeno, comparando os resultados desses com os nossos. / The following study deals with the phonological process of elision, degemination and dopthongization in the utterance of people from Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. In order to do that, the processes of external vocalic sandhi are described to the light of Variationist Theory using a sample which consists of interviews from the VARSUL project. We analysed the three phenomena of external vocalic sandhi separately, in order to do that we heard 16 informants from Florianópolis and submitted the collected data to the GoldVarb2001 program. The variables which were tested were: sex, age, education, informants, prosodic domain, stress, extension of words and category of vowels. The results of the statistic analyses showed a rate of application of 33% for elision, 61% for degemination and 33% for dipthongization. Through these data we could observe that the application of the phenomena of external vocalic sandhi is triggered by the context of maximum atonicity. We also noticed the elision is activated by the following factors: any extension of words, clitic group and posterior vowels in the category of second vowel. The degemination, however, presents more application when there are the factors: monomorphem+word, phonological phrase and the same posterior vowels. Dipthongization, on the other hand, is triggered when the following factors are present: high vowel+non-high vowel or high vowel+high vowel, monomorphem+word and front vowel+posterior vowel. Besides, the social variables - sex, age and education - showed no interference in the processes of external vocalic sandhi, being, then, excluded by the GoldVarb2001 computational program. Only the variable age was selected in the dipthongization analyses, but we believe it has happened because some younger informants presented a higher application of the rule. Thus, we consider that the process of sandhi depends more on an individual choice and on the linguistic variables than on social factors. During the discussion of the results, we tried to base ourselves on studies which had already been made about the phenomenon by comparing those results to ours.

O presente estudo trata dos processos fonológicos de elisão, degeminação e ditongação no falar de Florianópolis - Santa Catarina. Para tanto, descrevemos os processos de sândi vocálico externo à luz dos pressupostos da Teoria Variacionista, utilizando amostra composta de entrevistas do projeto VARSUL. Analisamos os três fenômenos de sândi vocálico externo separadamente. Para isso, ouvimos a fala de 16 informantes de Florianópolis e submetemos os dados coletados ao programa GoldVarb2001. As variáveis testadas foram sexo, idade, escolaridade, informante), domínio prosódico, acento, extensão dos vocábulos e categoria das vogais. Os nossos resultados da análise estatística apresentaram uma taxa de 33% de aplicação para a elisão, 61% para a degeminação e 33% para a ditongação. Observamos, através destes dados, que a aplicação dos fenômenos de sândi vocálico externo é favorecida pelo contexto de atonicidade máxima. Vimos ainda que a elisão é favorecida pelos fatores qualquer extensão dos vocábulos, grupo clítico e vogal posterior na categoria da segunda vogal. A degeminação, por sua vez, apresenta maior aplicação quando temos os fatores monomorfema+palavra, frase fonológica e vogais posteriores iguais. Já a ditongação é favorecida pelos fatores Vogal alta+Vogal nãoalta ou Vogal alta+Vogal alta, monomorfema+palavra e Vogal frontal+Vogal posterior. Além disso, as variáveis sociais - sexo, idade e escolaridade - mostraram não interferir nos processos de sândi vocálico externo, sendo excluídas pelo programa computacional GoldVarb2001. Apenas a variável idade foi selecionada para a análise da ditongação, mas acreditamos que isso tenha ocorrido pelo fato de alguns informantes mais jovens apresentarem uma aplicação maior da regra. Assim, cremos que o processo de sândi depende mais de uma escolha individual e das variáveis lingüísticas do que de fatores sociais. Durante a discussão dos resultados, procuramos nos amparar em estudos já feitos sobre o fenômeno, comparando os resultados desses com os nossos. / The following study deals with the phonological process of elision, degemination and dopthongization in the utterance of people from Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. In order to do that, the processes of external vocalic sandhi are described to the light of Variationist Theory using a sample which consists of interviews from the VARSUL project. We analysed the three phenomena of external vocalic sandhi separately, in order to do that we heard 16 informants from Florianópolis and submitted the collected data to the GoldVarb2001 program. The variables which were tested were: sex, age, education, informants, prosodic domain, stress, extension of words and category of vowels. The results of the statistic analyses showed a rate of application of 33% for elision, 61% for degemination and 33% for dipthongization. Through these data we could observe that the application of the phenomena of external vocalic sandhi is triggered by the context of maximum atonicity. We also noticed the elision is activated by the following factors: any extension of words, clitic group and posterior vowels in the category of second vowel. The degemination, however, presents more application when there are the factors: monomorphem+word, phonological phrase and the same posterior vowels. Dipthongization, on the other hand, is triggered when the following factors are present: high vowel+non-high vowel or high vowel+high vowel, monomorphem+word and front vowel+posterior vowel. Besides, the social variables - sex, age and education - showed no interference in the processes of external vocalic sandhi, being, then, excluded by the GoldVarb2001 computational program. Only the variable age was selected in the dipthongization analyses, but we believe it has happened because some younger informants presented a higher application of the rule. Thus, we consider that the process of sandhi depends more on an individual choice and on the linguistic variables than on social factors. During the discussion of the results, we tried to base ourselves on studies which had already been made about the phenomenon by comparing those results to ours.

O presente estudo trata dos processos fonológicos de elisão, degeminação e ditongação no falar de Florianópolis - Santa Catarina. Para tanto, descrevemos os processos de sândi vocálico externo à luz dos pressupostos da Teoria Variacionista, utilizando amostra composta de entrevistas do projeto VARSUL. Analisamos os três fenômenos de sândi vocálico externo separadamente. Para isso, ouvimos a fala de 16 informantes de Florianópolis e submetemos os dados coletados ao programa GoldVarb2001. As variáveis testadas foram sexo, idade, escolaridade, informante), domínio prosódico, acento, extensão dos vocábulos e categoria das vogais. Os nossos resultados da análise estatística apresentaram uma taxa de 33% de aplicação para a elisão, 61% para a degeminação e 33% para a ditongação. Observamos, através destes dados, que a aplicação dos fenômenos de sândi vocálico externo é favorecida pelo contexto de atonicidade máxima. Vimos ainda que a elisão é favorecida pelos fatores qualquer extensão dos vocábulos, grupo clítico e vogal posterior na categoria da segunda vogal. A degeminação, por sua vez, apresenta maior aplicação quando temos os fatores monomorfema+palavra, frase fonológica e vogais posteriores iguais. Já a ditongação é favorecida pelos fatores Vogal alta+Vogal nãoalta ou Vogal alta+Vogal alta, monomorfema+palavra e Vogal frontal+Vogal posterior. Além disso, as variáveis sociais - sexo, idade e escolaridade - mostraram não interferir nos processos de sândi vocálico externo, sendo excluídas pelo programa computacional GoldVarb2001. Apenas a variável idade foi selecionada para a análise da ditongação, mas acreditamos que isso tenha ocorrido pelo fato de alguns informantes mais jovens apresentarem uma aplicação maior da regra. Assim, cremos que o processo de sândi depende mais de uma escolha individual e das variáveis lingüísticas do que de fatores sociais. Durante a discussão dos resultados, procuramos nos amparar em estudos já feitos sobre o fenômeno, comparando os resultados desses com os nossos. / The following study deals with the phonological process of elision, degemination and dopthongization in the utterance of people from Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. In order to do that, the processes of external vocalic sandhi are described to the light of Variationist Theory using a sample which consists of interviews from the VARSUL project. We analysed the three phenomena of external vocalic sandhi separately, in order to do that we heard 16 informants from Florianópolis and submitted the collected data to the GoldVarb2001 program. The variables which were tested were: sex, age, education, informants, prosodic domain, stress, extension of words and category of vowels. The results of the statistic analyses showed a rate of application of 33% for elision, 61% for degemination and 33% for dipthongization. Through these data we could observe that the application of the phenomena of external vocalic sandhi is triggered by the context of maximum atonicity. We also noticed the elision is activated by the following factors: any extension of words, clitic group and posterior vowels in the category of second vowel. The degemination, however, presents more application when there are the factors: monomorphem+word, phonological phrase and the same posterior vowels. Dipthongization, on the other hand, is triggered when the following factors are present: high vowel+non-high vowel or high vowel+high vowel, monomorphem+word and front vowel+posterior vowel. Besides, the social variables - sex, age and education - showed no interference in the processes of external vocalic sandhi, being, then, excluded by the GoldVarb2001 computational program. Only the variable age was selected in the dipthongization analyses, but we believe it has happened because some younger informants presented a higher application of the rule. Thus, we consider that the process of sandhi depends more on an individual choice and on the linguistic variables than on social factors. During the discussion of the results, we tried to base ourselves on studies which had already been made about the phenomenon by comparing those results to ours.

The question of adverbs and the meaning of the present perfect across varieties of English is central to sociolinguistic variationist methodologies that have approached the study of the present perfect (Winford, 1993; Tagliamonte, 1997; van Herk, 2008, 2010; Davydova, 2010; Tagliamonte, 2013). This dissertation attempts to disentangle the effect of adverbial support from the three canonical readings of the present perfect (Resultative, Experiential and Continuative). Canadian English, an understudied variety of English, is used to situate the results seen in the Early Modern English data. Early Modern English reflects the time period in which English has acquired the full modern use of the present perfect with the three readings. In order to address both these questions and current controversies over statistical models in sociolinguistics, different statistical models are used: both the traditional Goldvarb X (Sankoff, Tagliamonte and Smith, 2005) and the newer mixed-effects logistic regression (Johnson, 2009). What is missing from the previous literature in sociolinguistics that advocates logistic mixed-effects models, and provided in this dissertation, is a clear statement of where they are inappropriate to use and their limitations. The rate of adverbial marking of the present perfect in Canadian English falls between rates reported for US and British English in previous studies. The data show in both time periods that while adverbs are highly favored in continuative contexts, they are strongly disfavored in experiential and resultative contexts. In Early Modern English, adverbial support functions statistically differently for resultatives and experientials, but that difference collapses in the Canadian English sample. Both this and the other linguistic contexts support a different analysis for each set of data with respect to adverbial independence from the meaning of the present perfect form. Finally, when the focus of the analysis is on linguistic rather than social factors, both the traditional and newer models provide similar results. Where there are differences, however, these can be accounted for by the number of tokens and different estimation techniques for each model.

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