Table of Contents

Part I: Preliminary Chapters
1: Introduction
2: What is Sentential Complementation?
3: Akkadian
Part II: Structural History: The Emergence of Complementizers and Quotatives
4: The Emergence of Finite Complements
5: The Grammaticalization of the Quotative Construction
Part III: Functional History: The Changes in the Functional Domain of Complementation from 2500 BC to 500 BC
6: The Functional Domain of Complementation in Babylonian
7: Verbs of Knowledge, Perception, and Others
8: Manipulation and Modality
9: The WH-Functional Domain, Direct and Indirect Questions
Part IV: The Development of Complementation as an Adaptive Process
10: Functional Parallels for the Babylonian Development
11: The Development of Complementation as an Adaptive Process
Glossary
References
Index of Subjects
Index of Quoted Texts

About the Author

Guy Deutscher is at the Department of Languages and Cultures of Ancient Mesopotamia at the University of Leiden in Holland. His book, The Unfolding of Language, was published in 2005 to both critical and popular acclaim.

Reviews

`Review from previous edition It is arguably the most successful attempt at combining linguistics and Assyriology, and the work combines clarity of argumentation with new thinking about Akkadian grammar.'
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
`Excellent and thoroughly enjoyable book. It is a highly original and even a pioneering work.'
Bibliotheca Orientalis
`A pioneering survey, an original and badly needed exploration of historical Akkadian syntax.'
Diachronica
`An important milestone... and an extremely well-thought-out study, combining competence in both Assyriology and general linguistics, whose features are a clear argumentation, carefully distilled and lucid data, and good comparative typological evidence. This reviewer found the reading of this book to be pure pleasure.'
Journal of Semitic Studies
`Important and innovative.'
Word