Typological models and diachronic change in Chinese

An exploration of the diachronic predictions of the typological models of Joseph L. Greenberg ("Some Universals of Grammar with Reference to the Order of Meaningful Elements" in Universals of Language, Greenberg, Joseph L. [Ed], Cambridge: MIT Press, 1963), Theo A. Vennemann ("Explanation in Syntax" in Syntax and Semantics II, Kimball, John [Ed], New York: Seminar, 1973), & John A. Hawkins (see LLBA 15/3, 8104096), matching their universals against attested change in Chinese. Greenberg's universals are a list of individual word-order co-occurrence relationships; Venneman's model is a holistic approach defining two language types. Hawkins's model operates along the parameters of subject & object position, upon which six absolute universals & two principles are formulated. It has been proposed that Chinese has undergone a long-term typological change from verb-object (VO) to OV word order. Venneman's & Hawkins's models predict large-scale changes; Greenberg's universals predict that Chinese should have remained typologically stable between the periods of Archaic & Modern Standard Chinese. The evidence suggests that the predictions of Greenberg's universals are accurate. Possible reasons why the Chinese data do not accord with Venneman's & Hawkins's models are considered. 5 Tables, 63 References. Adapted from the source document