THE DIACHRONIC CONSEQUENCES OF 1ST AND 2ND-LANGUAGE ACQUISITION - THE CHANGE FROM OV TO VO

A question that concerns many historical linguists is to what extent language change can be explained in terms of first or second language acquisition. Here it is argued that recent results in first and second language acquisition research point toward an interplay of these two factors in explaining language change. This is illustrated by a discussion of the change from OV to VO that took place in English, but not in Dutch. It is shown that older-stages of English and Dutch looked alike in crucial respects, such that first language acquisition mechanisms alone cannot be held responsible for the change from OV to VO in English, since the same mechanisms would predict that Dutch would also have changed from OV to VO. By way of an alternative it is argued that English, contrary to Dutch, underwent a significant influence from second language acquisition, in accordance with recent views on second language acquisition and supported by (socio) linguistic facts.