Abstract
In the transition from Old to Middle English, particle-verb combinations were rapidly transformed into verb-particle combinations, in which particles are invariably postverbal (Hiltunen 1983). Data from the early Middle English period show that particles immediately following the verb, (1a), far outnumber those which are separated from the verb by the direct object, (1b).
(1) a. & lahte ut his tunge se long þæt he swong hire a-buten his swire.
and took out his tongue thus far that he swung her about his neck
(St.Margaret, 69)
b. & hef hire heorte up to þe hehe.
and lifted her heart up high
(St.Katherine, 21)
An important factor in the rise of the verb-particle combination is the loss of OV order, starting in the Old English period (Hiltunen 1983). Another possible factor is the influence of the language contact situation with Old Norse in the Northeast of England in the late Old English period: Old Norse had postverbal particles from the earliest stages. This factor has received some attention in the literature (Denison 1981), but largely remains underinvestigated.
In this paper, I provide a detailed study of the early Middle English dialects of the Northeast and the Southwest with respect to particle position. By contrasting these two dialects, I will try to shed some light on the transition to postverbal particles, and the possible influence of Old Norse on this transition, paying special attention to the verb-particle-object order.
References
Denison, D. 1981. Aspects of the History of English Group-Verbs: with Particular
Attention to the Syntax of the Ormulum. Diss. Oxford.
Hiltunen, R. 1983. The Decline of the Prefixes and the Beginnings of the English
Phrasal Verb. The Evidence from some Old and Early Middle English Texts. Turku.
