a grammatical study of personal names in english

7/27/2019 A Grammatical Study of Personal Names in English

1/21

This article was downloaded by: [UQ Library]On: 29 May 2014, At: 06:18Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK

English StudiesPublication details, including instructions for authors andsubscription information:

http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/nest20

A Grammatical Study of Personal

Names in Present-Day English: with

Special Reference to the Usage of

the Definite ArticleGrace Y.W. Tse

a

aSchool of Arts and Social Sciences The Open University of

Hong Kong , 30, Good Shepherd Street Homantin, Kowloon,

Hong Kong, China

Published online: 09 Jan 2007.

To cite this article:Grace Y.W. Tse (2004) A Grammatical Study of Personal Names in Present-

Day English: with Special Reference to the Usage of the Definite Article, English Studies, 85:3,241-259, DOI: 10.1080/00138380412331339140

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00138380412331339140

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information

(the Content) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor& Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warrantieswhatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of theContent. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions andviews of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. Theaccuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independentlyverified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liablefor any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages,and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly inconnection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Anysubstantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing,systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00138380412331339140http://www.tandfonline.com/action/showCitFormats?doi=10.1080/00138380412331339140http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/nest20


2/21

Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

Downloadedby[UQLib

rary]at06:1829May2014
http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditionshttp://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions


3/21

Engl i sh S tudies 2004, 3, pp. 241-2590013-838X/04/03-0097/ 16.00 2004, Taylor & Francis Ltd. i ~ outledgeTaylor Francis Group

A G R A M M A T I C A L S T U D Y O F P E R S O N A L N A M E S I N P R E S E N T -D A Y E N G L I S H : W I T H S P E C I A L R E F E R E N C E T O T H E U S A G E O F

T H E D E F I N I T E A R T I C L Entroduc t i on

T h e s t u d y o f p r o p e r n a m e s h a s e n g a g e d t h e i n t e re s t o f p h i lo s o p h e r s s in c e a n -c i e n t t i m e s . T h e i r e a r l i e s t i n t e r e s t w a s t o f i n d o u t a d e f i n i t i o n f o r p r o p e r n a m e s .F o r e x a m p l e , M i l l 1 85 61 18 43 ]: 2 3 - 4 8 ) s u g g e s t s t h a t a p r o p e r n a m e is a d e n o t a -t iv e si gn w i t h o u t c o n n o t a t i o n . A n a m e l ik e D a v i d s i m p l y d e n o t e s t h e i n d i v i d u a l sw h o a r e c a ll e d David. I t d o e s n o t i n d i c a t e a n y a t t r i b u t e s a s b e l o n g i n g t o t h e s ei n d iv i d u al s . A s t im e h a s g o n e b y , th e s t u d y o f p r o p e r n a m e s h a s d r a w n m o r ea t t e n t i o n f r o m l i n g u i s t s .

G r a m m a r i a n s a n d l in g u i s ts li k e C u r m e 1 9 3 5 ), J e s p e r s e n 1 95 4[1 94 9] ),K r u i s i n g a a n d E r a d e s 1 9 60 ), L o n g 1 96 1 ), P o u t s m a 1 9 14 ), Q u i r k et al. 1985),S w e e t 1 8 91 ) a n d Z a n d v o o r t 1 9 57 ) h a v e m a d e t h e a t t e m p t t o d e s c ri b e t h e i n -t e r n a l g r a m m a r o f E n g l i s h p r o p e r n a m e s . H o w e v e r , t h e i r a c c o u n t s a r e o v e r -w h e l m i n g l y c o n c e r n e d w i t h p la c e n a m e s . A l t h o u g h p e r s o n a l n a m e s f re q u e n t l ye n t e r o u r a w a r e n e s s i n d a i l y li fe , i t a p p e a r s t h a t l i t tl e h a s b e e n d o n e w i t h r e s p e c tt o t h e g r a m m a t i c a l a c c o u n t o f th e s e n a m e s f r o m a l in g u i st ic p e r s p e c ti v e , p a r -t i c u l a rl y t h e p r e s e n c e o r o m i s s i o n o f th e d e f i n i t e a r ti c l e p r e c e d i n g t h e s e n a m e s .I n v i e w o f t h is i n a d e q u a c y , t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y t h u s a i m s t o m a k e a f u ll - le n g t he m p i r i c a l tr e a t m e n t o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s i n p r e s e n t - d a y E n g l i s h w i t h r e fe r e n c e toa d e s c r i p t i v e l i n g u i s t i c f r a m e w o r k . l

T o f a c il i ta t e a f ul l e x p l o r a ti o n , t h e p r e s e n t g r a m m a t i c a l a c c o u n t w ill n o t c o n -f in e to o f f i c ia l n a m e s o f p e r s o n s e .g . Margare t t h a t h a v e b e e n c o n s i d e r e d a sp r o t o t y p i c a l p e r s o n a l n a m e s . A n i n - d e p t h e x a m i n a t i o n w i l l b e f u r t h e r e x t e n d e dt o le s s c e n t r a l m e m b e r s d i s c o v e r e d i n T s e 2 0 0 0 ) i n t h e l i g h t o f t h e p r o t o t y p em o d e l : p u r e t i tl e s a s u n i q u e r e f e r e n c e s e .g . the Prime Minis ter , n i c k n a m e s a n dep i the t s e . g . Red Reg , a n d q u a s i - n a m e s g iv e n t o s u p e r n a t u r a l b e in g s e .g .God , f i c t i ona l i s ed be ing s e . g. M i ckey M o u s e , a n d a n i m a l s t h a t a r e t r e a t e d a si f t h e y w e re h u m a n b e i n g s e .g . Culture Vulture . I n t e r m s o f g r a m m a t i c a l c o m -p o s i t i o n a n d a r ti c le u s a g e , e a c h s e m a n t i c cl a ss o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s h a s i t s o w nc h a r a c t e r i s t i c s t h a t d e s e r v e c l o se s c r u t i n y .

I t h a s b e e n w i d e l y h e l d t h a t E n g l i s h p e r s o n a l n a m e s a r e h i g h l y c o n s t r a i n e dg r a m m a t i c a ll y a n d n o r m a l l y c o n si st o f p r o p e r n o u n s t h a t f o r m g iv e n n a m e s a n ds u r n a m e s . H o w e v e r , a s p o i n t e d o u t b y S w e e t 1 8 9 t : 5 9 ) i n a n e a r l y p u b l i c a ti o n ,E n g l i sh p e r s o n a l n a m e s m a y c o n s i s t o f a si ng l e w o r d o r a w o r d - g r o u p , w h i c h ,m a y b e m a d e u p o f p r o p e r n o u n s , a s in John Stuart Mi l l , o r o f a m i x t u r e o fp r o p e r n o u n s a n d c o m m o n n o u n s , a s i n John the Baptist. A l t h o u g h h i s t r e a t -m e n t o f t h is t o p i c i s f a r f r o m c o m p l e t e , h is a n a l y s i s c a n s e r v e a s a g o o d s t a r t -i n g p o i n t f o r t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y .

The presen t paper is extracted from Tse 2002).241

Downloadedby[UQLib



4/21

G R A C E Y . W . T S Ea t a S e l e c t i o n

U n l i k e p r e v i o u s l in g u i s t ic s t u d i e s o n E n g l i s h p e r s o n a l n a m e s t h a t a r e m o s t l yi m p r e s s i o n i s t i c , t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y i s b a s e d o n t h e a c t u a l , a u t h e n t i c l a n g u a g ed a t a r e t r ie v e d f r o m t h e B r it i s h N a t i o n a l C o r p u s ( B N C ) } C o n s i d e r i n g t h a t i t i sn e i t h er p r a c t i c a l n o r f e as i bl e t o s t u d y t h e w h o l e b o d y o f B N C d a t a , a n d t h a tp e r s o n a l n a m e s a r e e x p e c t e d t o b e o f h i g h f r e q u e n c y e s p e c i a l l y i n n e w s p a p e r s ,t h e d a t a f o r t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y i s e n t ir e l y c o n c e r n e d w i t h t h e s u b j e c t f ie l d o fn e w s p a p e r r e p o r ti n g .

T h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a c o n s i s t s o f 5 14 ,6 91 w o r d s f r o m t h e f ie l d o f h o m e ,f o r e i g n a n d b u s i n e s s n e w s e x t r a c t e d a s e v e n l y a s p o s s i b l e f r o m t h r e e d i f fe r e n tB r i t is h n a t i o n a l n e w s p a p e r s o f j o u r n a l i s t i c a n d i n f o r m a t i v e s t yl e . T h e s e t h r e eB r i t is h n e w s p a p e r s a r e The Independ en t , The Guard ian a n d The Da i l y Te l egraph ,p u b l i s h e d b e t w e e n O c t o b e r 1 98 9 a n d A p r i l 1 99 2. T h e y a r e s e l ec t e d t o b e a s re p -r e s e n t a t i v e a s p o s s i b l e o f b r o a d s h e e t j o u r n a l i s t i c w r i t i n g i n p r e s e n t - d a y B r i t i shE n g l i s h s o t h a t t h e f i n d i n g s c a n b e g e n e r a l i s e d t o a b i g g e r s et o f c o r p u s d a t a . I nt h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , t h e r e a r e i n t o t a l 1 4,9 21 t o k e n s o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s ,r e p r e s e n t i n g 4 ,3 4 5 d i f fe r e n t t y p e s o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s . 3 F o r e a s y r e f e r en c e , t h ee x a m p l e s e x t r a c t e d f r o m t h e B N C d a t a a r e i ta l ic i se d w h e r e a s t h o s e c i t ed f r o mo t h e r s o u r c e s a r e i t a l i c i s e d a s w e l l a s u n d e r l i n e d .

S i n ce m y f o c u s o f i n t e r e s t is t h e i n t e r n a l g r a m m a t i c a l s t r u c tu r e s o f p e r s o n a ln a m e s u s e d a s n a m i n g e x p r e s s i o n s i n d i s c o u r s e a n d t h e i r a r t i c le u s a g e , t h e in -f o r m a l u s e s o f n a m e s s u c h a s p r e m o d i f e r s w i l l b e e x c l u d e d f r o m c o n s i d e r a t i o ni n t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y . ( F o r e x a m p l e , i n t h e p h r a s e t h e T h a t c h e r g o v e r n m e n t , t h en a m e T h a t c h e r b e h a v e s a s a p r e m o d i f i e r . ) H e n c e , f o r th e p u r p o s e o f th e p r e s e n tg r a m m a t i c a l s t u d y , t h e p e r s o n a l n a m e s s e le c te d m u s t b e h a v e a s n a m i n g e x p r e s -s i on s t h a t h a v e t h e n o r m a l u n i q u e d e n o t a t i o n i n r u n n i n g t ex t. F o r e x a m p l e :[1] I have a long standing arrangem ent to meet M r Anderson this week.[2] The Rev Clive Cohen, vicar of All Saints with St John Church,Winterslow, visited the family ...

O f f i ci a l N a m e s o f P e r so n sA s e x p e c te d , o f f i c i a l n a m e s o f p e r s o n s a c c o u n t f o r th e o v e r w h e l m i n g m a j o r i t yo f p e rs o n a l n a m e s i n th e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a ta . I n p r e s e n t - d a y E n g l i sh , t h ec o n s t i t u e n t p a r t s o f a n o f f ic i a l p e r s o n a l n a m e i t s e lf m a y c o n t a i n a s i n g le p r o p -e r n o u n a s t h e f i rs t n a m e Nicho las ) o r m o r e a s t h e f u ll n a m e M a l c o l m P a r k i n -

The BNC is a large electronically stored set o f 100-mill ion word s of writ ten texts an d spok entranscription s of present-day British English. Th e w hole project is a co llabora tive init iat ivecarried out by three publishers (Oxford University Press, Longman, a nd W. R. Chambers) ,two universit ies (Lancaster and Oxford), a nd the Brit ish Library . Details of the BN C are pro-vided in Burn ard (1995).In corpus l inguistics, a token is an indiv idual occurrence o f the w ord an d a type is a class oftokens hav ing the same form al features. B ased on this distinction, an ind ividu al occurrenceof any form of name is referred to as 'a nam e tok en' whereas each occurrence o f a differentname form is referred to as 'a name type' . For example, in the l ist of names 'David, DavidArmstrong, David, Susan', there are four name tokens representing three different nametypes.

2 4 2

Downloadedby[UQLib



5/21

P E R S O N A L N A M E S I N P R E S E N T -D A Y E N G L I S Hson , Chr i s t i an Ken t Ne l son . A l p h a b e t i c c h a r a c t e r s c a n r e p l a ce g i v e n n a m e s , a sin R W S y m o n d s .

W h e n a g r o u p o f tw o o r m o r e p r o p e r n o u n s j o i n t o g e t h e r a s a f ul l n a m e , i tf o r m s a c o m p o u n d ( C u r m e , 1 9 35 : 4 ) o r a p h r a s a l p r o p e r n a m e ( L o n g , 1 96 1:2 3 0; 1 9 6 9: 1 20 ). T h e i n t e r n a l g r a m m a t i c a l r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n t h e el e m e n t st h a t m a k e u p a p h r a s a l p r o p e r n a m e i s h i g h l y a m b i g u o u s i n t h a t i t is d i f fi c u ltt o t el l w h i c h is t h e h e a d a n d w h i c h is t h e m o d i f i e r . H e n c e , a s f a r a s n o u n p h r a s es t r u c t u r e i s c o n c e r n e d , s u c h p h r a s a l u n i t s a re b e s t r e g a r d e d a s u n a n a l y s e ds t r i n g s ( L o n g , 1 9 6 1 : 2 3 0 ; 1 9 6 9 : 1 2 0 - 1 ) .

I n t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , s o m e n a m e s m a y e v e n c o n t a i n a re l ig i o u s ti tl e.I n W il l i am S t C la i r , Wi l l i am i s t h e f i r s t n a m e w h e r e a s S t C la i r i s t h e s u r n a m em a d e u p o f t h e r e li g i o u s t it le S t a n d t h e p r o p e r n o u n Clair. A c c o r d i n g t o C o t -t l e ( 1 9 7 8 : 9 , 3 6 2 ) , s im i l a r e x a m p le s ( e . g . S t J o h n c a n a l s o b e f o u n d i n p r e s e n t -d a y E n g l i s h , r e c o r d i n g l o c a l i t i e s o r p l a c e s w h e r e a n c e s t o r s o r i g i n a t e d .I n e a rl i er h i s t o ri c a l ti m e s , a n u m b e r o f n a m e s a p p e a r i n g i n t h e f o r m o f p e r -s o n a l n a m e + d e fi n it e a rt ic le + c o m m o n n o u n w e r e q u i te c o m m o n . A s s h o w ni n e x a m p l e s [ 3] a n d [4 ], w h e n t h e p e r s o n a l n a m e p r e c e d e s t h e c o m m o n n o u n , t h ec o n s t r u c t i o n is si m i la r t o a n a p p o s i t i o n a l k i n d o f n a m e , i n w h i c h t he b y - n a m eo r e p i t h e t is n o m i n a l . L o n g ( 1 9 6 9 : 1 1 5 ) a l s o d e s c r ib e s t h e m a s a p p o s e d u n i t s ini n t e rn a l f o r m . T h e r e l a t i on s h i p d e n o t e d b y t h is a p p o s i t i o n a l k i n d o f n a m e isa n a l o g o u s t o a c o p u l a r r e l a t i o n s h i p : Wil l i am i s t he Conqueror o r S t E d w a r d i sth e M a r t y r ( Q u i r k et al . , 1985 : 290 , t301 ) . 4[3] SO ME O F the 17 ft thick walls of Bristol Castle s keep, built circa 1135 by the illegitimate

grandson of William the Conqueror, Robert of Gloucester, are being revealed by anarchaeological dig . . .[4] M OR E TH AN a thousand years af ter St Edward the Martyr, King of England from AD 975to A D 978, was murdered at Corfe Castle, . ..A p a r t f r o m t h e a b o v e - m e n t i o n e d f o r m o f p e r s o n a l n a m e + d e f in i te a rt ic le +

c o m m o n n o u n , c e r t a i n n a m e s r e f e r r i n g t o h i s to r i c a l f i g u r e s st il l k e e p t h e i r o r i -g i n al g r a m m a t i c a l f o r m s . F o r e x a m p l e , W i l l i a m o f O r a n g e is c o m p o s e d o f ap r o p e r n o u n p o s t m o d i f i e d b y a p r ep o s i t io n a l p h r a s e , b u t t h is f o r m i s s o m e t h i n go f a r a r i ty n o w a d a y s .

A s t i m e w e n t b y , t he s e u n u s u a l g r a m m a t i c a l f o r m s a r e n o t a d o p t e d i n p re -s e n t - d ay E n g l i s h t o c re a t e p e r s o n a l n a m e s . H o w e v e r , s o m e n a m e s w h i c h h a v es o m e h o w b e c o m e w e l l - k n o w n , b e c a u s e o f t h e e xa l te d o r n o t e w o r t h y p o s i ti o n so f t h e i r b e a r e r s , s ti ll r e t a i n t h e i r o r i g i n a l f o r m s e . g. Wil l i am the Conqueror a n dW i l l i a m o f O r a n g e ( K j e l l m e r , 1 9 7 7: 5 0 9 , 5 1 4 ). I t is w o r t h n o t i n g t h a t t h e s ef o r m s a r e s o m e t i m e s a d o p t e d t o c o n s t r u c t n i c k n a m e s o r ep i th e t s i n p r e s e n t - d a yE n g l i s h , a s s h o w n in t h e s e c t i o n N i c k n a m e s a n d E p i t h e t s b e l o w .

W i t h r e g a r d t o a r t i c le u s a g e , o ff i ci a l n a m e s o f p e r s o n s d i s c u s s e d a b o v e w h e na p p l i e d t o i n d i v i d u a l p e r s o n s n o r m a l l y a r e n o t p r e c e d e d b y t h e d e f in i te a r t ic l e.

Similar to this appositional type of name are certain names o f monarchs in w hich an adjec-tival cognomen is placed after the proper noun, and is preceded by the definite article e.g.Charles the Gr eat (Quirk et al., 1985: 290).2 4 3

Downloadedby[UQLib



6/21

G R A C E Y . W . T SEH o w e v e r , t h e u s a g e o f t h e d e f in i t e a rt i cl e is d i v i d e d w h e n p e r s o n a l n a m e s a r ep r e c e d e d b y t i tu l a r n o u n s o r h o n o r i f i c a d j ec t iv e s , w h i c h w i l l b e f u r t h e r e x p l o r e di n t h e f o l l o w i n g s e c t i o n s .Off ic ia l Names Prec eded by the Ti t l eO f f i ci a l n a m e s o f p e r s o n s m a y b e p r e c e d e d b y a ti tl e. O r d i n a r i l y , t h e u s e o f ti -t le s b e f o r e n a m e s o f p e o p l e d o e s n o t i n v o l v e t h e a d d i t i o n o f t h e d e f i ni t e a r ti c le .T h e s u p p r e s s i o n o f t h e d e fi n it e a r t ic l e i s a l m o s t r e g u l a r w h e n t h e t it le p r e c e d i n gt h e o f fi c ia l p e r s o n a l n a m e r e f e r s t o a m a l e ( M r ) a n d a f e m a l e (Mrs) ; e x p r e s s e sf a m i l y r e l a t i o n s h i p (Aunt ) ; d e n o t e s a p r o f e s s i o n ( D r ) ; o r d e n o t e s d i g n i t y ,w h e t h e r r o y a l (King) , c iv i l (Senator) , m i l i t a r y (Captain) o r e c c l e s ia s t i c a l (Cardi -nal) ( Jesp ersen , 195411949]: 568 ; K ru is in ga , 193211911] : 360-1 ; L o ng , 1961 : 297 ;P o u t s m a , 1 9 14 : 6 4 8 - 9 ).

W h i l e m o s t o f t h e ti tl es m e n t i o n e d a b o v e a r e u s u a l l y a t t a c h e d t o fu ll n a m e so r s u r n a m e s , a f e w t it le s e x p r e s s i n g f a m i l y r e l a t i o n s h i p l ik e A u n t a n d Uncle, re -l ig ious t i t l e s l ike P o p e a n d Saint , a n d t i tl e s o f s o v e r e i g n s l i k e K i n g a n d Q ueena t t a c h t o g i v e n n a m e s o r t o n a m e s e q u e n c e s b e g i n n i n g w i t h g i v e n n a m e s , e . g .Unele Joe ( L o n g , 1 9 6 1 : 2 3 0 ; 1 9 6 9 : 1 2 0 - t ) . T h e ti t l e Sir , w h i c h i s u s e d f o r ak n i g h t o r a b a r o n e t , m u s t b e a c c o m p a n i e d b y t h e f ir s t o r th e f ul l n a m e , a s i nSir Claus a n d S i r C l aus M oser ( Q u i r k e t aL, 1985 : 291 , 1320) .

I n n a m i n g m o n a r c h s a n d p o p e s w h o h a v e s h a r ed t h e s a m e g iv e n n a m e w i t ho t h er s , n u m e r a l m o d i f i e rs s u c h a s t h e ca r d i n a l r o m a n n u m b e r H a t t a c h t o g iv e nn a m e s a n d f u l l n a m e s , a s i n P o p e J o h n H ( L o n g , 1 9 6 9 : 1 2 0- 1 ; Q u i r k et a l . , 1985 :2 9 t - 2 , 1 32 0) . 5 H o w e v e r , n o t e t h a t t h e se n u m e r a l s a r e p r o n o u n c e d a s o r d i n a ls ,a s i n Pope John t he Second .

I n p r e s e n t - d a y E n g l i s h , f u r t h e r m o r e , i t is c u s t o m a r y t h a t a p e r s o n a l n a m e a l -r e a d y p r e c e d e d b y a t i t l e m a y c o n t a i n a n a d d i t i o n a l o b l i g a t o r y t i t l e a s p a r t o ft h e n a m e a s w e l l. A s t h e t w o t i tl es a r e f e lt to b e p a r t o f t h e n a m e , t h e d e f i n i tea r t i c l e i s n a t u r a l l y u n n e c e s s a r y . A s s h o w n i n t h e e x a m p l e s C o m m o d o r e S i r J o h nH a y e s a n d Adm i ra l S i r Ju l i an O swa l d , b o t h c o n s t r u c t i o n s a d m i t a n i n t e r v e n i n gt i t le ( C o m m o d o r e o r A d m i r a l ) d e n o t i n g t h e p e r s o n s m i l i t a r y s t a tu s . T h e t it le Siri s o b l i g a t o r y s i n c e t h e t w o m e n a r e i n v a r i a b l y c a l l e d S i r J o h n H a y e s o r S i r Ju -l ian Oswald ( Ry d 6 n , 1 9 7 5 : 3 6 ) .

S i m i l a r l y , f o r j u d g e s , t h e p r o f e s s i o n a l t i tl e Jus t ice + p e r s o na l n a m e c o n -s t r u c t i o n c a n b e p r e c e d e d b y t h e a d d i t i o n a l t it le L o r d o r M r , a s i n L o r d J u s ti c eW a t k i n s a n d Mr Jus t ice Gar land.

E n g l i s h t it le s, w h i c h a r e c h a r a c t e r is t i c a l l y c o m m o n n o u n s , d e v i a t e f r o m t h eu s u al t r e a tm e n t o f c o m m o n n o u n s b e f o r e p er s o na l n a m e s. G r a m m a t i c a l l ys p e a k i n g , t i tl es a r e t y p i c a l p r e m o d i f i e r s b e c a u s e t h e y a r e s t r u c t u r a l l y d e p e n d e n to n t h e h e a d n o u n : t h e y c a n n o t s t a n d a l o n e ( e x a m p l e [ 5c ]) o r f o l l o w t h e h e a dn o u n t h a t t h e y m o d i f y ( e x a m p l e [ 5 d] ) ( c f M e y e r , 1 9 9 2 : 4 7 ). 65 Quirk et aL (1985: 292) point out that some Am erican families also have the numeral ap-pended to the full name e.g. Henry Ford II.6 In B ritish English, abbreviations o f certain professional titles are often used after a person sname without the definite article. One of the typical examples is QC (i.e. Queen s Coun sel),as in the following example:2 4 4

Downloadedby[UQLib



7/21

P E R S O N A L N A M E S I N P R E S E N T - D A Y E N G L I S H[5a] Any way, Mrs Thatcher liked it.[5b] Any way, Thatcher liked it.[5c] *An yway , Mrs liked it.[5d] *An yway , Thatcher, M rs, liked it.O n t h e o t h e r h a n d , i n a n o u n p h r a s e l i k e t h e p l a y w r i g h t J o h n M o r t i m e r , t h e t w ou n it s h av e i n d e p e n d en t m e a n i n g a n d th e c o m m o n n o u n p l a y w r i g h t t a k e s t h ed e f i n i t e a r t ic l e , m a k i n g t h e w h o l e n o u n p h r a s e f u l l y a p p o s i t i o n a l . S i n c e t it le s , a sin M r s T h a t c h e r , h a v e l it tl e i n d e p e n d e n c e a n d a r e s u b o r d i n a t e d t o t h e su b s e -q u e n t p e r s o n a l n a m e i n m e a n i n g r a t h e r t h a n g r o u p e d w i th it , t h e y s u pp r e ss t h ed e f i n i t e a r t i c l e a n d a r e c o n s i d e r e d i n Q u i r k et al. ( 1 9 8 5 : 13 1 9 ) a s i n s t i t u t i o n -a l i s e d t i t le s i n c o n t r a s t t o t h e f i r st a p p o s i t i o n a l u n i t i n f u ll a p p o s i t i o n , w h i c h iss t r u ct u r a ll y i n d e p e n d e n t ] A l t h o u g h t h e ti tl e is i n c o r p o r a t e d a l m o s t a s p a r t o ft h e n a m e w i t h t h e n a m e b e c o m i n g t h e p r im a r y m e m b e r , t h e ti tl e p l a ys a m a j o rr o t e i n i d e n t i f y i n g a p a r t i c u l a r p e r s o n . F o r e x a m p l e , w h e n t h e w if e o f a m a nn a m e d A l a n W h i t e i s c a l l e d M r s A l a n W h i te , t h e t i t l e M r s e n a b l e s u s t o i d e n t i -f y t h e w i fe r a t h e r t h a n h e r h u s b a n d a s t h e r e f e r e n t ( L o n g , 1 9 61 : 2 3 1) .

B i b e r et al. ( 1 9 9 9 : 5 8 0 , 5 8 4 ) p o i n t o u t t h a t i n m a n y c a s e s , i t i s d i f f i c u l t t o d e -t e r m i n e w h e t h e r s u c h e l e m e n t s a s P r i m e M i n i s t e r i n c o n s t r u c t i o n s l i k e P r i m eM i n i s t e r J u r e P e l i v a n s h o u l d b e a n a l y s e d a s p r e m o d i f i e r s , a p p o s i t i v e s o r t it le s.T r a d i t i o n a l l y , t h e d e f i n i t e a r ti c l e i s r e q u i r e d h e r e , b u t R y d d n ( 1 9 7 5 : 1 5) h a s d i s -c o v e r e d t h a t t h e o m i s s i o n o f th e d e f i n it e a r t ic l e is f o u n d i n B r i ti s h n e w s p a p e r s .I n e x a m p l e [ 6 a ] b e l o w , t h e t i tl e w i t h o u t t h e d e f i n i t e a r t ic l e is c o n s i d e r e d a p s e u -d o - t i tl e , i n t e r m e d i a t e b e t w e e n a p p o s i t i o n a n d m o d i f i c a t i o n . L i k e i n s ti t u t io n -a l i s e d t i t l e s , p s e u d o - t i t l e s c a n n o t s t a n d a l o n e ( e x a m p l e [ 6 b ] ) . H o w e v e r , l i k ea p p o s i t i o n s , p s e u d o - t i t l e s a n d t h e p e r s o n a l n a m e s t h e y p r e c e d e c a n b e i n t e r-c h a n g e d , a s i n e x a m p l e [6 c] c f M e y e r , 1 9 92 : 4 6 - 8 ) .[6a] ... that precipitated the first major intervention in the industry b y Transportation SecretarySamuel Skinner last week.[6b] * ... that precipitated the first major intervention in the industry b y Transportation Secre-tary last week.[6c] ... that precipitated the first major intervention in the industry by Samuel Skinner, Trans-portation Secretary, last week.

S y n t a c t i c a l l y s p e a k i n g , w i t h t h e o m i s s i o n o f th e d e f i n i te a r t ic l e, t h e p s e u d o -t i t l e T r a n s p o r t a ti o n S e c r e t a r y c o l lo c a t es w i t h t h e p e r s o n a l n a m e S a m u e l S k i n n e ri n e x a m p l e [ 6a ] a b o v e t o p r o d u c e p a r t ia l a p p o s i t i o n ( Q u i r k et a l . , 1985 : 1317)o r q u a s i - r e s t r i c t i v e a p p o s i t i o n ( M e y e r , 1 9 9 2 : 8 4 ). I n t h i s c o n s t r u c t i o n , t h e f i r s ta p p o s i t i v e h a s n o r e f e r r i n g v a l u e a n d c a n n o t h a v e i t s r e f e r e n c e r e s t r i c t e d , t h u sb e c o m i n g a p r e m o d i f i e r a n d r e s e m b l i n g a t it le . H e n c e , b o t h M e y e r ( t 9 9 2 : 8 3 - 4)a n d Q u i r k et al. ( 1 9 8 5 : 1 3 1 7 - 1 9 ) s u g g e s t t h a t t h e r e i s a g r a d i e n c e b e t w e e n p a r -

In his final arguments in the three-day hearing, Gavin Lightman QC, for the m agazine, said thatif a retrial was ordered ...7 M oreover, L on g (1961: 230; 1969: 120) calls these titles used as prepositive modifiers of per-sonal names honorific m odifiers .

2 4 5

Downloadedby[UQLib



8/21

G R A C E Y . W . T SEt i a l r e s t r i c t i v e a p p o s i t i o n i n Transpor ta t ion Secre ta ry Samuel Sk inner a n d t h ei n s t i t u t i o n a l u s e o f t i tl e s i n M r G e o r g e S m i t h

A c c o r d i n g t o M e y e r 1 9 92 : 1 18 ) a n d R y d 6 n 1 9 7 5: 15 , 3 6 -7 ), t h is u s a g e o fp a r t i a l a p p o s i t i o n o c c u r s a l m o s t e x c l u s i v e ly i n th e p r e ss g e n r e a n d i s l es s c o m -m o n i n t h e B r i t is h p r e s s t h a n i n th e A m e r i c a n o n e . A s a m a t t e r o f fa c t , i t h a sw i d e l y b e e n s u g g e s t e d t h a t t h i s u s a g e i s g e n e r a l ly a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e j o u r n a l i s -t i c s t y le , e s p e c i a l l y i n A m e r i c a n E n g l i s h J e s p e r s e n , 1 95 41 19 49 ]: 5 6 9 ; Q u i r k e tal., 1 9 8 5: 2 7 6 , 1 3 14 - 1 7 ). I n t e r e s t i n g l y , t h e C h i c a g o M a n u a l o f S t y l e 1 9 9 3 : 2 4 5 )d o e s n o t e n c o u r a g e t h i s u s a g e a t a l l a n d s u g g e s t s t h a t s u c h a p p o s i t i v e u n i t ss h o u l d b e l o w e r c a s e d a n d p r e c e d e d b y t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e , s i n c e t h e y h a v e t h ef u n c t i o n o f t e m p o r a r y , a d h o c r o l e - d e n o t i n g e p i th e ts w h i c h s h o u l d n o t b e c o n -s i d e re d a s t it le s o r p a r t s o f t h e n a m e b u t r a t h e r e l e m e n t s i n a p p o s i t i o n t o t h en a m e .

B y a p p l y i n g t h e t e s t s h o w n i n e x a m p l e [ 6 a] t o e x a m p l e [6 c], I h a v e c l a s s if i e dt h e ti tl es p r e c e d i n g t h e p e r s o n a l n a m e s i n t h e p r e se n t s a m p l e o f c o r p u s d a t a i n t ot w o m a i n g r o u p s : i n s t it u t i o n a l is e d t it le s a n d p s e u d o - t i t le s s ee T a b l e 1 ). B a s e dT a b l e 1 I n s t i t u t i o n a l i s e d t i tl e s a n d p s e u d o - t i t le s i n t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t aI n s t i t u t i o n a l i s e dt i t l e s

Baroness, Capt, 9 Cdr, Chief , Col, Count, C .P.D .,Dam e, D e t Ch ie f l n sp , D e t In sp , D r , Ear l, Emperor , Fa ther/Fr,Gen , K ing, Lad y , L i eu t -Co l / L t -Co l , Lord , L t -Gen , M adam e,M i s s , M o t h e r , M m e , M r , M r s , M s , P C , P o p e , P r in ce , P r o ,Queen , Sg t , Sheikh , S ignor , S ir , S t , Su pt , U nc le , Viscount ,Wing Cdr

P s e u d o t i t l e s Adm ira l , A i r Force Co lone l, Am bassador , Ass i s tan t Ch ie f Con -stable, Ba nd Corporal , Brigadier, Brigadier-General , Canon,Captain, Cardinal , Chairman, Chancellor, Ch ief Su pt , C olonel ,Commiss ioner , Commodore, Congressman, Constable , Corpo-ra l, Count, Dep uty Ass is tan t Comm issioner , D etect ive C hie f In -spector , Detect ive Superin tendent, Env ironm ent M inis ter , Fie ldMarshal , Fire Brigade S ta t ion Commander , Foreign Minis ter ,General , Governor , Heal th Secretary , Judge, L ieu tenant , L ieu-tenant-Colonel , Lieutenant-General , M ajo r, M ajo r General /Major-General , Marine Colonel , Marine Lieu tenant -General ,Marsha l l , MP, Mus ic ian , Pas to r , Premier , Pres iden t , Pr imeM inis ter , Princ ipal M et Of f icer , Pro fessor , Re gim enta lSergea nt M ajor , Sena tor , Sen ior Tory, Sergeant, Soc ia l Securi -ty Secretary , T ranspo rta t ion Secretary , Trooper, Vice-pres i-dent, W arrant Of f icer

8 According to Quirk et al. 1985: 90), gradience is a scale that relates two categories of de-scription in term s of degrees of similarity and contrast. A arts 2000) further describes thisintra-categorial phenomenon as Subsective Gradience that allows for mem bers of a class todisplay the properties of that class to varying degrees.9 N ote that if a rank-denoting title is in abbreviation e.g. Capt , t must com e before the nam e.

2 4 6

Downloadedby[UQLib



9/21

PERSONAL NAM ES IN PRESENT-DAY ENGLISHo n t h e f i n d i n g s o f t h e c l a ss i f ic a t i o n , I c a n m a k e t h e f o l l o w i n g t w o o b s e r v a t i o n s :( a ) I n s t i t u t i o n a l i s e d t i t l e s a r e p u r e t i t l e s t h a t m u s t c o m e b e f o r e t h e n a m e , b a s i -c a l ly g iv i n g n o i n d i c a t i o n o f w h a t t h e i r j o b is . ( b ) P s e u d o - t i t l e s c a n c o m e b e f o r eo r a f t e r t h e n a m e , b u t p r e f e r a b l y b e f o re . M o s t o f t h e m d e n o t e a r a n k , a s i n e x -a m p l e [ 6 a] a b o v e , w h e r e a s a f e w d e n o t e a j o b , a s i n Music ian Bob S imm onds .

I t is w o r t h n o t i n g t h a t j o b - d e n o t i n g n o u n s m a y s o m e t i m e s a p p e a r a t t h e be -g i n n i n g o f t h e s e n t e n c e . W h i l e i n it i al c a p i t a l i s a t i o n o f w o r d s l i k e Musician is au s e f u l c r i te r i o n f o r s e l e c t in g t it le s f r o m t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , i t is a l w a y sd i f f i c u l t t o d e t e r m i n e w h e t h e r a c a p i t a l i s e d w o r d l i k e Jo ckey i n t h e b e g i n n i n g o ft h e s e n t e n c e a s s h o w n i n e x a m p l e [ 7 ] s h o u l d b e c o n s i d e r e d a s a t i t l e o r n o t . B e -c a u s e o f th i s a m b i g u i t y , n o n - t i t u l a r n o u n s a p p e a r i n g i n t h e i n i ti a l p o s it i o n o f as e n te n c e h a v e b e e n e x c l u d e d f r o m t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y.[7] Jock ey Greville Starkey was allegedly unseated by an ultrasonic stun gun ...

W h i l e t h e t i t l e s b e f o r e p e r s o n a l n a m e s r e g u l a r l y s u p p r e s s t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e ,i t h a s b e e n p o i n t e d o u t i n th e l i t e r a t u r e ( C h r i s t o p h e r s e n , 1 93 9: 1 71 ; J e s p e r s e n ,195411949] : 569 ; Kru i s i nga and E rades , 1960 : 513 -14 ; Long , 1961 : 297 ; Qu i rk e tal., 1985 : 292 ) t ha t t h e u sa ge o f t he de f i n i t e a r t i c l e i s s t il l va r i ed a nd d iv ided , a si s s h o w n i n c a s e s li k e t he Regen t M urray , the Emperor Napo leon a n d the VirginM a r y , i n w h i c h t h e c o m m o n n o u n a l so c o m e s fi r st s o a s t o d i s ti n g u is h o r i de n -t i fy t h e s o c i a l o r h o n o r i f i c s t a t u s o f t h e p e r s o n a l n a m e . H o w e v e r , a s th e s e c o n -s t r u c t i o n s t a k e t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e , t h e y a p p r o a c h s t r i c t r e s t r i c t i v e a p p o s i t i o nw i t h a c o m m o n n o u n p h r a s e a s t h e f ir s t a p p o s i t i v e r a t h e r t h a n p e r s o n a l n a m e swi th i n s t i t u t i ona l i s ed t i t l e s .

S p e c i fi c a ll y , P o u t s m a ( 1 91 4: 6 5 0 ) p o i n t s o u t t h a t u s a g e is v a r i a b l e a n d d i -v i d e d b e f o r e t i tl e s o f s o v e r e i g n s a n d n o b l e m e n , . .. , t h e g e n e r a l t e n d e n c y b e i n gt o u s e t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e b e f o r e t h e u n f a m i l i a r a n d f o r e i g n t i t l e s , a n d a l s o ,t h o u g h l es s m a r k e d l y , i n d i g n i fi e d s t y l e . C h r i s t o p h e r s e n ( 19 3 9 : 1 7 1) f u r t h e rs t a t e s t h a t f o r e i g n t i t le s a s a r u l e n e e d a n a r t i c l e . I t i s s u g g e s t e d t h a t t h e c o n -s t r u c t i o n w i t h o u t t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e i s c h i e f l y f o u n d w i t h f a m i l i a r t i t l e s w h i l et h e r e a s o n f o r t h e u n f a m i l i a r a n d f o r e i g n t i t l e s t o t a k e t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e i s t h en e e d t o r e t a i n t h e ir i n d e p e n d e n t m e a n i n g ( a n d s tr e ss ). F o r e x a m p l e , th e a b s e n c eo f t he de f i n i t e a r t i c l e i n Emperor Wil l iam p o i n t s t o t h e c o m m o n n o u n b e i n g as i n g l e t i t l e a n d a p r e t t y f a m i l i a r o n e , w h e r e a s i n the Emperor Charles V, w h i c hi s t h e i n v a r i a b l e f o r m i n h i s t o r i c a l s t y l e , t h e w o r d Emperor i s a d i s t inc t ive e le -m e n t o f a cl o s e w o r d g r o u p ( C h r i s t o p h e r s e n , t 9 3 9 : 1 71 ; K r u i s i n g a , t9 32 11 91 1]:360 -2 ; Kru i s i nga and E rades , 1960 : 536 , 538 ; Pou t sma , 1914 : 648 ) .I n o r d e r t o e v a l u a t e w h e t h e r t h e c l a im s m a d e b y C h r i s t o p h e r s e n ( 1 93 9: 1 71 )a n d P o u t s m a ( 1 9 1 4 : 6 5 0 ) o v e r s i x d e c a d e s a g o a r e s t i l l a p p l i c a b l e t o p r e s e n t - d a yE n g l i s h , T a b l e 2 s h o w s t h e t r e a t m e n t o f th e u s a g e o f t h e d e f in i t e a rt ic l e p r e c e d -i n g u n f a m i l i a r a n d f o r e i g n t it le s a v a i l a b le in t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a . C o n -t r a r y t o t h e i r c l a i m s , t h e f i n d i n g s i n T a b l e 2 d e m o n s t r a t e t h a t m o s t u n f a m i l i a rand fo r e ign t i t l e s r egu l a r l y supp re s s t he de f i n i t e a r t i c l e excep t t h r ee r e l i g ious t i -t l es (Ayatol lah, Guru a n d Maharishi) a n d o n e n o b l e t i t l e (Marquis ), a l l o f w h i c ha r e r e l a t e d t o f o r e i g n l a n g u a g e s . A s m e n t i o n e d a b o v e , t h e l o s s o f t h e d e f in i t e a r -t ic le i m p a r t s a c e r t a i n d e g r e e o f fa m i l i a r it y to t h e n a m e g r o u p s . G i v e n t h e f a c t

247

Downloadedby[UQLib



10/21

T a b l eG R A C E Y . W . TS E

T h e u s a g e o f t h e d e f i n i te a r t ic l e p r e c e d i n g u n f a m i l i a r a n d f o r e i g n t i tl e si n t h e p re s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a b y n a m e t y p es )

T i t l e N a m e s p r ec e de d P r e c e d e d N o t p r ec e de dby t he t i tl e by t h b y t hAyatollah the Ayatollah Khomeini XBaroness Baroness Mallalieu, Baroness Warnock XCount Count Nikolai Tolstoy, Count Tolstoy XDame Dame Janet Fookes XEarl Earl Fitzwilliam XEmperor Emperor Qian Long XGuru the Guru Budd XKing King Edward, King Hussein, King Juan

Carlos, King Sabata Dalin@ebo, Kin,g Zo~ XLady Arran, Lady Elizabeth Jocelyn,Lady Godiva, Lady Mabel Annesley XLord Aldington, Lord Alexander, Lord Blakenham,Lord Bonham Carter, Lord Boyd-Carpenter Xthe Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Xthe Marquis de Sade XPope John Paul, Pope John Paul H XPrince Charles, Prince Philip,Prince Saud al-Feisel, Prince William X

adyLord MaharishiMarquisPopePrinceQueen Queen Elizabeth, Queen Sophia, Queen Victoria XSheikh Sheikh Maktoum Al Maktoum XSignor Signor Bettino Craxi, Signor Gianni de Michelis XViscount Vi sc ou nt oyne, Viscount Whitelaw X

t h a t t h e s e t i t l e s h a v e b e c o m e m o r e a n d m o r e f a m i l i a r i n p r e s e n t - d a y E n g l i s h , i ti s n o t s u r p r i s i n g t o d i s c o v e r t h a t t h e d e f i n i t e a rt i c le is s u p p r e s s e d b e f o r e m o s to f t h e t i t le s in t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y .

T a k e t h e m o s t f r e q u e n t c a s e , Lord, i n T a b l e 2 a s a n i l l u s t r a t i o n . B o t h J e s -p e r s e n 1 9 54 1 19 49 ]: 5 65 ) a n d P o u t s m a 1 9 1 4: 6 54 ) r e c o r d th e u s e o f t h e d e f i n i t ea r t i c l e w i t h t h e t i t le Lord e . g . the Lord Churchill a n d the Lord Cl fford. H o w -e v e r, t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a s h o w s t h a t t h e r e is a c l e a r d i s t i n c t i o n b e t w e e nt h e u s e a n d o m i s s i o n o f t he d e f i n i t e a r t ic l e p r e c e d i n g t h e w o r d Lord. T h e u s e o ft h e d e f i n i te a r t ic l e ta k e s p l a c e i n e x a m p l e [8] o n l y w h e n t h e w o r d i s p a r t o f a na p p o s i t i o n a l n o u n p h r a s e , the 6th Lord, w h e r e a s t h e s u p p r e s s i o n o f t h e d e f i n i tea r t i c l e o c c u r s i n e x a m p l e [ 9] w h e n t h e w o r d i s a n i n s t i t u t i o n a l i s e d t it l e , Lord.~0 No te that th ere are a total of 48 name types preceded by Lord in the present sample o f data.To save space, I have l isted only 5 o f them in Tab le 2.2 4 8

Downloadedby[UQLib



11/21

P E R S O N A L N A M E S I N P R E S E N T -D A Y E N G L I S H[8] Th ey include the 6th Lord B rownlow sdiary of the crisis . . .[9] It was feared the collection, offered for sale by Lord Brownlow, would go abroad, . . .A g a i n , i t i s w o r t h r e i t e r a t i n g t h a t w h i l e s o v e r e i g n t it le s n o r m a l l y s u p p r e s s t h ed e f i n i t e a r t i c l e ( e . g . King Edward , Queen V ic to r ia ) , c e r t a i n i m p e r i a l f i g u r es l i k et he E m p r e s s M a r i a T h e r es a a n d t he E m p e r o r N a p o l e o n s t il l k e e p t h e d e f i n i t e a r -t i cl e i n t h e l a n g u a g e o f h i s t o r y ( K r u i s i n g a , 1 93 21 19 11 ]: 3 6 1 - 2 ; P o u t s m a , 1 91 4:651) .O f fi c ia l N a m e s P r e c e d e d b y H o n o r i f i c A d j e c t i v e sI n a d d i t i o n t o t i t u l a r n o u n s , h o n o r i f i c a d j e c t i v e s a l s o fu n c t i o n a s t it le s p r e c e d -i n g p e r s o n a l n a m e s : Rev erend (Rev . ) , Venerab l e a n d H o n o u r a b l e ( H o n . )( C h r i s t o p h e r s e n , 1 9 3 2 : 1 7 2 ; J e s p e r s e n , 1 95 41 19 49 ]: 5 7 6 ) . R e v e r e n d a n d Venera-b le a r e u s e d a s a t i tl e o f a m e m b e r o f t h e c le r g y , w h i l e H o n o u r a b l e i s u s e d a s at i tl e o f a c h i l d o f a m e m b e r o f t h e n o b i l i t y o r a c e r t a i n h i g h o f f ic i a l . T h e r e i s ad i s t i n c t t e n d e n c y t h a t t h e s e h o n o r i f i c a d j e c t iv e s s h o u l d b e f o l l o w e d b y g i v e nn a m e s a n d f a m i l y n a m e s t o g e t h e r ( t he Rev . C l i ve Cohen ) , a n d s o m e t i m e s b y a n -o t h e r t i t l e ( t he Rev . Canon John Da le ) . V e r y o f t e n t h e h o n o r i f i c a d j e c t i v e R e v -e r e n d i s p r e c e d e d b y t h e i n t e n s i fi e r M o s t o r R i g h t ( R t . ) , a s i n t h e M o s t R e v . J o h nH a b g o o d a n d t h e R i g h t R e v . T i m o t h y B a v in , t o e x p r e s s t h e h i g h r a n k o r s t a t u so f th e p e r s o n c o n c e r n e d .

T a b l e 3 s h o w s t h a t i n th e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , n o n e o f th e n a m e s a r e p r e -c e d e d b y H o n o u r a b l e , b u t t h e r e a r e t 4 n a m e t o k e n s p r e c e d e d b y R e v e r e n d a n dVenerab le i n d i f f e r e n t f o r m s .Tabl e 3 F r e q u e n c y o f o c c u rr e n c e o f h o n o r i f i c a d je c t i v e s f o l lo w e d b y p e r s o n a l

n a m e s i n th e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a ( b y n a m e t o k e n s )

Honorific adjectives Preceded by th N ot preceded by thHonourable 0 0Reverend + f u l l n a m e 1 0Rev. + f u l l n a m e 5 0Rev. + s u r n a m e 0 1Rev. + t i t u l a r n o u n + f u ll n a m e 1 0Mos t Reverend + f u l l n a m e 1 0Most Rev . + f u l l n a m e 1 0Right Reverend + f u l l n a m e 1 0Right Rev. + f u l l n a m e 1 0Rt. Rev. + s u r n a m e 1 0Venerable + f u l l n a m e 1 0Total 3

2 4 9

Downloadedby[UQLib



12/21

G R A C E Y . W . T SEO u t o f t h e 1 4 n a m e t o k e n s , o n l y t w o r e p r e se n t t h e s a m e n a m e t y p e, n a m e l y

t h e R e v J e s s e J a c k s o n . T h e m o s t f r e q u e n t l y u s e d h o n o r i f i c a d j e c t i v e p r e c e d i n gp e r s o n a l n a m e s i n p r e s e n t - d a y B r i t i s h E n g l i s h i s R e v e r e n d . P e r h a p s t h i s i s d u et o t h e f a c t t h a t R e v e r e n d is th e m o s t f a m i l i a r h o n o r i f i c a d j e c ti v e o f r e s p e c t t h a tc a n b e a p p l i e d t o e v e r y m e m b e r o f th e c l e rg y , w h e r e a s V e n e r a b l e a n d H o n -o u r a b l e a r e l i m i t e d t o a r e l a t i v e l y s m a l l e r m e m b e r s h i p i n t h e m o d e r n w o r l d .

N o t e t h a t V e n e r a b l e , w h i c h i s r a r e i n t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , i s u s e d i nt h e R o m a n C a t h o l i c C h u r c h f o r s o m e o n e w h o w i l l i n t h e f u t u r e b e d e c l a r e d as a in t, a n d i n t h e A n g l i c a n C h u r c h f o r a p ri e st w h o is a n A r c h d e a c o n ( e x am p l e[10]) , while H o n o u r a b l e i s u s e d f o r t h e c h i l d r e n o f c e r ta i n B r i ti s h n o b l e s o r f o rc e r t a i n h i g h o f fi c ia l s, i n c l u d i n g M e m b e r s o f P a r l i a m e n t w h e n t a l k i n g t o o n e a n -o t h e r in th e H o u s e o f C o m m o n s .[10] The Venerable David Si lk, Archdeacon of Leicester, summ ing up the theological opposition,

W i t h r e g a r d t o t h e u s a g e o f t h e d e f in i t e a r ti c le p r e c e d i n g h o n o r i f i c a d j e ct i ve s ,P o u t s m a ( 1 9 1 4 : 5 7 3 - 4 , 5 7 6 ) s u g g e s t s t h a t w h i l e th e r e i s a d i s t in c t t e n d e n c y t oo m i t t h e d e f in i t e a r ti c le w h e n t h e a d j e c t iv e i s p u r e l y e m o t i o n a l ( m o s t l y o f s y m -p a t h y , p i t y , o r a d m i r a t i o n , s o m e t i m e s o f c o n t e m p t e .g . e n v i o u s W i l l ) o n t h e p a r to f t h e s p e a k e r o r w r i t er , h o n o r i f i c a d j e c t i v e s t h a t a r e u s e d a s t i tl es s u c h a s R e v -e r e n d a r e n o t e m o t i o n a l a t a l l a n d c o n s e q u e n t l y , r e q u i r e t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e .W h i l e a g r e e i n g t h a t h o n o r i f i c a d j e c t i v e s a r e p r o v i d e d w i t h t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e ,C h r i s t o p h e r s e n ( 1 9 3 2 : 17 2 ) p o i n t s o u t t h a t t h e d e f i n i te a rt i c l e i s u s u a l l y le f t o u ti n w r i t i n g b e f o r e t h e a b b r e v i a t e d f o r m s H o n . a n d R e v . O n a s i m i l a r l i n e o ft h o u g h t , L o n g ( 1 96 1 : 2 3 0 ) i n d i c a t e s t h a t t h e r e is a l s o a m a r k e d t e n d e n c y t ot r e a t r e v e r e n d e x a c t l y a s t h e n o u n h o n o r i f i c s a r e t r e a t e d , a s i n R e v e r e n d B r e w -s t e r w i l l p r e a c h a t t h e e l e v e n - o c l o c k s e r v i c e .

H o w e v e r , T a b l e 3 sh o w s t h a t o n l y o n e o u t o f t h e si x o c c u r r e n c e s o f th e a b -b r e v i a t e d f o r m R e v f o l l o w e d b y p e r s o n a l n a m e s o m i t s t h e d e f i n i te a r t ic l e, a s inR e v J a c k s o n i n e x a m p l e [ 11 ], a n d n o n e o f t h e o c c u r r e n c e s c o n s i s t i n g o f th e f u llf o r m R e v e r e n d d r o p s t h e d e f in i t e a r ti c le . E v e n w i t h i n t h e r e s t o f t h e n e w s c o r -p u s a v a i la b l e i n t h e B N C , t h e r e i s o n l y o n e m o r e t o k e n o f th e a b b r e v i a t e d f o r mR e v d r o p p i n g t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e , a s i n e x a m p l e [ 1 2 ] .[11] Rev Jackson, who ran his own campaign for the Dem ocratic nomination last tim e, . ..[12] ... the P resident talked fo r three hours with the c ou ntry s three most po litically prominentchurch leaders, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, D r A llan Boesak and Rev Frank Chikane.

H e n c e , s u f fi c e i t t o s a y t h a t t h e c l a i m s o f C h r i s t o p h e r s e n ( 1 93 2 : 1 7 2 ) a n dL o n g ( 1 9 6 1 : 2 3 0 ) d o n o t m a k e a s t r o n g c a s e i n t h i s r e s p e c t .P u r e T i t l e s ) a s U n i q u e R e f e r e n c eT i t le s a n d o f fi c es f o r p e r s o n s a r e w o r d s o r p h r a s e s w h i c h r e f e r t o i n d i v id u a l p e r -s o n s s o c ia l r a n k , p o s i t i o n o f a u t h o r i t y i n a n o r g a n i s a t i o n o r p l a ce i n a p r o f e s -s i o n . S o m e t i m e s o f f i c i al t it le s , w h e n c a p i t a l i s e d , a r e u s e d w i t h r e a s o n a b l y f i x e dp a r t i c u l a r a p p l i c a t i o n s s o t h a t i n s o m e w a y s t h e y c o m p e t e w i t h t h e m o r e p e r -m a n e n t g i v e n - a n d - f a m i l y n a m e s o f t h e h o l d e r s ( L o n g , 1 96 1: 2 3 2) . I n t h e p r e s e n t2 5 0

Downloadedby[UQLib



13/21

P E R S O N A L N A M E S I N P R E S E N T -D A Y E N G L I S Hs a m p l e o f c o r p u s d a t a , t h e se p u r e t it le s a re c o m p o s e d o f t h e f o l lo w i n g g r a m -m a t i c a l p a t t e r n s :(a) a single com m on noun, as in the Chancellor;(b) a com m on nou n phrase, as in the Tr ade Secretary;(c) a com m on nou n postmodified by a prepositional phrase, as in the P resident of Bosnia-Herce-govina; and(d) a com mo n nou n phrase postmodified by a prepositional phrase, as in the Prime Minister ofPakistan.

T h e C h ic a go M a n u a l o f S t y l e ( t 9 9 3 : 2 4 4 ) i n d i c a t e s t h a t f o r t h e s a k e o f c l a r -i ty , o r p e r h a p s u n b r e a k a b l e t r a d i t i o n , s o m e B r i t i s h t it le s o f n o b i l i t y li k e theP r i n c e R e g e n t a n d t h e P r i n c e s s R o y a l a r e a l s o c a p i t a l i s e d w h e n u s e d w i t h o u t ap e r s o n a l n a m e . B o t h t h e P r i n c e R e g e n t a n d t h e P r i n c e s s R o y a l a r e f o r m e d o f ac o m m o n n o u n Pr ince , P r inces s ) p o s t m o d i f i e d b y a n a d je c ti v e Regen t , Roya l ) .N o t e t h a t t h e d e f i n i t e a r ti c l e is r e q u i r e d i n a l l t h e s e i n s t a n c e s i n t h e p r e s e n t s a m -p l e o f d a t a . I t is a l s o n o t e w o r t h y t h a t a l l t h e se a r e u n i q u e p o s i t i o n s h e l d b y o n ep e r s o n a n d t h e y a r e t h e r e f o r e r a t h e r l i k e t he Pre s iden t , t he Pr ime Min i s t e r , t heCha i rman , e tc .

W h i l e t h e a b o v e o f f i c i al ti tl es a n d t it le s o f n o b i l i t y r e s e m b l e a p h r a s a l c o n -s t r u c t i o n w i t h t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c le a s a d e t e r m i n e r , a f e w ti t le s o f r e s p e c t , p a r t i c -u l a r l y t h o s e i n r e l a t i o n t o t h e B r i t i s h r o y a l f a m i l y , b e g i n w i t h a p o s s e s s i v ep r o n o u n t h a t p l a y s a d e t er m i n a t i v e f u n c t i o n . I n e x a m p l e [1 3], b o t h H e r M a j e s t ya n d t he Queen , w h i c h a r e m e a n t t o r e p l a ce a p e r s o n a l n a m e , h a v e t h e s a m eu n i q u e r e f e r e n c e . H o w e v e r , i n t h e f o r m e r c a s e , t h e p o s s e s s i v e p r o n o u n H e r isp a r t o f th e t it le o f r es p e c t a n d c a n n o t b e a c c o m p a n i e d b y a n y d e t e r m i n e rs s u c ha s t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e * t h e H e r M a j e s t y ) w h e r e a s i n t h e l a t t e r c a s e , t h e r o y a lt i t l e i s a c o m m o n n o u n w h i c h a c c e p t s t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i c l e .[13] An d would Her Majesty be ob liged to accept that advice? N ot necessarily. If the Queenjudged tha t another party leader could form a government with majority support . . .

O c c a s i o n a l l y , t h e r e is a p r a ct i c e i n th e E n g l i s h l a n g u a g e t h a t a t it le o f r e s p e c ti s a t t a c h e d t o a r e l i g i o u s o r i m p e r i a l t i tl e s o a s t o a d d r e s s o r t o r e f e r r e s p e c t f u l -l y t o c e r t a i n r e l i g i o u s o r i m p e r i a l l e a d e r s . F o r e x a m p l e , t h e r e l ig i o u s t it le theD a l ai L a m a n o r m a l l y s t a n d s a l o n e t o r e fe r t o th e h e a d o f th e T i b e t a n B u d d h i s tr e li g io n . H o w e v e r , a s s h o w n i n e x a m p l e [ 14 ] i n th e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , t h er e l i g i o u s t it l e c a n b e p r e c e d e d b y t h e t i t le o f r e s p e c t H i s H o l i n e ss . M e y e r ( 1 9 9 2 :8 5 ) c o n s i d e r s t h i s k i n d o f c o n s t r u c t i o n a s a r es t r ic t i v e a p p o s i t i o n w h o s e u n i t sa r e b o t h d e f i n it e n o u n p h r a s e s a n d s t a te s t h a t r e s t ri c ti v e a p p o s i t i o n s o f t h is t y p ea r e r e s t r i c t e d t o s t e r e o t y p i c a l c o n s t r u c t i o n s s u c h a s H e r M a j e s t y t h e Q u e e n inh i s c o r p o r a . S i m i l a r t o h i s fi n d i ng s , t h is k i n d o f c o n s t r u c t i o n is v e r y ra r e w i t ho n l y o n e i n s t a n c e i n t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a .[14] Seco ndly, His Holiness the D alai Lama should be given the ownership of Tibet.I t is n o t e w o r t h y t h a t s o m e t it le s o f re s p ec t a n d m a r k e r s o f s ta t u s c a n f u n c t i o na s v o c a t i v e s in d i r e c t a d d r e s s i n p l a c e o f o ff i c ia l p e r s o n a l n a m e s a n d h a v eu n i q u e r e f e r e n c e ( L o n g , 1 96 1: 2 3 2 ; Q u i r k et al . , 1 9 8 5 : 7 7 3 - 4 ) . T h e r e a r e o n l y

251

Downloadedby[UQLib



14/21

GRACE Y. W. TSEtwo occurrences of vocatives in the present sample of data. In example [15], thetitle of respect M a d a m e is used as a vocative to address a stranger in a politeman ner. In example [16], the in stit utiona lised title M r modifies the civil titleSpeaker , serving as an address to express the speaker s relat ionshi p to the per-son addressed in the British House of Commons. It is not surprising that oc-currences of vocatives are very rare in the present sample of data, which consistsof mainly written texts rather t han conversations.[15] The other day the window of the police station was open and an angry male voice could beheard shouting: But you have to sign the statement, Madame.'[16] 'Mr Speaker,' swooned James Paice ... can I first welcome my Honourable Friend to herfirst question time?

Moreover, certain titles, like personal names, are introduced by D e a r andplaced as a salu tati on above the bod y of letter, as in example [17]:[17] DEAR Doctor. So, we re feeling a bit peaky are we?Nicknam es and pithetsA n ickn ame or an epithet is a name used in formal ly as part of, or a substit utefor, the official nam e of someone. Sometimes the ni ckn ame or epithet is used torefer to a group of persons. For example, t h e B i r m i n g h a m S i x refers to the sixIrishmen who were found guilty of plant ing IR A bombs in two Bi rming hampub s in 1974, killi ng a nu mb er of people. 11 As n ick nam es and epithets are us u-ally based on ce rtain significant characteristics or acts of the bearer(s) of thenickname, their internal grammatical patterns are naturally unconstrained. Inthe present sample of corpus data, there are a total of 34 types of nickenamesand epithets representing as man y as 14 kinds of grammatical patterns.

Table 4 shows that in the present sample of data, nicknames and epithets canbe a noun phrase ( th e I r o n L a d y , B l a c k T a m ) , a common noun ( Monocle) , aneologism ( ' W a c k o ) , a proper noun in apposition with a common noun phrase( D ave t he Busker ) , a verb ( ' P i n p o i n t ) , a common noun followed by a propernoun ( 'Eng i neer Bash i r ) and may even be as simple as alphabetic characters (B,A B ) . An epithet is sometimes used within the full name and is usually enclosedin quotation marks, as in M r s L e o n a 'Q u ee n M e a n i e ' H e l m s l e y . The epithetswithin the full names may consist of a petname ( ' G e r r y ) , a common noun( ' M o n o c l e ) , a phrasal proper name ( ' Q u e e n M e a n i e ) or an adjective ( ' R e d ) .Note that the epithet sometimes rhymes or alliterates with the official names.For example, in S i r W i l li am Joynson ' J i x ' H i ck s , the last syllables of J i x andH i c k s rhyme with one another; in R e d R e g W e s t o n and 'M onoc l e M organ , thefirst syllables of R e d and R e g are the same and so are the first syllables of M o n -ocle and M or ga n. 12H For details of the historical or political events associated with the epithets like the Birming-ham Six, the Guildford Fou rand the M aguire Seven, refer to Longm an Dictionary of EnglishLanguage and C ulture(Longman, 1998).~2 In their treatise on the origins and social consequences of nicknames, Morgan et al. (1979:36) point out that rhyming seems to be one of the commonest ways of forming a nicknameby internal methods of formation.252

Downloadedby[UQLib



15/21

T a b l eP E R S O N A L N A M E S I N P R E S E N T -D A Y E N G L I S H

G r a m m a t i c a l p a t t e r n s o f n i c k n a m e s a n d e p i t h e t s i n t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l eo f d a t a

G r a m m a t i c a l p a tt er n P r e c e d e d b y th N o t p r ec e de d b y thA l p h a b e t i c c h a r a c t er s ) - AB, Mr B , 'ETA n e o l o g i s m - 'Wacko ' , S tompieA v e r b Pinpoint'A b o r r o w i n g WunderkindA s in g le c o m m o n n o u n The Avengers, 'Th e Shark 'MonocleA s i ng l e p r o p e r n o u n NinoyA c o m m o n n o u n p r e m o d if ie d the Chingford Skinhead,b y a p r o p e r n o u n the Yorkshire RipperA c o m m o n n o u n p r e m o d i f i e d the Insta nt Megaph one, Big Brotherb y a n a d j e c t i v e the Iron LadyA c o m m o n n o u n o r n o u n the G enius of thep h r a s e p o s t m o d i f i e d Carpathians, the Hero ofb y a p r e p o s i t i o n a l p h r a s e Heroes, the Shining Light

o f the WorldA c o m m o n n o u n i n a p p o s i t io n - Engineer Ba shir'w i t h a p r o p e r n o u nA p r o p e r n o u n p r e m o d i f i ed Red Reg , B lack Tamb y a n a d j e c t i v eA p r o p e r n o u n i n a p p o s i t io n Dave the Buskerw i th a c o m m o n n o u n p h r a s eA n i c k n a m e o r a n e p i t h e te m b e d d e d w i t h i n t h e fu ll n a m e

A n u m e r a l p r e m o d i f i e db y a p r o p e r n o u n

the Birmingham Six, theGuildJord Four, theM aguire Seven

'Ger ry' Annesley,Lo rd 'Derry ' Irvine,'Monocle Morgan,Mr Eduardo'Danding'Conjuanco,M rs Leona 'QueenMea n ie ' H e lms ley ,'Red ' Reg Weston,Sir William Joynson'J ix ' H icks ,Stompie ' Moeketsi

2 5 3

Downloadedby[UQLib



16/21

G RA CE Y . W . T SEA s s u g g e s t e d b y t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f C h i c a g o P r e s s ( 1 99 3 : 24 5 ), t h e u s e o f q u o -

t a t i o n m a r k s is r e q u i r e d t o a l er t t h e a t t e n t i o n o f t h e r e a d e r s w h e n a n e p i t h e t isn o t c o m m o n l y a c c e p t e d i n t h e m e d i a ( e x a m p l e [ 18]), in c o n t r a s t t o a c o m m o n -l y a c c e p t e d e p i t h e t u s e d a s a s u b s t it u t e f o r t h e n a m e o f a f a m o u s p e r s o n ( ex -ample [19] ) .[18] The other terrorist, know n as 'Wacko , was described as aged 22 -25, 5ft 7in tall with b rownhair.[19] W ould M r Law son then have resisted the temptation to trundle r ou nd his Cabinet c ol-leagues, showing off his muscles and boasting that he alone had faced up to the Iron Ladyand won?

W i t h r e f e r e n c e t o t h e u s a g e o f t h e d e f i n i t e a r t i cl e , it a p p e a r s t h a t t h e r e i s ag r a d i e n c e b e t w e e n t h e u s e a n d o m i s s i o n o f t h e d e fi n i te a r t ic l e p r e c e d i n g a n i c k -n a m e o r a n e pi th e t. T h e d e f in i te a r ti cl e t e n ds t o o c c u r w h e n a c o m m o n n o u n o ra n u m e r a l is p r e m o d i fi e d b y a p r o p e r n o u n , o r w h e n a c o m m o n n o u n o r a n o u np h r a s e i s p o s t m o d i f i e d b y a p r e p o s i t i o n a l p h r a s e . T h e d e f i n it e a r ti c le t e n d s t od i s a p p e a r w h e n i t is f o r m e d o f a l p h a b e t ic c h a r a ct e rs , o r w h e n a p r o p e r n o u n i sp r e m o d i f i e d b y a n a dj e c ti v e , o r w h e n t h e n i c k n a m e / e p i t h e t i s e m b e d d e d w i t h i nt h e f u l l p e r s o n a l n a m e .Q u a s i P e r s o n a l N a m e sT h e r e a r e t h r ee m i n o r k i n d s o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s t h a t a r e g iv e n to s u p e r n a t u r a lb e i n g s a n d t o n o n - h u m a n c r e a t u r e s , i n c l u d i n g f ic t i o n a li s e d b e i n g s a n d a n i m a l s .T h e y h a v e r ec e i v ed s c a n t a t t e n t i o n f r o m l in g u i st s c o m p a r e d t o n a m e s a n d t i tl esf o r p e r s o n s . I n t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , t h e o c c u r r e n c e s o f t h e s e th r e e k i n d so f n a m e s a r e i n fr e q u e n t , b u t t h e y d e s e r v e s c r u ti n y .N a m e s o f S u p e r n a tu r a l B e in g sI n t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , t h e r e a r e o n l y f i ve n a m e t y p e s g i v e n t o g o d s a n dm y t h o l o g i c a l b e i n g s i n r e l i g i o n s a n d c l a s s i c a l m y t h o l o g y . T h e y a r e Christ , Vish-nu , Adon i s , G od a n d t he Lord . W h i l e t h e f i rs t th r e e n a m e s a r e f o r m e d o f a si n g lep r o p e r n o u n , t h e n a m e G o d i s s o m e t i m e s c a l le d q u a s i - p r o p e r n a m e a s i t c a n b eu n c a p i t a li s e d a n d p r e c e d e d b y t h e a rt ic le s a s a c o m m o n n o u n , t he / a god( S o r e n s e n , 1 9 5 8: 1 81 ). I n i t i a l c a p i t a l s a r e u s e d a s a s i g n o f r e s p e c t i n G o d a n d i nt h e t i t u l a r n o u n t h e L o r d r e f e r r i n g t o G o d ( Q u i r k et al . , 1985 : 1638) .Na m es o f F i c ti ona l is ed Be i ngsN a m e s o f f i c ti o n a l is e d b e i n g s a r e q u a s i - n a m e s g i v e n t o p e rs o n i f i e d o b j e c t s i nt h e re a l w o r l d , w h i c h a r e f i c t i o n a l is e d i n t h e s en s e t h a t c h i l d r e n ( a n d a d u l t s )a t t r i b u t e a n i m a t e a n d h u m a n c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s t o t h e m , s u c h a s c a r t o o n f ig u r e s,d o l l s a n d t o y s ( e . g . D o n a l d D u c k ) . O u t o f a t o t a l o f 1 5 n a m e t y p e s o f fi c t io n -a l is e d b e i n g s in t h e p r e s e n t s a m p l e o f d a t a , n i n e n a m e t y p e s c o n s i s t o f o n l y o n ew o r d w h il e si x c o n s is t o f t w o w o r d s w i t h r e fe r en c e t o t h e n u m b e r o f w o r d s i ne a c h n a m e . I t s e e m s t h a t f i c t i o n a l i s e d b e i n g s t e n d t o h a v e o n e - w o r d n a m e s t h a ta r e e as i er fo r c h i l d r e n t o r e m e m b e r . M o r e o v e r , i n o r d e r t o m a k e t h e s p e e c hs o u n d s m o r e a p p e a l i n g t o c h i ld r e n , m o s t o f t h e o n e - w o r d n a m e s c a r r y n o m o r e2 5 4

Downloadedby[UQLib



17/21

P E R S O N A L N A M E S I N P R E S E N T - D A Y E N G L I S Ht h a n t w o s y l l a b l e s ( e . g . Doc, Dopey a n d t h e t w o - w o r d n a m e s m a k e e x t e n s i v eu s e o f a l l i t e r a t i o n ( e .g . M i ckey M o u s e a s w e l l a s c o n s o n a n c e ( e . g . Brer Rabbit .

G r a m m a t i c a l l y , t h e in t e r n a l c o m p o s i t i o n o f n a m e s o f f i c ti o n a l is e d b e in g s ism o r e d i v e rs if ie d t h a n t h a t o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s f o r h u m a n b e in g s. A s s h o w n i nT a b l e 5 , i n a d d i t i o n t o t h e o r d i n a r y f o r m a t i o n b a s e d o n a s in g le p r o p e r n o u n , a s inPluto, t h e m a j o r i t y t a k e v a r ie d g r a m m a t i c a l f o r m s . A s t h e n a m e s o f fi c ti o n al is e db e i n g s a r e m e a n t t o c h a r a c t e r i s e c e r t a i n p h y s i c a l , b e h a v i o u r a l o r p s y c h o l o g i c a la b e r r a t i o n s ( N u e s s e l, 1 99 2 : 3 9 ), t h e r e is a g r e a t e r n e e d t o a d o p t c e r t a i n u n c o n v e n -t i o n a l n a m i n g p r a c t i c e s s u c h a s a s i n g l e a d j e c t i v e ( e . g . Bashful a n d a d e s c r i p t i v ec o m m o n n o u n p r e m o d i f ie d b y a p r o p e r n o u n (e .g . Don ald Duck . W i t h t h e e x c e p -t i o n o f the Tar-B aby, a ll n a m e s o f f i c t i o n a l i s e d b e i n g s d o n o t a c c e p t t h e d e f in i t e a r -t ic le , t h u s h a v i n g a c l o s e r e s e m b l a n c e t o n a m e s f o r h u m a n b e i n g s.T a b l e 5 G r a m m a t i c a l p a t t e r n s o f n a m e s o f f i c t io n a l i s e d b ei n g s in t h e p r e s e n t

s a m p l e o f d a t aramm atica l pattern Preceded by th N o t preceded by th

A s in g le c o m m o n n o u n Doc( in a b b r e v i a t i o n )A s in g l e p r o p e r n o u n PlutoA s ing le ad jec t ive Bashful, Dopey,

Grumpy, Happy,Sleepy, Sneezy

T w o p r o p e r n o u n s Scrooge McD uckA h y p h e n a t e d w o r d the Tar-Babyc o n s is t in g o f tw o c o m m o n n o u n sA c o m m o n n o u n p r e m o d i fi e d Brer Rabbit,b y a p r o p e r n o u n Donald D uck,

Mickey Mouse,Minnie Mouse

A c o m m o n n o u n p o s tm o d i f ie d - Snow White

An i m a l N a m esA n i m a l n a m e s a r e q u a s i- p e r s o n a l n a m e s g i v en to a n i m a t e a n i m a l s w h i c h a ret r e a t e d a s i f t h e y w e r e h u m a n b e i n g s ( e. g. Culture Vulture . I n t h e p r e s e n t s a m -p l e o f d a t a , a ll 22 t y p e s o f a n i m a l n a m e s a r e n a m e s f o r ra c e h o r s e s e x c e p t o n et h a t i s g i v e n t o a n e a g l e o w l ( i . e . Gonzo . T a b l e 6 s h o w s t h a t t he g r a m m a r o ft h e a n i m a l n a m e s i n p r e s e n t - d a y E n g l i s h is u n c o n s t r a i n e d i n t h a t t h e r e is g r e a t e rf le x ib i li ty a n d c r e a t iv i t y , t h o u g h N u e s s e l ( 1 9 9 2 : 1 1 7 ) a r g u e s t h a t t h e n a m i n g o fs u c h h o r s e s is n o t a r b i t r a r y a s th e r e a r e s p e c i fi c r u l e s s et f o r t h b y t h e J o c k e yC l u b o f N e w Y o r k a s c it e d f r o m A c k e r m a n ( 19 5 3: 2 62 ). T h e s e b a s i c ru le s a r ea s f o l l o w s :

2 5 5

Downloadedby[UQLib



18/21

G R A C E Y . W . T SETable 6 G r a m m a t i c a l p a t t e r n s o f a n i m a l n a m e s i n t he p r es e n t s am p l e o f d a t a

rammatical pattern Preceded by th No t p receded by thA s i ng le c o m m o n n o u n The Minstrel N o t e t h a t

t h e d e f n i t e a r t i c l e i se m b e d d e d a s p a rt o ft h e n a m e . )

A s i n g le p r o p e r n o u n Ballymaginty,Ballywillwil, Cardoun,Fidway, Gonzo, Hatoof ,Kenbu, Musicale,Oumaldaaya, Tertian,Wiedniu

A c o m m o n n o u n p r em o d i fi e db y a n a d j e c t i v e

Beachy Head,Central City,J i nxy Jack

A c o m m o n n o u n p re m o d if ie db y a c o m m o n n o u n

A c o m m o n n o u n p re m o d i fi e db y a p a s t p a r t i c i p l e

Culture Vulture,Docklands Express,Pa rty PoliticsHun g Parl iament

A c o m m o n n o u n p re ce d edb y a p o s se s si v e p r o n o u nA p r o p e r n o u n f o ll o w e db y a n a d v e r bA f o r e i g n n a m e

H is ReverenceGranville Ag ainRose Indien

a) No mo re than four teen le t ters spaces and pu nctu at ion s cou nt as le tters ).b) No more than three words .c ) N o f amous o r no to r ious per s on .d) No l iv ing person.e) No fam ous horse .f ) N o t rade name.g) N o copyrighted nam e.h) N o titles book s, song, f ilms, magazines).W i t h r e g a r d t o t h e u s a g e o f t h e d e f in i t e ar ti c l e , a l l a n i m a l n a m e s e x c e p t o n e

n a m e l y The M i ns t r e l ) d o n o t t a k e t h e d e f i n i t e a r ti c le . I t i s n o t e w o r t h y t h a t t h ea n i m a l n a m e s l i ke Cen t ra l C i t y a n d Par t y Po l i t i c s w h i c h t a ke t h e g r a m m a t i c a lf o r m s o f o r d i n a r y n o u n p h r a s e s d r o p t h e d e f in i te ar ti c le , t h u s b e h a v i n g l ik ep r o p e r n a m e s r a th e r t h a n c o m m o n n o u n p h ra s e s .

2 5 6

Downloadedby[UQLib



19/21

PERSONAL NAMES IN PRESENT-DAY ENGLISHonc lus i on

A d m i t t e d l y , t h e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n a b o v e i s n o t e x h a u s t i v e e n o u g h t o c o v e r a l l t h eg r a m m a t i c a l b e h a v i o u r o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s i n p r e s e n t - d a y E n g l is h . H o w e v e r , itis m o r e t h a n s u f fi c ie n t to s h o w t h a t t h e g r a m m a r o f p e r s o n a l n a m e s is a c o m -p l ex i ss u e in l in g u is ti cs . I t h a s b e e n d e m o n s t r a t e d t h a t t h e g r a m m a r o f p e r s o n -a l n a m e s i s u n i q u e a n d d i s ti n c ti v e . A m o n g d i f f e r e n t s e m a n t i c c la s s es o f p e r s o n a ln a m e s , t h e g r a m m a t i c a l p a t t e r n s o f of fi c ia l n a m e s a r e h ig h l y c o n s t r a i n e d w h e r e -a s t h o s e o f n i c k n a m e s , e p i t h e t s a n d q u a s i - p e r s o n a l n a m e s a r e h i g h ly c r e at iv e .

O f f ic i a l n a m e s o f p e r s o n s n o r m a l l y c o n s is t o f p r o p e r n o u n s w i t h o u t t h e d e f -i n i t e a r t i c l e . H o w e v e r , w h e n t h e y a r e p r e c e d e d b y t i t u l a r n o u n s o r h o n o r i f i c a d -j e c t iv e s , t h e u s a g e o f t h e d e f i n i te a r t i c le v a r i es . W h i l e m o s t t it le s b e f o r e p e r s o n a ln a m e s r e g u l a r l y s u p p r e s s t h e d e f i n i te a r t i cl e ( e .g . M r P u l m a n , t h e p r e s e n t s t u d yh a s i d e n t i f i e d a f e w e x c e p t i o n a l c a s e s l i k e the Guru Budd a n d the Marquis deSade t h a t m i g h t b e d u e t o u n f a m i l ia r i t y o r t h e i n fl u e n ce o f fo r e i g n la n g u a g e . I nf o r m e r ca s es , i t i s a p p a r e n t t h a t t h e f ir s t w o r d s u b o r d i n a t e s t o t h e p r o p e r n a m e .I n l a t t e r c a s e s , i t i s a p p a r e n t t h a t t h e n o u n s a r e i n a p p o s i t i o n s y n t a c t i c a l l y .

T h e a b o v e s t u d y h a s a l s o d e m o n s t r a t e d t h a t a p u r e t i t l e f o r a p e r s o n , w h e nc a p i t a l is e d , f u n c t i o n s a s a u n i q u e r e f e r e n c e . U n l i k e o f f ic i a l n a m e s o f p e r s o n s ,t h e se p u r e t it le s a r e a n a l y s a b l e in t e r m s o f t h e n o u n p h r a s e s t ru c t u re . I n m a n yc a s e s , t h e y c a n b e a n a l y s e d i n t o h e a d a n d m o d i f i e r s a s i n the Foreign Minister,the Secretary o f S ta te . T h e a b o v e g r a m m a t i c a l a c c o u n t h a s f u r t h e r d is c o v e re dt h a t s o m e o f t h e n i c k n a m e s , e p i t h e ts , a n d q u a s i - p e r s o n a l n a m e s b e h a v e l ik ec o m m o n n o u n p h r a s e s t h o u g h t h e y a re in g e n er a l u n c o n s t ra i n e d a n d i d i os y n -cra t ic .S c h o o l o f A r t s a n d S o c i a l S ci e n ce sT h e O p e n U n i v er si ty o f H o n g K o n g3 0 , G o o d S h e p h e r d S t r e e tH o m a n t i n , K o w l o o nH o n g K o n gC h i n a

GRACE Y. W . TSE

A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T SI w o u l d l ik e to e x p r e s s m y g r a t i t u d e t o m y s u p e r v i s o r , P r o f e s s o r G e o f f r e y L e e c ho f L a n c a s t e r U n i v e r s i ty , U . K . , f o r h is v a l u a b l e c o m m e n t s o n t h e p r e s e n t s tu d y .I a m a l s o g r a t e fu l t o t h e C o m m i t t e e o f t h e B r it is h N a t i o n a l C o r p u s , f o r a ll o w -i ng t h e B N C d a t a t o b e u se d in H o n g K o n g f o r m y r e s ea r c h a t a ti m e w h e n t h ec o r p u s w a s g e n e r a ll y r e s tr i ct e d to u s e w i t h i n th e E u r o p e a n C o m m u n i t y .

R E F E R E N C E SAARTS, B. (2000). M ode lling Linguistic G radience. M a n u s c r i p t .A C KE R M AN , L . M . ( 1 95 3 ), N a m i n g t h e n a g s . N a m e s 1 , 2 6 2 - 5 .BIBER, D . , S . JOHANSONN, G . LEEC H, S . CO NRAD an d E. FINEG AN (1999),The Longm an Gramm ar o f Spoken and Wri t ten Eng li sh . Essex .

257

Downloadedby[UQLib



20/21

GRA CE Y. W. TSEBU RN A RD , L. (1995), Us ers Reference Guide to the Bri tish N ationa l Corpus.Oxford .CCHRISTOPHERSON,P. (1939), The Art icles. A Stud y o f Their Theo ry an d Use in

English. Copenhagen .COTTLE, B. (1978 ), The Penguin Dict ionary o f Surnames. (2 nd edit ion). L on do n.CURM E, G . O. (1935), Parts o f Speech and Accidence. Boston .JESPERSEN, O. (1954 ), A Modern English Grammar on Historical Principles.(Vol. VII). (C om pleted and edi ted by N . Hais lund) . L ond on. (Original w orkpubl i shed 1949) .KJELLMER, G. (1977), W hy is Winnie the Po oh? O n the u se of the def in itear t icle in some Engl ish perso nal na m es . ENGLlSH STUDIES 58 (1-6), 508-14.KRUISINGA, E. (1932 ), A Han dbook o f Presen t -Day Eng lish. (Part II Vol. 2).(5 h edition). Gro ning en. (Original w or k publish ed 1911).KRUISINGA, E. and P. A. ERAD ES (1960), An English Grammar. (Vol. ISecond Par t ) . G ron ingen .LONG, R. B. (1961), The Sentence a nd Its Parts. A Gra mm ar of ContemporaryEnglish. C h i cag o an d Lo n d o n .LONG, R . B . (1969), The g ram m ar o f Eng l ish p ro per nam es . N a m e s 17 (2),107-26.LONGMAN. (1998), Long ma n D ict ionary o f Engli sh L anguage and C ulture.2 nd edit ion). London.MEY ER, C. F. (1992), Apposition in Contem porary English. Cambr idge .MILL, J. S. (1856), A Sy ste m o f Logic, Ratiocinative an d Inductive, Being a

Connected View of the Principles o f Evidence, an d the M etho ds o f Scienti ficInvestigation. (Vols. I-II) . (4th edit ion). Lo nd on . (Original wo rkp ub lish ed 1843).MORGAN, J. , C . O NEILL a nd R. HA RRE (1979), Nicknames. Their Origins andSocial Consequences. Lo n d o n .NUESSEL, F. (1992), The Stu dy o f Na m es: A Guide to the Principles and Topics.Westpor t , Connec t i cu t ; London .POUTSMA, H . (1914 ), A Grammar o f La te Modern Eng l i sh . f o r t he Use o fContinental, Especially Dutch, Students. (Par t I I Sect ion I , A) . Groningen.QU IRK, R., S. GREENBAUM, G . LEEC H an d J. SVARTVIK(1985), A Comprehen-sive Grammar of the English Language. Lo n d o n .RYDEN, M . (1975), N ou n-n am e co l locat ions in Br it ish Engl ish new spap erlanguage . Studia Neophilologica XLVII , 14-39.SORENSEN, H . S. (1958 ), Word-Classes in Modern English, with SpecialReference to Pro per Names. W ith an Introduc tory Th eory of Grammar,Meaning, and Reference. C o p en h ag en .SWEET, H. (1891), A Ne w English Grammar. Logical and Historical Pa rt IIntroduction, Phono logy a nd Accidence. Oxford .THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRE SS (1993), The Ch icago Manua l o f S t y l e(1993). (14 h edi t ion) . Chica go and Lo ndo n.TSE, Y. W . G . (2000), Pedagog ica l impl i ca tions o f Pro to type T heo ry fo r t he

wr i t ing o f Eng lish g ram m ar t ex tbooks : t he case o f p roper nam es . In:K. Nico la id i s and M. Mat theoudak i s . ( eds . ) Proceedings o f the 13 h Interna-t ional Sym pos ium on Theoret ical an d Ap plied Linguist ics, Thessaloniki,258

Downloadedby[UQLib



21/21

PERSONAL NAMES IN PRESENT-DAY ENG LISHGreece 22-24 April 1999. F e s t s c h r i f t f o r P r o f e s s o r A n t h a n a s i o s K a k o u r i o -t is) . pp. 490-500). Th essa lon iki .

TSE, G . Y. W. 2002) , A Corpus-based Stud y o f Proper Na m es in Present-dayEnglish. U n p u b l i s h e d P h . D . T h e s is ) . L a n c a s t e r U n i v e r s i t y , E n g l a n d .ZANDVOORT, R . W . 1957), A Handbook o f English Gramm ar. L o n d o n .

259

Downloadedby[UQLib


a grammatical study of personal names in english

Documents