A diachronic view on non-verbal predication

This chapter examines the diachronic development of non-verbal predication, with a focus on the emergence of copula constructions from both verbal and non-verbal sources. The study outlines key pathways of grammaticalization, highlighting processes through which elements such as verbs, demonstratives, and pronouns evolve into copular forms. It also discusses the emergence of the different types of predicative inflection constructions, and the processes of acquisition and loss of verbal traits that appear to characterize the various diachronic trajectories from the source to the target. The findings underscore that, while source meanings and distributions can influence the target properties, grammaticalized copulas from diverse origins often converge in features and distribution.