Some Reflections on Inertia: Infinitive Complements in Latin

In this paper we discuss language change in the Latin subordination system. The discussion is based on Goldbach (2001) and Ferraresi and Goldbach (2002). This research tries to define a sufficiently restricted theory of syntactic change on the basis of the original proposals in Keenan (1999), elaborated upon in Longobardi (2001). We will locate our empirical results inside this framework, and thereby support Longobardi’s idea. Before doing so, some more general questions will be taken into consideration.