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The history of tag questions

2007-08-21

PermalinkPermalink 15:40:25, by Ingrid Tieken - Boon Van Ostade Email , 82 words   English (EU)
Categories: Historical Sociolinguistics

The history of tag questions

Could anyone help me find information on the history of the tag question? It is neither mentioned as a feature of Late Modern English grammar in Goerlach (2001) for the 18th century nor in Goerlach (1999) for the nineteenth, and yet they did occur. An example may be found in Kielkiewicz-Janowiak's study of the language of early New England women (Poznan 2002), i.e. "Heavy business, is it not?" (Theodosia Burr, 4 June 1803; p. 190). Where do they come from? I'd also welcome additional examples.
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