Third person singular -s and event marking in child African American English

Abstract

This paper discusses 3rd person singular -s in the language of three- to six-year-old developing AAE speakers, in relation to early stages of zero 3rd person singular -s (Øs) and overt s marking. Data include a sentence repetition task and a story retell task. The speakers’ 3rd person singular -s and Øs marking are examined as a function of age, verb type, allomorph, and verb coordination. Analyses are presented to support the claim that the 3rd person singular marker -s is not part of the AAE grammar although children produce the marker in certain contexts. The speakers’ 3rd person singular -s and Øs marking are also discussed in relation to the optional root infinitive stage and the Multiple Grammars approach.