On the origin of the Basic Variety

Abstract

Three of the points made in Klein and Perdue's paper are addressed. The presence of the basic word order Agent-Verb-Patient in the Basic Variety may simply reflect the salience of this basic word order in the target language, as is also suggested by some comparable data from creoles. Complexity can indeed arise as a language tries to pay heed to competing, if not conflicting, demands, although it can also arise as a historical accretion of changes that are in themselves simple and natural.While the Basic Variety may serve the communicative functions of true languages, it remains to be shown that it can fulfil their cognitive function.