The Grammar of the Old High German Modal Particles Thoh, Ia, and Thanne

This exhaustive study of a set of Old High German particles, thoh, ia, and thanne, focuses on the pragmatic functions of those particles.

After categorizing modal particles - particles which indicate implicitly a speaker's relationship to or attitude toward his or her own discourse - as a subset of metacommunicative particles, the author argues convincingly that thoh, ia, and thanne exhibit modal particle functions in four Old High German texts: they point to a speaker's presuppositions and expectations, determine interlocutionary force, and convey connotations ranging from surprise to accusation.