Pourquoi ille a-t-il été “sélectionné” pour devenir le pronom personnel et l’article indéfini dans les langues romanes?
For what reason ille was selected from Latin to become the article and the pronoun of third person in romance languages?

Author(s): Marie-Dominique Joffre
Subject(s): Theoretical Linguistics, Applied Linguistics, Studies of Literature, French Literature, Philology
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: latin; anaphoric; deictic; is; ille; article in romance languages
Summary/Abstract: The latin deictic ille became in Romance languages on one side the article, on the other the personnal pronoun. Both are anaphorics like is in latin. Anaphorics are empty syntactic forms which refer to previously mentioned concept. What is the reason why the deictic ille became anaphoric? Its meaning is very extensive: it points out to a breaking, an innovation or an opposition. It’s true – when speaker continues to say words, he hopes he expresses something new. That’s why in late Latin the use of ille was expanding, the form left its own meaning and finally took the place of is.

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