The Changes in the Usage of Azerbaijani Causative Structures due to Contacts with Persian

The aim of this research is to study causative changes in Azerbaijani due to contact with Persian. The data were collected from Azerbaijani speakers in Ardabil province. The research method is descriptive-analytic. First, the data were classified according to the formal parameters used in studying causative structures. Then, they were analyzed in the framework of two common approaches in language contact phenomenon (Myers-Scotton, 2006; Heine, 2006). Data analysis based on the criteria of code-switching/borrowing differentiation shows that some of Persian causative non-verbal elements have been borrowed by Azerbaijani and some of them appear as code-switched elements in Azerbaijani-Persian bilinguals’ speech. The findings were in line with Myers-Scotton’s view confirming code-switching/borrowing continuum as a mechanism for accomplishment of borrowing process. The compound sentences with two native compound causative verbs between collected data show that compound causative structure exists in Azerbaijani. Azerbaijani speakers use strategy such as the extending strategy to increase the frequency of compound causative structure matching that of Persian by borrowing and code-switching Persian non-verbal causative elements. Azerbaijani speakers choose among some alternative causative structures, the one corresponding to Persian structure.