![mention vs use object language vs metalanguage Merina Malagasy mesolect acrolect Messapic Indo-European metachrony [Grk metá ‘between,’ chrónos ‘time’]](https://images.tandf.co.uk/common/jackets/crclarge/978041520/9780415203197.jpg "mention vs use object language vs metalanguage Merina Malagasy mesolect acrolect Messapic Indo-European metachrony [Grk metá ‘between,’ chrónos ‘time’]")
ABSTRACT
L.Hjelmslev’s complementary term to diachrony ( synchrony vs diachrony): While diachronic studies (in his view) treat primarily the influence of extralinguistic factors on individual processes of language development, metachrony describes language change in a functional aspect as a succession of different language systems.
