| Sumario: | Based on spontaneous data from the Spanish dialects spoken in Spain,Mexico and Argentina, this study shows, first, that the morphophonologicand morphosyntactic characteristics of Spanish “clitic pronouns”prove that they constitute a heterogeneous class, whose membersexhibit differences based on both their case (dative vs. accusative)and the dialect from which the data is taken. Second, it is argued thatcontrary to widespread assumptions, direct object doubling involvinglexical phrases do occur in the varieties of Mexico and Spain. Third,the data shows that there are four different types of “doubling”, definedby their formal characteristics and communicative function. Theproductivity of each type, it is argued, is dependent on the degree ofgrammaticalization reached by the clitic in each variety. Finally, it isclaimed that a cognitive accessibility hierarchy serves as a unifyingprinciple which allows capturing how these “doubling” constructionsare advancing in the different varieties.
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