Topic chains across registers in Kazakh

Abstract Topic chains represent a significant and widespread phenomenon across languages. The initiation of a topic signifies the commencement of a topic chain, with the successive utilization of zero anaphora being a distinct formal feature of such chains. Coreferentiality is the fundamental property linking clauses to form a topic chain. In Kazakh’s written texts and spoken discourse, nominal forms, pronominal anaphora and zero anaphora are the primary expressions. Specific empirical data demonstrate that written discourse favors zero anaphora (56.92%), followed by pronominal (27.69%) and nominal forms (15.39%), whereas spoken discourse exhibits comparable frequencies between zero anaphora (46.39%) and pronominal anaphora (44.25%), with nominal forms being marginal (9.36%). Furthermore, the formal expression and discourse-organizing functions of topic chains demonstrate both similarities and differences among various language types. This research compares the structures and functions of topic chains in languages that are topic prominent, subject prominent and topic–subject dual prominent. By descriptively analyzing the commonalities and specificities among Kazakh, its genetically related languages and other languages, it is suggested that Altaic family languages exhibit features of topic–subject dual prominence. Taken together, cross-linguistic and registers’ evidence indicates that language typology, as a deep-level structural constraint, governs the choice of referential selection and structural continuity in topic chains. In contrast, register variation, as a surface-level regulatory factor, fine-tunes the specific expressions, chain length and other aspects of topic chains through functional preferences and contextual adaptation, thereby optimizing their expressive adequacy in specific communicative situations to achieve discourse goals. Nonetheless, the arrangement and coherence of topic chains in all languages and registers are shaped by universal cognitive principles, the principle of linguistic economy and sociocultural norms.