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Example:

When I called, he came a running.

My first inclination was that it's an article and the participle is being used as a gerund, but that doesn't make sense structurally.

My second is I wonder if it comes from Latin or a Latin-based language influence. For example, European Portuguese puts an "a" between:

He came running. (He came a running)

Ele(He) veio(came) a(a) correr(running).

Update:

What is the story behind "a-" prefix / suffix?

This suggested duplicate question is not in fact duplicate. It doesn't provide a grammatical basis. It doesn't explain what it is. Is a being used as an article or a preposition or something else? It is (couched midway in the third of seventeen paragraphs of one of three answers on the alleged duplicate post) postulated to be a preposition. But this has no basis in grammar because the only prepositional definition of a is per, as in each, because a does not mean on, not in any dictionary from OED to Merriam-Webster to American Heritage or to any other I could find. This other post asks for the story behind a; I'm asking what tenet of grammar justifies using a, which this other post does not illuminate.

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Benjamin Harman
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    In "ele veio a correr", *a* is a prepositon, not the indefinite article. – Jacinto Jan 15 '16 at 11:14
  • @Jacinto : I know. I wasn't suggesting that it was an article. Instead, I was offering another alternative. I'm suggesting that it's maybe not an indefinite article but maybe something vestigial from a Latin-language influence, or maybe from Gaelic, which heavily influenced both Portuguese and English. I don't know what the grammatical basis is, thus the question, but these are my thoughts. – Benjamin Harman Jan 15 '16 at 11:16
  • My mistake. Correr is the infinitive though. Correndo is the equivalent to running but it takes no *a:* ele veio correndo. There might be some similarity between *a correr* and *a running* though. The *a* in veio a correr is misterious to Portuguese speakers too; but in passei uma hora a* nadar* (I spent an hour swimming) it can be roughly understood as in, at. Etymonline lumps togethter de *a* of a running with that *a* of twice a day: it says it means *on* (each) day. – Jacinto Jan 15 '16 at 11:45
  • @Jacinto : I take you're meaning. I spent several years growing up in Portugal, so I know Portuguese. We think of the "a" in between in Portuguese representing "to" in English, but like the "a" in "a running," the "a" between "veio" and "correr" seems similarly out of place since "correr" already means "to run," so adding the "a" would almost be like saying "to to run." Thus, you have my hypothesis that it comes from the ancient language of Gall. – Benjamin Harman Jan 15 '16 at 11:52
  • Veio a correr, estou a correr (I'm running) etc. is recent though, less than two centuries old. The Portuguese used to speak as Brazilians do: veio correndo, estou correndo; some old people in some places still do. This answer in Portuguese has a note on how the veio a correr could have arisen. – Jacinto Jan 15 '16 at 12:10
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    From the answer to that question: "Such verb forms derive from an Old English construction in which a preposition, usually on, was placed in front of a verbal noun — a verb to which -ing had been added to indicate that the action was extended or ongoing. Gradually such prepositions were shortened to a- by the common linguistic process that shortens or drops unaccented syllables." What is not explained here about what it is? – herisson Jan 17 '16 at 11:17
  • @sumelic : That doesn't provide the grammatical basis. That is to say it doesn't say what it is. Is a being used as an article or a preposition or something else? It is, according to this, being postulated to be a preposition. But this has no basis in grammar because the only prepositional definition of a is per, as in each, because a does not mean on, not in any dictionary from OED to Merriam-Webster to American Heritage or to any other I could find. This other post asks for the story behind a; I'm asking what tenet of grammar justifies using a. – Benjamin Harman Jan 17 '16 at 11:30
  • @BenjaminHarman: The "a" is not listed in a dictionary as a preposition because it is not currently used as a separate word. But historically, it comes from the preposition on (which was used as a preposition, because that is what it was). It has nothing to do with the definite article or "a" meaning "per"; those are only spelled the same by coincidence. I'm confused; are you asking for an explanation in terms of modern English grammar? I assumed not, since you asked if it comes from Latin or a Latin-based language influence. – herisson Jan 17 '16 at 11:36
  • If so, that answer later includes this: "This development is probably connected to the fact that a- was no longer interpreted as a preposition but as a prefix. As a consequence, the following ing-form was identified as verbal rather than nominal, in analogy to the much more common progressive." So this analysis for Modern English calls it a prefix, not an independent word. It seems odd to ask the grammatical category of a prefix; do you disagree with this analysis? – herisson Jan 17 '16 at 11:39
  • The "a" prefix derived from "on" is visible in other words, like "against." And the OED does list it, as "a-, prefix3" which is " Of multiple origins. Partly a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Partly formed within English, by conversion. Etymons: on- prefix; a prep.1 Originally partly a variant of on- prefix (showing a reduced form in unstressed position), and partly < a prep.1 Compare an- prefix1." – herisson Jan 17 '16 at 11:47
  • @sumelic : Whether or not answers on that post incidentally provided information that may or may not be the true answer to this question, it remains that that question is not this question. That question is asking for history. This question is asking for a grammatical basis. They are different questions. They are not the same question. This is not a duplicate of that. If you want to provide what you've written here in comments as an answer, feel free. – Benjamin Harman Jan 17 '16 at 11:50
  • Was it not useful? I'm sorry if it wasn't; the whole point of my linking to it was to try to help get an answer to your question. What the other question is really doesn't matter: what I'd like to know now is why you're not satisfied with the answer there, because if I tried to write an answer to your question right now, it would basically just repeat information from over there. – herisson Jan 17 '16 at 11:55
  • @sumelic : It's not the linking of it that I have an issue with; it's the voting to close it. When you make something appear to be a duplicate question, it causes it to get closed. This is not a duplicate question, so it should not be closed. What's more, if you want to provide an answer to the question, do so. You've actually provided the best working theory so far. I'd likely give you an upvote, as would others, and possibly select it. I can't do that with comments, though. – Benjamin Harman Jan 17 '16 at 11:57
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    'What's the story behind' invites discussion of the grammar involved. – Edwin Ashworth Jan 21 '23 at 15:53

2 Answers2

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This "a" is actually not an article, it's an old-fashioned prefix meaning something like "to". It's archaic and only really used in poetry and songs... maids a-milking, lords a-leaping etc.

It's possible it was influenced by Old Norse/French in Middle English.

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    I'd be interested in knowing where you got the Old Norse/French influence idea. It's too arbitrary to have made up, so I figure you read it somewhere. Do you know where? – Benjamin Harman Jan 15 '16 at 14:34
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Source derived from “Linguistics Girl”, Heather Marie Kosur -- All prefixes in English are derivational, which means the affixes create new words.

Prefix: a-
Meaning: predicative adjective with progressive aspect [ongoing action]
Examples: awake, afloat, atremble.

Suffixes in English may be derivational suffixes, which means the suffixes create new words, or they may be inflectional inflectional suffixes, which means the suffixes create new forms of the same word.

Derivational Suffix: -ing
Meaning: present participle [ongoing action]
Examples: marking, arguing, writing

Hence, a + Verb stem and Verb stem + the suffix-ing indicate ongoing action in two different ways.

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