Question: What does "extant corpus" mean? 

Answer: existing writings\n\nNote to Jen (below) \n\nWhen I first read it, it appeared to mean "existing body."\n\nSo, I looked it up.\n\ncorpus:\n\nnoun [C] plural corpuses or corpora\nthe collection of a single writer's work or of writing about a particular subject, or a large amount of written and sometimes spoken material collected to show the state of a language\n\nhttp://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=17271&dict=CALD\n\nDon't ask me how "corpus" came to mean "body of writings" but that's what Cambridge claims it means. And, they're much smarter than me.
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