Relative nominals and event nominals in Hiaki

2020 ◽  
pp. 203-230
Author(s):  
Heidi Harley
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Relative Clause ◽  
Event Argument ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Null Operator ◽  
Null Operator Movement ◽  
Operator Movement

In ‘Relative nominals and event nominals in Hiaki’, Harley discusses an interesting formal overlap between nominalizations which create relative-clause like structures and nominalizations which create event nominals in Hiaki (Yaqui). The nominalizer which usually derives a subject relative nominal, when applied to an argumentless predicate such as a weather verb or an impersonal passive, also derives an event nominal. Harley argues that this is because the event argument IS the ‘subject’ of an argumentless predicate, the only accessible argument for the nominalizer to reify. In the process of proposing a uniform semantics for the relative nominalizers and the event nominalizer, a detailed analysis of both is provided. The nominalizers are argued to select an AspP complement. In entity-referring relative nominals, null operator movement is involved; in the event-referring event nominals, no operator is needed or possible. The syntax and morphology of the relative nominalizers is worked out in detail, with particular attention to the genitive-marked subjects of object, oblique, and locative relative nominals. <163>

Spelling-Out Scrambling

2004 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 109-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naoki Fukui ◽  
Hironobu Kasai
Keyword(s):  
Natural Consequence ◽  
Syntactic Movement ◽  
Null Operator ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Null Operator Movement ◽  
Reconstruction Effects ◽  
Radical Reconstruction ◽  
Selection Of ◽  
Operator Movement

This paper offers a new analysis of Japanese scrambling, under which some instances of scrambling phenomena are derived from the process of linearization. It is specifically proposed that the absence of formal agreement in Japanese enables Spell-Out to apply solely to an argument of the verb. The spelled out argument is “dislocated” at PF by the mechanisms of linearization of spelled out syntactic objects. Radical reconstruction effects, along with various other properties of Japanese scrambling such as the proper binding effects, are captured as a natural consequence of the proposed analysis, because the scrambled constituent actually does not undergo any syntactic movement but rather stays in the base-generated position. It is also argued that an analysis of scrambling ought to be eclectic in the sense that another strategy, which employs null operator movement to establish the relation between the dislocated element and the gap, is also available in Japanese, as originally proposed by Ueyama (2002). Thus, the optionality of Japanese scrambling is shifted under the proposed analysis to the optional application of Spell-Out (made possible by the absence of formal agreement) and the optional selection of a null operator in the numeration. The paper is concluded with the speculation that the availability of the latter strategy is due to the rich use of predication in Japanese.

scholarly journals Resumptive Pronouns in Chinese Passives

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 28
Author(s):  
Ting Xu
Keyword(s):  
Resumptive Pronouns ◽  
Null Operator ◽  
Null Operator Movement ◽  
Operator Movement

This paper accounts for the following puzzle: In Chinese long passives resumptive pronouns are allowed as long as the predicate under bei is modified by a post-verbal modifier. This follows from Huang’s (1999) analysis that Chinese long passives involve null operator movement. Surprisingly, resumptive pronouns cannot be licensed if the predicate under bei is bare. I argue that this exception follows from a PF constraint: Resumptive pronouns cannot occur in a position which receives stress. Without a postverbal modifier of the predicate, the neutral stress automatically falls on the resumptive pronoun, which violates the PF constraint.

(Mis)construing null prepositions in L2 intergrammars: a commentary and proposal

2001 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine C. Klein
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Relative Clauses ◽  
First Language ◽  
Alternative Analysis ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
L2 Development ◽  
Null Operator ◽  
Null Operator Movement ◽  
Operator Movement

This article discusses the ‘null prep phenomenon’ reported in several studies of the second language (L2) development of extraction constructions (e.g. Klein, 1993a, 1993b; Klein, 1995a, 1995b). In these studies, L2 learners of English who show subcategorization knowledge of verbs for their prepositional complements, often leave out the required preposition in corresponding interrogatives (and relative clauses as well). We review the theoretical and acquisition issues related to null prep and summarize a proposal by Dekydtspotter, Sprouse and Anderson (DSA, 1998) which posits that null prep grammars represent a generalized procedure in L2 development, that of early reliance on A-bar binding construals when the target grammar requires wh-movement. In a commentary, we argue against some of the evidence offered in support of the DSA’s proposal and offer an alternative analysis. Our proposal suggests that many L2 learners exhibit an interim stage of null operator movement in the development of interrogatives before undertaking obligatory overt wh-movement. This analysis sheds light on why null prep grammars occur among second although not first language learners of English.

Re-appraising and Re-classifying: a New Look at the Corpus of Miniature Socketed Axes from Britain

2020 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-27
Author(s):  
Alex Bliss
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Distribution ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
Object Type ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Extensive Data ◽  
Metal Artefacts ◽  
The Subject

The advent of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) has added a great deal to our understanding of prehistoric metal artefacts in England and Wales, namely in expanding enormously the corpuses of objects previously thought to be quite scarce. One such artefact type is the miniature socketed 'votive' axe, most of which are found in Wiltshire and Hampshire. As a direct result of developing such recording initiatives, reporting of these artefacts as detector finds from the early 2000s onwards has virtually trebled the number originally published by Paul Robinson in his 1995 analysis. Through extensive data-collection, synthesising examples recorded via the PAS with those from published excavations, the broad aims of this paper (in brief) are as follows: firstly, produce a solid typology for these artefacts; secondly, investigate their spatial distribution across England and Wales. As a more indirect third aim, this paper also seeks to redress the imbalance of focus and academic study specifically applying to Hampshire finds of this object type, which despite producing a significant proportion of the currently known corpus have never been the subject of detailed analysis.

Features of optative modality in Macedonian language (with emphasis on the functionalities of independent da-construction)

2020 ◽  
pp. 301-323
Author(s):  
Natalya I. Kikilo ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Literary Language ◽  
Natural Context ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Verb Forms ◽  
Text Types ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Ritual Context

In the Macedonian literary language the analytic da-construction used in an independent clause has a wide range of possible modal meanings, the most common of which are imperative and optative. The present article offers a detailed analysis of the semantics and functions of the Macedonian optative da-construction based on fiction and journalistic texts. The first part of the article deals with the specificities of the optative as a category which primarily considers the subject of a wish. In accordance with the semantic characteristics of this category, optative constructions are used in those discourse text types where the speakers are explicitly designated (the most natural context for the optative is the dialogue). The analysis of the Macedonian material includes instances of atypical usage of the optative da-construction, in which the wish of the subject is not apparent and thereby produces new emotional tonalities perceptible to the reader of a fiction/journalistic text. The study describes Macedonian constructions involving two different verb forms: 1) present tense form (da + praes) and 2) imperfective form (da + impf). These constructions formally designate the hypothetical and counterfactual status of the optative situation, respectively. Thus, the examples in the analysis are ordered according to two types of constructions, which reflect the speaker’s view on the probability of the realisation of his/her wish. Unrealistic wishes can be communicated through the present da-construction, while the imperfective construction denotes situations in which the wish can be realised in the future. The second part of the article is devoted to performative optative da-constructions, which express formulas of speech etiquette, wishes and curses. The analysis demonstrates that these constructions lose their magical functions, when used outside of the ritual context, and begin to function as interjections.

Again on relative clause and subordination in Latin

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gualtiero Calboli
Keyword(s):  
Relative Clause ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Central Point ◽  
Relative Pronoun ◽  
Case Theory ◽  
Nominative Case ◽  
Subordinate Clauses ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Law

AbstractI started from the relative clause which occurs in Hittite, and in particular with the enclitic position of the relative pronoun. This is connected with the OV position and this position seems to have been prevailing in Hittite and PIE. The syntactic structure usually employed in Hittite between different clauses is the parataxis. Nevertheless, also the hypotaxis begins to be employed and the best occasion to use it was the diptych as suggested by Haudry, though he didn't consider the most natural and usual diptych: the law, where the crime and the sanction build a natural diptych already in old Hittite. Then I used Justus' and Boley's discussion on the structure of Hittite sentence and found a similarity with Latin, namely the use of an animate subject as central point of a sentence. With verbs of action in ancient languages the subject was normally an animate being, whereas also inanimate subject is employed in modern languages. This seems to be the major difference between ancient and modern structure of a sentence, or, better to say, in Hittite and PIE the subject was an animate being and this persisted a long time, and remained as a tendency in Latin, while in following languages and in classical grammar the subject became a simple nominal “entity” to be predicated and precised with verb and other linguistic instruments. A glance has been cast also to pronouns and particles (sometimes linked together) as instruments of linking nominal variants of coordinate or subordinate clauses and to the development of demonstrative/deictic pronouns. Also in ancient case theory a prevailing position was assured to the nominative case, the case of the subject.

אשר-Zitateinleitungssätze in Jeremia und 1QM. Anmerkungen zu 1QM 10:6, zu der hebräischen Vorlage von lxx-Jer 26:13; 49:19 sowie zu mt-Jer 14:1; 46:1; 47:1; 49:34

2015 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 558-566
Author(s):  
Karin Finsterbusch ◽  
Norbert Jacoby
Keyword(s):  
Relative Clause ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Nominal Clause

In mt-Jer there are four cases of a peculiar אשר clause, which seems to be syntactically isolated (mt-Jer 14:1; 46:2; 47:1 und 49:34). However, the existence of three similar cases has been hitherto overlooked (two in the supposed Hebrew Vorlage of the lxx-Jer and one in 1QM). In this paper, we shall argue that the function of this אשר clause is to introduce a quotation. In syntactical terms, the relative clause is the predicate and the quotation the subject of a nominal clause.

How ‘person’ got into focus: Grammaticalization of clefts in Lingala and Kikongo areas

Linguistics ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenneke van der Wal ◽  
Jacky Maniacky
Keyword(s):  
Relative Clause ◽  
Head Noun ◽  
Bantu Languages ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Subject

AbstractIn several Bantu languages in the regions where Kikongo and Lingala are spoken, we encounter sentences where the word ‘person’ can appear after the subject of a canonical SVO sentence, resulting in a focused interpretation of the subject. Synchronically, we analyze this as a monoclausal focus construction with moto ‘person’ as a focus marker. Diachronically, we argue, the construction derives from a biclausal cleft, where moto functioned as the head noun of the relative clause. This is a crosslinguistically rare but plausible development. The different languages studied in this paper show variation in the properties indicative of the status of the ‘moto construction’, which reflects the different stages of grammaticalization. Finally, we show how contact-induced grammaticalization is a likely factor in the development of moto as a focus marker.

scholarly journals Immigrants in Finland as a Problem Discussed in Leena Lehtolainen’s Minne Tytöt Kadonneet

2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-76
Author(s):  
Martyna Kokotkiewicz
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Crime Fiction ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Main Subject ◽  
Racial Hatred ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Different Cultures

Abstract Leena Lehtolainen belongs to the most appreciated Finnish authors of crime fiction. One of the significant features of her works is that she discusses some most alarming social issues in them. The problem concerning immigration and its different aspects can definitely be considered as an example of such an issue. Since the problem of cultural antagonisms, racial hatred and xenophobia has been widely discussed by many other Scandinavian authors of crime fiction as well, it is worth analyzing how Lehtolainen herself approaches the problem. The aim of this article is to discuss some aspects concerning the problems of immigrant societies in Finland, basing on one of Leena Lehtolainen’s novels, Minne tytöt kadonneet, which main subject could be described as a collision of two completely different cultures and attitudes to the reality. Its aim is not, however, to discuss any formal aspects of the text, since such a kind of detailed analysis cannot be the subject of one article only. That is why the article concentrates on the plot of the novel and its possible relations to some actual problems the Finnish society faces. Taking it all into consideration it may be seen as an introduction to a wider analysis of Leena Lehtolainen’s works.

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