Is There a Little Pro? Evidence from Finnish

2005 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 533-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anders Holmberg
Keyword(s):  
Traditional View ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Null Pronouns ◽  
Extended Projection ◽  
Generic Pronouns ◽  
Null Noun

The traditional view of the null subject as pro identified by Agr (the φ-features of I) cannot be maintained in a theory where Agr is uninterpretable. Two hypotheses are compared with regard to the predictions they make for Finnish null subject constructions: (A) Agr is interpretable in null subject languages, and pro is therefore redundant; (B) null subjects are specified but unpronounced pronouns that assign values to the uninterpretable features of Agr. Since Finnish observes the Extended Projection Principle and has an expletive pronoun, Hypothesis A predicts that null subjects should cooccur with expletives. The prediction is false, favoring B over A. A typology of null subjects is proposed: Null bound pronouns and null generic pronouns in partial null subject languages, including Finnish, are D-less φ, and so are null subjects in consistent null subject languages with Agr, such as Spanish and Greek. Null 1st and 2nd person subjects in Finnish are DPs that are deleted. Null pronouns in languages without Agr, such as Chinese and Japanese, are the only true instances of pro, a minimally specified null noun.

Null subjects

2019 ◽  
pp. 191-300
Author(s):  
Ian Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Null Subjects ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Null Arguments ◽  
Null Pronouns ◽  
General Account ◽  
Article System ◽  
Historical Sketch

After a brief historical sketch of work on null subjects, and a summary of Barbosa’s proposals concerning the relation between partial and radical null subjects, the chapter presents a typology of null arguments which links their properties directly to the D-system, suggesting a cross-linguistic link between the nature of the null-subject system and the nature of the ‘article system’ in a given language. After a brief consideration of the semantics of null pronouns and the role of the Person feature in licensing null arguments, a general account of ‘licensing pro’ is put forward, which relies on the twin ideas that pro contains a variable and that all variables must be bound at the C–I interface. Finally, there is an updated and refined parameter hierarchy for φ‎-parameters. The question of the relation of variation in these features to the C–I interface and the morphophonological interface is also taken up.

Null Subject in Lubukusu and the Extended Projection Principle

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 67
Author(s):  
Lonyangapuo Mary
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Content ◽  
Minimalist Program ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
Argument Position ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Extended Projection ◽  
Class 1 ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Subject Agreement ◽  
Negative Implication

<p class="1"><span lang="X-NONE">This paper analyses the null subject phenomenon in Lubukusu with special reference to the extended projection principle (EPP). The paper looks at conditions under which null subjects are allowed in this language. Lubukusu data is self-generated and the analysis is based on the principles and parameters approach (P&amp;P) and the Minimalist program (MP). From the analysis of the data generated, it is shown that null subjects in Lubukusu are syntactically active categories. Though covert, they are Arguments that carry semantic content, hence satisfying the EPP requirements. Null subjects occur in this language because of its rich morphology; that is, whenever the subject agreement features are marked on the verb or any of the determiners, then the overt subject can be dropped without any negative implication on the grammaticality of the structure. Being an Argument position, it is theta-marked and as such the unpronounced null subject is pro (a pronoun). This being the case, it is argued that Lubukusu is a consistent null subject language and that in null subject constructions, the EPP is observed.</span></p>

scholarly journals Prosodic effects on pronoun interpretation in Italian

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lydia White ◽  
Heather Goad ◽  
Jiajia Su ◽  
Liz Smeets ◽  
Marzieh Mortazavinia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Null Subjects ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Null Pronouns ◽  
Overt Pronouns ◽  
Overt Pronoun ◽  
Topic Shift ◽  
The Subject

In this paper we offer a prosodic account of some well-known L2 findings relating to discourse requirements on pronouns in null subject languages like Italian. Discourse plays a role in determining when a null or overt pronoun in acceptable: in biclausal sentences, null subjects are strongly preferred when the antecedent is the subject in another clause (-topic shift). Overt subjects, in contrast, imply a change of topic and a preference for non-subject antecedents. Carminati (2002) expresses this as the Position of Antecedent Hypothesis (PAH), a processing constraint whereby null pronouns prefer antecedents in Spec IP whereas overt pronouns prefer their antecedents to be elsewhere. Previous methodology used tasks where participants made judgments based on sentences they read to themselves, making it impossible to determine what prosody had been adopted. Our results suggest that there are prosodic effects on pronoun interpretation; hence, prosodic factors should be taken into consideration in future experiments.

Null Subjects in Old English

2013 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elly van Gelderen
Keyword(s):  
Old English ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
Verb Movement ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Null Arguments ◽  
Germanic Languages ◽  
English I

I review the proposal made by Sigurðsson (2011) that null arguments follow from third-factor principles, as in Chomsky 2005 . A number of issues remain unclear: for instance, the kind of topic that licenses null arguments in Modern Germanic, including Modern English. I argue that Old English is pro drop and add to the discussion Frascarelli (2007) started as to which topic licenses a null subject. I agree with Frascarelli and Hinterhölzl (2007) that the licensing topic in Modern Germanic and Old English is an aboutness-shift topic. I also argue that verb movement to C is necessary to license the empty argument in the modern Germanic languages (including Modern English), but not in Old English, since agreement is still responsible for licensing in that language, as in Italian.

scholarly journals ‘Subject’ and EPP in Greek: The discontinuous subject hypothesis

2002 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 149-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irene Philippaki-Warburton ◽  
Vassilios Spyropoulos
Keyword(s):  
Satisfactory Explanation ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Extended Projection ◽  
Theoretical Advantage ◽  
Subject Agreement ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Definition Of

In the present study we examine the notion ‘subject’ in finite clauses in Greek, a null-subject language, and we investigate the connection between the rich morphological marking of subject-agreement on the verb and the definition of this notion. We propose that ‘subject’ in Greek should be analysed as a discontinuous element which consists of a null nominal element in the SpecTP position satisfying the Extended Projection Principle (EPP), associated with a pro at the relevant theta-position inside the VP. We argue that this analysis has not only the theoretical advantage of maintaining the universally strong value of EPP, but also, perhaps more importantly, the descriptive advantage of providing a satisfactory explanation for a number of apparent idiosyncrasies of Greek constructions.

scholarly journals Topic, Focus and null subjects in Old French

2018 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 242-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Ingham
Keyword(s):  
Observational Study ◽  
Old French ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
Quantitative Investigation ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Subject Pronouns ◽  
Prose Romances ◽  
Discourse Syntax

AbstractOld French subject pronouns (Spro) were omissible if postverbal (Foulet 1928), but not freely so (Vance 1997, Zimmermann 2014). This article addresses their partial omissibility in discourse-syntax terms, following work on partial null subject languages by Holmberg and Nikanne (2002) and Modesto (2008). An observational study of dialogic responses in 13th century prose romances is first reported, finding strong indications of covariation between the Topic/Focus status of an initial non-subject constituent and the expression/omission of post-verbal Spro. A quantitative investigation, in such texts, of preposed discourse-linked anaphoric constituents and preposed intensifiers, taken as diagnostic of Topichood and Focushood respectively, confirmed this analysis. We take null Spro to be available (i) when a null Topic operator targets left-peripheral TopicP, and (ii) with a left-peripheral Focused expression. When a discourse-linked non-subject constituent occupies TopicP, however, Spro must be overt.

The Acquisition of Null Subjects in Standard Arabic by Native Speakers of English

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 405-420
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Standard Arabic ◽  
Null Subject Parameter ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Syntactic Properties ◽  
Discourse Topic

This paper investigates the acquisition of the syntactic and discourse-pragmatic properties of null subjects in Standard Arabic (SA) by native speakers of English. Ninety participants from intermediate and advanced levels participated in a questionnaire, which aimed to investigate their knowledge on the occurrence of null subjects in SA. The results show that native speakers of English with regard to missing subject and free inversion face no difficulty in the acquisition of the syntactic properties of the null subject parameter in SA; however, they have difficulties in the acquisition of that-trace effect. In terms of discourse-pragmatic properties, the results of the study illustrate that they can also easily acquire the discourse topic and pragmatic anaphora properties of null subjects in SA. Keywords: Null Subjects, free inversion, that-trace effect, discourse topic, pragmatic anaphora, parameter.

On the Acquisition of French (Null) Subjects and (In)Definiteness: Simultaneous and Early Sequential bi-, tri- and Multilinguals

Probus ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-225
Author(s):  
Laia Arnaus Gil ◽  
Johanna Stahnke ◽  
Natascha Müller
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Age Of Onset ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
Language Experience ◽  
Timing Acquisition ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Null Subject Parameter ◽  
Definite Articles ◽  
Linguistic Approaches ◽  
Early Late

Abstract The French non-null-subject parameter is set very early, irrespective of the number of languages acquired. By contrast, the acquisition of (in)definiteness marking takes place at age 11;0. For early parametrized grammatical phenomena, Tsimpli (Tsimpli, Ianthi Maria. 2014. Early, late or very late? Timing acquisition and bilingualism. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism 4(3). 283–313.) argues that age of onset (AoO) matters. For late acquired phenomena, language experience is crucial. We recruited 23 simultaneous and 34 early sequential L2 (eL2) learners of French (mean age 4;6). Using an elicitation task, we examined the production of French subjects and (in)definite articles. All children behaved similarly with respect to the (early) setting of the null-subject parameter. In contrast, (in)definite marking was sensitive to number of languages and age; AoO or input effects did not affect the results. Simultaneous multilinguals diverge from eL2 children, showing subject spell-out preferences, interpreted in terms of acquisition phases. We will discuss this result against a model of language acquisition in which the child proceeds in acquisition stages.

scholarly journals Nullsubjekte im Mittelniederdeutschen

2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Farasyn ◽  
Anne Breitbarth
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Corpus Analysis ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
North West ◽  
West Germanic ◽  
Low German ◽  
Middle Low German ◽  
Germanic Languages

AbstractIn spite of growing interest in recent years, the syntax of Middle Low German (MLG) remains an extremely underresearched area. In light of recent research showing early North West Germanic languages to be partial null subject languages (Axel 2005; Walkden 2014; Kinn 2016; Volodina/Weiß 2016), the question arises where MLG is positioned in this respect. The present article presents novel data showing that MLG had referential null subjects (RNS) and can be classified as a partial null subject language. Based on a quantitative and qualitative corpus analysis of their syntactic distribution, we argue that two types of RNS must be distinguished in MLG, null topics in SpecCP and null clitics on C.

scholarly journals Children’s Grammar of Null Subjects: Evidence from Comprehension

2012 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 563-590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robyn Orfitelli ◽  
Nina Hyams
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
First Language ◽  
Null Subjects ◽  
Null Subject ◽  
Series Of Experiments ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Children's Grammar

The null subject (NS) stage is one of the best-described hallmarks of first language development. We present a series of experiments assessing children’s interpretation of NS sentences, as a way of testing the two main competing analyses of the phenomenon: grammatical accounts, under which young children’s grammars license NSs in declarative sentences; and performance accounts, which hold that children have an adult grammar, but omit subjects in production for extrasyntactic reasons. Overall, we find evidence of an NS stage in comprehension, just as in production. This suggests that child and adult grammars differ, in line with grammatical accounts.

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