I PREPOSITION STRANDING and PIED-PIPING in YORUBA FOCUS CONSTRUCTIONS by © Joseph Ajayi a Thesis Submitted to the School Of
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Circumstantial Evidence for Syntactic Head Movement
Circumstantial Evidence for Syntactic Head Move ment Bartosz Wiland University of Pozna 1. Introduction Recently, a number of analyses have advanced a thesis that syntactic heads are immobile and that head movement does not exist in grammar (cf. Mahajan 2001, 2003; Müller 2004, a.o.) or is severely restricted (e.g. Koopman and Szabolcsi 2000, Nilsen 2003). Such approaches take dislocation of the head X0 to be an instance of a remnant movement of the XP-constituent, preceded by vacating movements of other members of the XP. Detrimental to the claim that head movement does not exist is a scenario in which a dislocation of X0 is followed by a remnant movement of the XP-constituent. Such a derivational scenario is outlined in (1). 0 0 0 (1) a. [YP Y [P [XP X ZP]]] 0 0 0 b. [YP Y [P X + [XP tX0 ZP]]] 0 0 0 c. [YP [XP tX0 ZP][Y Y [P X + tXP ]]] The only possibility of dislocating the head X0 before remnant XP-fronting (in (1c)) is by X0-movement (in (1b)). In this paper, I argue that the derivational scenario in (1) is attested in Polish and it allows us to explain the interpretive contrast between (2a–d) and (2e). (2) a. Jan znowu pos a Marii ksi k . (repetitive) Ja n-NOM again sent Mary-DAT book-ACC b. Jan znowu Marii pos a ksi k . (repetitive) Ja n-NOM again Mary-DAT sent book-ACC c. Jan znowu ksi k pos a Marii. (repetitive) Jan-NOM again book-ACC sent Mary-DAT d. -
Wh-Concord in Okinawan = Syntactic Movement + Morphological Merger
University of Pennsylvania Working Papers in Linguistics Volume 22 Issue 1 Proceedings of the 39th Annual Penn Article 20 Linguistics Conference 2016 Wh-Concord in Okinawan = Syntactic Movement + Morphological Merger Kunio Kinjo Yohei Oseki Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/pwpl Recommended Citation Kinjo, Kunio and Oseki, Yohei (2016) "Wh-Concord in Okinawan = Syntactic Movement + Morphological Merger," University of Pennsylvania Working Papers in Linguistics: Vol. 22 : Iss. 1 , Article 20. Available at: https://repository.upenn.edu/pwpl/vol22/iss1/20 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/pwpl/vol22/iss1/20 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Wh-Concord in Okinawan = Syntactic Movement + Morphological Merger Abstract The main purpose of this paper is to provide a novel account for Wh-Concord in Okinawan based on the Copy Theory of Movement and Distributed Morphology. We propose that Wh-Concord interrogatives and Japanese-type wh-interrogatives have exactly the same derivation in the syntactic component: the Q- particle -ga, base-generated as adjoined to a wh-phrase, undergoes movement to the clause-final position. The two types of interrogatives are distinguished in the post-syntactic component: only in Wh-Concord, the -r morpheme on C0 triggers Morphological Merger, which makes it possible to Spell-Out lower copy of -ga. It is shown that the proposed analysis correctly predicts three descriptive generalizations on the distribution of -ga in -
Derivational Economy in Syntax and Semantics
Derivational Economy in Syntax and Semantics Željko Bošković and Troy Messick Summary Economy considerations have always played an important role in the generative theory of grammar. They are particularly prominent in the most recent instantiation of this approach, the Minimalist Program, which explores the possibility that Universal Grammar is an optimal way of satisfying requirements that are imposed on the language faculty by the external systems that interface with the language faculty which is also characterized by optimal, computationally efficient design. In this respect, the operations of the computational system that produce linguistic expressions must be optimal in that they must satisfy general considerations of simplicity and efficient design. Simply put, the guiding principles here are do something only if you need to; and if you do need to, do it in the most economical/efficient way. These considerations ban superfluous steps in derivations and superfluous symbols in representations. Under economy guidelines, movement takes place only when there is a need for it (with both syntactic and semantic considerations playing a role here), and when it does take place, it takes place in the most economical way: it is as short as possible and carries as little material as possible. Furthermore, economy is evaluated locally, on the basis of immediately available structure. The locality of syntactic dependencies is also enforced by minimal search and by limiting the number of syntactic objects and the amount of structure that are accessible in the derivation. This is achieved by transferring parts of syntactic structure to the interfaces during the derivation, the transferred parts not being accessible for further syntactic operations. -
Syntactic Movement 24.900/R02
October 19, 2018 Syntactic movement 24.900/R02 Syntactic movement Introduction to Linguistics, Instructor: Prof. Adam Albright Section R02, Suzana Fong ([email protected]) Recitation #6, October 19, 2018 1 Overview and recap Recall: this is the structure that we have for sentences: (1) CP 0 C C IP 0 NP I I VP 0 (modifier(s)) V V (XP) Where XP is the complement of the verb; it can be an NP, a PP, or a CP. This gives us a neat structure to capture the linear order of English interrogative sentences: (2) Yes/No question (closed-ended question) (3) Constituent question (open-ended question) a. The dog will eat the watermelon. a. Rosa has criticized Ana. b. Will the dog eat the watermelon? b. Who has Rosa cricitized ? Hypothesis: auxiliaries and interrogatives phrases (what, which picture, etc) are born in the position that their non- interrogative counterparts occupy and then they are moved to C and Spec-CP, respectively. ² Movement: an operation that takes a constituent (phrase or head) and places it elsewhere in the sentence. ² Consequence of movement: constituents can be interpreted in one position (e.g. complement of VP), but pro- nounced in another (e.g. Spec-CP). This property of languages is called displacement. 1/10 October 19, 2018 Syntactic movement 24.900/R02 Formalizing movement (4) a. Take an element α (word or phrase) and move it to an eligible higher position P. i. P must be empty (no overt morpheme). ii. P must be a suitable host for the type of element (heads to heads/argument positions, phrases to modifier positions) b. -
SYNTACTIC VS. POST-SYNTACTIC MOVEMENT* Susi Wurmbrand
SYNTACTIC VS. POST-SYNTACTIC MOVEMENT* Susi Wurmbrand University of Connecticut 1. Introduction This paper addresses the question of where word order variation that has no semantic effect is represented. The case I will concentrate on is multiple verb constructions in West Germanic, which involve complex patterns of re-ordering of the verbal elements involved. As an illustration consider (1): while Dutch allows either order between a modal and the selected infinitive (in this construction), the infinitive has to precede the modal in German, whereas the modal has to precede the infinitive in Afrikaans. Importantly, all sentences in (1) have the same meaning and re-ordering has no semantic effect. (1) John can work tomorrow. a. dat Jan morgen werken kan / kan werken Dutch that Jan tomorrow work can / can work b. dass Hans morgen arbeiten kann / *kann arbeiten German that John tomorrow work can / can work c. dat Jan môre *werk kan / kan werk Afrikaans that Jan tomorrow work can / can work In this paper I will pursue the idea that semantically vacuous word order changes are not part of syntax proper, but rather occur in a post-syntactic (PF) component. The mechanism suggested for this re-ordering will be language and construction specific inversion of sister nodes. I will present two preliminary arguments for this view: i) morphological operations feed verb cluster re-ordering; ii) only the word orders that cannot be derived by simple inversion of sister nodes show semantic/pragmatic effects. 2. Re-ordering tools Before discussing various options that have been suggested to derive the word order differences in verb clusters, it is important to note that some re-ordering mechanism is necessary and that the different word orders cannot be just the result of different base structures. -
Proto-West Benue Congo Stem C1 Oyetayo Bankale Ph.D, University of Ibadan, Nigeria Email: [email protected] & Prof
Proto-West Benue Congo Stem C1 Oyetayo Bankale Ph.D, University of Ibadan, Nigeria email: [email protected] & Prof. Eno-Abasi Urua, University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria email: anemandinyene@yahoo. Abstract Reconstructing Niger –Congo is subject to reconstruction of its various internal nodes, one of which is WBC. The groups which make up WBC are Oko, Ukaan Akpes, Defoid, Ayere, Edoid, Ebiroid, Nupoid, Idomoid (Platoid) and Igboid. Each group is comprised of several languages. The basic vocabulary of groups like Yoruboid, Edoid, Nupoid /Ebiroid have been reconstructed and their consonant inventories clearly identified by Akinkube , Elugbe (1986) and Bankale (2006). Although wordlists differ by authors, cognates across WBC were identified after an examination of all the available reconstructions and comparison with corresponding items in other WBC languages yet to be reconstructed. Stem C1 consonant correspondences at this level were identified and reconstructed based on the phonological plausibility of their development. This was particularly necessary as groups like Defoid and the Akpes/Edoid/ Ukaan had more than one reconstructed form; (Defoid: hoe*-gb/*-ro, navel*-kp/*-d) and where there were single reconstructions, reflexes varied per reconstruction. Fresh reconstructions were carried out in stages based on the internal classification of WBC by Williamson and Blench (2000) as reviewed by the author. This resulted in major adjustments to WBC, YEAI and NOI in the form of a tree with three primary nodes EDIA, ONEI, Ikaan. Reconstruction was thus first at different nodes within WBC before arriving at the proposed Proto-WBC C1. Olukumi was considered an additional Defoid language although it is located in the heart of Lower Niger languages. -
Malagasy Extraposition: Evidence for PF Movement
Nat Lang Linguist Theory https://doi.org/10.1007/s11049-021-09505-2 Malagasy extraposition Evidence for PF movement Eric Potsdam1 Received: 28 August 2018 / Accepted: 23 January 2021 © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. part of Springer Nature 2021 Abstract Extraposition is the non-canonical placement of dependents in a right- peripheral position in a clause. The Austronesian language Malagasy has basic VOXS word order, however, extraposition leads to VOSX. Extraposed constituents behave syntactically as though they were in their undisplaced position inside the predicate at both LF and Spell Out. This paper argues that extraposition is achieved via movement at Phonological Form (PF). I argue against alternatives that would derive extraposi- tion with syntactic A’ movement or stranding analyses. Within a Minimalist model of grammar, movement operations take place on the branch from Spell Out to PF and have only phonological consequences. Keywords Malagasy · Extraposition · Movement · Phonological Form · Word order 1 Introduction Extraposition—the non-canonical placement of certain constituents in a right- peripheral position—has been investigated in detail in only a small number of lan- guages. There is a considerable literature for English, SOV Germanic languages Ger- man and Dutch, and the SOV language Hindi-Urdu. The construction has not been widely explored in other, typologically distinct languages. This lacuna means that we have probably not seen the full range of options and have also not tested pro- posed analyses in the widest possible way. The goal of this paper is to investigate in some detail extraposition in Malagasy, an Austronesian language with basic VOXS word order spoken by approximately 17 million people on the island of Madagascar. -
Minimal Pronouns1
1 Minimal Pronouns1 Fake Indexicals as Windows into the Properties of Bound Variable Pronouns Angelika Kratzer University of Massachusetts at Amherst June 2006 Abstract The paper challenges the widely accepted belief that the relation between a bound variable pronoun and its antecedent is not necessarily submitted to locality constraints. It argues that the locality constraints for bound variable pronouns that are not explicitly marked as such are often hard to detect because of (a) alternative strategies that produce the illusion of true bound variable interpretations and (b) language specific spell-out noise that obscures the presence of agreement chains. To identify and control for those interfering factors, the paper focuses on ‘fake indexicals’, 1st or 2nd person pronouns with bound variable interpretations. Following up on Kratzer (1998), I argue that (non-logophoric) fake indexicals are born with an incomplete set of features and acquire the remaining features via chains of local agreement relations established in the syntax. If fake indexicals are born with an incomplete set of features, we need a principled account of what those features are. The paper derives such an account from a semantic theory of pronominal features that is in line with contemporary typological work on possible pronominal paradigms. Keywords: agreement, bound variable pronouns, fake indexicals, meaning of pronominal features, pronominal ambiguity, typologogy of pronouns. 1 . I received much appreciated feedback from audiences in Paris (CSSP, September 2005), at UC Santa Cruz (November 2005), the University of Saarbrücken (workshop on DPs and QPs, December 2005), the University of Tokyo (SALT XIII, March 2006), and the University of Tromsø (workshop on decomposition, May 2006). -
Why and How to Distinguish Between Pro and Trace∗
Why and how to distinguish between pro ∗ and trace DALINA KALLULLI University of Vienna [email protected] Starting from a well-known observation, namely that in a language like Hebrew there is no free alternation between traces and (overt) resumptive pronouns, this paper aims to demonstrate that even in languages with seemingly little or no resumption such as English, the distinction between a putatively null resumptive pronoun and trace is equally material. More specifically, I contend that positing a resumptive (i.e. bound variable) pro also in English-like languages is not only theoretically appealing for various reasons (a.o. ideas in Hornstein 1999, 2001, Boeckx & Hornstein 2003, 2004, Kratzer 2009), but also empirically adequate (as conjectured e.g. in Cinque 1990). The central claim of this paper however is that resumption is restricted to (sometimes concealed) relatives. Applying this proposal to languages like English, the distinction drawn between (resumptive or bound variable) pro and trace accounts for phenomena as diverse as lack of superiority effects, lack of weak crossover in appositives, lack of Principle C effects in relative clauses, and so-called ATB movement phenomena. 1. Introduction Doron (1982) observed that in Hebrew, when a trace in a relative clause is c- commanded by a quantified expression, the sentence is ambiguous between a ‘single- individual’ and a ‘multiple-individual’ reading, as shown in (1), but if the trace position is filled by a resumptive pronoun, the multiple-individual interpretation is not available, as shown in (2). (1) ha-iSa Se kol gever hizmin hodeta lo the-woman Op every man invited thanked to-him a. -
RESUMPTIVE PRONOUNS in TUKI* 1. Introduction
Studies in African Linguistics Volume 21, Number 2, August 1990 RESUMPTIVE PRONOUNS IN TUKI* Edmond Biloa University of Southern California and University of Yaounde I, Cameroun This paper argues that in Tuki, gaps construed with WH- or topicalized phrases are null resumptive pronouns rather than WH-traces. Gaps alternate with overt resumptive pronouns. Structures with a gap parallel analogous structures with overt resumptive pronouns with regard to subjacency viola tions and violations of the Condition on Extraction Domains of Huang [1982], coordination tests, and weak crossover phenomena: gaps and overt pronominals fail to produce weak crossover violations, unlike structures with quantified NP's. Moreover, both the gaps and the overt resumptive pronouns license parasitic gaps, further strengthening the analogy. 1. Introduction This paper reveals that gaps in Tuki WH-constructions should be analyzed as null resumptive pronouns which do not involve movement rather than variables left * I am much indebted for providing helpful comments and reviewing drafts of this paper to Joseph Aoun, Carol Georgopoulos, Hajime Hoji, Osvaldo Jaeggli, Kenneth Safir, and Peter Sells. Thanks also go to Maria Luisa Zubizarreta with whom I have discussed in class material included here. Portions of this material were presented at the 20th Conference on African Linguistics at the University of Illinois. Thanks to the participants and to Joan Bresnan in particular for her encouragements. Errors are my responsibility. We have made use of the following symbols in the glosses: f1 = future tense one marker Neg = negation marker OM = object marker pI = past tense one marker p2 = past tense two marker SM = subject marker 212 Studies in African Linguistics 21 (2), 1990 by "Move Alpha". -
Resumptive and Bound Variable Pronouns in Tongan
UCLA Working Papers in Linguistics, no. 12, September 2005 Proceedings of AFLA XII, Heinz & Ntelitheos (eds.) RESUMPTIVE AND BOUND VARIABLE PRONOUNS IN TONGAN Randall Hendrick University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill [email protected] This paper describes the distribution of bound variable pronouns in Tongan and two classes of resump- tive pronouns that appear in the language (apparent and true resumptives). Bound variable pronouns and apparent resumptive pronouns are given a movement analysis, which is able to explain their com- mon behavior with respect to weak crossover and reconstruction effects. It also allows a derivational explanation for why they do not interact with true resumptive pronouns. 1. INTRODUCTION Pronouns are often viewed as shorthand expressions for their antecedents. This intuition stood behind the pronominalization transformations of the 1960s (cf. Stockwell et al. (1973)) in which a grammatical rule replaced the second occurrence of a DP with an appropriate pronoun. Sub- sequent work challenged this simple view of pronouns in two ways. Firstly, classes of structures were identified in which pronouns were not stylistic circumlocutions for a previously mentioned antecedent, and secondly, the hypothesized pronominalization transformation did not fit with well motivated constraints on movement transformations. Bound variable pronouns (pronouns that have quantified DPs as their antecedents) were taken to illustrate the first point (cf. Partee (1987)). The second point was illustrated by resumptive pronouns (pronouns that recapitulate an initial DP ei- ther in relative clauses or topicalized constructions), which are insensitive to island constraints that restricted wh-movement (e.g. Chomsky (1976)). In place of the transformational account, pronouns were taken to be lexical items inserted into syntactic structures like other lexical items. -
Negation in Igálà
25 Johnson Folorunso ILORI; Francis Olugbenga OYEBADE Negation in Igálà Johnson Folorunso ILORI1 Francis Olugbenga OYEBADE2 Abstract: Unlike other Yoruboid languages, Igálà uses a double negation syntax which combines two independent but mutually obligatory elements to generate a single semantic unit of negation. Apart from providing a description of Igálà negation system, this paper, relying on instruments of minimalist grammar as propounded in Chomsky (1995, 1998, 2002), argues for a negative clause projection in which there are two separate but interdependent Neg projections – NegP1 and NegP2 - such that Negº2 takes NegP1 as complement to project NegP2. Spell-out constituent ordering derives from Negº2 ń/nóò attracting NegP1 to Spec-NegP2 resulting in the word order where Negº2 obligatorily ends negative clause expressions in Igálà. This grammar structurally predicts that nothing follows Negº2 ń/nóò in the linear order of words in Igálà negative clause constructions. Keywords: Double negation; Negative concord; Extended Projection Principle (EPP). Resumo: Diferentemente de outras línguas Yoruboid, Igalá usa uma sintaxe da dupla negação que combina dois elementos independentes, mas mutuamente obrigatórios para gerar uma única unidade semântica de negação. Além de prover uma descrição do sistema de negação do Igalá, esse artigo, apoiado em instrumentos da gramática minimalista, como proposta por Chomsky (1995, 1998, 2002), defende uma projeção da oração negativa em que há duas projeções Neg separadas, mas interdependentes - NegP1 e NegP2 - de tal modo que Negº2 toma NegP1 como complemento para projetar NegP2. A ordenação do constituinte explícito deriva de a Negº2 ń/nóò atrair NegP1 para SpecNegP2, resultando numa ordem de palavras em que Negº2 obrigatoriamente fica no final de orações negativas em Igalá.