scholarly journals Non-nominal arguments and transitivity in Romance and Scandinavian

2019 ◽  
pp. 573
Author(s):  
Michelle Sheehan ◽  
Anna Pineda
Keyword(s):  
Nominal Arguments

Mapping meaning to argument structure

2021 ◽  
pp. 36-60
Author(s):  
James N. Collins
Keyword(s):  
Optimality Theory ◽  
Argument Structure ◽  
Empirical Investigation ◽  
Formal Model ◽  
Lexical Semantics ◽  
Case Marking ◽  
Detailed Case ◽  
Nominal Arguments

This chapter investigates the phenomenon of morphological case in so-called ‘ergative-absolutive aligned’ languages, with a detailed case study of the Polynesian language Samoan. The focus is on the interaction of morphological case marking and the lexical semantics of verbs, proposing that the case marking pattern on a verb’s arguments are closely linked to the verb’s entailments, especially those relating to how the participants denoted by the verb’s nominal arguments participate in the event being described. Through empirical investigation of novel Samoan data, the chapter argues that ergative morphological case marking is linked to the agent argument’s status as a ‘self directed initiator’ of the event. In providing an analysis of this phenomenon, this chapter proposes a formal model of how a verb’s lexical semantics interacts with the morphological case component of grammar, employing insights from Optimality Theory.

Variation in Classifier Languages

2020 ◽  
pp. 255-305
Author(s):  
Li Julie Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Linguistic Variation ◽  
Classifier Languages ◽  
Bare Nouns ◽  
Bare Nominal ◽  
The One ◽  
Numeral Classifier ◽  
Nominal Arguments

Chapter 5 develops a uniform account of bare nominal arguments (i.e., bare numeral classifier phrases, bare classifier phrases, bare nouns) in classifier languages. It achieves that by extending the scope of discussion to more classifier languages. It starts with three points on which Mandarin and Nuosu Yi differ and which make this comparison interesting from the perspective of building a theory of cross-linguistic variation. Their differences are: (i) whether or not they have the function category D in their grammar, (ii) whether or not they freely allow numeral-less classifier phrases to appear in argument positions, as a result of applying covert argument formation operations unrestrictedly, and (iii) whether or not they allow one-deletion from the [one Cl N] phrase in the PF. Three parameters based on these differences account for the variation.

scholarly journals Of nouns, and kinds, and properties, and why one D is null or not

2015 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 259-288
Author(s):  
Diana Guillemin
Keyword(s):  
Direct Consequence ◽  
Linguistic Variation ◽  
Definite Article ◽  
Bare Nominal ◽  
Null Element ◽  
Definite Articles ◽  
Nominal Arguments

AbstractThis paper assumes that the basic denotation of nouns can be that of kind or property and that the determiner system of a language is a direct consequence of this cross-linguistic variation. An analysis of how definiteness and specificity are marked across three languages with different determiner systems, namely, English, French and Mauritian Creole (MC), provides evidence of the co-relation between noun denotation and determiner system. Languages with kind denoting nouns (English and MC) admit bare nominal arguments, which are barred in French, whose nouns denote properties. However, English and MC differ in that English has an overt definite article, which is a lacking in MC. This null element requires licensing by an overt specificity marker in some syntactic environments. The English and MC definite articles are analyzed as operators that quantify over sets of kind denoting nouns, and they serve a different function from the French definite article, which is specified for number and selects properties.

Nominal Arguments and Language Variation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Julie Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Investigation ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Language Variation ◽  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Detailed Examination ◽  
Prima Facie ◽  
Number Marking ◽  
Classifier Languages ◽  
Numeral Classifier ◽  
Nominal Arguments

This book investigates nominal arguments in classifier languages. A long-held claim is that classifier languages do not have overt article determiners (D). This book, however, brings to the forefront the theoretical investigation on the typologically unique Nuosu Yi, a classifier language that will be shown to have an overt article determiner. By comparing nominal arguments in Nuosu Yi to those in Mandarin, the book provides a parametric account of variation among classifier languages and extends the account to argument formation in general. This book begins with a detailed examination of bare numeral classifier phrases in Mandarin by comparing them with bare numeral noun phrases in number marking languages, such as English, French, and Russian. The book argues for a unified structure of bare numeral containing phrases with no reference to D across languages as well as for a D-less structure for various types of nominal arguments in Mandarin. It further studies nominal argument formation in Nuosu Yi. The facts from Nuosu Yi essentially alter the landscape of empirical data and constitute an immediate (prima facie) challenge to the proposed analysis of nominal arguments based on the Mandarin data. This book argues that despite the fact that Nuosu Yi has an overt article determiner, this should not force us to change anything about the proposed analysis of nominal arguments. Lastly, the book puts the analysis of Mandarin and Nuosu Yi nominal arguments in a broader, cross-linguistic perspective and develops a parametric account of variation in nominal argument formation in general.

scholarly journals Aspetto verbale e referenza nominale

2016 ◽  
pp. 167-180
Author(s):  
Lucyna Gebert
Keyword(s):  
Word Order ◽  
Relative Clauses ◽  
Grammatical Category ◽  
Verbal Aspect ◽  
Slavic Languages ◽  
Restrictive Relative Clauses ◽  
Nominal Arguments ◽  
Indefinite Pronouns

The paper attempts to examine the relation between the verbal aspect in the Slavic languages and the referential status of nominal arguments of the predicate. As is well known, Slavic languages (except Bulgarian and Macedonian) have not developed articles as a grammatical category. It is suggested that in addition to the well-known means of conveying referential information in these articleless languages – such as word order, use of demonstrative/indefinite pronouns, restrictive relative clauses, case alternations and prosody – the verbal aspect also should be taken into account.

Introduction

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Li Julie Jiang
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Classifier Languages ◽  
Bare Nominal ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Nominal Arguments

This chapter offers a brief introduction to the book. It provides general criteria for the definition of a “classifier language” and offers an overview of the properties along which classifier languages may vary. After briefly discussing two ongoing debates regarding nominal arguments—one is about the syntax of nominal arguments and the other is about the reference of bare nominal argument terms—this chapter provides a brief summary of each of the remaining chapters.

Competing motivations and ditransitive encoding and ordering

2015 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 322-353
Author(s):  
Chao Li
Keyword(s):  
Competition Model ◽  
Event Semantics ◽  
Weight Effect ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Event Construal ◽  
Nominal Arguments ◽  
Definiteness Effect

The paper proposes that the three main ditransitive alignment patterns result from the competition between the Event Construal Constraint (ECC) motivated from event semantics and the Animacy(/Definiteness) Hierarchy Constraint (AHC) motivated from inherent role properties. The ECC and the AHC lead, respectively, to the Theme (T) and the Recipient (R) of a ditransitive verb being coded in the same way as the Patient (P) of a monotransitive verb. The competition model also correctly predicts the difference in the frequency of the indirective and secundative alignments. The indirective preference in flagging results from flagging’s being more sensitive to event role properties (cf. ECC) and the secundative preference in indexing results from indexing’s being more sensitive to animacy and definiteness (cf. AHC). Moreover, the paper argues that both the ordering of R and T nominal arguments in flagging and the ordering of R and T bound forms in indexing can be successfully accounted for through the interaction of the following constraints: the Animacy (/Definiteness) Effect on Ordering, the Weight Effect on Ordering, and the Coding Effect on Ordering (i.e. which ditransitive role is coded in the same way as the P).

Mandarin associative plural -men and NPs with -men

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Julie Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Functional Category ◽  
Bare Nominals ◽  
Nominal Arguments

Abstract This paper discusses the syntax and semantics of -men and four types of phrases containing -men in Mandarin. I defend the view that -men should be analyzed as a plural morpheme as first argued in Li (1999) but argue against the analysis of positing -men in the D position or treating it as a definite determiner. It will be shown that definiteness is not inherent to -men and that -men is compatible with numerals and classifiers and should be in a position local to nouns. I propose an analysis of -men as an associative plural and explain the properties of the four types of expressions containing -men within a Neocarlsonian account of bare nominals. The formal account of the syntax and semantics of phrases containing -men advanced in this paper shows that it is not necessary to assume a functional category D that is always invisible in the grammar of Mandarin in order to account for the behaviors of its nominal arguments and argues for the lack of DP projections in Mandarin.

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