A note on the order of constituents in the Mehri Noun Phrase

Abstract

Abstract Data elicited from native speakers of Mehri and, to a lesser extent, Jibbali—two extant Modern South Arabian languages—show that within the extended nominal phrase, the noun precedes adjectives and the numerals one and two, but follows numerals from three up. This yields the following order: Num≥3 >> Noun >> Num=1,2 >> Adjective. Demonstratives appear between the noun and the numerals one or two, Noun >> Dem >> Num=1,2 >> Adjective, but when the noun is preceded by numerals from three up, the order is Dem >> Num≥3 >> Noun >> Adjective. Following Cinque (2005), I argue that these orders can be explained by taking the constituent order derived by external merge to be Dem >> Num≥3 >> Num=1,2 >> Adjective >> Noun and having the noun (more precisely, the minimal noun phrase) move step-by-step to a position immediately above, and therefore to the left of Num=1,2. The noun cannot move above Num≥3 and since it cannot skip it, it also remains below Dem.