Binding and Indexicality in the Caucasus

Abstract

AbstractThis chapter introduces the inventory of anaphoric expressions attested in languages of the Caucasus and discusses their basic properties. It shows that Nakh-Dagestanian, Kartvelian, and Northwest Caucasian differ in the division of labor between nominal expressions and verbal inflection in reflexive constructions. It demonstrates that exempt uses of anaphors are found in Nakh-Dagestanian, but not in Kartvelian or Northwest Caucasian, and that different types of reflexive pronouns in Nakh-Dagestanian have distinct restrictions on locality, while Kartvelian anaphors are strictly local. The chapter also describes the well-known pattern of ‘reverse binding’ in Nakh-Dagestanian, where the reflexive or reciprocal appears in the subject position above the antecedent. It is shown that some instances of reverse binding can be explained by factoring in the distinction between syntactic binding and coreference. Georgian reflexives are also known to be grammatical in the subject position, with non-trivial implications for the semantic interpretation. Personal pronouns in Nakh-Dagestanian and, possibly, other Caucasian languages can undergo indexical shift in finite embedded reports.