Object Person Marking in two under-represented Spanish dialects of Mexico

Abstract

This paper is about a clitic-like form lo that appears in two under-studied dialects of Mexico in the context of transitive clauses. The distribution of this clitic-like form in these dialects is at odds with Standard Mexican Spanish which does not allow it in the same context. This clitic-like form resembles the singular, masculine, accusative object clitic of Standard Spanish, but it differs in that it does not show the agreement pattern expected for object clitics. In this paper we argue that this clitic-like form is better understood as an object marker that is triggered by the lack of a positive [Participant] feature in the direct object as part of the extended projection of the Object-DP. We also propose that this marking strategy is not the result of linguistic transfer or interaction with a different language, but rather a possible development within the grammar of Spanish. This marking strategy is, in fact, an inherent strategy of Spanish, but it gets blocked by normative pressure. The fact that this strategy flourishes in dialects apart from normative/academic contexts could be an indicator that the explanation we offer is on the right track.