Syntactic Variation: The Case of Spanish and Portuguese Subjects

Abstract

Abstract This paper traces formulations of variation in Generative Grammar by analyzing an increasing tendency to have overt subject changes in Dominican Spanish (DS) and Brazilian Portuguese (BP). Changes start by an increase in the frequency of overt pronominals that triggers a reorganization of the pronouns’ lexical entries. Two alternative paths of change are suggested: a) higher frequency can lead to pronominals with possible arbitrary interpretations; this, in turn, freezes them in Spec, IP, they begin to satisfy the Extended Projection Principle (EPP), and inflection loses its pronominal properties; b) higher frequency leads to freezing of the pronominal in Spec, IP, pronominals satisfy the EPP, inflection ceases to have pronominal properties and pronominals allow arbitrary interpretations. These two paths may explain the partially different properties BP and DS display. Finally, the paper sketches ways in which a theory of lexical features should constrain variation by limiting the possible changes in lexical entries.