Ergative Languages Research Articles

A Typology Linguistic Study: Is the Sibolga Coastal Dialect Ergative?

This research explores the existence of ergative language features in the Sibolga Coastal dialect. Qualitative descriptive methods were used to analyze data obtained from nine folktale titles in Bunga Rampai Rakyat Tapanuli Tengah (The anthology of central Tapanuli folktales). Of the nine stories, ten clauses were found to show an ergative pattern, where the subject in the first clause acts as the object in the second clause. The findings show that the Sibolga Coastal dialect language has the characteristics of an ergative language in its structure, with a pattern where the subject of the first clause becomes the object of the following clause. These findings indicate a tendency to use ergative language features in the Sibolga Coastal dialect. This research concludes that the Sibolga Coastal dialect uses ergative language features, although in limited quantities. These findings contribute to understanding the syntactic structure of the Sibolga Coastal language and provide new insights into the phenomenon of ergative language in the local context. The implications of this research include supporting the development of linguistic studies and regional language studies and contributing to language teaching and translation in the region. Future research can be expanded to further investigate the features of ergative language in the Sibolga Coastal dialect and the context of its use in daily interactions.

Ā-Probing for the Closest DP

We consider the typology of attested Ā-extraction asymmetries between core argument DPs and argue that an Ā-probe can be required to specifically target the closest DP. Such an Ā-probe specification is part of Aldridge’s (2004, 2008) influential analysis of syntactically ergative extraction restrictions, but has not been widely adopted outside of work on ergative languages. We argue that restricted probing of this form underlies subject-only extraction behaviors in a number of nonergative languages, including some of those in Keenan and Comrie’s (1977) typology of relativization asymmetries. We describe the behaviors of such probes in detail and relate them to other probe-goal behaviors in recent work on composite A /Ā probes.

Ergative and Antipassive Construction in Minangkabaunese: Are There?

That Minangkabunese has active-passive dichotomy is not questioned anymore since it has been treated as an accusative language. Further typological analysis toward grammatical constructions of this language leads to a claim that it may be treated as an ergative language in which the ergative and antipassive constructions exist. That Minangkabaunese has ergative and antipassive construction is still questioned in some matters. Therefore, further grammatical-typological data, analysis, and discussion are needed. This paper, which is based on and developed from a part of results of research conducted in 2021-2022, particularly analyses whether Minangkabaunese has ergative and/or antipassive constructions. Two questions are raised, namely: (i) are there ergative and antipassive constructions in Minangkabaunese? and (ii) what is the linguistic implication of such claim toward grammatical typology of Minangkabaunese? This descriptive-qualitative study was practically operated as a linguistic field research and supported by a library study. Native speakers as represented by selected informants and written texts of Minangkabaunese were the sources of data. The data are in the form of clause constructions of Minangkabunese identified as the standard ones and were analyzed based on related theories of grammatical typology. The result of data analysis reveals that Minangkabaunese has ergative and antipassive constructions. Implicationally, this language may be typologically treated as an ergative language at the syntactic level beside as an accusative language.

Mandarin Word Order: Syntactic Typology

This research is entitled Tataurut Kata Bahasa Mandarin:Tipologi Sintaksis. The theory used to examine the linguistic phenomena of Mandarin in this study includes two theories, namely the word order typology theory by Greenberg and the theory of relational grammar by Comrie. The research data consisted of Mandarin phrases, clauses, and sentences obtained from the Xunbao newspaper and Mandarin books. The research method used is a qualitative. The results of this study are presented using a formal method. Based on the formulation of the problem and research objectives, the results of the study show that the order pattern of Mandarin word order is SPO/SVO. As for changes in word order patterns, they can turn into SOV because O switches position with V after becoming a passive sentence. The word order pattern in imperative sentences is S-P/S-P-O. Under certain conditions, S can be eliminated but does not change the pattern. Declarative sentences have the S-P/S-P-O pattern. S is to the left of P and cannot precede P. If this occurs, then the pattern is unacceptable. Interrogative sentences have a word order pattern S-P or S-V. Chinese interrogative sentence markers can be located in the middle of a sentence and at the end of a sentence. These markers do not affect the basic pattern of word order, that P always precedes S. S is to the left of P or is praverbal. Through a syntactic typology approach, Mandarin is included in the ergative language type. Mandarin language treats S the same as P (patient) but differently from A (agent).

Grammar (morphosyntax) and discourse

Abstract The present work attempts to examine the relationship between grammar and discourse. (i) First, it compares Warrongo (an ergative language that has antipassives and an S/O pivot) and English (an accusative language that has passives and an S/A pivot). Despite these polar opposite morphosyntactic characteristics, Warrongo and English behave almost in the same way in discourse – in terms of new mentions, lexical mentions and topic continuity. There are, however, two differences in discourse. First, Warrongo antipassives and S/O pivot have much higher functional loads than English passives and S/A pivot. Second, Warrongo antipassives have a use that English passives do not have. (ii) Then, the present work shows that grammar and discourse are not independent of each other and that they share one principle. The hierarchy of “O > S > A” is attested in grammar and discourse crosslinguistically and irrespective of the morphosyntactic types of the languages concerned.

A subject relative clause preference in a split-ergative language: ERP evidence from Georgian

A fascinating descriptive property of human language processing whose explanation is still debated is that subject-gap relative clauses are easier to process than object-gap relative clauses, across a broad range of languages with different properties. However, recent work suggests that this generalization does not hold in Basque, an ergative language, and has motivated an alternative generalization in which the preference is for gaps in morphologically unmarked positions—subjects in nominative-accusative languages, and objects and intransitive subjects in ergative-absolutive languages. Here we examined whether this generalization extends to another ergative-absolutive language, Georgian. ERP and self-paced reading results show a large anterior negativity and slower reading times when a relative clause is disambiguated to an object relative vs a subject relative. These data thus suggest that in at least some ergative-absolutive languages, the classic descriptive generalization—that object relative clauses are more costly than subject relative clauses—still holds.

Licensing unergative objects in ergative languages: The view from Polynesian

AbstractTransitive and unergative verbs have long received a uniform syntactic analysis, where they differ in whether an overt object is present (in transitives) or absent (in unergatives). We examine how objects of unergative verbs are case licensed when theyarepresent, focusing on a contrast between two related Polynesian languages: Samoan and Niuean. Both languages have ergative case systems, with subjects of intransitive verbs receiving absolutive case. When unergatives have an overt object, however, a difference emerges. In Samoan, ergative case is absent: the subject of a transitivized unergative is absolutive, and the object receives “middle case.” In Niuean, the resulting transitive exhibits an ergative–absolutive frame. Working within a split‐vP system, we propose that the contrast between Samoan and Niuean results from the interaction of three parametric differences. This comparative analysis highlights the importance of considering unergative constructions when determining the underlying syntax of any given case system.

Some observations on the language of Linear A

Abstract Examination of the Linear A texts confirms that - the language of Linear A is probably only one (§ 1); - the alternation a-/ja- in a-sa-sa-ra-me/ja-sa-sa-ra-me etc. is likely due to the presence of a prefix i/j- and not to a laryngeal or a graphic variant (§ 2); - the sequence -i-*301- of a-ta-i-*301-wa-ja and variants is probably a verbal root (§§ 3-4); - (j)a-sa-sa-ra-me probably means ‘gift, homage’ vel. sim. (but not necessarily ‘sacred’) and not ‘offering’ (§ 5); - the prefix i/j- probably has the function of an article and i-na- could be its plural form (§ 6). More generally, convincing arguments have already been put forward which strongly suggest that the language of Linear A is probably neither Indo-European nor Semitic (Afro-Asiatic), nor an ergative language such as Hurro-Urartian (§ 7).

Predications of hypotaxis with explanatory relations in an ergative language

Predications of hypotaxis with explanatory relations in an ergative language

The argument structure of the bă construction in Mandarin Chinese: Decontextualized and contextualized perspectives

ABSTRACT The properties of the bă construction and the function of the word bă in Mandarin Chinese have long been controversial issues. This paper elaborates the argument structure of the Mandarin bă construction from decontextualized and contextualized perspectives. In decontextualized analysis, the paper argues that the previous treatments of the word bă in the bă construction as an absolutive/accusative/ergative/oblique case marker are not fully satisfactory as they face different problems. It is argued that the bă construction can be treated as an ergative–absolutive construction, where the word bă is not a case marker, but rather a functional word serving as a relator, which helps to distinguish two structural positions, the pre-bă position and the post-bă position, respectively marking an ergative A (Agent) argument and an absolutive P (Patient) argument. The two grammatical roles A and P may subsume various semantic roles, and hence a semantic-role hierarchy for A and P or for ergative and absolutive case in the bă construction can be established. In contextualized analysis, it is found that there exist some constraints on the use of the bă construction in discourse, which appear to be the common features that the bă construction shares with ergative–absolutive constructions in ergative languages.

The Role of the Absolutive Object in Morphological Accessibility

This squib discusses environments in which a subject bears ergative case in the absence of an absolutive object, contrasting syntactically ergative languages (e.g., Q’anjob’al) with languages in which the ergative argument cannot be targeted for φ-agreement (e.g., Hindi-Urdu). In these environments, the parallels between Ā-movement and verb agreement with respect to the morphological accessibility hierarchy (Bobaljik 2008, Deal 2016) break down: in the absence of an absolutive object, syntactically ergative languages allow for extraction of the ergative argument, but in absolutive-only φ-agreement languages, agreement never targets the ergative argument.

СЕМАНТИЧЕСКИЕ ТИПЫ КАУЗАТИВНЫХ ГЛАГОЛОВ В ТЕКСТАХ ХАКАССКИХ ГЕРОИЧЕСКИХ СКАЗАНИЙ

Рассматриваются семантические типы каузативных глаголов хакасского языка, нашедшие отражение в текстах хакасских героических сказаний «Алтын Арыг» и «Ах Чибек Арыг», записанных от популярного народного сказителя Хакасии С. П. Кадышева (1885–1977), «Ай Хуучын» и «Айдолай», записанных от сказителя П. В. Курбижекова (1910–1966), «Хара Хусхун», записанного от сказителя П. В. Тоданова. Актуальность данного исследования связана с тем, что каузативные глаголы активны в употреблении и представляют большой интерес для исследователей-лингвистов. Необходимость изучения семантических типов каузативных глаголов в текстах хакасских героических сказаний вызвана неразработанностью данного вопроса на сегодняшний день, чем и определяется новизна исследования. Целью статьи является выявление семантики и функционирования каузативных глаголов в текстах хакасских героических сказаний. В задачи исследования входит выявление всех каузативных глаголов, встречающихся в текстах героических сказаний; определение и анализ каузативных аффиксов, участвующих в образовании каузативных глаголов; выявление словообразовательных моделей каузативных глаголов, представленных в текстах героических сказаний. Анализ фактического материала проводился с использованием комплекса лингвистических методов и приемов. Наиболее перспективным при решении поставленных задач были признаны метод сплошной выборки примеров, предусматривающий подбор примеров для анализа и выписывание из текстов героических сказаний подряд всех встречающихся в нём примеров анализируемого типа, описательный метод для выявления каузативных глаголов и их последовательного описания с точки зрения их структуры и функционирования. Метод дистрибутивного анализа позволил выявить валентность каузативного глагола. В результате исследования выявлены и проанализированы семантические типы каузативных глаголов, а именно, фактитивный, пермиссивный и фактитивно-рефлексивный, пермиссивно-рефлексивный типы; определены актуальные для языка героического эпоса словообразовательные модели каузативных глаголов. Для глаголов с фактитивной семантикой выявлено пять словообразовательных моделей; для пермиссивной – три модели; фактитивно-рефлексивный и пермиссивно-рефлексивный по одной модели. Исследование также показало, что в текстах хакасских героических сказаний часто используется двойной каузатив, который выражает как фактитивное, так и пермиссивное значение. Полученные результаты могут найти применение при чтении лекционных курсов по хакасскому языку на филологических факультетах вузов, при составлении учебных и учебно-методических пособий, словарей. В перспективе интересные результаты могут дать исследования каузативных конструкций, характерных для текстов героических сказаний, в сопоставительном и сравнительно-типологическом освещении.

Case Valuation in Transitive Clauses: A Comparative Study of Punjabi and English Syntax

Case is a morphological realization on a noun phrase (NP) to represent the NP's grammatical relationship with the main verb of the clause. With respect to case, languages, in many cases, can be broadly divided into two alignment systems, i.e., ergative-absolutive and nominative-accusative. In the former type of languages, e.g., Punjabi, the subjects usually receive an ergative post position in transitive clauses (with perfective aspect) while in the latter type of languages, e.g., English, the subject, i.e., in nominative case receives, no post position. There has been a widespread controversy on whether ergative is a structural case or a lexical/inherent case and how the arguments are, i.e., subject and objects valued case in case of ergative clauses. With this ongoing debate in the background, this study aims to compare the marking of case on the arguments, i.e., subjects and objects in the transitive clauses of English and Punjabi. The study is conducted under the minimalist framework of Chomsky (2008), who emphasized on Strong Minimalist Thesis (SMT): language provides the best possible solution to the interface conditions imposed by other systems of the human mind, i.e., related to meaning and sound, which interact with language through their interfaces Conceptual Intentional (C-I) and Sensori-Motor (SM) respectively. In this framework, a feature valuation mechanism is induced by the probes, i.e., C and v*. The study finds that in split ergative languages (the languages which take both case patterns, i.e., nominative and ergative) like Punjabi, the EA, i.e., subjects of perfective transitive clauses are assigned the ergative case by the functional heads v* at [Spec-v*] while the IA, i.e., objects are valued accusative case by the same functional head v* under Agree operation. A consequence of this finding concludes that T has default agreement in such languages, which is possible because Punjabi (like its other South Asian counterparts, e.g., Urdu-Hindi, Bengali, and Kashmiri) is a pro-drop language. So, it is easy to assume that EPP and Agree features of T are an option

КОНСТАНТНЫЕ ПРИЗНАКИ ЭРГАТИВНЫХ ЯЗЫКОВ

The article denotes the basic principles of the functioning of the ergative languages which fundamentally distinguish them from the languages of the nominative strategy. One of these dominant features is the paradigm of the face, revealed on the material of the Nakh Ingush language in a number of works of the author of th article in recent years. Faces of the paradigm correlates with three personal pronouns of the first person singular. Egocentric components of the paradigm as a deep components correlate with anthropocentric sighns, studied in a number of works of the author of the article as a deep conceptual category.

Basque adjectival participles: Stative, resultative or experiential

In this paper, I analyze the form and meaning of adjectival participles in Basque, an ergative language with a predominant use of analytic verbal forms. I show that even though adjectival participles have similar morphological makeup, they can be the exponents of different aspectual configurations, with different interpretation and syntactic distribution. As attested for other languages such as English and Greek, Basque adjectival participles can be interpreted as stative or resultative (Embick 2004), and also as target state participles or resultant state participles (Kratzer 2000; Anagnostopoulou 2003). As noted in the literature (Anagnostopoulou 2003; Alexiadou & Anagnostopoulou 2008; Alexiadou et al. 2014; Alexiadou et al. 2015), these types are subject to different syntactic distribution, particularly regarding the acceptability of different sorts of event-related and subject-oriented modifiers. In this paper, I propose that a further aspectual class must be included into the typology of adjectival participles: experientials. In fact, adjectival participles in Basque can be interpreted experientially under certain conditions. The five-way typology of participles emerges as the result of the combination of two different aspectual heads (a stativizing Asp head, as in Kratzer 2000 and Embick 2004, and an aspectual operator with anteriority semantics, as in Kratzer 2000; Alexiadou et al. 2014; Alexiadou et al. 2015) with complements of different sizes and nature. In particular, the experiential reading arises when the Asp head of anteriority combines with particular vP semantics and/or with a particular linking relation between the subject of predication and the arguments within VOICEP.

Case Marking in Hindi as the Weaker Language.

Does language dominance modulate knowledge of case marking in Hindi-speaking bilinguals? Hindi is a split ergative language with a rich morphological case system. Subjects of transitive perfective predicates are marked with ergative case (-ne). Human specific direct objects, indirect objects, and dative subjects are marked with the particle -ko. We compared knowledge of case marking in Hindi–English bilinguals with different dominance patterns: 23 balanced bilinguals and two groups of bilinguals with Hindi as their weaker language: 24 L2 learners of Hindi with age of acquisition (AoA) of Hindi in adulthood and 26 Hindi heritage speakers with AoA of Hindi since birth in oral production and acceptability judgments. The balanced bilinguals outperformed the English-dominant bilinguals; the L2 learners and the heritage speakers, who showed similar lower command of the Hindi case marking system, with the exception of -ko marking as a function of specificity with direct objects. We consider how dominant language transfer, AoA of Hindi, and input factors may explain the acquisition and knowledge of morphology in Hindi as the weaker language.

Antipassivization and Pivot Construction in Ergative Languages

Antipassivization and Pivot Construction in Ergative Languages

Morphological Causatives in Abaza

This paper deals with the productive morphological causative r(ə)- in Abaza (Northwest Caucasian), a highly polysynthetic ergative language. We discuss the causativization process in Abaza as well as the semantic properties of the construction and elaborate an analysis of the event structure of the Abaza morphological causatives based on the scope of adverbials.

Effects of subject-case marking on agreement processing: ERP evidence from Basque

Previous cross-linguistic research has found that comprehenders are immediately sensitive to various kinds of agreement violations across languages. We focused on Basque, a verb-final ergative language with both subject–verb (SV) and object–verb (OV) agreement. We compared the effects of SV agreement violations on comprehenders' event-related brain potentials (ERPs) in transitive sentences (where OV agreement is present, and the subject is ergative) and intransitive sentences (where OV agreement is absent, and the subject is absolutive). We observed a P600 effect in both cases, but only violations with intransitive subjects elicited an early posterior negativity. Such a qualitative difference suggests that distinct neurocognitive mechanisms are involved in processing agreement with transitive subjects (which are marked with ergative case) versus intransitive subjects (which bear absolutive case). Building on theoretical proposals that in languages such as Basque, true agreement occurs with absolutive subjects but not with ergative subjects, we submit that the early posterior negativity may be an electrophysiological signature for true agreement.

Eye-tracking the effect of word order in sentence comprehension in aphasia: evidence from Basque, a free word order ergative language

ABSTRACTAgrammatic speakers of languages with overt grammatical case show impaired use of the morphological cues to establish theta-role relations in sentences presented in non-canonical word orders. We analysed the effect of word order on the sentence comprehension of aphasic speakers of Basque, an ergative, free word order and head-final (SOV) language. Ergative languages such as Basque establish a one-to-one mapping of the thematic role and the case marker. We collected behavioural and gaze-fixation data while agrammatic speakers performed a picture-matching task with auditorily presented sentences with different word orders. We found that people with aphasia (PWA) had difficulties in assigning theta-roles in Theme-Agent order. This result is in line with processing accounts. Contrary to previous findings, our data do not suggest a systematic delay in the integration of morphological information in the PWA group, but strong reliance on the ergative case morphology and difficulties assigning thematic roles into the determiner phrases.