Split Ergativity Research Articles

Antifunctionality in Shawi split ergativity, a processing analysis

In this article, as a follow-up of Rojas-Berscia and Bourdeau (2017), we study morphological ergativity in Shawi (Kawapanan) using a dedicated experimental design. Shawi displays ergative-marking in an opposite direction from Silverstein’s Nominal Hierarchy (NH) (Silverstein 1976). We claim this pattern to be antifunctional, given the lack of internal syntactic cues that explain why ergativity is omitted or completely obligatory in cases where the NH predicts the opposite. To test this hypothesis, we carried out a grammaticality judgment experiment in the field with 47 Shawi participants from four sites. We found a significant overall effect of the Antifunctional Ergativity Constraint Expectation (AECE): sentences that violated this constraint were in general deemed less acceptable. Finally, we provide a tentative hypothesis on the historical origin of this pattern, resorting to discussions on the origins of ergativity in historical syntax (Gildea 2004; Gildea and Queixalós 2010), the reconstruction of Proto-Kawapanan morphosyntax, and antifunctional patterns in language (Seuren and Hamans 2010).

The acquisition of Hindi split-ergativity and differential object marking by Dutch L1 speakers: systematicity and variation

ABSTRACT We investigated the acquisition of Hindi split ergativity (zero or -ne marking) and Hindi differential object marking (DOM; zero or -ko marking) by L1 speakers of Dutch. Both grammatical phenomena are conditioned by multiple syntactic and semantic features. On a descriptive level, the study aims to examine when and how Dutch-speaking learners acquire and apply the conditional features associated with -ne and -ko marking in Hindi as a foreign language (HFL). A specific learner corpus was created based on a picture description task that elicited semi-spontaneous oral production data from 15 Dutch-speaking learners of Hindi, from four cross-sectional stages of the Hindi course trajectory. We annotated the corpus data for multiple features associated with -ne and -ko marking. Using a mixed-effects logistic regression analysis, we found an increase in the use and accuracy of each case marker over the different years of study, but individual learner profile analyses revealed considerable intersubject differences in learner behavior. We argue that the developmental stages for the emergence of -ne and -ko marking are in line with predictions based on Processability Theory. We additionally include mastery level analysis to account for a combined perspective on language development. Our findings reveal that HFL learners reach higher mastery levels for split ergativity than for DOM, even though DOM (-ko marking) emerges before split ergativity (-ne marking). We conclude that developmental stages and between-learner variation are not mutually exclusive.

Syntactic alignment and identification of theta-role subgroups in Mehináku stative verbs

In this work, I present a first analysis of the syntactic alignment in the Mehináku (Arawak) language to show how this language behaves in terms of its different verbal predicates and the arguments that these predicates take. I argue that this language tends to manifest an active-stative alignment (or split ergativity, as proposed by Aikhenvald (1999, 2001, 2002, 2018, 2019) for other Arawak languages), since it is the semantic type of the verb that determines which type of argument functioning as subject will be taken and, moreover, in what syntactic position this argument will appear. I show that transitive verbs, agentive intransitives, non-agentive intransitives, and most stative intransitive verbs (type 1) align in the same way, taking as subject one of the pronominal proclitics of the language positioned before the verb, while a small portion of the stative intransitive verbs (type 2) align with the direct object of the transitive verb since it takes as its subject the full pronouns of the language positioned after the verb. Furthermore, I show that the subject of the transitive verb (A) and the subjects of the agentive, non-agentive, and type 1 intransitive verbs are marked with the thematic role of agent or experiencer, while, in turn, the object of the transitive verb and the subject of the intransitive verb of type 2 (So) are marked with the thematic role of theme or patient.

Heritage grammars as checkpoints in acquisition: A Dependent Case Theoretic account

This paper investigates split ergativity in Turkish-dominant heritage speakers of Kurmanji. We show that the Dependent Case Theory (Marantz 1991; Baker 2015) accounts for the variation in case patterns across the baseline and heritage varieties. We develop a model of checkpoint-based acquisition that allows the emergence of the heritage patterns in Kurmanji as natural outcomes of acquisition paths where upward and downward dependent case rules are learnt independently. This sheds light into the shift from split ergativity towards accusativity across Kurmanji dialects including the heritage variety.

Habituality, Perfectivity and Ergativity in Nepali

This paper argues that in Nepali, the position of aspect heads leads to the ergative case assignment on agents of perfective clauses and optional marking on the agents in habitual sentences. Along with split ergativity, Nepali exhibits ergative marking also for stage vs. individual level readings of the subjects in habitual sentences. A marked subject has an individual level reading and an unmarked subject has a stage level reading. In the context of the data presented in the paper, it is argued that the case marking on the agent is an inherent case, assigned to the agent in its theta position. Furthermore, such inherent case assignment or the environment in which the agent is marked, is motivated and conditioned by the aspect of the clause, represented through various aspect heads in narrow syntax.

Development of Ergativity in Hindi: Passive Origin

The diachronic analysis of ergativity in Indo-Aryan languages has been under a debate for a long period of time. The dispute is whether the ergativity exits in Indo-Aryan languages because of the historical change (passive origin) or is a matter of historical stability (already existed in the OIA). In this study, it is assumed that the passive construction historically gave rise to the ergative construction in Indo-Aryan languages. All Indo-Aryan elements of split ergativity arose as a result of a reanalysis of the –ta construction in Sanskrit as perfective aspect. This paper will demonstrate that how the markedness shift is allowed from the passive to the ergative in terms of syntactic structure.

Non-Canonical Subjects in the Prakrit of Kōūhala’s Līlāvaī


 
 
 Kōūhala’s Līlāvaī, a romance in Prakrit verse from around 800 CE, has two types of constructions that present “syntactical difficulties” (according to the text’s first editor): the use of mhi (I am) in the meaning of maē (by me), and the use of amhēhi (by us) and tumhēhi (by you) in the meanings of amhē (we) and tumhē (you). This article reviews the phenomena and puts them into the context of expressions of agency in related Indic languages, arguing that Prakrit’s split ergativity is implicated in both cases. A further conclusion is that the particle hi is all but absent from Kōūhala’s Prakrit.
 
 

Differential place marking beyond place names: Evidence from two Amazonian languages

Not all spatial adjuncts behave alike. In some languages, certain spatial adjuncts display different marking or different combinatorial possibilities than others. Recent functional-typological studies make two claims about this differential place marking phenomenon: (1) it is primarily motivated by noun semantics, opposing place names and other nouns; and (2) it is primarily realized as a contrast between zero-marking and overt marking of spatial adjunct function. We evaluate this view against new fieldwork data from two Indigenous Amazonian languages, Dâw (Naduhup) and Ticuna (isolate). In Dâw and Ticuna, differential place marking is conditioned not only by noun semantics, but also by the perceptual properties of noun referents and by morphosyntactic and semantic properties of verbs. Further, the phenomenon is realized not only by alternations between zero and overt marking, but also by alternations among overt markers and alternations in the set of markers with which the adjunct can combine. These findings suggest that differential place marking – like other differential case phenomena, such as split ergativity – is conditioned by a cross-linguistically diverse suite of factors within and beyond the noun phrase.

Pronoun resolution and ergativity: Effects of subjecthood and case in Niuean

Anaphoric pronouns such as 'it' are referentially underspecified and therefore depend on prior context for interpretation. The factors influencing their interpretation are a long-standing topic of research in syntactic and pragmatic literature. We present a novel study of pronoun resolution in the ergative-absolutive Polynesian language Niuean, investigating whether Niuean exhibits the same subject preference found for nominative-accusative languages (e.g. Chafe 1976) or whether, alternatively, the absolutive argument is preferred as a referent. Niuean also exhibits split ergativity, allowing for isolation of further effects of case (wherein listeners show a preference for antecedents that bear the same case as the pronoun) and transitivity (wherein direct objects are preferred as antecedents as compared with adjuncts). Most importantly, we observe that ergative arguments are consistently preferred as referents over clause-mate absolutive arguments, providing evidence that ergative arguments exhibit behavior parallel to that of 'subjects' in nominativeaccusative languages.

Morphosyntactic features of progressive in the K’iche’an languages of the Mayan family

AbstractThe article deals with the morphosyntactic features of the aspectual category of progressive in K’iche’an languages. The analysis is carried out using methods of intragenetic typology. It is proposed to clarify Vinogradov’s classification of progressive in the Mayan languages in relation to the K’iche’an group. Three types of K’iche’an progressive as well as three strategies for the distribution of ergative–absolutive markers in the progressive are proposed. The boundary between the uniclausal and biclausal analyses of complex aspect constructions in Mayan languages is proposed. The application to K’iche’an languages Robert Dixon’s generalization for aspectually based split ergativity is also described. Three strategies of verb argument marking in the progressive constructions are determined. It was found out that all aspectually conditioned splits in the ergative–absolutive strategy of argument marking in K’iche’an languages are observed in progressive (or historically progressive) constructions.

Pathways to split ergativity

AbstractThis paper reassesses the rise of ergative alignment in Anatolian and Indo-Aryan, two branches of the Indo-European linguistic family. Both of these branches acquire split-ergative morphosyntax in the course of their history but via different grammaticalization paths and with different results. In the Anatolian language Hittite, a denominative derivational suffix develops into an ergative case marker, which is restricted to so-called neuter nouns. In Indo-Aryan, on the other hand, a new ergative category with anterior aspectual semantics emerges in Middle Indo-Aryan originating from a P-oriented resultative construction in Old Indo-Aryan.

Some notes on split ergativity in Hittite

Abstract The Hittite grammar is characterized by a morphosyntactic split that affects the behaviour of the inflectional classes of Noun phrases (DPs). While a singular neuter transitive subject is marked by /-anza/suffix, commons DPs end with an /-š/mark. In addition, intransitive neuter subjects and neuter objects pattern in the same way, marked by /-ø/, while in commons the object role is marked by an /-n/ ending, which distinguishes it from the subjects. The aim of this paper is to investigate over a possible definition of split ergativity in the Hittite grammar.

Reference tracking in Tima and its interplay with split ergative marking

Abstract Tima, a Niger-Congo language of the Sudan, shows signs of split ergativity. If its constituent order deviates from the basic AVO order to OVA order, the postverbal agent is formally marked, unlike preverbal agents. A direct object, regardless of its position relative to the verb, is never marked. Research so far has shown that ergative constructions are triggered by certain participant constellations in discourse. In particular, when the speaker keeps a non-agentive participant, more specifically a direct object, as the centre of attention in sentence-initial position, a newly introduced agent occurs postverbally and receives ergative marking. In addition, AOV and OAV constructions are attested, both involving focus marking.

Ergative as Perfective Oblique

AbstractMany languages with ergative systems of case or agreement exhibit splits in their alignment. Viewpoint aspect is a common basis for such splits, with perfective aspect often associated with ergative alignment and imperfective with the absence of ergativity (Moravcsik , Silverstein ). Recent work has argued that splits arise from properties of the imperfective that disrupt otherwise‐available mechanisms of ergative alignment (Laka , Coon ). This article argues rather that the perfective can be a source of ergative case, and specifically that ergative alignment in Hindi‐Urdu arises from the intersection of two different ways of expressing perfective aspect, each attested independently in other languages: the first is the use of oblique case to mark perfect or perfective subjects, while the second is a morphosyntactic sensitivity to transitivity, a hallmark of auxiliary selection in Germanic and Romance languages. The result is a more unified view of the morphosyntax of perfective aspect, though at the cost of a nonunified account of aspectually split ergativity.

Object and Subject Case Marking in Behdini

Behdini, a variety of Kurdish, is known to be a morphologically rich language demonstrating both subject and object case marking in an unusual typological distribution. This paper reviews differential object marking (DOM) and differential subject marking (DSM) exemplified by a number of allocated languages, and then DOM and DSM are tested whether they apply on Behdini. This study is designed to answer whether Behdini shows DOM or DSM or whether the way Behdini argument structures are encoded in split ergativity completely governs the case marking of objects and subjects in Behdini. Therefore, ergativity in Behdini is tackled in this study. Data to be applied on Behdini in the process of analysing DOM and DSM are inspired from various studies, and my own linguistic knowledge of Behdini is used for the analysis. The results of the study show that the way split ergativity operates in Behdini entirely accounts for object and subject case marking, concluding that Beddini does not demonstrate DOM and DSM.

Georgian stem formants and nominalization

The Georgian verb system is complex, and in many cases the function and meaning of certain morphemes is not entirely clear. One such morpheme, the stem formant, appears in both non-perfect verbs and nominal structures. Although they are usually associated with aspect in the verb, I propose that there are several advantages to treating stem formants as nominal heads bearing the feature [+collective]. If stem formants are nominalizers, then several facts about their distribution can be explained, including their historical origin, their presence in abstract and verbal nouns, and their absence from verbs which assign ergative case to their subjects. Doing so also makes it possible to bring Georgian split ergativity closer in line with other analyses of ergative splits in Basque (Laka, 2006) and Chol (Coon, 2013)

Nominalizations and the structure of progressives in Chuj Mayan

This paper investigates the structure of progressives and nominalizations in Chuj, an understudied Mayan language of Guatemala. Like many other Mayan languages, Chuj shows aspect-based split ergativity: the otherwise ergative head-marking pattern in the language disappears in the progressive aspect. In other Mayan languages—for example Ch’ol (Coon 2010; 2013) and Yucatec (Bricker 1981)—the appearance of a non-ergative pattern in the progressive has been attributed to nominalization. In Chuj, however, there is no clear morphological reflex of nominalization, as is found in other languages in the family. Using data from negation, particle placement, and agreement, we argue that Chuj progressives nonetheless involve an aspectual matrix predicate and a nominalized embedded verb. This provides a clear structural explanation for the split pattern. Finally, we distinguish different types of nominalizations in Chuj: those which are nominalized directly from a root, and those which are nominalized above verbal projections.

Review of Coon (2013): Aspects of Split Ergativity

Review of Coon (2013): Aspects of Split Ergativity

Indo-Aryan ergativity and its analogues in languages of Central and Western Eurasia

Abstract Boris Zakharyin. Indo-Aryan ergativity and its analogues in languages of Central and Western Eurasia. The Poznań Society for the Advancement of Arts and Sciences, PL ISSN 0079-4740, pp. 63-75 Ergativity, being a typologically significant feature, serves as basis for a bunch of genetically and structurally different languages of Eurasia. The paper suggests the bird’s eye view of its manifestation in the selected samples of Indo-Iranian, Tibeto-Burman, Caucasian and Euskara (the Basque language of Spain). The provided analysis allows to assume that split ergativity displayed by certain Indo-Iranian languages is of the same (participial) origin and partially may have also been influenced by contact-factors. Consistent ergativity characterizing the majority of the Caucasian languages and Euskara is a phenomenon of semo-syntactic nature realizing itself on all the grammatical levels.

Evolution of ergativity in the Western Hindi

Abstract Alexander A. Sigorskiy. Evolution of ergativity in the Western Hindi. The Poznań Society for the Advancement of Arts and Sciences, PL ISSN 0079-4740, pp. 41-58 The early stage of the Western Hindi vernaculars demonstrates two types of typology competing with each other - Nominative typology and Split Ergative typology. Ergative typology includes a number of ergative strategies existing in different vernaculars and in the one and the same vernacular as well. In the course of standardization of Modern Standard Hindi (MSH) Split Ergative Typology wins. The main features of Old Hindi case system are: 1) Old Hindi demonstrates the same, dative case marking both for Subject (Agent) and Object (Patient), whereas MSH has differentiated these case markers, 2) Old Hindi has two types of agreement - (a) only with unmarked S/O and (b) both with unmarked and marked S/O, while MSH allows only the first one.