Syntactic Head Research Articles

The Algonquian person prefix is an agreement affix, not a pronominal clitic

Halle & Marantz (1993) propose that the person prefix that appears on Independent Order verbs in Potawatomi is a pronominal clitic and not an agreement affix, and this analysis has been followed for a variety of Algonquian languages by a large number of researchers. With data primarily from Passamaquoddy-Maliseet (Eastern Algonquian), I show that the prefix is not a pronominal clitic, it is an agreement affix, according to all diagnostics for distinguishing them. This conclusion is problematic because the prefix can be separated from the verb stem and the rest of the inflection, which is suffixal. I propose an analysis according to which all the inflectional suffixes are heads low in the clause, through which the main verb moves. The prefix, in contrast, is an Agr(eement) head adjoined to a head higher in the clause. This head attracts the highest verbal element, which will be the highest preverb if there is one, or the main verb if not. Preverbs are syntactic heads above the main verb which never form a complex head with it. This is amply justified by their separability, their prosody (they are often separate prosodic words), and coordination facts. Word order facts also indicate that the verb does not move very high in Algonquian languages, contrary to many analyses since Halle & Marantz (1993).

Verb‐echo answers in Japanese do not call for syntactic head movement: Arguments for a pragmatic account*

AbstractThis paper tackles the issue of whether syntactic head movement exists in Japanese. Sato & Hayashi (2018) and Sato & Maeda (2021) propose that Verb‐Echo Answers (VEAs), an instance of fragment answers, in Japanese are derived via the so‐called Verb‐stranding TP‐Ellipsis (VTPE; i.e., TP‐ellipsis accompanied by verb‐raising to C), thereby claiming that head movement exists in Japanese as a syntactic operation. In response, this paper argues that pro and Argument Ellipsis (AE) in Japanese sufficiently account for the key observations presented in their works. Specifically, a careful examination of the discourse in each question‐answer pair reveals that the seemingly problematic scope patterns in VEAs do not call for the VTPE analysis. We also show that the unacceptability of voice mismatches in VEAs can be explained by a discourse‐based analysis within the Question Under Discussion framework. Further, we provide an extensive discussion on the alleged evidence against the pro/AE analysis concerning adjunct‐inclusive readings. We show that negative scope reversal effects, which Sato & Maeda (2021) argue occur in VTPE, do not occur between adjuncts and negation in the novel data. Given this, we discuss possible ways to account for the availability of adjunct‐inclusive readings in VEAs with no recourse to VTPE, and suggest avenues for future research. The proposed analyses of VEAs shed new light on intriguing aspects of ellipsis phenomena, which involve complex interactions between syntax, semantics, and pragmatics.

A Split Analysis of the Templatic Diminutive in Standard Arabic: Diminutivization and Paucal Quantification

This paper investigates the functions of the diminutive template in Standard Arabic (SA) and offers a morphosyntactic account of these functions within Borer's (2005) Exo-Skeletal model. It argues that it resides in two positions within DP. It merges in Size0 over a singular nP. In this unmarked position, it is productively a diminutivizer that reduces the size of a referent. On the other hand, it merges in Q0, acts as a paucal quantifier and yields paucity in number; however, it is marked in this position as it is not productively generated. It resides in Q0 only if it operates over plural nominals, i.e., it selects a Number Phrase as its complement to reduce the number of entities. In so doing, this split analysis adds credence to the proposal that the diminutive category, like plural, is morphosyntactically distributed (see Wiltschko 2006; De Belder, Faust, and Lampitelli 2014). Furthermore, the finding that the diminutive in SA is invariably a syntactic head emphasizes the cross-linguistic implication that languages may vary in terms of the syntactic realization and distribution of the diminutive and classifies SA with languages like Hebrew and Italian (De Belder, Faust, and Lampitelli 2014) where the diminutive is a syntactic head.

Quantifying Syntactic Complexity in Czech Texts: An Analysis of Mean Dependency Distance and Average Sentence Length Across Genres

ABSTRACT This study investigates the syntactic complexity of various text-types in the Czech language by analysing the mean dependency distance (MDD), a measure that quantifies the average distance between syntactic heads and their dependents within a sentence, and average sentence length (ASL). Using data from the SYN2020 corpus, a large and balanced collection of contemporary written Czech, we calculate the MDD and ASL for different text-types. Our findings reveal distinct patterns in the MDD and ASL values across genres, suggesting that syntactic complexity varies among different types of texts. We observe a clear distinction between fiction and non-fiction genres, with fiction exhibiting lower MDD and ASL values, indicating a more compact syntactic structure. Non-fiction genres, particularly scientific literature, display higher MDD and ASL values, reflecting more complex syntactic constructions. Journalistic texts, such as newspapers and magazines, fall between fiction and non-fiction in terms of MDD and ASL values. These results demonstrate the potential of MDD and ASL as quantitative measures for characterizing and differentiating text-types based on their syntactic complexity. Furthermore, our analysis contributes to a deeper understanding of the syntactic variations across diverse genres in the Czech language.

The -eci Syncretism in Korean: Implications for the Theory of v and Voice

Abstract This paper investigates the syncretism exhibited by the Korean verbal suffix -eci. In addition to its widely known appearance in the passive construction, -eci can also be used to derive verbs expressing potentiality. In this paper, I show that two independently motivated theoretical tools — (i) the articulated verbal structure with root, verbalizer, and Voice; and (ii) the assumption that morphological identity signifies the morpheme's realization of an identical syntactic head — accurately explain the passive-potential syncretism in Korean. Specifically, I argue that -eci realizes a syntactic head that the passive and potential structures have in common: vGO, the verbalizer marking the eventuality of ‘change’. I attribute the systematic morpho-syntactic and semantic contrasts between passives and potentials to the (non)existence of VoicePASS, the projection introducing an implicit external argument. The analysis successfully captures the properties of the other constructions formed upon -eci — namely, derived change-of-state and lexical inchoative predicates.

Arguments against head‐stranding ellipsis in Japanese: A reply to Funakoshi (2016)

AbstractWhether syntactic head movement exists in Japanese has been hotly debated because of the strictly head‐final character of the language. This paper addresses this issue, focusing on data regarding null adjuncts. We demonstrate that the head‐stranding ellipsis (HSE) analysis of null adjuncts is not conclusive. To achieve this, we show that null adjuncts are more widely observed than the HSE analysis predicts. Specifically, we provide a new set of data that challenges Funakoshi's (2016) generalization regarding null adjuncts, which he claims his verb‐stranding VP‐ellipsis analysis explains. We also present a novel observation that some null adjuncts take scope over negation, contrary to what the HSE analysis predicts. Furthermore, we show that null adjuncts are derived even if the verb does not raise. Given these findings, we explore alternative analyses of null adjuncts that do not assume head movement. In particular, we discuss the pragmatic enrichment analysis as well as the adjunct ellipsis analysis, and suggest that the distribution of null adjuncts is better analyzed by a pragmatic account in line with Landau (2023). This paper concludes that any arguments for head movement based on the HSE analysis of null adjuncts are inconclusive at best.

The particle s uo in Mandarin Chinese: a case of long X0-dependency and a reexamination of the Principle of Minimal Compliance

Abstract X0-dependencies are known to be highly local. It has been argued that syntactic head movement can affect locality constraints. While some recent studies have revealed that verbal heads can undergo long-distance movement similar to phrasal movement, nominal categories still appear to adhere to strict locality constraints on head movement. In this context, we examine an exception, the particle suo in Mandarin Chinese, and explore its theoretical implications. We begin by showing that the X0-element suo exhibits a long dependency across every type of clausal boundary in Chinese, including finite ones. By placing suo in a typology that accommodates resumptive pronouns and Romance-type clitics, we highlight the significance of suo’s long dependency. Next, we argue that suo forms a big-DP with the relative operator; since movement of the relative operator has satisfied the locality constraint, according to Richards’ (1998. The Principle of Minimal Compliance. Linguistic Inquiry 29. 599–629) Principle of Minimal Compliance, suo can have a long dependency on its underlying position. This discussion leads us to conclude that the original formulation of the Principle of Minimal Compliance needs reexamination regarding the true meaning of exemption. Once exemption from a locality condition is separated from movement itself, both the initial data for the PMC and the behaviors of suo are accounted for.

The Syntax of Prominence

The standard view on discourse pronoun resolution is that determining the antecedents of discourse pronouns is typically a function of extralinguistic reasoning. In contrast, Stojnić (2021) argues that pronoun resolution is a function of linguistic facts. In this article we offer what we take to be a friendly amendment to the technical aspects of Stojnić’s proposal. Our point of departure will be with our idea that prominence is not determined by the position of the candidate antecedent within a stack, but rather by its position within standard syntactic tree structures, extended to include discourse-level trees. Our proposal leans on the notion of p-scope, a proof-theoretic accessibility relation among tree nodes which we develop in Ludlow and Živanović (2022), and the notion of closeness built on standard accounts of syntactic locality. The key idea is that a pronoun’s antecedent resolves to its closest p-scoper; specifically, p-scope determines the potential antecedents, and the closeness relation orders these by prominence. Coherence relations, which we provisionally represent as syntactic heads, can be then seen as affecting accessibility and prominence indirectly, in virtue of their position in traditional LF tree structures.

Above and below verbal roots: A case study of English adverbs of results

This study investigates English resultative adverbs focusing on their syntactic peculiarities. Based on the observation that resultative adverbs can appear in certain activity verb phrases, we argue for an elaborate verbal structure. In particular, we propose that two distinct syntactic heads need to be postulated for resultative adverbial modification (Res(ult)) and for encoding the aspectual information of the verb (v). The proposal correctly predicts the distributional contrasts between resultative and manner adverbs, the patterns of adverbs ambivalent in denoting manner and result meanings, and the possibilities of modification of verb and adjective derivatives. The analysis of resultative adverbs advanced in this study is shown to newly account for measure adverbs. In doing so, we demonstrate that certain roots can head-adjoin either to Res or v with the corollary that the resulting verb can either denote a result or manner. Finally, an implication of this study is discussed regarding the relationship between result roots and the Res head.

Rescaffolding the bundle in Afroasiatic inflection

Abstract Person, number and gender features in the Afroasiatic verbal system are sometimes prefixes, sometimes suffixes and sometimes both. This paper attempts to derive the Tamazight and Hebrew systems using syntactic tools and eschewing postsyntactic or morphological linearization rules. My point of departure is that syntactic heads contain a single feature and that features can be assembled into bundles and placed to the left or to the right of a stem by syntactic movement alone. In the simplest case, a feature is prefixal when it is merged above the verbal stem and the verbal stem remains below it and is c-commanded by it and it is a suffix when the verbal stem moves above it. The often-complex combination of prefixes and suffixes in the languages studied arises from the combination of multiple steps of movement which can target the stem alone or a category it pied pipes or is pied piped by. Allomorphy is expressed in terms of selectional restrictions and an alternative to impoverishment is proposed to handle neutralization.

Building and Interpreting Clausal Possession in Isbukun Bunun

This paper shows that clausal possession in Isbukun Bunun, a Formosan language, involves two distinct structures with one single thematic interpretation. Although thematically identical, the two distinct structures are not derived via agreement/movement from a single underlying structure. To best capture the (morpho)syntactic patterns within and beyond the phenomenon, the too-many-structures problem is best analyzed as involving distinct underlying structures with syntactic heads that are semantically null, and delayed saturation of thematic relations at the (morpho)syntax-semantics interface.

The head or the verb: Is the lexical boost restricted to the head verb?

Four structural priming experiments investigated whether the lexical boost is due to the repeated head verb of the primed structure or due to the repetition of any verb, testing structural priming of ditransitive structures (The hotel owner decided to loan the tourist a tent/a tent to the tourist). In Experiments 1–3, we manipulated the repetition of the matrix verb (decided) that is not the syntactic head in the primed structure. The results showed abstract structural priming of the embedded ditransitive structure but the repetition of the matrix verb did not boost the priming. In addition to manipulating the repetition of the matrix verb, we also manipulated the head verb of the primed structure (loan) in Experiment 4. It showed a lexical boost with the repetition of the head verb but no boost with the repetition of the matrix verb. These results are consistent with the residual activation model, which only predicts a boost from the verb that is the head of the primed structure. They do not support models which predict that the repetition of any lexical material in a sentence boosts priming.

Feature Geometry and Head Splitting in the Wolof Clausal Periphery

This article is a study of the morphosyntax of the clausal periphery in Wolof, specifically the two layers commonly labeled CP and IP. It has long been noted that (a) C and I share a number of properties, and (b) languages differ in the amount of structure over which functional features are distributed. I propose a structure-building mechanism that can both explain the C-I relationship and derive the variation in the distribution of features over syntactic heads. I argue that features of C and I are bundled together and that this feature bundle can be divided into multiple heads via Head Splitting, which allows parts of feature bundles to reproject. The proposal is illustrated through a detailed exploration of the C-I domain in Wolof, which bundles C and I into one head in some structures and splits them in others.

What 1sg forms tell us about Spanish theme vowels

This article argues in favour of a view of the Spanish Theme Vowel (ThV) as the direct spell out of an identifiable syntactic head, specifically Ramchand's (2018) Event head, responsible for tagging lexical verbs with world and time parameters. I will argue that several apparent cases of verbal irregularity related to the conjugation of 1sg forms can be related to each other, and can receive a principled explanation once one adopts this view of Spanish ThVs. An approach where ThVs are post-syntactic morphemes that idiosyncratically tag the functional structure of verbs, or where they are syntactically inert morphemes, can only treat these facts as accidental and cannot provide an account of their mutual interconnection.

A Reappraisal of Dependency Length Minimization as a Linguistic Universal.

Dependency length minimization is widely regarded as a cross-linguistic universal reflecting syntactic complexity in natural languages. A typical way to operationalize dependency length in corpus-based studies has been to count the number of words between syntactically related words. However, such a formulation ignores the syntactic nature of the linguistic material that intervenes a dependency. In this work, we investigate if the number of syntactic heads (rather than the number of words) that intervene a dependency better captures the syntactic complexity across languages. We demonstrate that the dependency length minimization constraint in terms of the number of words could arise as a consequence of constraints on the intervening heads and the tree properties such as node arity. The current study highlights the importance of syntactic heads as central regions of structure building during processing. The results show that when syntactically related words are nonadjacent, increased structure building in the intervening region is avoided.

Looking at the periphery from the suburbs: An information-structurally based taxonomy of Hanging Topics in German

In this paper, it is proposed on the basis of data from German that some of the information-structural features encoded by the projections located in the clause-internal Split-CP domain in the Rizzian (1997) model are replicated in the so-called “outer left periphery”, i. e. in the area situated above ForceP. In doing this, I pursue a cartographic approach in which information structure is directly represented in the syntax by means of syntactic heads that project within the clausal left periphery. The main claim of the paper is that the outer left periphery (of German) includes dedicated projections for four classes of topics, namely so-called “Contrastive Hanging Topics”, “Aboutness Contrastive Topics”, “Familiar Hanging Topics” and “Frame-setting Hanging Topics”. The observations made in this paper pave the way for a comparison with other languages, as well as for the question of the universality of this clause-peripheral makeup.

The syntactization of kinship in vocative phrases

Current studies point out that vocative phrases encode the social relation between speaker and addressee by the interaction of various means, i.e., prosody, lexical options, morpho-syntactic operations. As a contribution to this body of research, this paper focuses on reversed vocatives, and develops two main arguments: (i) vocative phrases provide the default domain for the morpho-syntactic encoding of speaker’s social superiority; and (ii) reversed vocatives are a case in order, where the syntactization of the kinship rank ensures the speaker’s upper-hand in the social relation. Formally, the mapping of the kinship feature entails syntactic head splitting, so the analysis confirms that the derivations concerning the conversational field conform to the general split-and-remerge options available to functional heads (on a par with D, C, T fields).

The emergence of conjunctions and phrasal coordination in Khanty

Abstract Prior to widespread contact with Russian, Khanty (Uralic; Finno-Ugric) did not have overt conjunctions or phrasal coordination. Instead, Khanty texts from the late 19th–early 20th centuries only include examples of conjunction-less clausal juxtaposition, which was used for both clausal and phrasal coordination. By comparing Khanty texts over the 20th century, we trace the emergence of overt conjunctions and coordination of phrasal constituents. We show that overt conjunctions first appeared in the context of clausal coordination, followed by coordination of smaller phrases. Based on novel elicitation data, we demonstrate that, in contemporary Khanty, (i) overt conjunctions are commonplace, (ii) coordinated clausal constituents may be derived via phrasal coordination or clausal coordination with conjunction reduction/ellipsis, but (iii) ellipsis of syntactic heads is banned (nouns & postpositions) or dispreferred (verbs). Based on this diachronic picture, we conclude that the coordination of phrasal constituents only emerged in Khanty once overt conjunctions became available. We derive this correlation from the Maximize On-line Processing principle (Hawkins 2004), and show that this maxim, usually invoked in the context of speech planning and production, can be successfully applied to modelling language change.

Morphosemantic features in Universal Grammar: What we can learn from Marshallese pronouns and demonstratives

AbstractThis article analyzes Marshallese pronouns and demonstratives, arguing that both privative and binary morphosemantic features are necessary, and that the two types coexist in a single domain. Marshallese encodes number with atomic, and person with [$\pm$author] and [$\pm$participant]. In the complex system of Marshallese demonstratives, atomic and [$\pm$human] map to the same head, subject to a constraint that only one feature appears at a time. The element $\chi$, which derives person orientation in demonstratives and pronouns, does not universally map to the same syntactic position. While in Heiltsuk $\chi$ is a dependent of the person head, in Marshallese it heads a projection above the person head. And while in Heiltsuk the person features occupy the same position in both pronouns and demonstratives, Marshallese pronouns have a different structure, with person and number features mapping to a single syntactic head. The contribution of UG is thus not a set of specific features or specific structures, but a set of more abstract principles.

From Latin to Modern Italian: Some Notes on Negation

This article aims at investigating some diachronic aspects of the Italian negative system, considering a time span ranging from Old Latin to Modern Italian. Most of the negative polarity phenomena populating the Modern Italian system are consequences of a crucial change that occurred in Old Latin: The Latin negative morpheme nōn (“not”), which initially displayed a maximal projection status, and became a syntactic (negative) head. This change caused the shift from a double negation system to a negative concord one, which affects many Romance languages (and their dialects). It also determines the availability of the expletive reading of negation in Italian, as well as in other Romance languages (ex. French), calling for a new generalization: only languages (and structures) displaying a negative head allow the expletive interpretation of negation, languages displaying a maximal projection status do not.