Semi-lexical Categories

Semi-lexical Categories PDF Author: Norbert Corver
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110874008
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 564

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Book Description
The distinction between functional categories and lexical categories is at the heart of present-day grammatical theory, in theories on language acquisition, code-switching and aphasia. At the same time, it has become clear, however, that there are many lexical items for which it is less easy to decide whether they side with the lexical categories or the functional ones. This book deals with the grammatical behavior of such in- between-categories, which are referred to here as "semi-lexical categories".

Semi-lexical Categories

Semi-lexical Categories PDF Author: Norbert Corver
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110874008
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 564

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Book Description
The distinction between functional categories and lexical categories is at the heart of present-day grammatical theory, in theories on language acquisition, code-switching and aphasia. At the same time, it has become clear, however, that there are many lexical items for which it is less easy to decide whether they side with the lexical categories or the functional ones. This book deals with the grammatical behavior of such in- between-categories, which are referred to here as "semi-lexical categories".

A0 – The Lexical Status of Adjectives

A0 – The Lexical Status of Adjectives PDF Author: Moreno Mitrović
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
ISBN: 902725754X
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 303

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Book Description
This volume brings together seven eminently original attempts to answer a sorely neglected question: What are adjectives? Although the positioning of adjectives as well as aspects of their semantics have been investigated in depth, their actual status as a lexical category has generally been treated superficially in the linguistic literature. In this volume, the different approaches to the categorial identity of adjectives put forward include their position in the inventory of lexical categories, the elusive noun-adjective link, the functional entourage of adjectives and their relational character, the role of concord and possession – and so on. The contributors bring different viewpoints as well as a variety of language data into the discussion, from Chinese to Indo-European, and on to Niger-Congo languages.

Organizing Grammar

Organizing Grammar PDF Author: Hans Broekhuis
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110892995
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 741

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Book Description
Henk van Riemsdijk has long been known as one of Europe’s most important linguists. His seminal ideas have been influential in developing generative grammar in Europe and beyond. As the initiator, co-founder, and chair of the GLOW society, he made the society the leading platform of European generative linguistics. He has also been editor of the series Studies in Generative Grammar since its foundation. As a teacher and supervisor, he has inspired generations of students. On the occasion of his relocation from the Netherlands to Italy, his friends, students and colleagues celebrate his work with this collection of essays on numerous topics of current theoretical interest.

Ditransitive structures : the English preposition TO and the Romanian preposition LA

Ditransitive structures : the English preposition TO and the Romanian preposition LA PDF Author: Tania MORARU-ZAMFIR
Publisher: Editura Universității din București - Bucharest University Press
ISBN: 6061613865
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 270

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Book Description
This book examines the syntactic properties of the English preposition to and the Romanian preposition la ”at/to” within ditransitive structures. Being a study of comparative syntax from a generative perspective, it aims at bringing into discussion the properties of these two functional prepositions, in both English and Romanian. The comparative approach shows that the English to is a functional preposition, fully predictable from the structure of the verb which can be deleted. To is a case marker and the dative arguments introduced by this preposition are DPs. By way of contrast, Romanian la has shifted from a case marker to a [Person] marker. La has a double status, as follows: it has a functional status only when the Dat argument, analysed as DP can be doubled by the clitic, where la is a [Person] marker. In the absence of the clitic, la-phrases are interpreted as PPs and la will be attributed a lexical status. Thus, unlike the functional to, la is both (a) a functional dative marker and (b) a core lexical preposition of the location and movement frames where la assigns accusative case to its object.

Functional Categories in Language Acquisition

Functional Categories in Language Acquisition PDF Author: Annette Hohenberger
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110923521
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 329

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Book Description
This study investigates the acquisition of Functional Categories (e.g., INFL (AGR, TNS), DET, COMP) from the perspective of self-organization in generative grammar. Language is conceived of as a dynamical system which evolves in time and bifurcates when critical thresholds are reached. The emergence of syntax as evidenced by the acquisition of Functional Categories is the major bifurcation in child language acquisition. Target values of syntactic parameters are attractors which children approach on individual trajectories. A proposed tripartite scenario of change - from a simple stable state A, via symmetry-breaking in a liminal phase B characterized by variation, to a new complex stable state C - accounts for the dynamics in early grammatical development. Traditional generative issues, such as the acquisition of case-marking, finiteness, V2, and wh-questions, are discussed as well as new issues, such as functional neologisms, and sentential blends. Dynamical notions like precursor, oscillation, symmetry-breaking, and trigger are important explanatory tools. The growing child phrase marker is a fractal mental object which represents syntactic information by way of self-similar extended projections. The book addresses researchers in language acquisition from various theoretical camps: generative, functional, connectionist, by giving new answers to old questions in the light of a novel challenging theory: self-organization.

Formal Approaches to Languages of South America

Formal Approaches to Languages of South America PDF Author: Cilene Rodrigues
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3031223446
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 377

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Book Description
This book analyzes the linguistic diversity of South America based on approaches deeply rooted in the tradition of formal grammar. The chapters brought together in this contributed volume consider native languages all kinds of languages used in the region, including sign languages, indigenous languages and the romance languages (Portuguese and Spanish) originally introduced by European colonizers which underwent processes of transformation giving rise to new, local grammars. One fourth of the language families of the world are located in South America, but the majority of languages in the region are still understudied and out of the radar of theoretical linguistics mostly because their grammars are not well-known by international researchers. This book aims to fill this gap by bringing together studies rooted in the formal grammar approach first developed by Noam Chomsky, which sees language not only as mere corpora attested in oral and written production, but also as expressions of systems of thought and language production which are essential parts of human cognition. The book is divided in three parts – sign languages, romance languages and indigenous languages –, and brings together studies of the following South American languages: Brazilian Sign Language (Libras - Língua Brasileira de Sinais) Argentinian Sign Language (LSA - Lengua de Señas Argentina) Peruvian Sign Language (LSP- Lengua de Señas Peruana) Brazilian Portuguese Chilean and Argentinian Spanish Quechua Paraguayan Guarani A’ingae Macro-Jê languages Formal Approaches to the Languages of South America will be an invaluable resource both for theoretical linguists and cognitive scientists by providing access to top quality research on understudied languages and enabling these languages to be incorporated into comparative studies that can contribute to advance the knowledge of general principles governing all human languages.

Categorial Features

Categorial Features PDF Author: Phoevos Panagiotidis
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107038111
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 225

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Book Description
Proposes a novel theory of parts of speech, bringing together the latest research and discoveries.

Noun Phrase in the Generative Perspective

Noun Phrase in the Generative Perspective PDF Author: Artemis Alexiadou
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110207494
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 688

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Book Description
The goal of this book is twofold. On the one hand we want to offer a discussion of some of the more important properties of the nominal projection, on the other hand we want to provide the reader with tools for syntactic analysis which apply to the structure of DP but which are also relevant for other domains of syntax. In order to achieve this dual goal we will discuss phenomena which are related to the nominal projection in relation to other syntactic phenomena (e.g. pro drop will be related to N-ellipsis, the classification of pronouns will be applied to the syntax of possessive pronouns, N-movement will be compared to V-movement, the syntax of the genitive construction will be related to that of predicate inversion etc.). In the various chapters we will show how recent theoretical proposals (distributed morphology, anti-symmetry, checking theory) can cast light on aspects of the syntax of the NP. When necessary, we will provide a brief introduction of these theoretical proposals. We will also indicate problems with these analyses, whether they be inherent to the theories as such (e.g. what is the trigger for movement in antisymmetric approaches) or to the particular instantiations. The book cannot and will not provide the definitive analysis of the syntax of noun phrases. We consider that this would not be possible, given the current flux in generative syntax, with many new theoretical proposals being developed and explored, but the book aims at giving the reader the tools with which to conduct research and to evaluate proposals in the literature. In the discussion of various issues, we will apply the framework that is most adequate to deal with problems at hand. We will therefore not necessarily use the same approach throughout the discussion. Though proposals in the literature will be referred to when relevant, we cannot attempt to provide a critical survey of the literature. We feel that such a survey would be guided too strongly by theoretical choices, which would not be compatible with the pedagogical purposes this book has. The book is comparative in its approach, and data from different languages will be examined, including English, German, Dutch (West-Flemish), Greek, Romance, Semitic, Slavic, Albanian, Hungarian, Gungbe.

Syntactic Categories

Syntactic Categories PDF Author: Gisa Rauh
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199281424
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 455

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Book Description
This book offers a systematic account of syntactic categories - the building blocks of sentences and the units of grammatical analysis, and explains their description in different formal as well as functional theories of language, including language typology. Its clear and balanced exposition will be widely welcomed by students.

How Categorical are Categories?

How Categorical are Categories? PDF Author: Joanna Blaszczak
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 1614514518
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 323

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Book Description
This book addresses the foundational question of category distinctions and challenges the traditional views from the modern theoretical and experimental perspective. Its focus is on the noun-verb, noun-adjective distinctions and categories occupying the "grey zone" between standard categories (e.g., nominalizations). This book will be of interest for researchers and students of linguistics and cognitive sciences.