bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
‘Damn mad’
Authors: Ljungberg Christina
Published: March 2014

Palindromes are chiastic figurations that arrest the habitual tempo-linear sequence of language and, in so doing, focus attention on the very act of signification. In narrative, they often prove pivotal for the overall structure of the text, going far beyond mere wordplay or verbal virtuosity. Because they can be read both backwards and forwards, palindromes emerge as multilayered, multidirectional, and polytemporal mappings reflecting the notorious instability of human lives, where the ever shifting present oscillates between the past and the future. In contemporary fiction, such palindromic vacillation becomes an iconic representation of temporal shifting, allowing us to discern the texture of temporality, not as abstractly conceived but as concretely lived and hence as innovatively performing an unstable present.
Prolegomena to a general theory of iconicity considerations on language, gesture, and pictures
Authors: Sonesson Göran
Published: March 2014

Too often the word “iconicity” is used simply as a scientifically sounding term for similarity. In order to develop a real theory of iconicity, it is not enough, but perhaps a good start, to return to Peirce. In this paper, I use the reconstruction of the notion of iconicity inspired by my work in pictorial semiotics to throw some light on iconicity in language and in gesture. I suggest that there are several possible iconic relationships within the sign, and that these relations may involve properties, proper parts, or perspectives. In particular, I criticize the idea of iconicity being a question of degrees. The article looks at parallels between Lessing’s classic distinction between the resources of language and pictures and contemporary studies of “dual coding” in thinking. It also considers the segmentation of movement in different languages and gesture systems, in particular in relation to Satellite-framed and Verb-framed languages.
Greek. Women, gender and Modern Greek
Authors: Pavlidou Theodossia-Soula
Published: March 2014

1.Introduction

2.Grammatical gender

2.1Grammatical gender and inflection

2.2Personal nouns: Gender assignment

2.3Agreement and coordination

2.4Proper names

3.Gender asymmetries

3.1Generic use of the masculine gender

3.2Lexical and pragmatic asymmetries

4.Feminine occupational terms

4.1The problem

4.2The current situation

4.3Two exploratory studies

5.Language and gender in Greece: The public debate and tendencies of change

5.1Language critique

5.2Tendencies of language change

5.3The contribution of linguistics

6.Conclusion

Notes

References
Polish. Language and gender in Polish
Authors: Koniuszaniec Gabriela , Blaszkowska Hanka
Published: March 2014

1.Introduction

2.Categories of gender in Polish

2.1Grammatical gender

2.2Agreement

2.3Lexical and referential gender

3.Word-formation

4.Male as norm in Polish

4.1Word order

4.2Proper names

4.3Generic masculines

5.The linguistic representation of women in Polish newspapers

6.Feminism as a social movement and feminist linguistics in Poland

7.Strategies for the avoidance of sexist language

8.Conclusion

Notes

References
Swahili. Perceptions of gender in Swahili language and society
Authors: Beck Rose Marie
Published: March 2014

1.Introduction

2.Noun classes in Swahili

2.1Swahili noun classification and agreement

2.2Animate nouns

2.3Coordination

2.4Personal nouns

3.Referring to women and men

3.1Lexical and covert gender

3.2Kinship terms and terms of address

3.3Overt gender marking: Attributing ‘female/male’

3.4Obscene language

4.Gendered speech

4.1Upole ‘gentleness’: Restrained speech as a cultural ideal on the Swahili coast

4.2Texts on textiles: Equivocal messages

5.Conclusion

Notes

References
English. A corpus-based view of gender in New Zealand
Authors: Holmes Janet
Published: March 2014

1.Introduction

2. Sexist language research in New Zealand

2.1 Ms-usage

2.2 Generic man

2.3 Chairpersons and spokespersons

2.4 Morphological marking

2.5 Metaphorical terms of reference

3. Conclusion

Notes

References
Syntactic labels and their derivations
Authors: Hendrick Randall
Published: March 2014

There has been some interest in minimalist theories in deriving category label from a head of phrase without having to stipulate them directly. This paper investigates syntactic labels and their derivation, and considers whether the head of a phrase and the label it supplies are fixed and unique throughout a derivation or whether they can change from one step of a derivation to the next. The response is that a minimalist version of the familiar Projection Principle is required to answer this question negatively, and produces some evidence from selection in English and in Tongan light verb constructions to support this view.
‘Adjunct theta-roles’ and the configurational determination of roles
Authors: Zagona Karen
Published: March 2014

In this paper, I discuss “quasi-argument” thematic roles (Instrument, Benefactive and certain Locations), and argue on the basis of their reconstruction properties and their dependence on event-related features that we should analyze them as generated in the event-related functional projections for VP, rather than in VP itself. This supports an approach to thematic roles as defined relative to syntactic relations, since I argue that the roles in question are not definable in relation to lexically specified verbal predicates.
Do verbs have argument structure?
Authors: Åfarli Tor A.
Published: March 2014

I argue that the mainstream view of the lexicon-syntax interface whereby a verb’s lexically specifi ed argument structure is projected as syntactic structure is wrong. Instead, I argue for the neo-constructionist view that what we perceive as the argument structure of the verb is really determined by the syntax, namely by syntactico-semantic frames that are generated independently of verbs and other lexical items. That is, argument structure is not projected from the verb and the verb’s semantic-conceptual properties, but it is rather something that the verb getsby being inserted in a particular syntactico-semantic frame.
Argument prominence and the nature of superiority violations
Authors: Bhattacharya Tanmoy , Simpson Andrew
Published: March 2014

This paper studies the mapping of argument structure into higher parts of the clause and examines the relation of argument structure to multiple wh-structuresand Superiority phenomena. Superiority effects are commonly assumed to arise when wh -movement triggered by the feature-checking requirements of a [+Q] C 0 violates economy restrictions on movement (Shortest Move). The paper, however, points out certain serious diffi culties for a purely structural approach to Superiority patterns, and suggests an alternative analysis of the data. First, it is shown that the non-occurrence of Superiority effects in cases of multiple whfronting in Bangla seems to contradict the fact that pair-list answers to multiplewh -questions are expected/required to the same degree as they are in languages with clear wh -movement such as English. The obvious question that is raised is how one should reconcile the lack of Superiority effects in a language with the assumption that genuine wh -movement nevertheless occurs in the language? The paper shows, re-examining the generalizations about English, that Superiority effects are not the result of a purely structural fi lter such as Shortest Move but are rather controlled by a variety of factors: animacy distinctions among wh -phrases, thematic relations of the wh -phrases, stressing and prosodic weight of the wh -phrases and referential familiarity of the expected answer to a wh -question. Finally, the “Superiority” effects observable in multiple wh -sluices in Bangla are attributed to the tendency to copy the argument prominence relation in the non-sluiced clause.
3. The genesis of clitic doubling from Ancient to Medieval Greek
Authors: de Boel Gunnar
Published: March 2014

The study of the development of clitic doubling in Greek and its possible connection with the other Balkan languages amounts to ascertain when it came into being, and why and under which conditions it occurred. Greek has no subject clitics. As for object clitic doubling, the oldest – isolated – examples can be found in the (private) papyri of the Hellenistic Age, but they hardly appear in literary texts. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that object clitic doubling existed in its modern form in the oldest texts that use the demotic language (from the twelfth century onwards), but that it was avoided by scribes who wanted to maintain strict standards. This popular, or even vulgar, character seems to be due to the essentially redundant nature of clitic doubling in Greek: it concerns only topics, i.e., given information, already marked for its “givenness” by specific devices, such as the anteposed definite article. It does not depend on object agreement marking through clitic doubling. In the period under study (up to ca 1600), clitic doubling is facultative, and even if the clitics cannot be separated from their verb, their position with respect to the verb (pre- or postverbal) is determined by a combination of syntactic and pragmatic factors. They are certainly not yet to be considered as verbal morphemes.
4. Clitic doubling and Old Bulgarian
Authors: Dimitrova-Vulchanova Mila , Vulchanov Valentin
Published: March 2014

In this paper we address the origin of the phenomenon of clitic doubling in the Balkan linguistic continuum based in data from the earliest Old Bulgarian manuscripts. We argue that our data witness instances of what we consider clitic doubling proper, similar to the Modern Bulgarian phenomenon of the same type. Our analysis is substantiated by general considerations related to the overall OV structure of Old Bulgarian (cf. Dimitrova-Vulchanova & Vulchanov, in press; Pancheva 2005) and a distinction between clitic doubling and other related constructions, such as e.g., clitic left dislocation, the hanging topic construction and clitic right dislocation. We consider clitic doubling in Old Bulgarian and its Modern parallel as exclusively sanctioned by a specific Information structure value we currently define as [+contrastive topic], which is a sufficient trigger for the surfacing of doubling clitics. Our analysis is justified on the basis of the discourse properties of the earliest instances of the phenomenon and the clear parallel with Modern Bulgarian on the one hand, the parallel with other modern Balkan languages, such as Albanian (cf. Kallulli, this volume) and Macedonian (Tomić, this volume) on the other.
8. Clitic doubling, agreement and information structure: The case of Albanian
Authors: Kallulli Dalina
Published: March 2014

Starting from the basic facts presented in Kallulli (2000) on clitic doubling in Albanian, the goals of the present paper are threefold: first, to provide additional arguments in favour of the view that clitic doubled direct object expressions are necessarily interpreted as topical (as opposed to focal) and that topichood – and more generally, information structure – is encoded in narrow syntax; secondly, to explain how several potentially problematic phenomena under this view, such as (apparent) clitic doubling of D-linked wh-phrases and certain asymmetries in the distribution of doubling clitics in restrictive relative clauses, can be solved without giving up the core idea that clitic doubling triggers a topical interpretation of the doublee; and thirdly, to provide a formal and uniform account of all patterns of clitic doubling found in Albanian.
13. Possessive clitics in the DP: Doubling or dislocation?
Authors: Giusti Giuliana , Stavrou Melita
Published: March 2014

Despite the extensive, long standing and multi-focused literature on clitics and clitic doubling in the clause, clitic doubling in the dp is a phenomenon still very little, if at all, understood. Our primary concern in this paper is to contribute to the literature on possessor doubling by looking at the co-occurrence of a possessive dp and a possessive clitic inside the Nominal Expression (NE). We will concentrate on two Balkan languages, Bulgarian and Greek, which are the only ones in the Balkan area to display productive use of clitic possessors in the NE. Despite appearances, in Greek and in Bulgarian NEs there are no cases of what in the clausal domain is standardly referred to as “clitic doubling”. This is prima facie an unexpected situation, given that both languages instantiate the two crucial properties that are at stake here: clitic doubling inside the clausal domain, and possessive clitics (genitive in Greek and dative in Bulgarian) inside the nominal domain. This ‘asymmetry’ calls for an explanation and this is what we attempt here. What we find with possessors in Bulgarian and Greek is what corresponds to clitic (left/right) dislocation. It turns out that possessor dislocation is allowed inside NEs as well as in clauses in Bulgarian, while in Greek it is only allowed in the clausal domain. This will be claimed to be the basic difference between the two languages and this difference will be reduced to the different way the dp splits in each language in order to host discourse-relevant features. Apparent doubling with strong possessive pronouns in Greek will be treated as a separate phenomenon tentatively accounted for in terms of the different properties of strong pronouns in each language.
Concepts of structural underspecification in Bantu and Romance
Authors: Marten Lutz , Kempson Ruth M. , Bouzouita Miriam
Published: March 2014

The paper explores parallelisms between Bantu (specifically Otjiherero) and Romance (through Latin and Spanish) with respect to left and right peripheries, and subject and object clitics. The analysis is formulated in Dynamic Syntax (DS, Cann et al. 2005) and centrally involves notions of structural underspecification. Through providing detailed analyses of different word order possibilities in the Bantu and Romance languages discussed, we show how DS concepts of structural growth over initially underspecified tree relations, such as the building of linked structures and unfixed nodes, provide a uniform basis for analyses of word order variation across the two language groups. We then extend our analysis to include Bantu subject/object markers, which we analyze by employing the same formal tools as used in the analysis of Romance (object) clitics, namely unfixed nodes which have to be construed within a tightly locally restricted domain. Empirical support for our analysis comes from restrictions on the presence of object markers in passive and locative inversion constructions in Otjiherero, which we show to follow from independent constraints of the availability of unfixed nodes within a given domain. The analyses of Bantu and Romance presented show that despite differences in surface morphology between the two language groups, both exhibit a striking parallel with respect to the way lexical information and general structure building principles of DS interact. The difference between Romance clitic systems and the agglutinative morphology of Bantu subject and object makers is thus seen to be comparatively superficial, while the DS analysis brings out the strong structural parallelism between the two language groups.
On the interpretability of φ-features
Authors: Zamparelli Roberto
Published: March 2014

The paper reconsiders the evidence for the interpretable status of φ-features within DP in Romance languages, focusing on Italian. The conclusions are that, given a reasonably local interpretation of what counts as interpretable, gender is not an interpretable feature, and number (or plur, in the sense of Heycock & Zamparelli 2005) is interpretable, but is not sufficient to drive the process of verbal and predicative agreement. The notion of “default”, particularly with respect to the Person feature, is discussed and various alternatives are explored.
Agreement and concord in nominal expressions
Authors: Giusti Giuliana
Published: March 2014

This paper claims that feature sharing should be analyzed as the result of at least two different processes, which are named here Agreement and Concord, and inquires how these two processes are manifested inside nominal expressions (NEs). Agreement is the transfer of the Person features of the possessor (the “subject” of the NE) onto some functional head (parallel to subject Agreement in the clause) with the effect that (Genitive) Case is assigned. On the contrary, Concord is the transfer of Number, Word Class, and Case specifications from a functional head onto a modifier, which is first-merged as a Specifier of that functional head. The claim is that, quite differently from Agreement, Concord arises from the merger of a modifier, underspecified for uninterpretable features, in the specifier of a functional head, carrying a copy of those features. In other words, Concord is directly enhanced by the Spec-Head configuration; it does not involve merger of a probe which targets a goal and, as a consequence, never triggers (overt or covert) movement. This proposal can dispense with a number of otherwise unmotivated movements and can derive the different properties of these two kinds of feature sharing phenomena. The argument is supported by observing macro-parallelisms across Bantu and Romance languages, in particular Swahili and Xhosa on the one hand and Romanian and Italian on the other hand.
Parameter setting and input reduction
Authors: Evers Arnold Ernest , van Kampen Jacqueline
Published: March 2014

The language acquisition procedure identifies certain properties of the target

grammar before others. The evidence from the input is processed in a stepwise

order. Section 1 equates that order and its typical effects with an order of

parameter setting. The question is how the acquisition procedure derives the

order from input evidence. Section 2 proposes a systematic input reduction for

functional categories as the key; the reduction residue contains no more than

a single non-acquired functional category (F?) that is first seen as an optional

element only. If that functional category has turned into the most preferred

option, the input reduction shifts its acquisition focus to the next functional

category. Section 3 and 4 demonstrate how quantitative proportions within the

child’s input reduction determine the underlying order as SOV in Dutch before

the V-second shift for root sentences is derived. The child’s input reductions are

claimed to follow from ignorance rather than from any a priori information.

It is argued that parameters are formal properties of the grammatical system

that originate as cultural discoveries made by a reflexive mind rather than

being task-specific neural a prioris. Section 5 suggests that this view can be

extended to syntactic islands.
Predication and equation in Hebrew (nonpseudocleft) copular sentences
Authors: Greenberg Yael
Published: March 2014

This paper deals with a series of distributional and semantic contrasts between Hebrew copular sentences with two kinds of pronominal copulas: pronH and PronZ. I review three previous proposals regarding the underlying difference between the copulas in terms of the predication/equation relation they express (Heller 2002) the direction of agreement (Sichel 1997) and the presence or absence of a [human] constraint (Berman 1978), and show that the full range of facts can be explained based on the interaction of Sichels and Bermans proposals and the hypothesis that post-copular APs in pronZ sentences modify a null nominal expression. This latter hypothesis is motivated by applying Hellers claims about pseudoclefts to simple copular sentences as well.
Codifying apparent inconsistencies in discourse
Authors: Ziv Yael
Published: March 2014

In this paper I examine the Modern Hebrew discourse marker ma the function of which is to help anchor new information into the discourse when it appears that the newly introduced material is inconsistent with information assumed to be already in the addressees knowledge store. I claim that ma is used to acknowledge and possibly rectify such incompatibilities at the service of coherence and consistency. I briefly discuss yet another discourse marker used to preserve coherence (staam), showing that it constitutes an instruction to the hearer to delete material from the discourse model in the face of a sharp contradiction between its content and information taken to be shared.
12. Linguistics as a community activity: The paradox of freedom through standards
Authors: Simons Gary F.
Published: March 2014

The Internet has given us a new playing field for global collaboration. It could transform the practice of linguistics through universal access to huge quantities of digital language documentation and description. But this transformation can happen only if certain aspects of community practice are formalized by defining and adhering to shared standards. After expanding on the vision for what linguistics could be like in the twenty-first century, this essay attempts to clarify the role of standards by considering two case studies of life with and without standards — using solar time versus standard time, and using language names versus language identifiers. The essay then develops two metaphors that seek to put standards in a positive light: “linguistics as community” and “development as freedom.” The ultimate conclusion is that only by submitting to the constraints of shared standards will the community be free to develop the riches of knowledge it is seeking.
A conjunction conspiracy at the West Germanic left periphery
Authors: te Velde John R.
Published: March 2014

In this analysis I consider one rather common coordinate construction and two less common ones from West Germanic that have two distinguishing properties in common: (i) all consist of conjoined verb-second (V2) clauses, and (ii) there is an ellipse at the left edge of the second conjunct. I propose that the conjunction c-commands the ellipse and that it is recovered in the semantic component through matching with a semantically parallel antecedent in a parallel syntactic position. This analysis utilizes Phase Theory to provide a derivational framework: each V2 clause must, as a phase, complete derivation before the next one is assembled. In this approach the Coordinate Structure Constraint is understood purely as a description of the semantic parallelisms required, and across-the-board movement is unnecessary; it is in fact incompatible with a phase-based approach. Finally, this approach requires three V2 positions in the functional domain of West Germanic; thus, the V2 phenomenon results from feature-checking requirements only (not positions available). Furthermore, it conspires with phase-based conjunction to create a position licensable for “deletion” (non-phonetic realization), thereby economizing the spoken form.
The No Case Generalization
Authors: Sigur∂sson Halldór Ármann
Published: March 2014

This paper argues that syntax has no case features, case instead being an interpretative feature or features operative in the PF morphology of individual languages, where it overtly distinguishes between arguments (or NPs). The paper also argues that the non-syntactic nature of case is to be expected, given Non-Isomorphism, that is, the fundamental non-isomorphic nature of the derivation. Nonetheless, the different PF case-marking strategies in different languages operate on the basis of common syntactic matching relations, including matching of Voice and marked v (v*, v**). The dependency of structural accusative upon structural nominative (the Sibling Correlation/Burzio’s Generalization) is accounted for in terms of double versus single Voice matching.
Finiteness
Authors: Eide Kristin Melum
Published: March 2014

The lack of overt inflectional markings encoding finiteness is a crucial difference between Present Day English (PDE) and modern Mainland Scandinavian languages (MSc). In contrast to previous analyses, our approach considers finiteness a primitive distinction explicitly expressed in verbal forms and, crucially, cutting across tense, mood, and agreement markings. Middle English (ME), like MSc, encoded finiteness. MSc languages have retained the encoding of the finiteness distinction in spite of the loss of mood and agreement markings, but PDE main verbs have lost this distinction (although they have tense and agreement markings). This loss leads to a range of syntactic differences between MSc and PDE, such as do-support, different auxiliary-main verb splits, and the lack of V2 in PDE.
Chapter 4. Patterns of extraction out of factive Islands in Brazilian Portuguese
Authors: Augusto Marina Rosa Ana
Published: March 2014

This paper discusses the patterns of extraction that different factive constructions allow in Brazilian Portuguese. In addition to the more familiar cases of weak or strong island effects, it is shown that some factive constructions in fact allow extraction of both arguments and adjuncts. I propose that the presuppositional character associated to factive complements is due to selectional restrictions; factive predicates select for a [+specific] complement, which in turn may require a TopP projection above CP in certain configurations. I show that the different patterns of acceptability with respect to extraction in BP follow from the different types of complement allowed and the presence or absence of TopP.
Chapter 5. A Uniform raising analysis for standard and nonstandard relative clauses in Brazilian Portuguese
Authors: Kato Mary Aizawa , Nunes Jairo
Published: March 2014

Based on Kayne’s (1994) analysis of relative clauses, this paper proposes a uniform account of the three types of relative clauses found in Brazilian Portuguese: the standard version (with pied-piping), the resumptive version with an overt pronoun, and the PP-chopping version, where the relativized PP appears to be deleted. We argue that a DP headed by a relative determiner can be base-generated in a left dislocation position in Brazilian Portuguese and this is what yields lack of island effects and apparent PP-chopping relatives. Based on their lexical conditioning, we propose that PP-chopping relatives in fact involve a null pronominal (pro) in the object position licensed by inherent Case.
What’s in a determiner and how did it get there?
Authors: Wiltschko Martina
Published: March 2014

I investigate determiner systems of three unrelated languages (Blackfoot, German, and Halkomelem). I show that the features encoded in determiners vary in content, distribution, and spell-out properties. I argue that the distributional differences are best understood as reflecting the familiar structural difference between heads and adjuncts. As such, features are to be analysed as regular linguistic objects which participate in the syntactic operation merge. Regarding the differences in spell-out properties, I argue that they can be accounted for if we recognize a distinction between early and late insertion of functional morphemes.
Effects of reading on knowledge, social abilities, and selfhood: Theory and empirical studies
Authors: Mar Raymond , Djikic Maja , Oatley Keith
Published: March 2014

Reading exhibits a principle of expertise: the more one does it the more skilled one is likely to become both in the activity and in content knowledge. Our experiences with text lead to the acquisition of both vocabulary and general knowledge. Research from our group examines how reading can have other outcomes. With a starting point of fiction as an entryway into simulations of social interactions, we review empirical studies of how the reading of fiction can improve empathy and other social abilities, and prompt changes in personality.
Language allergy: Myth or reality
Authors: Sergeyeva Mariya , Chesnokova Anna
Published: March 2014

The chapter examines the impact of Russification and Ukrainization policies on the attitude of Ukrainians towards foreign (English) language learning. The hypothesis is that people who had a negative experience with instruction in their non-native language are likely to experience the same reaction when learning another foreign language. To test this hypothesis, 96 participants filled in questionnaires to evaluate their experiences with studying in non-native languages and with English language learning. Results indicate that there is a strong correlation between experiences with instruction in non-native language and with learning foreign languages.
Patterns of copula omission in Italian child language
Authors: Franchi Elisa
Published: March 2014

This paper concerns the production of the copula Essere and of the auxiliaries Essere and Avere in Italian child language. A relevant omission phenomenon emerges from the data, robust in declarative contexts but absent inWh interrogative contexts. This pattern indicates the operativity of a strong syntactic constraint and perfectly matches the distribution of Root Infinitives as analysed in Rizzi (1993/1994). It then seems that Child Italian copular data can be accounted for in terms of Rizzi’s Truncation hypothesis, thus supporting the idea that child grammar is a full fledged UG constrained system. Data on morphological selection within the copular domain further support this hypothesis, showing that even the choice of “non adult like” morphological forms is syntactically constrained.
Looking for the universal core of the RI stage
Authors: Salustri Manola , Hyams Nina
Published: March 2014

As it is well known, child Italian does not show a typical Root Infinitive (RI) stage (Guasti 1994), in contrast to German, Dutch, etc. Salustri and Hyams (2003) provided evidence from 3 monolingual Italian children and 1 bilingual German-Italian child that there exists an analogue of the RI stage in this language. We argued that the RI analogue in Italian is the imperative. In this paper, we present data from 4 additional null subject languages, Spanish, Catalan, Slovenian and Hungarian – in support of the Imperative Analogue Hypothesis (IAH). We also present relevant data from Icelandic and Dutch, both RI languages, which further support the IAH. Finally we will evaluate two competing theories of the IAH against these data.
Evidence from L1 acquisition for the syntax of wh-scope marking in French *
Authors: Oiry Magda , Demirdache Hamida
Published: March 2014

We argue for alternative wh-scope marking strategies in the acquisition of LD-questions. Direct Dependency involves a matrix non-referential wh-scope marker licensing a medial referential wh-phrase. L1 Partial wh-movement is well-documented cross-linguistically.We take the claim that children go through a stage involving wh-scope marking strategies, ungrammatical in the target language but reflecting parametric settings of other languages, a step further by arguing for the existence of L1 Indirect wh-Dependencies: thematrix scope marker is a referential wh-phrase quantifying over propositions, restricted by a subordinate wh-question over individuals. In L1 French, the matrix and subordinate wh-phrases appear in-situ or locally fronted, transparently reflecting the covert/overt syntax of Hindi wh-questions (Dayal 2000).We conclude that the syntax of L1 scope marking should be correlated with the acquisition of complementation.
Is the semantics/syntax interface vulnerable in l2 acquisition?
Authors: Borgonovo Claudia , Bruhn de Garavito Joyce , Prévost Philippe
Published: March 2014

We examine the L2 acquisition by English native speakers of the interpretation of DPs as signaled by mood in Spanish relative clauses. The choice of mood here depends on the specificity of the DP head, not on grammaticality. Modal contexts license non-specific interpretations of DPs and L2 learners only receive instruction on an extremely reduced subset of these. A truth-value judgment task and a sentence combination felicity task were administered to L2 learners and controls. Results show that advanced learners, but not intermediate ones, perform at near native levels, which provides evidence that interface phenomena, deemed difficult to acquire given their inherent complexity and the lack of direct evidence in the input, can in fact be acquired even in cases such as these, in which transfer is not at stake.
Event-related brain potentials as a window to children's language processing
Authors: Männel Claudia , Friederici Angela D.
Published: March 2014

The present paper gives an overview of our recent research on the neurocognition of language acquisition. Our research aims to gain a more detailed understanding of the developmental stages of the language acquisition process and its underlying brain mechanisms. Here, we utilize the method of event-related brain potentials, which has revealed specific electrophysiological indices for various aspects of language processing in adults. These electrophysiological parameters can serve as templates to define the hallmarks of language acquisition. The research presented demonstrates that the method of event-related brain potentials is a powerful tool to investigate and monitor early stages of language acquisition and provides further insights into the neural correlates of language processing in infants and children.
8. The subjects of unaccusative verbs in bilingual Basque/Spanish children
Authors: Larrañaga María Pilar
Published: March 2014

The upsurge of interest in word order rules amongst generative scholars over the last ten years has led to approaches which combine syntax, pragmatics and phonology in a highly persuasive explanatory way (Zubizarreta (1998); Cinque (1993) to name but a few). This chapter examined the position of the subjects of unaccusative verbs and their pragmatic entailments in the speech of two Basque/Spanish children brought up bilingually. The longitudinal data were analyzed with respect to the position of the subject and its information status. The results showed that there were two clear patterns of acquisition depending on the language concerned and have been discussed in the light of old and new hypotheses. Our discussion will be centred around the issues of the left periphery (Rizzi 1997) and cross-linguistic influence (Müller & Hulk 2001) since the domain of preverbal subjects meets the criteria proposed by the latter.
9. Dominance, mixing and cross-linguistic influence: On their relation in bilingual development
Authors: Kupisch Tanja
Published: March 2014

In this chapter I explore the relation between language dominance, mixed language utterances and cross-linguistic influence based on data from two German/French bilingual children. The children differ in terms of the extent to which one language can be considered dominant, but both produce fewer mixed utterances in their stronger language. Cross-linguistic influence is examined with respect to determiner acquisition. Monolingual German and French children acquire determiners at different rates, the process being faster in French. The bilinguals use more determiners in German than monolinguals of comparable ages, which is interpreted in favour of positive influence from French. I suggest that these results are inconsistent with mixing patterns, arguing that influence and mixing represent different types of contact phenomena.
11. Balanced bilingual children with two weak languages: A French/German case study
Authors: Müller Natascha , Pillunat Antje
Published: March 2014

Research on bilingual first language acquisition has reported on bilingual children who develop the two languages at an equal pace and like monolingual children. Recent research also includes children with a dominant/weak language; for these children Müller & Kupisch (2003) have shown that the weak language develops in a qualitatively similar way to the languages in balanced bilinguals or the strong/dominant language in unbalanced bilinguals, the difference being only quantitative in nature. The weak language exhibits a delay in the development of grammatical phenomena. The present study investigates a bilingual German/French child with two weak languages. The general result is that in a child with two weak languages delay effects can be observed to the same extent as in normally developing bilingual children. However, contrary to what other researchers have found in normally developing bilingual children, acceleration effects are absent in a child with two weak languages. Both findings are obtained on the basis of an age-matched and an MLU-matched comparison of three bilingual children. The grammatical domains investigated are determiner omissions and the realization of subjects and objects.
Comparing child and adult L2 acquisition of the Greek DP: Effects of age and construction
Authors: Chondrogianni Vicky
Published: March 2014

The present paper investigates the acquisition of the definite article and third person direct object clitics by Turkish-speaking L2 learners of Modern Greek (henceforth Greek). Oral production data was elicited using identical methods from child and adult L2 learners who belong to similar proficiency levels. The results show an asymmetrical pattern in the acquisition of the two D-elements, with the acquisition of the clitic being severely delayed. This can partly be explained by theories that assume transfer in L2 acquisition, but pose problems to the ones suggesting lack of attainment due to feature interpretability. The paper discusses additional factors that may account for the acquisition pattern, such as the linguistic structure to be acquired coupled with notions of the age of exposure and the quantity of input received.
The development of copula and auxiliary be and overgeneration of be in child L2 English
Authors: Gavruseva Elena
Published: March 2014

This articles examines an asymmetry in the acquisition of copula and auxiliarybe in a longitudinal corpus of English-acquiring consecutive bilinguals (ages 6;4–9;2). I argue that a delay in the productive use of auxiliary be vis-à-vis the copula can be explained under a theory of early L2 grammar that assumes an underspecified AspP. If aspectual features are taken to be underspecified in the initial state, structures requiring aspectual specification are expected to appear in a non-finite form (bare -ing or bare stem). These predictions are borne out in the L2 data as -ing forms and bare stems occur in non-finite and often aspectually inappropriate contexts and that the aspectual errors occur while the copula is used in an adult-like way.
Testing the Domain-by-Age Model: Inflection and placement of Dutch verbs
Authors: Blom Elma
Published: March 2014

Generalizing over various observations on the language development of children acquiring a second language (child L2 acquisition), Schwartz (2003: 47) concludes that “in the domain of inflectional morphology, child L2 acquisition is more like child L1 acquisition, and in the domain of syntax, child L2 acquisition is more like adult L2 acquisition”. One implication of this generalization is that inflection is influenced by age of onset, whereas knowledge of syntax is not. In this contribution, results from a series of production experiments on child and adult L2 Dutch are discussed showing that children and adults have different profiles in both linguistic domains, contrary to Schwartz (2003).
Clitic doubling and clitic left dislocation in Spanish and Greek L2 grammars
Authors: Parodi Teresa
Published: March 2014

Morphological properties in L2 acquisition have a prominent role in the current research agenda, particularly with respect to the optionality observed and what this tells us about learners’ representations. Some authors (Smith and Tsimpli 1995, Hawkins and Chan 1997, Hawkins and Franceschina 2004, among others) argue for representational deficits in learners’ systems, particularly with respect to uninterpretable features. Clitics, as manifestations of agreement and bearers of uninterpretable features, offer a promising testing ground. This paper contributes to the debate by observing clitic doubling and clitic left dislocation in L2 Spanish and Greek when English is the L1. Differences in morphological richness and in the properties of their pronominal systems allow us to test how learners interpret clitics in the L2.
Development in early Basque-Spanish language mixing
Authors: Ezeizabarrena María José
Published: March 2014

Similar morphosyntactic development in both languages and low rates of language mixing (LM) attested in the corpus of a Spanish-Basque bilingual child rules out language dominance in the period studied (1;06–3;06). No preference for either language is observed with regard to lexical or functional elements in mixed phrases, restricted by the morphosyntactic rules pertaining to each lexical item in the corresponding language from the very beginning. This supports the view that mixed utterances are produced by one computational system operating with two lexicons, following MacSwan (2000), and that child mixing is not different from adult mixing as suggested by Cantone (2005). Finally, the slight increase observed for extra-sentential mixing in Basque contexts from age 3 onwards may be related to some kind of discursive development.
Principes d’analyse automatique des proverbes
Authors: Conenna Mirella
Published: March 2014

We present software tools capable of identifying a proverb automatically in a text and of generating a translation for it. They include a library of finite state automata administered by the INTEX system (developed by M. Silberztein 1993).
We have constructed a series of automata and transducers relating to certain syntactic classes of French and Italian proverbs.
We differentiate between the automata containing attested proverbs and automata that we call "predictive", particular lexical and syntactic forms that are inserted by analogy with the actual forms retrieved, which could prove useful in the automatic analysis of texts. Wherever we know the equivalent form in the other language, we establish a transducer.
We present a detailed model of the analyser, made up of a network of automata, which takes account of the formulations that link the proverb to the discourse: "as the proverb says, according to folk wisdom, as grandmother used to say, etc". These phrases can sometimes be inserted into the proverb itself, as a kind of interpolation, and can present an obstacle for automatic recognition process.
Les prépositions forment-elles une classe?
Authors: Gaatone David
Published: March 2014

Although a large amount of work has been done in the last two decades on French prepositions, there is still no general agreement about their definition. One first has to make a decision about the necessity of such a class, a decision which can be based on the impossibility of accounting for various syntactic constraints without referring to the notion of "preposition". The main problem in trying to define that class seems to be that most of the 40-50 words generally listed as (simple) prepositions in French grammars have some semantic content, a fact that makes it possible to consider them as subordinating connectors, while only a few, primarily de and à, have no discernible meaning in various contexts, and do not necessarily play any linking or subordinating role. The various factors, semantic, lexical, syntactic or lexico-syntactic, which can trigger the occurrence of a preposition, make it difficult if not impossible to find some feature common to all the words traditionnally called prepositions in French.
Une construction tronquée du verbe faire
Authors: Giry-Schneider Jacqueline
Published: March 2014

Expressions of the form N0 fait le N1 in French are not simply fixed expressions. There are in fact two distinct cases, differing in syntax and meaning: Max f ait l'arbitre (Max acts as referee) and Max fait l'innocent (Max plays the innocent). In this article, we characterise these two constructions, suggesting a way of solving the contradictions which occur in the second, and explain the semantic overlap between the two types. In addition to the lexical significance of these expressions (they number around 1,000) and their productivity, this study also illustrates the problem of degrees of fixedness, focussing on two types of relation between faire and être.
Here and There
Authors: Kayne Richard S.
Published: March 2014

Locative 'here' and 'there' are parallel to 'this here place' and 'that there place' (which contain demonstrative 'here' and 'there') except that locative 'here' and 'there' have (in the spirit of Katz and Postal (1964)) an unpronounced counterpart of 'place', and an unpronounced determiner instead of 'this'/'that'. The non-locative 'there' of sentences like 'He spoke thereof (widely found in Germanic) is also, when looked at from the right perspective, to be considered an instance of this demonstrative 'there' (and similarly for 'here').
La conjonction même si n’existe pas!
Authors: Piot Mireille
Published: March 2014

In this paper, we reject the usual definition of même si (even if) as single conjunction and meaning as 'concessive' one. Même si share similar syntactico-semantic properties with 'conditional', but not 'concessive', (class of) conjunctions. In fact, même si is a conjunctive phrase including the si (if) conditional conjunction and the appropriate conditional-conjunction modifier: même (even). 'Concessive' effect is due to même insertion.
Meaning of même si has been refined into two semantic interpretation subcategories according to paraphrastic conditional conjunctive phrases: même à (la) condition [que P] or même dans l'hypothèse [où P].
A Remark on English Double Negatives
Authors: Postal Paul M.
Published: March 2014

This article claims that there are two partially distinct analyses for English no forms like no dog, nothing, no one, no philosopher. Each analysis involves recognition of a syntactic negative + a determiner some as a representation of no; but one analysis involves a second syntactic negative as well. It is suggested that a factually viable version of the traditional English prescriptive rule banning two or more instances of no forms in a single clause must distinguish the two distinct analyses. For while e.g. No gorilla wrote no symphony is indeed ungrammatical on a reading with weak stress on the second no, where it means No gorilla wrote any symphony, it is grammatical on a reading with strong stress ont the second no. This reading is equivalent to Every gorilla wrote some symphony, taken here to instantiate the double negative (hence logically positive) reading of the second no. A variety of arguments are presented to support the view that the grammatical status of the two no forms of the grammatical reading have distinct structures and various implications and problems arising from this conclusion are briefly considered.
Les travaux en Lexique-Grammaire du malgache et leurs extensions
Authors: Raharinirina Rabaovololona Lucie , Ralalaoherivony Baholisoa Simone
Published: March 2014

As a visiting professor at the Department of Malagasy Studies at the University of Antananarivo in 1989, Maurice Gross gave an unprecedented impetus to the descriptive study of the Malagasy language. He contributed so much, mainly through the development of Lexicon-Grammar, that we have him to thank for one state doctoral thesis, four new doctoral theses, thirteen DEA theses, eleven CAPEN theses, and several dissertations or master's theses. The following achievements, completed by members of the DIFP (Interdisciplinary and Vocational Training Department) benefited particularly from his help: Lexique-grammaire du malgache. Constructions transitives et intransitives by Roger-Bruno Rabenilaina (1987), Lexique-grammaire des composés du malgache. Les adverbes de temps, by Lucie Raharinirina-Rabaovololona (1991) and Lexique-grammaire du malgache. Constructions adjectivales by Baholisoa Simone Ralalaoherivony (1995).
Thanks to this progress in Lexicon-Grammar, the DIFP team was able to launch projects in fields with a more applied focus. These include Lexicology, Terminology and Translation. The new insights and tools offered by Lexicon-Grammar brought about tremendous developments in those fields. In addition, there is continuity in our fundamental linguistic activity: the research into Lexicon-Grammar is the common interest of the members of DIFP.
For all this, we are most grateful to Maurice Gross.