Superlative Morphology from Syntax: Slavic <i>Nai</i> ‐/ <i>Naj</i> ‐ and Internal Definiteness Marking in Old Lithuanian

Definiteness and Structure of NPs in Slavic

A superlative argument for a minimal theory of definiteness

On such readings, the definite article is sometimes analyzed as underlyingly indefinite. According to ‘DP-external’ analyses of relative readings (Szabolcsi, 1986; Heim, 1999; Hackl, 2009), the superlative takes scope outside the object DP and the must be interpreted as a because its uniqueness presupposition is not satisfied by its complement. While such DPs do display indefinite-like behavior...

Definiteness Morphology in Swedish Determiner Phrases

In Swedish determiner phrases definiteness can be realised both pre-nominally with a definite article and postnominally with a definite suffix on the head noun. This paper discusses the distribution of definiteness morphology in a number of morphosyntactic contexts. Separate patterns of definiteness marking emerge when considering the following morphosyntactic contexts: DPs modified with a prep...

Definiteness determined by syntax: A case study in Tagalog

Using Tagalog as a case study, this paper provides an analysis of a cross-linguistically well attested phenomenon, namely, cases in which a bare NP’s syntactic position is linked to its interpretation as definite or indefinite. Previous approaches to this phenomenon, including analyses of Tagalog, appeal to specialized interpretational rules like Diesing’s Mapping Hypothesis. I argue that such ...

Chains in Syntax and Morphology

This paper argues for the existence of a deeper and more primitive structural unit of syntax and morphology than the constituent. Data from ellipsis, idiom formation, predicate complexes, bracketing paradoxes, and multiple auxiliary constructions challenge constituency-based analyses. In chain-based dependency grammar, however, constituents are seen as complete components. Components are units ...