This paper applies a computerized method related to that of glottochronology and addresses the qu... more This paper applies a computerized method related to that of glottochronology and addresses the question whether such a method is useful as a heuristic for identifying deep genealogical relations among languages. We first measure lexical similarities for pairs of language families that are normally assumed to be unrelated, using a modification of the Levenshtein distance as our similarity measure. We
We present data regarding the positioning of clitics in the Iron dialect of Ossetic, which is i... more We present data regarding the positioning of clitics in the Iron dialect of Ossetic, which is in some respects similar to data for ‘second-position’ clitics in more familiar languages, but in other respects is considerably more complicated. We propose a formal analysis which makes use of Optimality Theoretic LFG with stochastic re-ranking of constraints, which is able to capture the full range of the data, while avoiding having to assume the controversial phenomenon of clitic ‘movement’.
In some languages, including Russian and Italian, it is possible for a plural noun to be modifi... more In some languages, including Russian and Italian, it is possible for a plural noun to be modified by two or more coordinated singular adjectives. At the same time, it is possible for a singular noun to be modified by two or more coordinated singular adjectives, but for the reference of the noun phrase to be plural, rather than singular. We provide a formal analysis of these problematic agreement phenomena, making use of the distinction between INDEX and CONCORD agreement features, and the distinction between distributive and non-distributive features. We propose that the distributivity or non-distributivity of a feature may vary not only between different languages, but even on a construction-by-construction basis within a language. Specifically, CONCORD is a non-distributive feature in certain constructions in languages like Russian and Italian.
Peter Arkadiev, Ivan Kapitonov, Yury Lander, Ekaterina Rakhilina and Sergey Tatevosov (eds.). Donum semanticum: Opera linguistica et logica in honorem Barbarae Partee a discipulis amicisque Rossicis oblata. Moscow: Languages of Slavic Culture, 2015, 2015
I apply the multi-level LFG approach to coordination and subordination to Russian causal construc... more I apply the multi-level LFG approach to coordination and subordination to Russian causal constructions, and show how their behaviour can be accounted for by assuming different representations in syntax (c- and f-structure) and semantics.
Miriam Butt & Tracy Holloway King (eds.), Proceedings of the LFG14 Conference, pp. 89-109, 2014
Correlatives are a subtype of relative constructions where the subordinate clause precedes the ma... more Correlatives are a subtype of relative constructions where the subordinate clause precedes the main clause, contains a relative pronoun or DP, and is resumed in the main clause by a full DP containing a personal or demonstrative pronoun (the correlate). Crucially, the subordinate clause does not usually form a constituent with the correlate. Most explicit treatments of the semantics of correlatives adopt, with some variations, the standard set-intersective analysis of relative clauses. In this paper, we demonstrate that the data of Ossetic shows that the relative DP and the correlate are instead linked through pronominal anaphora, such that the relative DP acts as the antecedent and the correlate, as the bound pronominal or definite description. This explains certain effects that are unexpected under the standard analysis of relative clauses, such as the possibility of bridging. The analysis is given a full formalization in terms of LFG, Glue semantics and PCDRT as the semantic metalanguage.
Suihkonen, Pirkko and Lindsay J. Whaley (eds.), On Diversity and Complexity of Languages Spoken in Europe and North and Central Asia. 2014. xviii, 437 pp. (pp. 275–310), 2014
Ossetic, an Iranian language of the North Caucasus, makes extensive use of correlatives in its sy... more Ossetic, an Iranian language of the North Caucasus, makes extensive use of correlatives in its system of subordination. I argue that most subordinate clause types in Ossetic belong to this construction, with their function being derived from the combination of the meaning of the subordinating element and the form of the demonstrative correlate. I further argue that the link between the relative phrase and the correlate may involve indirect relations such as bridging and split antecedence. They must therefore be viewed as involving obligatory pronominal coreference, where correlates are semantically no different from ordinary anaphoric pronouns or definite descriptions.
В статье рассматриваются некоторые проблемные случаи падежного маркирования в осетинском языке: г... more В статье рассматриваются некоторые проблемные случаи падежного маркирования в осетинском языке: групповая флексия, управление предлога ӕнӕ ‘без’, дифференцированное маркирование прямого дополнения, употребление форм местоимения кӕрӕдзи ‘друг друга’ в иронском диалекте в позиции посессора и прямого объекта. Показано, что выбор падежа в этих конструкциях определяется структурой парадигмы зависимой лексемы. Для объяснения распределения словоформ в этих синтаксическим контекстах предлагается разделить падеж в осетинском языке на две категории: «морфологический падеж» (МП), приписываемый словоформам, который состоит всего из двух граммем, ректуса и обликвуса, и «групповой падеж» (ГП), приписываемый именным группам, к которому относятся все традиционно выделяемые косвенные падежи. МП соответствует категории падежа в языках, не допускающих групповой флексии, например в русском и латинском, ГП – падежным граммемам, допускающим групповое оформление, как, например, в тюркских языках. Сосуществование двух таких категорий в пределах одного языка может свидетельствовать о том, что их следует различать и в типологической перспективе. Данные осетинского языка сопоставляются с аналогичными явлениями в других языках: восточноармянском, индо-арийских, калмыцком, тохарском А. Анализ формализуется в терминах лексико-функциональной грамматики.
In this paper, I analyze two constructions of clause combining in Ossetic that exhibit mixed prop... more In this paper, I analyze two constructions of clause combining in Ossetic that exhibit mixed properties between coordination and subordination. I argue that the ``mismatch approach'' proposed by Culicover & Jackendoff (1997) and Yuasa & Sadock (2002) is best suited to account for their properties. However, in order to adequately describe the behaviour of these constructions in terms of the mismatch approach, appealing to three levels of grammar is required instead of two levels (syntax and semantics) discussed in previous works. This provides a clear argument in favor of models of grammar such as Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG), where the syntactic level is split between constituent structure (c-structure) and functional structure (f-structure). The properties of semantic coordination and subordination that have been proposed in earlier work mostly belong to the level of f-structure, and not semantics proper. I argue that the only substantial semantic difference between coordination and adverbial subordination is that the former introduces discourse relations, while the latter introduces predicates on par with those contributed by clauses. I provide definitions of coordination and subordination at all the three levels of grammar formalized in terms of the LFG framework and discuss the tests that can be used for each of these levels.
The rules of person agreement in languages of the Dargwa group (North-East Caucasian) are complex... more The rules of person agreement in languages of the Dargwa group (North-East Caucasian) are complex and based on the relative prominence of the core arguments on the personal and grammatical function hierarchies. The rules are also subject to much cross-dialectal variation. I argue that this variation can best be captured by assuming that the agreement marker specifies the person and number of an m-structure function called TH, which can be identified with either of the core arguments. The choice of agreement controller is determined not by functional annotations, but by four OT constraints: Th-1, Th-2, Th-GF and Th-ABS. Thus the same f-structure maps to different c- and m-structure pairs in different Dargwa varieties based on variation in constraint orderings. This allows capturing cross-dialectal variation in a uniform way while providing generalizations about which of the logically possible agreement systems are actually attested.
Ossetic sets itself apart from the other New Iranian languages by having a relatively elaborate s... more Ossetic sets itself apart from the other New Iranian languages by having a relatively elaborate system of nine cases. Since most of them are relatively late innovations, and only four cases (Nom., Gen, Abl., and Iness.) can be traced back to Proto-Iranian, many scholars tend to ascribe the development of the case system to Caucasian influence. The exact nature of this influence, however, has never been demonstrated. The aim of this paper is, first, to not only reconstruct the etymologies of Ossetic cases, but also to provide a chronology of how the case system developed. The second aim pursued here is to give a systematic comparison of the case system of Ossetic with those of the neighbouring languages and to determine if there is any external influence on the case system and, if so, what languages this influence came from. I conclude that Ossetic developed from a case system identical to those of Khotanese and Sogdian towards the present state under the influence of contact with Georgian and, later, with Turkic and Vaynakh languages. In the process of the discussion, I also argue that two new cases, the Directive and Recessive, are undergoing grammaticalisation in contemporary Ossetic.
Плунгян В.А. (отв. ред.). Исследования по теории грамматики. Выпуск 6: типология аспектуальных систем и категорий (Acta Linguistica Petropolitana. Т. VIII. Ч. 2)., 2012
This paper concerns the use of forms in -gɐ and -gɐjɐ in contemporary Ossetic. Our aim is to prod... more This paper concerns the use of forms in -gɐ and -gɐjɐ in contemporary Ossetic. Our aim is to produce a typologically informed and fine-grained account of both the syntax and semantics of these two formatives. As we will show, the main difference is that while the form in -gɐ is a participle-converb (with a wide range of uses), the form in -gɐjɐ is a converb proper. At the same time, there are a number of surprising syntactic effects and subtle semantic differences. We will provide a general description of the uses of the two forms and of some of the typologically interesting facts associated with them, and an explanation of the facts observed.
The paper’s primary concern is to address the usage of WALS through comparing it with another typ... more The paper’s primary concern is to address the usage of WALS through comparing it with another typological database of similar scope, Jazyki Mira. Such a comparison is carried out based on a set of criteria. In Section 2, the scope of the databases is compared, as well as their differences and similarities in structure, the number of errors, and in the existing user interfaces. In Section 3, calculations of typological similarity and temporal stability of language features based on the data provided by both databases are compared. Finally, conclusions are drawn as to the relative efficiency and usefulness of these databases for different aims of research or educational goals.
«Компьютерная лингвистика и интеллектуальные технологии». Доклады, принятые к публикации на сайте, 2010
Based on the morphological description of Ossetic developed using SIL FieldWorks which has been u... more Based on the morphological description of Ossetic developed using SIL FieldWorks which has been used for creating an online corpus of interlinear texts, the aim of this paper is to discuss the new possibilities which allow to make the process of language documentation and data gathering faster and more productive.
In this talk, I analyze three conjunctions forming causal clauses in Russian: potomu čto, tak kak... more In this talk, I analyze three conjunctions forming causal clauses in Russian: potomu čto, tak kak and poskol’ku ‘because’. Superficially, all of them encode the same causal relation, but there are subtle differences in how they are used. To explain these differences I propose analyzing the semantics of cause in terms of Segmented Discourse Representation Theory (SDRT) (Asher & Lascarides 2003), which augments DRT by introducing rhetorical relations. In SDRT such relations connect not only sequences of independent clauses, but also coordinate clauses (Txurruka 2003), which alows treating the feature «assertive predicate vs. rhetorical relation» as describing the oppositon betwen subordination and coordination, respectively (Belyaev 2014). In other words, in semantic terms coordinating conjunctions link speech acts while subordinating conjunctions link facts, events or propositons.
The diachronic pathways of wh-based subordination is a topic that has been extensively studied in... more The diachronic pathways of wh-based subordination is a topic that has been extensively studied in the recent literature. The most widely accepted hypothesis, elaborated by Heine & Kuteva (2006), assumes a pathway from indirect questions through headless relative clauses. However, this explanation does not work for the grammaticalization of interrogative-based correlative (IBC) clauses such as those found in old Indo-European languages, e.g. Hittite and Latin (Which man you saw, he is my brother). These are explained, since Hahn (1946, 1949) via the use of interrogatives as indefinites in an originally paratactic structure, i.e. You saw some man. He is my brother. However, this explanation meets with difficulties from a typological point of view, as pointed out by Luján (2009): there are apparently no languages where a non-interrogative indefinite marker has grammaticalized as a relative clause marker. Furthermore, the assumption that proto-Indo-European had full interrogative-indefinite ambiguity (Gärtner 2009) is not backed up by enough evidence.
In this talk, we will demonstrate how the indefinite hypothesis can be refined in order to reconcile the typological observations with the data of Indo-European languages. First, we will demonstrate that some kind of paratactic scenario for the emergence of IBC is unavoidable due to the possibility of indirect coreference (“bridging”) between the relative DP and the correlate in old Indo-European, e.g. Hittite. Second, we will defend our central claim: that the diachronic source of IBCs are asyndetic conditional sentences where an interrogative pronoun in the protasis is interpreted as an indefinite. Specifically, we claim that sentences like Who comes, open the door (= ‘If someone/whoever comes, open the door’), widely attested in IE, developed into correlatives via the innovation of an obligatory anaphoric link between the two caluses: Who comes, open the door *(to them). This process is accompanied by the extension of the semantics from universal to definite contexts. Our analysis is backed up by typological data, which confirm a close link between conditionals and IBCs. Furthermore, the diachronic scenario we propose predicts that the universal interpretation of IBCs should be attested in all languages possessing this construction, whereas the definite interpretation should be optional. This prediction appears to be borne out cross-linguistically.
This paper applies a computerized method related to that of glottochronology and addresses the qu... more This paper applies a computerized method related to that of glottochronology and addresses the question whether such a method is useful as a heuristic for identifying deep genealogical relations among languages. We first measure lexical similarities for pairs of language families that are normally assumed to be unrelated, using a modification of the Levenshtein distance as our similarity measure. We
We present data regarding the positioning of clitics in the Iron dialect of Ossetic, which is i... more We present data regarding the positioning of clitics in the Iron dialect of Ossetic, which is in some respects similar to data for ‘second-position’ clitics in more familiar languages, but in other respects is considerably more complicated. We propose a formal analysis which makes use of Optimality Theoretic LFG with stochastic re-ranking of constraints, which is able to capture the full range of the data, while avoiding having to assume the controversial phenomenon of clitic ‘movement’.
In some languages, including Russian and Italian, it is possible for a plural noun to be modifi... more In some languages, including Russian and Italian, it is possible for a plural noun to be modified by two or more coordinated singular adjectives. At the same time, it is possible for a singular noun to be modified by two or more coordinated singular adjectives, but for the reference of the noun phrase to be plural, rather than singular. We provide a formal analysis of these problematic agreement phenomena, making use of the distinction between INDEX and CONCORD agreement features, and the distinction between distributive and non-distributive features. We propose that the distributivity or non-distributivity of a feature may vary not only between different languages, but even on a construction-by-construction basis within a language. Specifically, CONCORD is a non-distributive feature in certain constructions in languages like Russian and Italian.
Peter Arkadiev, Ivan Kapitonov, Yury Lander, Ekaterina Rakhilina and Sergey Tatevosov (eds.). Donum semanticum: Opera linguistica et logica in honorem Barbarae Partee a discipulis amicisque Rossicis oblata. Moscow: Languages of Slavic Culture, 2015, 2015
I apply the multi-level LFG approach to coordination and subordination to Russian causal construc... more I apply the multi-level LFG approach to coordination and subordination to Russian causal constructions, and show how their behaviour can be accounted for by assuming different representations in syntax (c- and f-structure) and semantics.
Miriam Butt & Tracy Holloway King (eds.), Proceedings of the LFG14 Conference, pp. 89-109, 2014
Correlatives are a subtype of relative constructions where the subordinate clause precedes the ma... more Correlatives are a subtype of relative constructions where the subordinate clause precedes the main clause, contains a relative pronoun or DP, and is resumed in the main clause by a full DP containing a personal or demonstrative pronoun (the correlate). Crucially, the subordinate clause does not usually form a constituent with the correlate. Most explicit treatments of the semantics of correlatives adopt, with some variations, the standard set-intersective analysis of relative clauses. In this paper, we demonstrate that the data of Ossetic shows that the relative DP and the correlate are instead linked through pronominal anaphora, such that the relative DP acts as the antecedent and the correlate, as the bound pronominal or definite description. This explains certain effects that are unexpected under the standard analysis of relative clauses, such as the possibility of bridging. The analysis is given a full formalization in terms of LFG, Glue semantics and PCDRT as the semantic metalanguage.
Suihkonen, Pirkko and Lindsay J. Whaley (eds.), On Diversity and Complexity of Languages Spoken in Europe and North and Central Asia. 2014. xviii, 437 pp. (pp. 275–310), 2014
Ossetic, an Iranian language of the North Caucasus, makes extensive use of correlatives in its sy... more Ossetic, an Iranian language of the North Caucasus, makes extensive use of correlatives in its system of subordination. I argue that most subordinate clause types in Ossetic belong to this construction, with their function being derived from the combination of the meaning of the subordinating element and the form of the demonstrative correlate. I further argue that the link between the relative phrase and the correlate may involve indirect relations such as bridging and split antecedence. They must therefore be viewed as involving obligatory pronominal coreference, where correlates are semantically no different from ordinary anaphoric pronouns or definite descriptions.
В статье рассматриваются некоторые проблемные случаи падежного маркирования в осетинском языке: г... more В статье рассматриваются некоторые проблемные случаи падежного маркирования в осетинском языке: групповая флексия, управление предлога ӕнӕ ‘без’, дифференцированное маркирование прямого дополнения, употребление форм местоимения кӕрӕдзи ‘друг друга’ в иронском диалекте в позиции посессора и прямого объекта. Показано, что выбор падежа в этих конструкциях определяется структурой парадигмы зависимой лексемы. Для объяснения распределения словоформ в этих синтаксическим контекстах предлагается разделить падеж в осетинском языке на две категории: «морфологический падеж» (МП), приписываемый словоформам, который состоит всего из двух граммем, ректуса и обликвуса, и «групповой падеж» (ГП), приписываемый именным группам, к которому относятся все традиционно выделяемые косвенные падежи. МП соответствует категории падежа в языках, не допускающих групповой флексии, например в русском и латинском, ГП – падежным граммемам, допускающим групповое оформление, как, например, в тюркских языках. Сосуществование двух таких категорий в пределах одного языка может свидетельствовать о том, что их следует различать и в типологической перспективе. Данные осетинского языка сопоставляются с аналогичными явлениями в других языках: восточноармянском, индо-арийских, калмыцком, тохарском А. Анализ формализуется в терминах лексико-функциональной грамматики.
In this paper, I analyze two constructions of clause combining in Ossetic that exhibit mixed prop... more In this paper, I analyze two constructions of clause combining in Ossetic that exhibit mixed properties between coordination and subordination. I argue that the ``mismatch approach'' proposed by Culicover & Jackendoff (1997) and Yuasa & Sadock (2002) is best suited to account for their properties. However, in order to adequately describe the behaviour of these constructions in terms of the mismatch approach, appealing to three levels of grammar is required instead of two levels (syntax and semantics) discussed in previous works. This provides a clear argument in favor of models of grammar such as Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG), where the syntactic level is split between constituent structure (c-structure) and functional structure (f-structure). The properties of semantic coordination and subordination that have been proposed in earlier work mostly belong to the level of f-structure, and not semantics proper. I argue that the only substantial semantic difference between coordination and adverbial subordination is that the former introduces discourse relations, while the latter introduces predicates on par with those contributed by clauses. I provide definitions of coordination and subordination at all the three levels of grammar formalized in terms of the LFG framework and discuss the tests that can be used for each of these levels.
The rules of person agreement in languages of the Dargwa group (North-East Caucasian) are complex... more The rules of person agreement in languages of the Dargwa group (North-East Caucasian) are complex and based on the relative prominence of the core arguments on the personal and grammatical function hierarchies. The rules are also subject to much cross-dialectal variation. I argue that this variation can best be captured by assuming that the agreement marker specifies the person and number of an m-structure function called TH, which can be identified with either of the core arguments. The choice of agreement controller is determined not by functional annotations, but by four OT constraints: Th-1, Th-2, Th-GF and Th-ABS. Thus the same f-structure maps to different c- and m-structure pairs in different Dargwa varieties based on variation in constraint orderings. This allows capturing cross-dialectal variation in a uniform way while providing generalizations about which of the logically possible agreement systems are actually attested.
Ossetic sets itself apart from the other New Iranian languages by having a relatively elaborate s... more Ossetic sets itself apart from the other New Iranian languages by having a relatively elaborate system of nine cases. Since most of them are relatively late innovations, and only four cases (Nom., Gen, Abl., and Iness.) can be traced back to Proto-Iranian, many scholars tend to ascribe the development of the case system to Caucasian influence. The exact nature of this influence, however, has never been demonstrated. The aim of this paper is, first, to not only reconstruct the etymologies of Ossetic cases, but also to provide a chronology of how the case system developed. The second aim pursued here is to give a systematic comparison of the case system of Ossetic with those of the neighbouring languages and to determine if there is any external influence on the case system and, if so, what languages this influence came from. I conclude that Ossetic developed from a case system identical to those of Khotanese and Sogdian towards the present state under the influence of contact with Georgian and, later, with Turkic and Vaynakh languages. In the process of the discussion, I also argue that two new cases, the Directive and Recessive, are undergoing grammaticalisation in contemporary Ossetic.
Плунгян В.А. (отв. ред.). Исследования по теории грамматики. Выпуск 6: типология аспектуальных систем и категорий (Acta Linguistica Petropolitana. Т. VIII. Ч. 2)., 2012
This paper concerns the use of forms in -gɐ and -gɐjɐ in contemporary Ossetic. Our aim is to prod... more This paper concerns the use of forms in -gɐ and -gɐjɐ in contemporary Ossetic. Our aim is to produce a typologically informed and fine-grained account of both the syntax and semantics of these two formatives. As we will show, the main difference is that while the form in -gɐ is a participle-converb (with a wide range of uses), the form in -gɐjɐ is a converb proper. At the same time, there are a number of surprising syntactic effects and subtle semantic differences. We will provide a general description of the uses of the two forms and of some of the typologically interesting facts associated with them, and an explanation of the facts observed.
The paper’s primary concern is to address the usage of WALS through comparing it with another typ... more The paper’s primary concern is to address the usage of WALS through comparing it with another typological database of similar scope, Jazyki Mira. Such a comparison is carried out based on a set of criteria. In Section 2, the scope of the databases is compared, as well as their differences and similarities in structure, the number of errors, and in the existing user interfaces. In Section 3, calculations of typological similarity and temporal stability of language features based on the data provided by both databases are compared. Finally, conclusions are drawn as to the relative efficiency and usefulness of these databases for different aims of research or educational goals.
«Компьютерная лингвистика и интеллектуальные технологии». Доклады, принятые к публикации на сайте, 2010
Based on the morphological description of Ossetic developed using SIL FieldWorks which has been u... more Based on the morphological description of Ossetic developed using SIL FieldWorks which has been used for creating an online corpus of interlinear texts, the aim of this paper is to discuss the new possibilities which allow to make the process of language documentation and data gathering faster and more productive.
In this talk, I analyze three conjunctions forming causal clauses in Russian: potomu čto, tak kak... more In this talk, I analyze three conjunctions forming causal clauses in Russian: potomu čto, tak kak and poskol’ku ‘because’. Superficially, all of them encode the same causal relation, but there are subtle differences in how they are used. To explain these differences I propose analyzing the semantics of cause in terms of Segmented Discourse Representation Theory (SDRT) (Asher & Lascarides 2003), which augments DRT by introducing rhetorical relations. In SDRT such relations connect not only sequences of independent clauses, but also coordinate clauses (Txurruka 2003), which alows treating the feature «assertive predicate vs. rhetorical relation» as describing the oppositon betwen subordination and coordination, respectively (Belyaev 2014). In other words, in semantic terms coordinating conjunctions link speech acts while subordinating conjunctions link facts, events or propositons.
The diachronic pathways of wh-based subordination is a topic that has been extensively studied in... more The diachronic pathways of wh-based subordination is a topic that has been extensively studied in the recent literature. The most widely accepted hypothesis, elaborated by Heine & Kuteva (2006), assumes a pathway from indirect questions through headless relative clauses. However, this explanation does not work for the grammaticalization of interrogative-based correlative (IBC) clauses such as those found in old Indo-European languages, e.g. Hittite and Latin (Which man you saw, he is my brother). These are explained, since Hahn (1946, 1949) via the use of interrogatives as indefinites in an originally paratactic structure, i.e. You saw some man. He is my brother. However, this explanation meets with difficulties from a typological point of view, as pointed out by Luján (2009): there are apparently no languages where a non-interrogative indefinite marker has grammaticalized as a relative clause marker. Furthermore, the assumption that proto-Indo-European had full interrogative-indefinite ambiguity (Gärtner 2009) is not backed up by enough evidence.
In this talk, we will demonstrate how the indefinite hypothesis can be refined in order to reconcile the typological observations with the data of Indo-European languages. First, we will demonstrate that some kind of paratactic scenario for the emergence of IBC is unavoidable due to the possibility of indirect coreference (“bridging”) between the relative DP and the correlate in old Indo-European, e.g. Hittite. Second, we will defend our central claim: that the diachronic source of IBCs are asyndetic conditional sentences where an interrogative pronoun in the protasis is interpreted as an indefinite. Specifically, we claim that sentences like Who comes, open the door (= ‘If someone/whoever comes, open the door’), widely attested in IE, developed into correlatives via the innovation of an obligatory anaphoric link between the two caluses: Who comes, open the door *(to them). This process is accompanied by the extension of the semantics from universal to definite contexts. Our analysis is backed up by typological data, which confirm a close link between conditionals and IBCs. Furthermore, the diachronic scenario we propose predicts that the universal interpretation of IBCs should be attested in all languages possessing this construction, whereas the definite interpretation should be optional. This prediction appears to be borne out cross-linguistically.
I argue that Superiority Effects in Ossetic are best described as Emergence of the Unmarked in OT... more I argue that Superiority Effects in Ossetic are best described as Emergence of the Unmarked in OT terms: a general ordering constraint that only plays a role in sentences where no independent principle of grammar (e.g. phrase structure, information structure) can determine the appropriate ordering. This is formalized in terms of OT-LFG.
The expansion of correlatives to cover all subordinate clause types has clearly happened in Osset... more The expansion of correlatives to cover all subordinate clause types has clearly happened in Ossetic under the influence of North-West Caucasian languages.
This has happened in spite of important structural differences between Ossetic correlatives and relative clauses
of the type found in Adyghe.
Thus, Ossetic has apparently used a construction that already existed in the language and expanded its function
to cover the same functional range as Adyghe relative clauses.
The rules of person agreement in languages of the Dargwa group (North-East Caucasian) are complex... more The rules of person agreement in languages of the Dargwa group (North-East Caucasian) are complex and based on the relative prominence of the core arguments on the personal and grammatical function hierarchies. The rules are also subject to much cross-dialectal variation. I argue that this variation can best be captured by assuming that the agreement marker specifies the person and number of an m-structure function called TH, which can be identified with either of the core arguments. The choice of agreement controller is determined not by functional annotations, but by four OT constraints: Th-1, Th-2, Th-GF^ and Th-Abs. Thus the same f-structure maps to different c- and m-structure pairs in different Dargwa varieties based on variation in constraint orderings. This allows capturing cross-dialectal variation in a uniform way while providing generalizations about which of the logically possible agreement systems are actually attested.
In this talk, I argue that Ossetic has to be analyzed as a language that has two case categories ... more In this talk, I argue that Ossetic has to be analyzed as a language that has two case categories that are simultaneously realized on nouns: purely morphological case akin to those of languages like Russian or Latin, and phrasal case that is analyzed as a phrase marker, like e.g. in Turkish. This idea is formalized in LFG with Lexical Sharing.
The articulatory interpretation and transcription of lower-vocal-tract sounds in Caucasian langua... more The articulatory interpretation and transcription of lower-vocal-tract sounds in Caucasian languages has long been a source of confusion. The Russian literature, notably by Kibrik and Kodzasov, provides insight into the auditory distinctions in Archi, Agul, and Dargwa, among others. However, the model of vocal tract articulatory function and the experimental techniques available in their time lacked precision in identifying the laryngeal and pharyngeal strictures and movements responsible for laryngeal/pharyngeal sounds. We reinterpret the pharyngeal, epiglottal, and pharyngealized contrasts in Caucasian languages using a model of laryngeal articulation that specifies degrees of laryngeal constriction, vibratory effects, and larynx height parameters. We focus on Archi, Agul, and Dargwa languages Mehweb and Shiri. Phonetic categories in the ear-lier inventories are assigned remapped articulatory definitions. The Russian researchers’ observations of degrees of epiglottis lowering are seen as an indication of the laryngeal articulatory mechanism constricting, with larynx raising, to form constriction.
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Dissertation by Oleg Belyaev
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In this talk, we will demonstrate how the indefinite hypothesis can be refined in order to reconcile the typological observations with the data of Indo-European languages. First, we will demonstrate that some kind of paratactic scenario for the emergence of IBC is unavoidable due to the possibility of indirect coreference (“bridging”) between the relative DP and the correlate in old Indo-European, e.g. Hittite. Second, we will defend our central claim: that the diachronic source of IBCs are asyndetic conditional sentences where an interrogative pronoun in the protasis is interpreted as an indefinite. Specifically, we claim that sentences like Who comes, open the door (= ‘If someone/whoever comes, open the door’), widely attested in IE, developed into correlatives via the innovation of an obligatory anaphoric link between the two caluses: Who comes, open the door *(to them). This process is accompanied by the extension of the semantics from universal to definite contexts. Our analysis is backed up by typological data, which confirm a close link between conditionals and IBCs. Furthermore, the diachronic scenario we propose predicts that the universal interpretation of IBCs should be attested in all languages possessing this construction, whereas the definite interpretation should be optional. This prediction appears to be borne out cross-linguistically.
In this talk, we will demonstrate how the indefinite hypothesis can be refined in order to reconcile the typological observations with the data of Indo-European languages. First, we will demonstrate that some kind of paratactic scenario for the emergence of IBC is unavoidable due to the possibility of indirect coreference (“bridging”) between the relative DP and the correlate in old Indo-European, e.g. Hittite. Second, we will defend our central claim: that the diachronic source of IBCs are asyndetic conditional sentences where an interrogative pronoun in the protasis is interpreted as an indefinite. Specifically, we claim that sentences like Who comes, open the door (= ‘If someone/whoever comes, open the door’), widely attested in IE, developed into correlatives via the innovation of an obligatory anaphoric link between the two caluses: Who comes, open the door *(to them). This process is accompanied by the extension of the semantics from universal to definite contexts. Our analysis is backed up by typological data, which confirm a close link between conditionals and IBCs. Furthermore, the diachronic scenario we propose predicts that the universal interpretation of IBCs should be attested in all languages possessing this construction, whereas the definite interpretation should be optional. This prediction appears to be borne out cross-linguistically.
This has happened in spite of important structural differences between Ossetic correlatives and relative clauses
of the type found in Adyghe.
Thus, Ossetic has apparently used a construction that already existed in the language and expanded its function
to cover the same functional range as Adyghe relative clauses.