Aspects of Walpiri Morphology and Syntax

J. Simpson, 1983

for $29.95 x

I present a fragment of Walpiri grammar, within the framework of Lexical-Functional Grammar (LFG), focusing on the morphological and syntactic representation of the relations between arguments and argument-taking predicates.  In Chapter 2, I discuss the assignment of grammatical functions to arguments within finite clauses headed by verbs or nominals.  I argue for a rule which assigns grammatical functions freely to the daughters of S.  This rule is the source of free word-order in Walpiri.  I also argue for a rule allowing an argument-taking predicate to introduce a null pronominal for any grammatical function which is linked to an argument of that predicate.  This rule is the source of zero anaphora in Walpiri.

Chapter 3 shows that case-suffixes have two main uses: to indicate that a nominal bears a particular grammatical function, such as SUBJECT, or that it is an attribute of another argument, and to act as an argument-taking predicate analogous to an English preposition.  To preserve the Lexical Integrity Hypothesis, this last use requires the assignment of grammatical functions within the morphology, as part of the word-building process.  I show that this assignment allows an account of the unusual phenomenon of double case-marking.

Chapters 4 and 5 treat the use of nominals as secondary predicates.  The existence of discontinuous nominal expressions marked with the same case-suffix is shown to follow from independently needed rules.  I claim that nominal secondary predicates are normally independent adjuncts, rather than subcategorizing arguments, as in English.  A striking illustration of this is provided by the great freedom resultative attributes in Walpiri have, compared with their English counterparts.

In Chapter 6, I examine the use of nominalized verbs, action nominals, and complementizer suffixes as secondary predicates.  Such clauses have full nominal SUBJECTs which bear case, suggesting that they must be anaphorically controlled.  I show that the properties of complementizer suffixes can be represented in the same way as the properties of case-suffixes, with the exception that complementizer suffixes specify the grammatical function of their controllers.  I present a classification of Walpiri complementizer suffixes in terms of their controllers and their tense properties, including a discussion of clauses with controlled OBJECTs.

Thesis supervisor:         Kenneth Locke Hale

Title:                             Ferrari P. Ward Professor of Linguistics

Table of Contents

1          Introductory Chapter                                                                                        18

            1.1       Introduction                                                                                          18

            1.2       Events and participants                                                             21

            1.3       The model                                                                                            32

                        1.3.1    An LFG account of grammatical functions                                 34

                                    1.3.1.1 Constraints                                                                   45

                                    1.3.1.2 Complements and adjuncts                                           52

                                    1.3.1.3 Summary of grammatical functions                                 64

                        1.3.2    The lexicon                                                                               65

                        1.3.3    Morphological expression                                                         72

                        1.3.4    Constituent-structure expression                                                79

                                    1.3.4.1 Categorial features                                                        80

                                    1.3.4.2 Phrase-structure rules                                                   83

            1.4       Outline

2          Simple sentences                                                                                              88

            2.1       Introduction                                                                                          88

            2.2       An intransitive sentence                                                             90

                        2.2.1    Categorial information                                                   92

                        2.2.2    Morphological information                                                        103

                        2.2.3    Semantic information                                                                 106

                        2.2.4    Assigning other functions                                                           109

                        2.2.5    Building an f-structure                                                   111

                        2.2.6    Constraints on f-structures                                                        114

                                    2.2.6.1 General constraints on f-structures                                 115

                                    2.2.6.2 Particular constraints on f-structures                              122

                        2.2.7    Summary of principles and constraints                           124

                        2.2.8    Introduction of PRO                                                                 125

                                    2.2.8.1 Clitic-doubling                                                  135

            2.3       Transitive sentences                                                                              139

                        2.3.1    Other transitives                                                                        148

                                    2.3.1.1 The ABSOLUTIVE-DATIVE case-frame                    149

                                    2.3.1.2 The ERGATIVE-DATIVE verbs                                  158

                                    2.3.1.3 Summary                                                                      168

                                    2.3.1.4 Ditransitive verbs                                                          168

                        2.3.2    Other DATIVEs                                                                       170

                                    2.3.2.1 Adjunct DATIVEs                                                        171

                                    2.3.2.2 Unregistered DATIVEs                                                179

                        2.3.3    Reflexives                                                                                 182

                        2.3.4    Summary of pronominal clitics                                       189

                                    2.3.4.1 Paradigmatic gaps                                                         195

            2.4       Nominal-headed sentences                                                                   203

                        2.4.1    General properties                                                                    203

                        2.4.2    Comparison with verb-headed sentences                                   208

            2.5       Phrase structure                                                                                    214

                        2.5.1    Projection of N                                                             215

                        2.5.2    Projection of V                                                             219

3          Case                                                                                                                227

            3.1       Introduction                                                                                          227

            3.2       Users of case in Walpiri                                                                        230

                        3.2.1    Argument-relaters                                                                     231

                        3.2.2    Argument-taking predicates                                                      232

                        3.2.3    Arguments and attributes                                                           234

                                    3.2.3.1 Nominalized verbs                                                        236

                                    3.2.3.2 Case suffixes                                                                236

            3.3       Case as a concord marker                                                                    238

                        3.3.1    Case on adverbs                                                                       242

                        3.3.2    Concord of ADJUNCTS                                                          248

            3.4       Case as argument-taking predicate                                                        253

                        3.4.1    XCOMP                                                                                  253

                        3.4.2    Matrix predicates                                                                      260

                        3.4.3    ADJUNCTS                                                                            263

                                    3.4.3.1 Sentential ADJUNCTs                                     263

                                    3.4.3.2 Argument ADJUNCTs                                     264

            3.5       Representation of case-marked nominals                                               265

                        3.5.1    Solution                                                                                    273

                        3.5.2    Double case-marking                                                                284

                                    3.5.2.1 ERGATIVE                                                                 294

                                    3.5.2.2 DATIVE                                                                      297

                                    3.5.2.3 ABSOLUTIVE                                                            299

                        3.5.3    Summary of case representation                                                301

            3.6       Derivational case                                                                                  301

4          Discontinuous expressions                                                                                 310

            4.1       Introduction                                                                                          310

            4.2       Adjuncts within N"                                                                                316

                        4.2.1    ADJUNCTS within AGR nominals                                           316

                        4.2.2    ADJUNCTs within ATP nominals                                             320

                                    4.2.2.1 Derivational case-suffixes                                              330

                                    4.2.2.2 LOCATIVE                                                                 341

                                    4.2.2.3 Double case-marking and concord                                342

                        4.2.3    Summary                                                                                  346

            4.3       Discontinuous expressions                                                                     347

                        4.3.1    Discontinuous expressions with AGR case                                 347

                                    4.3.1.1 The unmerged interpretation                                          348

                                    4.3.1.2 The merged interpretation                                             350

                        4.3.2    Discontinuous expressions with ATP case-suffixes                     355

                                    4.3.2.1 ATP nominals as merged attributes                                361

            4.4       Summary                                                                                              362

5          Nominal predicates                                                                                           364

            5.1       Introduction                                                                                          364

            5.2       Phrase structure position                                                                       367

                        5.2.1    Phrase structure position and XCOMPs in English                     367

                        5.2.2    Phrase structure position and ADJUNCTs                                369

                        5.2.3    Position and ADJUNCTs in Walpiri                                          377

                                    5.2.3.1 Apposition in Walpiri                                                    377

                                    5.2.3.2 Circumstantials in Walpiri                                              380

                                    5.2.3.3 Other interpretations                                                     382

                        5.2.4    Summary                                                                                  391

            5.3       Category                                                                                              392

            5.4       The lexicon                                                                                           396

                        5.4.1    Classes of English verbs selecting XCOMPs                             397

                        5.4.2    XCOMPs in Warlpiri                                                                398

                                    5.4.2.1 Copula and XCOMP constructions                               402

                        5.4.3    XCOMP-adding rules                                                              410

                                    5.4.3.1 Depictive-type adjuncts                                                411

                        5.4.4    Resultatives                                                                              418

                                    5.4.4.1 Translative                                                                    420

            5.5       Conclusion

6          Nominalized verbs and complementizer suffixes                                     426

            6.1       Introduction                                                                                          426

            6.2       Evidence for anaphoric control                                                  428

                        6.2.1    Introduction                                                                              428

                        6.2.2    Anaphors and disjoint reference                                                429

                                    6.2.2.1 Kariyinyanu                                                                  429

                                    6.2.2.2 The case of PRO                                                          434

                                    6.2.2.3 Functions of non-finite clauses                           438

            6.3       Structure of the nominalized verb                                                           446

                        6.3.1    External structure                                                                      446

                        6.3.2    Internal structure                                                                       447

                                    6.3.2.1 Arguments for non-finite verbs as nominals                    447

            6.4       Complementizer suffix structures                                                           452

                        6.4.1    OBLIQUEtheta nominal + karra                                     453

                        6.4.2    Action nominl +karra                                                               455

                        6.4.3    Nominalized verb + karra                                                        458

            6.5       The complementizer suffixes                                                                  464

                        6.5.1    An account of anaphoric control                                                465

                                    6.5.1.1 Dependent tense                                                           467

            6.6       Overview of complementizer suffixes                                         478

                        6.6.1    Simultaneous action obviation system                            479

                                    6.6.1.1 Non-finite clauses with overt SUBJECTs: rlarni            485

                        6.6.2    Subsequent action suffixes                                                         489

                        6.6.3    Circumstantial suffixes                                                   495

                        6.6.4    Derivational suffixes                                                                  498

                        6.6.5    Case-suffixes                                                                            510

                        6.6.6    Multiple ADJUNCTs                                                                516