23. Syntheticity and Analyticity
-
Adam Ledgeway
Abstract
The present chapter critically reconsiders the traditional typological distinction between Latin and Romance in terms of a syntheticity-analyticity opposition, according to which core grammatical categories and distinctions are marked morphologically in Latin but syntactically in Romance. After considering a wide selection of the Romance evidence for innovative analytic structures manifested in the emergence of a series of functional categories lexicalizing various functional heads within the nominal, verbal and clausal domains, a number of empirical and theoretical problems and limitations with this superficial dichotomy are reviewed. These highlight how the observed differences between Latin and Romance cannot be simplistically reduced to a synthetic-analytic opposition. Rather, it is argued that the observed rise of Romance analyticity should be considered an epiphenomenal development, ultimately the manifestation of a deeper change, but not, significantly, its cause, related to a change in the head directionality parameter from head-finality to head-initiality.
Abstract
The present chapter critically reconsiders the traditional typological distinction between Latin and Romance in terms of a syntheticity-analyticity opposition, according to which core grammatical categories and distinctions are marked morphologically in Latin but syntactically in Romance. After considering a wide selection of the Romance evidence for innovative analytic structures manifested in the emergence of a series of functional categories lexicalizing various functional heads within the nominal, verbal and clausal domains, a number of empirical and theoretical problems and limitations with this superficial dichotomy are reviewed. These highlight how the observed differences between Latin and Romance cannot be simplistically reduced to a synthetic-analytic opposition. Rather, it is argued that the observed rise of Romance analyticity should be considered an epiphenomenal development, ultimately the manifestation of a deeper change, but not, significantly, its cause, related to a change in the head directionality parameter from head-finality to head-initiality.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Manuals of Romance Linguistics V
- Table of Contents VII
- Abbreviations XI
- 1. Introduction 1
-
The verbal domain
- 2. Subjects 27
- 3. Objects 89
- 4. Argument structure and argument structure alternations 154
- 5. Clitic pronouns 183
- 6. Voice and voice alternations 230
- 7. Auxiliaries 272
- 8. Causative and perception verbs 299
- 9. Copular and existential constructions 332
-
The clausal and sentential domains
- 10. Infinitival clauses 369
- 11. Tense, aspect, mood 397
- 12. Negation and polarity 449
- 13. Dislocations and framings 472
- 14. Focus Fronting 502
- 15. Cleft constructions 536
- 16. Interrogatives 569
- 17. Exclamatives, imperatives, optatives 603
- 18. Coordination and correlatives 647
-
The nominal domain
- 19. Gender and number 691
- 20. Determination and quantification 727
- 21. Adjectival and genitival modification 771
- 22. Relative clauses 804
-
Typological aspects
- 23. Syntheticity and Analyticity 839
- 24. Basic constituent orders 887
- List of Contributors 933
- Index 941
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Manuals of Romance Linguistics V
- Table of Contents VII
- Abbreviations XI
- 1. Introduction 1
-
The verbal domain
- 2. Subjects 27
- 3. Objects 89
- 4. Argument structure and argument structure alternations 154
- 5. Clitic pronouns 183
- 6. Voice and voice alternations 230
- 7. Auxiliaries 272
- 8. Causative and perception verbs 299
- 9. Copular and existential constructions 332
-
The clausal and sentential domains
- 10. Infinitival clauses 369
- 11. Tense, aspect, mood 397
- 12. Negation and polarity 449
- 13. Dislocations and framings 472
- 14. Focus Fronting 502
- 15. Cleft constructions 536
- 16. Interrogatives 569
- 17. Exclamatives, imperatives, optatives 603
- 18. Coordination and correlatives 647
-
The nominal domain
- 19. Gender and number 691
- 20. Determination and quantification 727
- 21. Adjectival and genitival modification 771
- 22. Relative clauses 804
-
Typological aspects
- 23. Syntheticity and Analyticity 839
- 24. Basic constituent orders 887
- List of Contributors 933
- Index 941
