Endocentric Structuring of Projection-free Syntax

Endocentric Structuring of Projection-free Syntax puts forward a novel theory of syntax that rigidly adheres to the principle of Minimal Computation, in which a number of traditional but extraneous stipulations such as referential indices and representational labels/projections are eliminated. It specifically articulates the overarching hypothesis that every syntactic object is composed by recursive, phase-by-phase embedding of the endocentric structure {H, α}, where H is a head lexical item and α is another syntactic object (order irrelevant). The proposed mechanism achieves both theory-internal simplicity and broad empirical coverage at the same time, advancing a radically reduced conception of endocentricty/headedness while deriving a number of empirically grounded constraints on human language.

Cedric Boeckx, ICREA/Universitat de Barcelona:
Endocentric Structuring of Projection-free Syntax is an example of theoretical syntax at its best. Narita pushes the limits of our understanding of labeling and merge, shedding light on core aspects of the human language faculty. This book demonstrates the power of minimalist considerations.