Elements of complex structures, where recursion isn’t
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Masayoshi Shibatani
Abstract
In their recent work, Hauser, Chomsky and Fitch (2002:1569) suggest that recursion “is the only uniquely human component of the faculty of language”. In both generative and typological studies, the relativization site has been considered to be one of the places where recursion of sentences takes place. This paper examines a number of wide-spread patterns of relativization around the globe and argues that what have been identified as relative clauses/sentences are in fact nominalized entities, lacking some crucial properties of both full clauses and sentences. It is furthermore shown that these nominalized forms are neither syntactically nor semantically subordinate to the nominal head they modify.
Abstract
In their recent work, Hauser, Chomsky and Fitch (2002:1569) suggest that recursion “is the only uniquely human component of the faculty of language”. In both generative and typological studies, the relativization site has been considered to be one of the places where recursion of sentences takes place. This paper examines a number of wide-spread patterns of relativization around the globe and argues that what have been identified as relative clauses/sentences are in fact nominalized entities, lacking some crucial properties of both full clauses and sentences. It is furthermore shown that these nominalized forms are neither syntactically nor semantically subordinate to the nominal head they modify.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
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Part I. Diachrony
- From nominal to clausal morphosyntax 23
- Re(e)volving complexity 53
- Multiple routes to clause union 81
- On the origins of serial verb constructions in Kalam 119
- A quantitative approach to the development of complex predicates 145
- Elements of complex structures, where recursion isn’t 163
- Nominalization and the origin of subordination 199
- The co-evolution of syntactic and pragmatic complexity 215
- Two pathways of grammatical evolution 239
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Part II. Child language
- On the role of frequency and similarity in the acquisition of subject and non-subject relative clauses 251
- ‘ Starting small ’ effects in the acquisition of early relative constructions in Spanish 277
- The ontogeny of complex verb phrases 311
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Part III. Cognition and neurology
- Syntactic complexity versus concatenation in a verbal production task 391
- The emergence of linguistic complexity 405
- Cognitive and neural underpinnings of syntactic complexity 433
- Neural mechanisms of recursive processing in cognitive and linguistic complexity 461
- Syntactic complexity in the brain 491
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Part IV. Biology and evolution
- Neural plasticity 509
- Recursion 531
- Index 545
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. Diachrony
- From nominal to clausal morphosyntax 23
- Re(e)volving complexity 53
- Multiple routes to clause union 81
- On the origins of serial verb constructions in Kalam 119
- A quantitative approach to the development of complex predicates 145
- Elements of complex structures, where recursion isn’t 163
- Nominalization and the origin of subordination 199
- The co-evolution of syntactic and pragmatic complexity 215
- Two pathways of grammatical evolution 239
-
Part II. Child language
- On the role of frequency and similarity in the acquisition of subject and non-subject relative clauses 251
- ‘ Starting small ’ effects in the acquisition of early relative constructions in Spanish 277
- The ontogeny of complex verb phrases 311
-
Part III. Cognition and neurology
- Syntactic complexity versus concatenation in a verbal production task 391
- The emergence of linguistic complexity 405
- Cognitive and neural underpinnings of syntactic complexity 433
- Neural mechanisms of recursive processing in cognitive and linguistic complexity 461
- Syntactic complexity in the brain 491
-
Part IV. Biology and evolution
- Neural plasticity 509
- Recursion 531
- Index 545
