N-words: in defence of wide scope. A view from Romanian
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Emil Ionescu
Abstract
The paper is an analysis of negative concord (NC) in Romanian, a language with strict NC which instantiates double negation. We argue that in Romanian, N-words in negative utterances are by default universal quantifiers scoping above negation. The wide scope of the universal quantifier with respect to negation is marked by the emphatic intonation of N-words. The correlation between intonation and scope is shown to characterise not only N-words but also regular universal quantifiers. The semantic behaviour of N-words is thus assimilated to a pattern of quantification in which NC is a particular semantic effect of the interaction between negation and universal quantification. This pattern expresses a ‘higher degree of negation’ and the speakers use it to give expressive strength to their negative statements. The approach is briefly discussed in the context of some recent typological research on the realisation of N-words as universal quantifiers. The comparison concludes that N-words as wide scope universal quantifiers illustrate a typological strategy in the realisation of strict NC.
Abstract
The paper is an analysis of negative concord (NC) in Romanian, a language with strict NC which instantiates double negation. We argue that in Romanian, N-words in negative utterances are by default universal quantifiers scoping above negation. The wide scope of the universal quantifier with respect to negation is marked by the emphatic intonation of N-words. The correlation between intonation and scope is shown to characterise not only N-words but also regular universal quantifiers. The semantic behaviour of N-words is thus assimilated to a pattern of quantification in which NC is a particular semantic effect of the interaction between negation and universal quantification. This pattern expresses a ‘higher degree of negation’ and the speakers use it to give expressive strength to their negative statements. The approach is briefly discussed in the context of some recent typological research on the realisation of N-words as universal quantifiers. The comparison concludes that N-words as wide scope universal quantifiers illustrate a typological strategy in the realisation of strict NC.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- Introduction 1
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Section 1: General theoretical issues
- Negative concord: the first 133 years 9
- Negindefinites and negative concord: concepts, terms and analyses 53
- Negative concord and TAM: a new perspective 77
- Non-strict negative concord: a correlate of focus movement? 107
- The universal force of (strict) negative concord 123
- N-words: in defence of wide scope. A view from Romanian 149
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Section 2: Perspectives on variation
- Negative concord in Medieval Greek: lexical asymmetry and the role of correlative negation 175
- What does the linear position of negative concord items tell us about their properties? 207
- Grammar or error? Non-compositional (expletive/paratactic) negation in Dutch sentences with zonder ‘without’ 239
- Two negatives in Tyneside English questions: negative concord or double negation? 269
- Less formal and more rebellious — An experiment on the social meaning of negative concord in American English 303
- Subject index 333
- Language index 337
- Name index 341
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- Introduction 1
-
Section 1: General theoretical issues
- Negative concord: the first 133 years 9
- Negindefinites and negative concord: concepts, terms and analyses 53
- Negative concord and TAM: a new perspective 77
- Non-strict negative concord: a correlate of focus movement? 107
- The universal force of (strict) negative concord 123
- N-words: in defence of wide scope. A view from Romanian 149
-
Section 2: Perspectives on variation
- Negative concord in Medieval Greek: lexical asymmetry and the role of correlative negation 175
- What does the linear position of negative concord items tell us about their properties? 207
- Grammar or error? Non-compositional (expletive/paratactic) negation in Dutch sentences with zonder ‘without’ 239
- Two negatives in Tyneside English questions: negative concord or double negation? 269
- Less formal and more rebellious — An experiment on the social meaning of negative concord in American English 303
- Subject index 333
- Language index 337
- Name index 341
