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Non-finite constructions in Khanty: their unity and diversity

  • Daria Bikina ORCID logo EMAIL logo , Denis Rakhman ORCID logo , Vsevolod Potseluev , Aleksey Starchenko ORCID logo and Svetlana Toldova ORCID logo
Published/Copyright: October 31, 2022
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Abstract

This paper investigates non-finite forms in Kazym Khanty (Ob-Ugric, Uralic). In Khanty, almost all subordination makes use of one of the two non-finite forms: -ti (nfin.npst) or -əm (nfin.pst). We propose that their uses are best treated under the headings ‘bare non-finites, ‘head-agreement non-finites’, and ‘verb-agreement non-finites’. The three classes are defined based on the subject agreement pattern used in non-finite constructions. Different syntactic tests, such as interaction with argument alternations, island effects, and adverbial modification, are used to show the morphosyntactic nature of the classification. The three classes differ in the amount of functional structure they involve: bare non-finites can vary from vP to TP, head-agreement non-finites are of AspP–TP size, and verb-agreement non-finites are CPs dominated by a nominal shell. The findings support both Givón’s Binding Hierarchy and the Implicational Complementation Hierarchy proposed by Wurmbrand and Lohninger, showing that both are also true for languages where all the subordination is done by means of a single form. We also discuss the Khanty data in light of Cristofaro’s Subordination Deranking Hierarchy and argue that the amount of functional structure does not correlate with the degree of deranking/balancing of the embedded clause.


Corresponding author: Daria Bikina, Department of Linguistics, Harvard University, Boylston Hall, 3rd Floor, 02138 Cambridge, MA, USA, E-mail:

Acknowledgments

This work presents the results of the project ‘Interface phenomena in grammar of languages of Russia: a formal approach’, carried out within the framework of the Basic Research Program at the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE University) in 2022. We are grateful to our Khanty consultants from the Kazym village, especially to Aleksey Randymov, for their help. We also thank Susi Wurmbrand, Hayley Ross, and the three anonymous reviewers of this paper for their insightful comments.

  1. Research funding: This work was supported by National Research University Higher School of Economics.

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Received: 2020-10-08
Accepted: 2021-12-14
Published Online: 2022-10-31
Published in Print: 2022-11-25

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