ISSUES IN THE STRUCTURE OF ARABIC CLAUSES AND WORDS Studies in Natural Language and Linguistic Theory VOLUME 29 Managing Editors Joan Maling, Brandeis University James McCloskey, University of California, Santa Cruz Ian Roberts, University of Wales, Bangor Editorial Board Guglielmo Cinque, University of Venice Jane Grimshaw, Brandeis University Michael Kenstowicz, M l T, Cambridge Hilda Koopman, University of California, Los Angeles Howard Lasnik, University of Connecticut at Storrs Alec Marantz, M.l.T., Cambridge John J. McCarthy, University of Massachusetts, Amherst The titles published in this series are listed at the end of this volume. ABDELKADER FASSI FERRI Department ofA rabic Linguistics and Literature, Mohamed V University, Rabat, Morocco ISSUES IN THE STRUCTURE OF ARABIC CLAUSES AND WORDS SPRINGER-SCIENCE+BUSINESS MEDIA, B.V. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Fass1 Fehr1, Abdelkader. Issues 1n the structure of Arable clauses and words I Abdelkader Fass 1 Fehr1. p. em.-- IStud1es 1n natural language and l1ngu1stlc theory v. 29) Includes lndex. ISBN 978-90-481-4228-6 ISBN 978-94-017-1986-5 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-1986-5 1. Arable language--Grammar, Generat1ve. 2. Government-blnding theory IL1ngu1Stlcs) I. T1tle. II. Ser1es. PJ6303.F25 1993 492 ·. 75--dc20 92-41379 ISBN 978-90-481-4228-6 Printed on acid-free paper All Rights Reserved © 1993 Springer Science+ Business Media Dordrecht Originally published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in 1993 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1993 No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright owner. TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE XI TRANSCRIPTION Xlll CHAPTER I I PRINCIPLES, PARAMETERS, AND MODULES 1.1. UG and Parametrization 1.2. The model 3 1.3. X' theory 4 1.4. Arguments and thematic theory 6 1.5. The Case module 7 1.6. Government and structural relations 8 1.7. Binding 10 1.8. Predication 11 1.9. The movement module 11 1.1 0. Morphology 12 Notes 15 CHAPTER 2 I WORD ORDER, AGREEMENT, AND CASE 16 2.1. Verb and Subject movements in Arabic clauses 19 2.1.1. VSO and V-to-I raising 19 2.1.1.1. Basic VSO 19 2.1.1.2. Configurational asymmetries 23 2.1.1.3. Against V raising to C 26 2.1.2. Subject raising and SVO structures 27 2.1.2.1. Referential properties of topics and subjects 28 2.1.2.2. Distributional properties of subjects and topics 30 2.1.2.3. Subject raising 31 2.2. Agreement 34 2.2.1. Regulating AGR configurations 34 2.2.2. Poor agreement 38 2.2.2.1. On the inadequacy of the expletive hypothesis 38 2.2.2.2. Licensing (postverbal) agreement (under)- specification 42 2.3. Cases of subjects 45 2.3.1. Accessible and non-accessible subjects 45 2.3.1.1. SVO and nominal sentences 45 2.3.1.2. VSO and VOS 47 v VI TABLE OF CONTENTS 2.3.2. Protectors and Minimality 47 2.3.3. Nominal AGR 49 2.3.3.1. Nominative 49 2.3.3.2. ECM structures 50 2.3.3.3. Auxiliary structures 51 2.4. Further consequences and discussions 53 2.4.1. Expletive licensing and EPP 53 2.4.1.1. Basic distributions and forms 55 2.4.1.2. Contexts with no expletives 59 2.4.2. Giving content to VS and SV typology 62 2.4.3. Extraction 64 2.4.3.1. Extraction over preverbal subjects 64 2.4.3.2. [That t] Filter revisited 66 2.4.4. Extensions to the Wh system 67 2.4.4.1. Some descriptive background 67 2.4.4.2. Deriving the doubly filled Comp Filter 68 2.4.5. Further motivation for V raising 68 2.4.5.1. Against subject adjunction 69 2.4.5.2. Additional tests for V raising 71 2.5. Summary and conclusion 75 Appendix 1 Forming Arabic words 76 1. An apparent argument for lexicalism 76 2. Bracketing in the Arabic word 77 3. Forms of Arabic X" syntactic categories 78 4. A general model of word formation 79 5. !-Categories and their order 82 Notes to Appendix 1 85 Appendix 2 Inflection in Nominal sentences 87 1. Tense 87 2. AGR 88 Notes to Appendix 2 89 Notes 89 CHAPTER 3 I PRONOUNS, INCORPORATION, AND FEATURE SPECIFICATION 96 3.1. Interface between pronominal and agreement systems 97 3.1.1. On the existence of bound pronominal forms 98 3.1.2. INCA 102 3.1.3. Nominative alternations and INCA 106 3.1.4. INFLA 109 3.1.5. Complementary distribution revisited Ill 3.1.6. On 'pronominal' agreement 113 3.2. Functional ambiguity and specification in the grammar 116 3.2.1. Functional ambiguity of free forms 117 TABLE OF CONTENTS vn 3.2.1.1. Personal pronouns and copulas 117 3.2.1.2. Expletives 118 3.2.2. Ambiguity of bound forms and pronoun ingredients 120 3.2.3. The Pronominal AGR Parameter 124 3.2.4. Specification and feature hierarchy 125 3.2.4.1. Feature hierarchy 125 3.2.4.2. A consequence for poor agreement 126 3.3. Further consequences and discussions 127 3.3.1. Is there an AGRO in Arabic? 127 3.3.2. Two reasons to incorporate nominative affixes 130 3.3.2.1. Subject agreement distribution 130 3.3.2.2. On AGRS licensing 132 3.3.3. Further extensions of INCA 133 3.4. Summary and conclusion 135 Notes 136 CHAPTER 4 TEMPORAL, ASPECTUAL, AND MODAL CATEGORIES 141 4.1. Tense puzzles and their solutions 142 4.1.1. Preliminary temporal and aspectual distinctions I 42 4.1.1.1. Aspect 142 4.1.1.2. Tense 144 4.1.2. Ingredients of the Arabic temporal system 145 4.1.2.1. Tense contrasts 145 4.1.2.2. 'Aspectual' oppositions 147 4.1.2.3. Anchoring complex tenses 149 4.1.3. Mood distinctions and Modality 150 4.1.4. Statives and the expression of tense 152 4.1.5. Copula visibilty 155 4.2. Bi-inflectional structures and negative constructions I 56 4.2.1. On bi-inflectional structures of clauses 156 4.2.1.1. Auxiliary structures 157 4.2.1.2. Modals 159 4.2.1.3. An INFL Split analysis? 160 4.2.1.4. Further uses and (under)specification 161 4.2.2. Neg constructions I 62 4.2.2.1. A typology of Neg markers I 63 4.2.2.2. Distributional and selectional properties 166 4.2.3. Further properties and interactions 170 4.2.3.1. Anteriority 170 4.2.3.2. Modality and illocutionary force 171 4.2.3.3. Modals and Tense 174 4.3. Participles, adjectives, and verbs 175 4.3.1. Types and prototypes of adjectives and participles 176 viii TABLE OF CONTENTS 4.3.2. Aspectual distinctions 178 4.3.3. Tense distinctions 181 4.3.4. Encoding contingency 184 4.3.5. Categorial properties 186 4.4. Further discussions and consequences 190 4.4.1. Finiteness 191 4.4.2. Participles and adjectives revisited 194 4.4.2.1. Thematic and aspectual preservation 194 4.4.2.2. Partitive Case 198 4.4.2.3. APs as stative categories 201 4.5. Summary and conclusion. 203 Notes 204 CHAPTER 5 I INFLECTIONAL PROJECTIONS IN NOUN PHRASES 213 5.1. N and NP raising in the D system 215 5.1.1. A preliminary DP analysis 215 5.1.2. Complementarity distributions in noun phrases 216 5.1.3. The possessor role 220 5.1.4. Genitive marking 220 5.1.5. Extraction, mutual licensing, and scrambling 222 5.1.6. Agreement in Definiteness parametrized 225 5.1.7. Possessor's extraction 226 5.1.8. Deriving the variation 227 5.1.9. Agreement typology 231 5.2. Ma~dars and their formation 232 5 .2.1. Characteristic properties 233 5.2.2. Thematic properties of affixation 235 5.2.3. Level of category conversion and Genitive 239 5.2.4. Accusative and the Poss role 240 5.2.5. Genitive objects 242 5.2.6. Pronominal possessives 245 5.3. The prepositional strategy and analytic genitives 246 5.3.1. Arabic 247 5.3.2. Romance 251 5.3.3. Extraction 253 5.4. Subject nominals and the Projection Principle 257 5.4.1. Subject nominals 258 5.4.1.1. Categorial properties 258 5 .4.1.2. Thematic and selectional properties 260 5.4.2. The Projection Principle revisited 266 5.5. Consequences and extensions 269 5.5.1. Agreement and Case checking 270 TABLE OF CONTENTS ix 5.5.2. Case checking vs. Case assignment and Case realization 271 5.5.3. Specificity requirement on Genitives 272 5.5.4. Possessor and nunation 273 5.6. Conclusion 274 Notes 274 CONCLUSION 281 BIBLIOGRAPHY 284 INDEX OF NAMES 297 ANALYTIC INDEX 301