To capture categorial neutralizations at the morphological level, a filter-based approach to the Impoverishment of morphosyntactic representations is proposed. Filters are argued to be automatically assumed unless positive evidence suppresses them in the learner. Neutralizations are also shown to occur at three other levels: (1) underspecification of realization rules/affixes, (2) disjunction of affixes competing for a position-of-exponence, and (3) transparency of redundant morphosyntactic values. A hierarchy of features is proposed, which, in the unmarked instance, governs the direction of categorial neutralization and the ordering of affixes and morphological rules, where not determined by syntax or by the principle of descending complexity due to Panini.
The mapping to phonological form is proposed to take place in two phases. In the first phase, morphosyntactic well-formedness is established through the Impoverishment of morphosyntactic features and the Linearization, Rebracketing, Merger (Marantz 1988) and Fusion of syntactic heads, giving a level of constituents termed M0s. In the second phase, the M0 string is mapped to the well-formed morphological word through rules and affixes. Morphological words are shown to display idiosyncratic non-phonological conditions of well-formedness (obligatory or limited positions-of-exponence) which comprise autonomous morphological structure. Particular attention is paid to cases of M0 splitting, where features from a single morphosyntactic source are realized at multiple positions.
Features in input morphosyntactic representations are argued to be discharged through the instantiation of affixes, sometimes at obligatory positions-of-exponence, which are also then discharged. This discharge constitutes spell-out or realization of phonological material. Because both features and positions may be discharged independently, it becomes possible to express disjunctions across position classes, termed here discontinuous bleeding. Further, the Rule-Affix Hypothesis states that rules change phonological material and do not discharge morphosyntactic features; affixes add phonological material and do discharge such features.
The Introduction situates the current proposal within prevailing theories of inflection, Lieber (1980, 1992), Anderson (1981, 1992), and Halle (1989a, 1992). Chapter 1 exemplifies the theory through a detailed analysis of the Afroasiatic prefix-conjugation. Chapter 2 gives an explicit theory of person-number features and their interpretation, in particular the inherent number system of Kiowa-Tanoan. Chapter 3 treats complex multiple argument agreement systems with particular attention to the transitive clitic sequences of Nunggubuyu and Ket.
Thesis Supervisor: Dr. Morris Halle
Title: Institute Professor
Table of Contents
Abstract 2
Acknowledgments 3
Table of Contents 5
INTRODUCTION
0. Prefatory Remarks 8
0.1 Theoretical Assumptions:
Towards a Theory of Morphology after Syntax 14
0.1.1 Well-formedness Conditions on Words 15
0.1.1.1 Halle's 1992 Model 19
0.1.1.2 Strict Lexicalism: Affixes and
Morpholexical Rules 21
0.1.1.3 Paradigm Theories: Rules
Without Affixes 24
0.1.1.4 Disjunctivity and Bleeding:
The Discharge Effect 26
0.1.1.5 Defining the Rule-Affix Distinction 30
0.2 Morphosyntactic Well-formedness 39
0.2.1 Syntactic X0s and the Positions of
Exponence of their Features 40
0.2.1.1 Splitting of M0s 43
0.2.2 Capturing Systematic Neutralizations 44
0.2.2.1 The Feature Alphabet and the
Category Alphabet 45
0.2.2.2 Feature Hierarchies and Feature
Trees 49
0.2.2.2.1 Filters are not Constraints
on the Content of Affixes 55
0.2.2.3 Breaking and Negation 58
0.2.2.4 Enhancement and Feature
Transparency at Morphology 60
0.3 Summary 64
CHAPTER 1: The Afroasiatic Prefix Conjugation and
Discontinuous Bleeding
1.0 Introduction 66
1.1 The Prefix Conjugation Paradigm 67
1.2 Affixes and their Content 68
1.3 The Extended Word-Paradigm Model 70
1.4 Allomorphy vs. Discontinuous Bleeding 76
1.5 Affix-based Models 80
1.6 Abstract Morpheme Models and Word Templates 91
1.7 Qs and their Labels 94
1.8 Qs with Variable Labels: Proposal 100
1.9 Explaining Suffix Allomorphy 105
1.10 Hierarchy among the AGR and T suffixes 113
1.11 Zero Affixes 115
1.12 Historical Reanalysis and Discontinuous Bleeding 116
1.13 The Fate of -uuna and Gender in the Plural 116
1.13.1 Gender in the Plural 117
1.13.2 The Plural Suffix as Specifically
non-1st Person 121
1.14 Loss of a Filter: 1st Person Duals 123
1.15 The y- and t- Prefixes as Defaults 128
1.16 The Loss and Reappearance of t- 'f' in Akkadian 138
1.17 Feature-changing Syncretism 141
1.18 Discontinuous Bleeding in the Berber
prefix conjugation 144
1.18.1 The Prefix Conjugation in Tamazight 145
1.18.2 An Analysis of Tamazight 148
1.18.3 A Word-Paradigm Analysis of Tamazight 149
1.18.4 Dialect Differences within Berber 152
1.18.5 The Extension of /-y/ in
Three Tuareg Dialects 154
1.19 Summary 156
CHAPTER 2: Toward a Theory of Person and Number Features
2.0 Introduction 157
2.1 Person Features 158
2.1.1 Defining the Semantic Question 158
2.1.2 Natural Language Person Syncretisms 160
2.1.3 The Value [+participant] 163
2.1.4 A Universal Hierarchy of Persons? 165
2.1.5 The Putative 'syou' of Algonquian 168
2.1.6 The Person Affixes of Mam 170
2.1.6.1 Emphatic Possessor 174
2.1.6.2 Enclitics in Patient-Agent
Agreement 175
2.1.6.3 Processing and Ambiguity 178
2.1.7 A Hierarchy of Person Feature Filters 181
2.1.8 Two Cases of Person Syncretism 184
2.1.9 On the Markedness of [-participant] 186
2.1.10 Summary 190
2.2 Number Features 191
2.2.0 The Simple Cardinality Features 192
2.2.1 Number and the 1st Person Inclusive 193
2.2.2 Augmentation vs. Nonsingularity 196
2.2.3 Composite Pronouns 198
2.2.4 Functional Inference and Ambiguity 204
2.2.5 Trials and Paucals 205
2.2.6 Inherent Dual and Trial in Nunggubuyu 207
2.2.7 The Person-Number Affixes of
Sierra Popoluca 211
2.2.7.1 The 1st Person Categories 212
2.2.7.2 The Limited Inclusive as Dual 213
2.2.7.3 Predictions of Usage 215
2.3 Inherent Number and Agreement Class in
Kiowa-Tanoan 216
2.3.1 Jemez 216
2.3.2 Kiowa 228
2.3.3 Tiwa and Tewa 237
2.4 Summary 245
CHAPTER 3: Problems in Multiple Argument Agreement
3.0 Introduction 246
3.0.1 The Neutralization Problem 246
3.0.2 Placing 247
3.0.3 Licensing 253
3.0.3.1 Impoverishment and Competition for
Non-obligatory Positions 253
3.1.1 Strict and Free Licensing 256
3.1.2 Strict and Free Placing 261
3.2 Transitive agreement in Nunggubuyu 270
3.2.1 Overview of Categories and
Intransitive Agreement 271
3.2.2 Neutralizations in Transitive Agreement 275
TABLES I-IV and notes 276
3.2.2.1 Object Impoverishment 281
3.2.2.2 Subject Impoverishment 284
3.2.2.3 Gender Impoverishment 286
3.2.2.4 Summary of Neutralizations
in A forms 293
3.2.3 Placing in Nunggubuyu 294
3.2.4 Neutralization and Placing in the
B forms 302
3.2.5 Discussion 308
3.3 Participant Neutralizations in Kiowa-Tanoan
and Iraqw 310
3.4 The Position and Types of Verbal Inflection in Ket 319
3.4.1 The Constituent Structure of the
Verb Word 321
3.4.2 A Preliminary Morphosyntax of the
Ket INFL 329
3.5 Summary 334
Concluding Remarks 335
Bibliography 338
Abbreviations 354