LINGUIST List 21.4927 Mon Dec 06 2010 Diss: Syntax: Dukova-Zheleva: 'Questions and Focus in Bulgarian' Editor for this issue: Mfon Udoinyang <mfonlinguistlist.org> To post to LINGUIST, use our convenient web form at http://linguistlist.org/LL/posttolinguist.cfm. Directory         1.     Galina Dukova-Zheleva , Questions and Focus in Bulgarian Message 1: Questions and Focus in Bulgarian Date: 06-Dec-2010 From: Galina Dukova-Zheleva <dukova.zhelevagmail.com> Subject: Questions and Focus in Bulgarian E-mail this message to a friend Institution: University of Ottawa Program: Department of Linguistics Dissertation Status: Completed Degree Date: 2010 Author: Galina Dukova-Zheleva Dissertation Title: Questions and Focus in Bulgarian Linguistic Field(s): Syntax Subject Language(s): Bulgarian (bul) Dissertation Director(s): María Luisa Rivero Dissertation Abstract: This dissertation proposes a unified approach to the study of interrogatives in Bulgarian based on experimental data on wh- and yes/no interrogatives and on the semantic analysis of polar questions. It investigates the hierarchy of wh-words, the syntactic structure of interrogatives, the semantics of polar questions and the connection between focus and questions in general. The experimental part of this dissertation reports on two grammaticality judgment tasks. It is argued that (a) wh-movement is an instance of focus movement; (b) only the highest animate element is further raised to SpecCP; and (c) in addition to Superiority, an animacy-based hierarchy is critical in wh-ordering in Bulgarian. The experimental data adds a new dimension to the ongoing debate concerning the types of functional categories required in the left edge of the clause, suggesting that in Bulgarian there is a need for at least two syntactic projections related to wh-movement of non-d-linked wh-elements, Focus Phrase and Complementizer Phrase. The semantic part of the dissertation is dedicated to the interpretation of polar interrogatives in Bulgarian and their close relation to focus. I assume that the interrogative particle 'li' heads the clause-internal focus projection, whereas the interrogative word 'dali' is a true interrogative complementizer. Thus, dali-questions parallel English polar interrogatives, whereas li-questions are focus-dependent and their interpretation is always related to the contextually restricted set of alternatives evoked by focus. Two types of question operators are proposed. First, dali is equivalent to the silent question operator Q in English. Second, li is a focus-dependent question operator (QF) which combines with the contextually-restricted set of alternatives. This dissertation brings new evidence confirming the long discussed connection between interrogative words and focus. In constituent questions, this relation is reflected in that wh-words move to SpecFocP. In polar questions, the effect of focus is manifested in their focus-dependent semantics. This work shows that there is an important parallel between polar and constituent questions, and that focus-sensitive operators, particles, and adverbs function similarly across different languages. Thus, this dissertation argues in favour of the possibility that focus-dependency is a general property of interrogatives in Universal Grammar. Read more issues|LINGUIST home page|Top of issue Page Updated: 06-Dec-2010       About LINGUIST    |   Contact Us       While the LINGUIST List makes every effort to ensure the linguistic relevance of sites listed on its pages, it cannot vouch for their contents.