Note: This is the paperback edition of a previously announced book.

Develops the innovative argument that affixation constitutes a means of satisfying the universal requirement that linguistic expressions be linearized. Brings to light a range of new empirical data which is of central relevance to current debates on the nature of head movement. Presents Nuu-chah-nulth affixation as proof-of-concept for the hypothesis that syntax is ‘spelled out’ to phonology in strictly minimal syntactic domains. Develops a Minimalist approach to the linearization of affixal predicates in Nuu-chah-nulth.

The linearization of syntactic constructs stands at the forefront of current research on the syntax-phonology interface. This book examines the problem of linearization from a new perspective: that of the linearization of affixes.

The driving proposition of the book is that affixation provides a means of satisfying the universal requirement to linearize linguistic outputs. This proposition is tested using original data from Nuu-chah-nulth ("Nootka"; Wakashan family), an endangered Amerindian language that is remarkable for its complex morphology. The author develops a minimalist approach to the linearization of affixal predicates and presents Nuu-chah-nulth affixation as proof-of-concept for the hypothesis that syntax is "spelled out" to phonology in strictly minimal syntactic domains.

This volume introduces typologically rare affixation effects into current theoretical debates surrounding the division of labor among the modules of grammar. It also brings to light new empirical data that is central to current debates on the nature of head movement.