LINGUIST List 14.3033

Fri Nov 7 2003

Diss: Syntax: Werkmann: 'Object Clitics...'

Editor for this issue: Takako Matsui <takolinguistlist.org>

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  • janewa, Object Clitics in Bulgarian

    Message 1: Object Clitics in Bulgarian

     Date: Fri, 7 Nov 2003 09:47:20 -0500 (EST)
    From: janewa <janewarz.uni-leipzig.de>
    Subject: Object Clitics in Bulgarian


    Institution: Leipzig University Program: General Linguistics Dissertation Status: Completed Degree Date: 2002

    Author: Valja Werkmann

    Dissertation Title: Object Clitics in Bulgarian

    Linguistic Field: Syntax Subject Language: Bulgarian (code: BLG)

    Dissertation Director 1: Anita Steube Dissertation Director 2: Gerhild Zybatow Dissertation Director 3: Ruselina Nicolova

    Dissertation Abstract:

    [Thesis written in German; original title 'Objektklitika im Bulgarischen'; published 2003 by Studia Grammatica, Berlin] The dissertation describes Bulgarian object clitics within Chomskyan linguistics. The topic of investigation are the syntactic and phonological properties of the object clitics, the morphosyntactic configurations, in which they appear and their semantic and information structural interpretation.

    This work claims that Bulgarian object clitics are specific referential items, which are merged in the argument position of the verb. With respect to the integration of the object clitics into the DP-structure, it assumes a special functional level in the extended nominal projection. The hypothesis is that the object clitic is base-generated as the head of a Referentia l Phrase (RP). In this manner the object clitic heads its own projection an d takes the DP as its complement.

    This constellation allows the three possible occurrences of objects in Bulgarian to be derived by the same underlying structure. When the clitic appears alone, the DP will not project; when the DP functions as the object of the verb, the additional functional projection RP will not project. When the DP is accompanied by a co-referential object clitic, the whole RP (clitic-DP complex) enter the syntactic component.

    It is argued in this work that the clitic pronouns in Bulgarian undergo movement. The clitics enter the syntactic component as the arguments of the verb. Because of their feature specification as [-focus] they are subject to movement. At the surface they appear in the background. Their feature specification as verbal clitics forces their cliticization on the finite verb. The object clitics are placed above the VP by requirements of information structure, which are due of their status as unaccented entities that are marked for non-focality. By clitic doubling the feature [-focus] of the clitic is transmitted to the doubled DP. This feature triggers raising of the DP from the focus domain to the left where the background material of the se ntence is usually found.

    An important advantage of this analysis is that it proves a straightforward account of the thematic problem. That is, the clitic and its double form a constituent and they are thus jointly assigned a single theta-role from the verb. This analysis consistently characterizes all three options for the syntactic realization of objects in Bulgarian, namely when the DP functions as the object of the verb; when the clitic substitute the DP and when the object is clitic-doubled. Furthermore, it reflects the specific information structural contribution of the clitic pronoun in these constructions.