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Article published In:
Concentric
Vol. 48:1 (2022) ► pp.70–113

The syntax of nominal modification and complex noun phrases in Siwkolan Amis

| National Taitung University
This work investigates the syntax of nominal modification involving the linker a in Siwkolan Amis, one of the dialects of Amis, an Austronesian language spoken in Taiwan. Based on the two observed types of NP-ellipsis patterns and the formal licensing condition, I argue that Amis displays two types of modification. Modifiers in direct modification are functional heads projecting extended functional projections of NP, whereas those in indirect modification are modifier phrases base-generated at [Spec, ModP]. This distinction adds weight to J. Wu’s (2003) view that relative clauses and description-denoting modifiers marked by -ay are clausal modifiers that have a full-fledged CP structure from a cartographic perspective. Furthermore, I argue that a projects the Modifier Phrase (ModP) and is a modificatory clitic endowed with a [+mod] feature that attaches to a head element moving from a lower head position to form a morphological word. Very much in line with Philip (2012), the proposed analysis suggests that a is endowed with an interpretative profile in marking a modification relation between an extended functional projection (a modifier phrase) and a dependent word (a modified noun) in the nominal domain. Issues involved in dealing with the structure of Amis complex noun phrases are discussed.
Keywords: Amis, modification, NP-ellipsis, linker, formal licensing, cartography
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The empirical base
  • 3.Previous analyses
  • 4.Proposed analysis: Two types of modification
    • 4.1 a as a modificatory clitic
    • 4.2The structure of modification in Amis noun phrases
    • 4.3Implications for the grammaticalization of a
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • List of abbreviations
  • References
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Published online: 2 May 2022
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https://doi.org/10.1075/consl.21014.jhe
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