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Into adpositions: New formal perspectives on the structure of the PP and its variation
Edited by Víctor Acedo-Matellán, Theresa Biberauer, Jaume Mateu and Anna Pineda
[Linguistic Variation 21:1] 2021
► pp. 214–246

On the encoding of negation by Source prefixes and the satellite-/verb-framed distinction

Evidence from Latin and Spanish

| Universitat de Girona | Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

This paper deals with Talmy’s (2000) typological distinction between satellite- and verb-framed systems by comparing the expression of negative meaning through Source prefixes in Latin and Spanish complex verbs. In particular, the claim is made that the different scope relations established between the Source prefixes and the verb root in each language are the reflection of their different typological nature. The core proposal is that Latin Source prefixes lexicalize a Path head that defines a phase, whereas the Path head lexicalized by the Spanish Source prefix is not phase-defining. This has consequences on the timing of Spell-Out as well as on the position in which roots are merged, which naturally accounts for the distinct lexicalization patterns shown by these prefixed constructions in both languages. The negative meaning of Source prefixes, in turn, is derived from the context in which they are embedded.

Keywords: satellite-/verb-framed typology, Source prefixes, negative meaning, Path, phase domains
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The use of Source prefixes to encode negation
    • 2.1In Latin
    • 2.2In Spanish
  • 3.Theoretical framework
    • 3.1Nanosyntax
    • 3.2Decomposing path
    • 3.3Decomposing the VP
    • 3.4Assumptions on roots
  • 4.On the satellite-/verb-framed typology: A syntactic approach
  • 5.The analysis
    • 5.1Latin vs. Spanish Source prefixes
    • 5.2Latin verbs of denial
    • 5.3Spanish negative verbs
  • 6.Conclusions
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 24 September 2020
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/lv.00037.gib
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