Complete and defective agreement in Kutchi
We describe and analyze the previously undocumented verbal agreement system of Kutchi (Indo-Aryan). We argue that Kutchi instantiates a novel type of split ergativity. First, it exhibits an aspect split in that agreement in non-perfective clauses behaves on a par with agreement in intransitive perfective clauses, in stark contrast to transitive perfective clauses. A striking property of Kutchi is that these asymmetries manifest themselves in the richness of agreement. In the former configurations, the verb agrees with the subject for person, number and gender. In the latter, on the other hand, agreement is systematically defective and reliable fails to cross-references certain φ-features. In addition to this aspect split, Kutchi displays a person split: While the verb normally agrees with the subject, it surprisingly fails to do so in transitive perfective clauses with a 1st person subject. Instead, it is the object that triggers agreement in these configurations, likewise in a defective manner. We will argue that these agreement asymmetries are syntactic in nature rather than morphological. Our analysis builds on, and extends, previous work by Laka (2006) and Coon (2010).
References (76)
Adger, David & Daniel Harbour
2007 Syntax and syncretisms of the Person Case Constraint.
Syntax 101. 2–37.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Aissen, Judith
1999 Markedness and subject choice in Optimality Theory.
Natural Language and Linguistic Theory 171. 673–711.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Aissen, Judith
2003 Differential object marking: Iconicity vs. economy.
Natural Language and Linguistic Theory 211. 435–483.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Anagnostopoulou, Elena
2003 The syntax of ditransitives: Evidence from clitics. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Arregi, Karlos & Andrew Nevins
2012 Morphotactics: Basque auxiliaries and the structure of Spellout. Dordrecht: Springer.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Béjar, Susana
2003 Phi-syntax: A theory of agreement. University of Toronto dissertation.
Béjar, Susana & Milan Rezac
2009 Cyclic agree.
Linguistic Inquiry 401. 35–73.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bobaljik, Jonathan
1993 Ergativity and ergative unergatives. In
Colin Phillips (ed.),
Papers on case and agreement II,
MIT Working Papers in Linguistics 19, 45–88. Cambridge, MA: MIT, MITWPL.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bobaljik, Jonathan
2002 Syncretism without paradigms: Remarks on Williams 1981, 1994. In
Geert Booij &
Jaap van Marle (eds.),
Yearbook of morphology 2001, 53–85. Dordrecht: Kluwer.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bonet, Eulàlia
1991 Morphology after syntax. Cambridge, MA: MIT dissertation.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bossong, Georg
1985 Differenzielle Objektmarkierung in den neuiranischen Sprachen. Tübingen: Narr.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Brown, Jason, Karsten Koch & Martina Wiltschko
2004 The person hierarchy: Primitive or epiphenomenal? Evidence from Halkomelem Salish. In
Keir Moulton &
Matthew Wolf (eds.),
Proceedings of the 34th Meeting of the North East Linguistic Society (NELS 34), 147–162. Amherst, MA: GLSA.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Butt, Miriam
2005 Theories of case. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Carstens, Vicki
2013 Delayed valuation: A reanalysis of “upward” complementizer agreement and the mechanics of Case, Ms., University of Missouri, to appear in Syntax.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Chomsky, Noam
2000 Minimalist inquiries: The framework. In
Roger Martin,
David Michaels &
Juan Uriagereka (eds.),
Step by step: Essays in syntax in honor of Howard Lasnik, 89–155. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Chomsky, Noam
2001 Derivation by phase. In
Michael Kenstowicz (ed.),
Ken Hale: A life in language, 1–52. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Comrie, Bernard
1979 Definite and animate direct objects: A natural class.
Linguistica silesiana 31. 13–21.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Comrie, Bernard
1984 Reflections on verb agreement in Hindi and related languages.
Linguistics 221. 857–864.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Coon, Jessica
2010 Complementation in Chol (Mayan): A theory of split ergativity. Cambridge, MA: MIT dissertation.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Coon, Jessica
2012 Split ergativity and transitivity in Chol.
Lingua 1221. 241–256.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Coon, Jessica
2013a Aspects of split ergativity. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Coon, Jessica
2013b TAM split ergativity: Part 1.
Language and Linguistics Compass 71. 171–190.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Coon, Jessica & Omer Preminger
2012 Towards a unified account of person splits. In
Jaehoon Choi,
E. Alan Hogue,
Jeffrey Punske,
Deniz Tat,
Jessamyn Schertz &
Alex Trueman (eds.),
Proceedings of the 29th West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics (WCCFL 29), 310–318. Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Press.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Croft, William
1988 Agreement vs. case marking and direct objects. In
Michael Barlow &
Charles Ferguson (eds.),
Agreement in natural language: Approaches, theories, descriptions, 159–179. Stanford, CA: CSLI.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Deo, Ashwini & Devyani Sharma
2006 Typological variation in the ergative morphology of Indo-Aryan languages.
Linguistic Typology 101. 369–418.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dixon, Robert M. W
1972 The Dyirbal language of North Queensland. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dixon, Robert M. W
1979 Ergativity.
Language 551. 59–138.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Dixon, Robert M. W
1994 Ergativity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Embick, David & Rolf Noyer
2001 Movement operations after syntax.
Linguistic Inquiry 321. 555–595.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Embick, David & Rolf Noyer
2007 Distributed Morphology and the syntax/morphology interface. In
Gillian Ramchand &
Charles Reiss (eds.),
The Oxford Handbook of linguistic interfaces, 289–324. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Frampton, John
2002 Syncretism, impoverishment, and the structure of person features. In
Mary Andronis,
Erin Debenport,
Anne Pycha &
Keiko Yoshimura (eds.),
Proceedings of the 38th meeting of the Chicago Linguistic Society (CLS 38), 207–222. Chicago: Chicago Linguistic Society.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Frampton, John & Sam Gutmann
2000 Agreement is feature sharing, Ms., Northeastern University.
Gazdar, Gerald, Ewan Klein, Geoffrey Pullum & Ivan Sag
1985 Generalized phrase structure grammar. Oxford: Blackwell.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Grosz, Patrick & Pritty Patel
2006 Long distance agreement and restructuring predicates in Kutchi Gujarati, Ms., MIT, Cambridge, MA.
Hale, Ken
1972 A new perspective on American Indian linguistics. In
Alfonso Ortiz (ed.),
New perspectives on the Pueblos, 87–103. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Halle, Morris
1997 Distributed morphology: Impoverishment and fission. In
Benjamin Bruening,
Yoonjung Kang &
Martha McGinnis (eds.),
Papers at the Interface,
MIT Working Papers in Linguistics 30, 425–449. Cambridge, MA: MITWPL. Republished 2000 in:
Research in Afroasiatic grammar: Papers from the third Conference on Afroasiatic Languages, eds. Jacqueline Lecarme, Jean Lowenstein & Ur Shlonsky, Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 125–151.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Halle, Morris & Alec Marantz
1993 Distributed Morphology and the pieces of inflection. In
Ken Hale &
Samuel Jay Keyser (eds.),
The view from Building 20: Essays in linguistics in honor of Sylvain Bromberger, 111–176. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Halle, Morris & Alec Marantz
1994 Some key features of Distributed Morphology. In
Andrew Carnie,
Heidi Harley &
Tony Bures (eds.),
Papers on phonology and morphology,
MIT Working Papers in Linguistics 21, 275–288. Cambridge, MA: MITWPL.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Hanson, Rebecca
2000 Pronoun acquisition and the morphological feature geometry. In
Ilana Mezhevich &
Michael Dobrovolsky (eds.),
Calgary working papers in linguistics, 1–14. Calgary: Department of Linguistics.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Harley, Heidi
1994 Hug a tree: Deriving the morphosyntactic feature hierarchy. In
Andrew Carnie &
Heidi Harley (eds.),
Papers on phonology and morphology,
MIT Working Papers in Linguistics 22, 275–288. Cambridge, MA: MITWPL.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Harley, Heidi & Rolf Noyer
2003 Distributed Morphology. In
Lisa Cheng &
Rint Sybesma (eds.),
The second GLOT international state-of-the-article book, 463–496. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Harley, Heidi & Elisabeth Ritter
2002a Person and number in pronouns: A feature-geometric analysis.
Language 781. 482–526.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Harley, Heidi & Elizabeth Ritter
Heck, Fabian & Marc Richards
2010 A probe-goal approach to agreement and non-incorporation restrictions in Southern Tiwa.
Natural Language and Linguistic Theory 281. 681–721.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Hook, Peter
1978 The Hindi compound verb: What it is and what it does. In
Kripa Shanker Singh (ed.),
Readings in Hindi-Urdu linguistics, 129–154. New Delhi: National Publishing House.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Keine, Stefan
2010 Case and agreement from fringe to core: A minimalist approach. Berlin: de Gruyter.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Keine, Stefan & Gereon Müller
2011 Non-zero/non-zero alternations in differential object marking. In
Suzi Lima,
Kevin Mullin &
Brian Smith (eds.),
Proceedings of the 39th North East Linguistic Society (NELS 39), 441–454. Amherst: GLSA.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Laka, Itziar
1993 Unergatives that assign ergative, unaccusatives that assign accusative. In
Jonathan Bobaljik &
Colin Phillips (eds.),
Papers on case and agreement I,
MIT Working Papers in Linguistics 18, 149–172. Cambridge, MA: MIT, MITWPL.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Laka, Itziar
2006 Deriving split-ergativity in the progressive. In
Alana Jones,
Diane Massam &
Juvenal Ndayiradije (eds.),
Ergativity: Emerging issues, 173–196. Dordrecht: Springer.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Lazard, Gilbert
1984 Actance variations and categories of the object. In
Frans Plank (ed.),
Objects: Towards a theory of grammatical relations, 269–292. London: Academic Press.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Legate, Julie Anne
2005 Phases and cyclic agreement. In
Martha McGinnis &
Norvin Richards (eds.),
Perspectives on phases,
MIT Working Papers in Linguistics 49, 147–156. Cambridge, MA: MITWPL.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Li, Chao
2007 Split ergativity and split intransitivity in Nepali.
Lingua 1171. 1462–1482.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Magier, David
1983 Topics in the grammar of Marwari. University of California, Berkeley dissertation.
Mahajan, Anoop
2012 Ergatives, antipassives and the overt light v in Hindi.
Lingua 1221. 204–214.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Marantz, Alec
1991 Case and licensing. In
German Westphal,
Benjamin Ao &
Hee-Rahk Chae (eds.), Proceedings of the 8th Eastern States Conference on Linguistics (ESCOL 8), 234–253. University of Maryland. Reprinted 2000 in:
Arguments and Case: Explaining Burzio’s Generalization, ed. by Eric Reuland, Amsterdam: John Benjamins, pp. 11–30.
Noyer, Rolf
1992 Features, positions, and affixes in autonomous morphological structure. MIT, Cambridge, MA dissertation.
Noyer, Rolf
1997 Features, positions and affixes in autonomous morphological structure. New York: Garland Publishing.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Pandharipande, Rajeshwari
1997 Marathi. London: Routledge.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Pandharipande, Rajeshwari & Yamuna Kachru
1977 Relational grammar, ergativity, and Hindi-Urdu.
Lingua 411. 217–238.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Patel-Grosz, Pritty & Patrick Grosz
Patel-Grosz, Pritty & Patrick Grosz
Pesetsky, David & Esther Torrego
Pollard, Carl J. & Ivan A. Sag
1994 Head-driven phrase structure grammar. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Preminger, Omer
2011 Agreement as a fallible operation. Cambridge, MA: MIT dissertation.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Rezac, Milan
2004 Elements of cyclic syntax: Agree and Merge. University of Toronto dissertation.
Rezac, Milan
2008 The syntax of eccentric agreement: The person case constraint and absolutive displacement in Basque.
Natural Language and Linguistic Theory 261. 61–106.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Richards, Marc
2004 Object shift and scrambling in North and West Germanic: A case study in symmetrical syntax. Cambridge, UK: University of Cambridge dissertation.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Richards, Marc
2008 Quirky expletives. In
Roberta d’Alessandro,
Susann Fischer &
Gunnar H. Hrafnbjargarson (eds.),
Agreement restrictions, 181–213. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Rizzi, Luigi
1990 On the anaphor agreement effect.
Rivista di Linguistica 21. 27–42.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Sigurðsson, Halldór Ármann
Silverstein, Michael
1976 Hierarchy of features and ergativity. In
Robert M. W. Dixon (ed.),
Grammatical categories in Australian languages, 112–171. Canberra: Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wilkins, David
1989 Mparntwe Arrernte (Aranda): Studies in the structure and semantics of grammar. Canberra: Australian National University dissertation.
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wiltschko, Martina
2006 On ‘ergativity’ in Halkomelem Salish. In
Alana Johns,
Diane Massam &
Juvenal Ndayiragije (eds.),
Ergativity: Emerging issues, 197–227. Dordrecht: Springer.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wiltschko, Martina
2008 Person hierarchy effects without a person hierarchy. In
Roberta d’Alessandro,
Susann Fischer &
Gunnar H. Hrafnbjargarson (eds.),
Agreement restrictions, 281–314. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Woolford, Ellen
1999 More on the anaphor agreement effect.
Linguistic Inquiry 301. 257–287.
![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Cited by (1)
Cited by 1 other publications
Yuan, Michelle & Matthew Tyler
2023.
Agreement and the Realization of Arguments. In
The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Morphology,
► pp. 1 ff.
![DOI logo](//benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 8 july 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
Any errors therein should be reported to them.