This chapter explores the ‘acceptability’ and ‘interpretation’ of referential null subjects in Romanian in different syntactic conditions and distinct clause types (matrix clauses, embedded under bridge verbs, embedded under factive verbs and adverbial clauses). Based on the results of an… read more
This study focuses on the association between postverbal Focus subjects and the realization of left/right topicalization in the same sentence. Based on data collected with Italian children aged 3 to 9, evidence is provided for the existence of significant associations between VS, Topics and verb… read more
In this paper we carry out an interface investigation of subject islands in Italian and Spanish, in which subextraction in the form of focus fronting is connected with the type of Focus implemented by the subextracted PP (Corrective vs. Mirative) and the D-properties of the subextraction site.… read more
This paper proposes a comparative investigation of clefts in German and Italian. Assuming a specificational copular analysis, the properties of clefts in these languages are argued to rely on independent properties of relative clauses and nominal predicates. The major morpho-syntactic (a)symmetries… read more
This paper proposes an interface approach to (pseudo)cleft constructions, in which their semantic, syntactic, discourse and intonational properties are examined in a cross-linguistic perspective. Following most influential studies, the relevant constructions are analyzed as specificational copular… read more
This paper is concerned with the interpretation of markedness at the interfaces. Special attention is given to the analysis of (specific types of) Topic constituents, aimed to show the feature-compositional nature of discourse categories. In particular, the notion of contrast is addressed, showing… read more
The correspondence between grammatical and prosodic boundaries is widely acknowledged in the literature and a number of recent works have studied the syntax–prosody interface and its relation to information structure. In this line of analysis, this paper presents the results of a pioneering… read more
In this paper a novel approach is proposed for a particular type of cleft-like construction in Somali, the waxaa sentence, in which wax is a scope marker. As such, it operates a function choice in the alternative set overtly expressed in the embedded clause, which serves as a semantic restrictor.… read more
Based on interface evidence, this paper shows that the interpretation of discourse categories relies on syntactic conditions. Specifically, the existence of a systematic connection between formal properties and discourse functions shows that Topics are licensed in dedicated positions in the… read more