Papers by Adrian Stegovec
Movement in disguise: Morphology as a diagnostic for verb movement in Algonquian
Syntax, Mar 27, 2024
Natural Language and Linguistic Theory, Feb 4, 2019
The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a restriction on co-occurring weak pronominal direct (DO) and... more The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a restriction on co-occurring weak pronominal direct (DO) and indirect objects (IO) that restricts the person value of the DO. This article presents a previously unnoticed variant of the PCC found in Slovenian, where the canonical PCC operates alongside a reverse PCC, where the restriction applies to the IO. This pattern is not predicted by standard syntactic approaches to the PCC (which rely on inherent asymmetries between the IO and DO). It is argued that the PCC (in all its forms) arises with pronouns that are inherently unspecified for a person value and need to receive it externally from a functional head via Agree. The structurally higher pronoun blocks the structurally lower pronoun from receiving a person value, giving rise to the PCC. The reverse PCC then arises due to optional DOover-IO clitic movement prior to person valuation. The proposed analysis is shown to capture cross-linguistic variation regarding the PCC including the Strong/Weak PCC split, which is attributed to a variation in the structure of pronouns. The article also establishes a cross-linguistic typology of the reverse PCC, where the reverse PCC exists exclusively as an optional pattern alongside the baseline PCC pattern. Keywords Agree • clitic movement • deficient pronouns • minimal pronouns • Person-Case Constraint • Slovenian • unvalued interpretable features
Semantics and Linguistic Theory, Oct 23, 2017
This paper argues for a re-evaluation of the common assumption that imperatives cannot appear in ... more This paper argues for a re-evaluation of the common assumption that imperatives cannot appear in (true information seeking) questions. This is challenged based on new data from Slovenian, which show that imperatives can occur in scope marking questions. It is proposed that instead of a categorical exclusion of imperative questions based on clause type, the ban on imperative questions is the result of a matrix clause version of subject obviation. The proposed analysis not only reduces the putative "ban on imperative questions" to another independent phenomenon, but also correctly predicts the behavior of imperatives in scope marking questions.
Not two sides of one coin
Linguistik aktuell, Nov 22, 2016
Acta Linguistica Hungarica, Jun 1, 2012
In this paper we discuss Slovenian ditransitive sentences with respect to the two possible word o... more In this paper we discuss Slovenian ditransitive sentences with respect to the two possible word orders of the objects found with neutral intonation, DAT≫ACC and ACC≫DAT. We follow the idea in the Gračanin-Yuksek (2006) paper on Croatian that these two word orders instantiate different structures. In Slovenian, the DAT≫ACC order has an applicative structure (either high or low), while the ACC≫DAT is a prepositional dative construction. The applicative analysis provides a novel argument for this type of analysis. Other supporting arguments examined are scope properties, binding of possessives, the possibility of the causative reading, non-contrastive focus and heavy NP shift, and properties of idioms.
7 Number in Slovenian
Number in the World's Languages
Proceedings of Sinn und Bedeutung, 2018
This paper deals with topic markers interacting with discourse information in imperatives. It com... more This paper deals with topic markers interacting with discourse information in imperatives. It compares two topic markers from Slovenian ('pa') and Japanese ('-wa') and shows that while they mostly match in terms of the foci they associate with, their functions differ in imperatives: only 'pa' may yield a concessive imperative reading. It is shown that this reading can be derived while keeping a single entry for 'pa' by making attitudes of discourse participants part of the focus 'pa' associates with. The split between Slovenian and Japanese can then be attributed to minor differences in terms of which foci 'pa' and '-wa' may associate with.
Natural Language Semantics, 2019
The paper proposes a new type of control configuration: perspectival control. This involves contr... more The paper proposes a new type of control configuration: perspectival control. This involves control of a non-argument PRO that combines with a directive modal operator in the Mood domain. This PRO encodes the individual to whom the public commitments associated with the modal are anchored, and its presence can be detected in the syntax through a subject obviation effect. The empirical focus of the paper are Slovenian directive clauses (imperatives and subjunctives), but the analysis is shown to have implications for analyses of other languages as well as theories of directive clauses and the representation of discourse related information in the syntax. Keywords control • directives • embedded imperatives • performative modals • perspective • PRO • Slovenian • speech reports • subject obviation • subjunctives 1 All examples are glossed using Leipzig glossing rules. Unmarked number, case, and tense are left out unless relevant; e.g. 1, 2, 3 with no number information refers to first, second, and third person singular. Referential indexes of subjects in pro-prop languages are marked on the verb/auxiliary marked for person. 2 Sometimes also referred to as the disjoint reference effect.
Natural Language & Linguistic Theory, 2019
The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a restriction on co-occurring weak pronominal direct (DO) and... more The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a restriction on co-occurring weak pronominal direct (DO) and indirect objects (IO) that restricts the person value of the DO. This article presents a previously unattested variant of the PCC found in Slovenian, where the canonical PCC operates alongside a REVERSE PCC, where the restriction applies to the IO. This pattern is not predicted by standard syntactic approaches to the PCC (which rely on inherent asymmetries between the IO and DO). It is argued that the PCC (in all its forms) arises with pronouns that are inherently unspecified for a person value and need to receive it externally from a functional head via Agree. The structurally higher pronoun blocks the structurally lower pronoun from receiving a person value, giving rise to the PCC. The REVERSE PCC then arises due to optional DO-over-IO clitic movement prior to person valuation. The proposed analysis is shown to capture cross-linguistic variation regarding the PCC including the STRONG/WEAK PCC split, which is attributed to a variation in the structure of pronouns. The article also establishes a cross-linguistic typology of the REVERSE PCC, where the REVERSE PCC exists exclusively as an optional pattern alongside the baseline PCC pattern. Keywords Agree • clitic movement • deficient pronouns • minimal pronouns • Person-Case Constraint • Slovenian • unvalued interpretable features I thank
Slovenian has been argued to embed imperatives more freely than other languages do. We argue that... more Slovenian has been argued to embed imperatives more freely than other languages do. We argue that the phenomenon is subject to semantic and pragmatic constraints that have been overlooked in the previous literature and that shed light on the semantics of imperatives in general.
Person on the Edge: Lessons from Crosslinguistic Variation in Syntactic Person Restrictions
The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a ban on co-occurrence of different case and person feature c... more The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a ban on co-occurrence of different case and person feature combinations of phonologically weak elements such as clitics, agreement affixes and weak pronouns, which is observed in many languages. In recent literature it has received a number of syntactic treatments in terms of feature-checking. This paper presents a previously unattested PCC pattern from Slovenian, where the freedom in the linear order of clitics gives rise to both standard Weak and Strong PCC patterns as well as “inverse” PCC patterns in which the restrictions on the accusative (DO) and dative (IO) clitic are reverse from the one in the standard PCC patterns. It is shown that the PCC is unrelated to Case assignment, contrary to what most current syntactic accounts assume. To deal with this and a new approach to the PCC is proposed, which based on valuation of person features on clitic and weak pronouns through Agree with a functional head. It as also shown that this approach exte...
The paper proposes a new type of control configuration: perspectival control. This involves contr... more The paper proposes a new type of control configuration: perspectival control. This involves control of a non-argument PRO that combines with a directive modal operator in the Mood domain. This PRO encodes the individual to whom the public commitments associated with the modal are anchored, and its presence can be detected in the syntax through a subject obviation effect. The empirical focus of the paper are Slovenian directive clauses (imperatives and subjunctives), but the analysis is shown to have implications for analyses of other languages as well as theories of directive clauses and the representation of discourse related information in the syntax.
The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a cross-linguistically common condition on co-occuring weak p... more The Person-Case Constraint (PCC) is a cross-linguistically common condition on co-occuring weak pronominal direct objects (DO) and indirect objects (IO) that restricts the person value of the DO. This paper presents a previously unattested variant of the PCC which is found in Slovenian, where the standard PCC operates alongside an INVERSE PCC, where the person restriction applies to the IO. This kind of restriction is not predicted by standard syntactic approaches to the PCC, which are built around inherent asymmetries between the IO and DO. The paper argues that the PCC (in all its forms) arises because clitic/weak pronouns are inherently unspecified for a person value and need to receive one externally from a functional head via Agree. The structurally higher pronoun blocks the structurally lower pronoun from receiving a person value, giving rise to the PCC effect. The difference between the Slovenian and canonical PCC pattern can then be attributed solely to the presence of optio...
Being relatively imperative in Slovenian
Imperatives in relative clauses are crosslinguistically very rare, but occur in Slovenian with bo... more Imperatives in relative clauses are crosslinguistically very rare, but occur in Slovenian with both non-restrictive and restrictive relatives. Interestingly, restrictive imperative relative clauses in Slovenian impose requirements on the contextual settings and on possible relative clause heads that other relative clauses are not subject to. We derive these restrictions by combining independently motivated assumptions about imperatives and relative clauses. Specifically, presuppositions associated with imperatives are predicted to result in infelicity unless the gap in the relative clause is associated with an entity already established in the previous discourse.
Personality Disorders: The PCC and Two Kinds of Clitic Reordering in Slovenian
In many languages, the person value of a pronoun can be restricted when it stands in a particular... more In many languages, the person value of a pronoun can be restricted when it stands in a particular structural configuration with respect to other pronominal arguments. A famous case of this is the PCC: 1 (1) The Person-Case Constraint (PCC): When a clitic/weak indirect object (IO) and direct object (DO) pronoun co-occur, the DO cannot be 1/2P.
This paper deals with topic markers interacting with discourse information in imperatives. It com... more This paper deals with topic markers interacting with discourse information in imperatives. It compares two topic markers from Slovenian (‘pa’) and Japanese (‘-wa’) and shows that while they mostly match in terms of the foci they associate with, their functions differ in imperatives: only ‘pa’ may yield a concessive imperative reading. It is shown that this reading can be derived while keeping a single entry for ‘pa’ by making attitudes of discourse participants part of the focus ‘pa’ associates with. The split between Slovenian and Japanese can then be attributed to minor differences in terms of which foci ‘pa’ and ‘-wa’ may associate with.
This paper suggests that V-C movement can be detected in polysyntetic languages via its morpholog... more This paper suggests that V-C movement can be detected in polysyntetic languages via its morphological correlates. The claim is based partly on the striking parallelism between the contexts where a particular agreement paradigm (Independent Order) can occur in Algonquian languages and the contexts where V-C movement/V2 can occur in Germanic languages, and partly on the morphological properties of the relevant agreement paradigm in Arapaho (Plains Algonquian). We argue that the existence of agreement allomorphy and the partial prosodic independence of agreement proclitics in this paradigm result from V-C movement feeding into C-triggered allomorphy and m-merger of the proclitic. This working paper is available in University of Pennsylvania Working Papers in Linguistics: https://repository.upenn.edu/pwpl/ vol24/iss1/6 Unifying V-C Movement in Algonquian and Germanic: A View from Morphology Ksenia Bogomolets, Paula Fenger and Adrian Stegovec*
Not two sides of one coin
Linguistik Aktuell/Linguistics Today, 2016
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Papers by Adrian Stegovec
where the freedom in the linear order of clitics gives rise to both standard Weak and Strong PCC patterns as well as “inverse” PCC counterparts where the person restriction occurs on the IO clitic. To deal with this a new approach to the PCC is proposed, which based on valuation of person features on clitic and weak pronouns through Agree with a functional head.