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    Syntax X Bar

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    Jervàcio Chambal
    X-bar theory proposes that all phrases and sentences in languages have a consistent syntactic structure that can be represented by hierarchical diagrams. It was developed in generative grammar and posits that languages have similar underlying principles and rules that generate grammatically correct sentences. Noam Chomsky and Ray Jackendoff are considered the founders of X-bar theory, which represents syntactic relationships between words using labels like specifier, complement, and adjunct.

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    Syntax X Bar

    Uploaded by

    Jervàcio Chambal
    795 views3 pages
    X-bar theory proposes that all phrases and sentences in languages have a consistent syntactic structure that can be represented by hierarchical diagrams. It was developed in generative grammar and posits that languages have similar underlying principles and rules that generate grammatically correct sentences. Noam Chomsky and Ray Jackendoff are considered the founders of X-bar theory, which represents syntactic relationships between words using labels like specifier, complement, and adjunct.

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    X-bar theory proposes that all phrases and sentences in languages have a consistent syntactic structure that can be represented by hierarchical diagrams. It was developed in generative grammar and posits that languages have similar underlying principles and rules that generate grammatically correct sentences. Noam Chomsky and Ray Jackendoff are considered the founders of X-bar theory, which represents syntactic relationships between words using labels like specifier, complement, and adjunct.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    795 views3 pages

    Syntax X Bar

    Uploaded by

    Jervàcio Chambal
    X-bar theory proposes that all phrases and sentences in languages have a consistent syntactic structure that can be represented by hierarchical diagrams. It was developed in generative grammar and posits that languages have similar underlying principles and rules that generate grammatically correct sentences. Noam Chomsky and Ray Jackendoff are considered the founders of X-bar theory, which represents syntactic relationships between words using labels like specifier, complement, and adjunct.

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    X-bar theory 

    (= X-bar syntax) is a linguistic postulate according to which all phrases


    and sentences in languages are structured according to a certain (syntactic) model; this
    model can be made explicit through a linguistic analysis and consequently can be
    depicted graphically with the help of strictly hierarchical diagrams.

    The X-bar theory was developed within generative (transformational) grammar. Its
    “generative” character is shown in that 1) all grammatically correct phrases or
    sentences are assumed to be structured according to certain principles (rules) and
    2) all languages are assumed to have similar basic principles or rules.

    Chomsky (1970) and Jackendoff (1977) are considered to be the founders of the X-bar
    theory.

    Below is an example (see the end of the post for the explanations) of a phrase
    analyzed with the help of the X-bar theory.

    X-bar theory conventions (terminology, abbreviations, and symbols/labelling):

     X is the head (hence, X-bar) – the core of the whole syntactic structure. The


    letter X is substituted with what is appropriate in a given case (e.g. N for a noun +
    see below);
     comp = complement – a word or several words which are necessary to the
    head to complete its meaning: direct object (e.g. read books), indirect object (e.g.
    smile at friends);
     adjt = adjunct – a word or several words which modify the head, but do not
    make a sentence ungrammatical if they are removed from it: an adjective (e.g.
    wise, yellow), an adverb (e.g. kindly, quickly), a prepositional phrase (e.g. a
    spoon of wood);
     spec = specifier – a word or several words which qualify/determine/specify
    the head: articles (e.g.  a book, thebook), possessive determiners (e.g. myhouse),
    demonstrative determiners (e.g. this student, that professor, thosegentlemen),
    quantifiers (e.g. everywinter, some assignments), intensifiers
    (e.g. very interesting, quiteserious);
     XP = X-phrase = X-double-bar = X-bar-bar =  = X” = X2 – the maximal
    projection (i.e. the topmost node) of a head X;
     XB = X-bar – the general term for any of the intermediate projections derived
    from X (e.g. VB is an intermediate projection of V).

    HEADS:
    A = adverb (e.g. quickly, kindly);
    C = conjunction (e.g. and, but);
    D = determiner (e.g. a, the, my, everywinter);
    I = auxiliary verb (e.g. has been reading);
    J = adjective (e.g. beautiful, yellow);
    N = noun or a nominal (e.g. I, Tom, table);
    P = preposition (e.g. on, in);
    V = verb (e.g. go, live).

    Example explained:
    “they” is a NP – a maximal projection of a nominal head (pronoun “they”). It is the
    specifier of the VP;
    “cooked” is the head of the VP, which is a projection of it;
    “the cabbage” is a NP – a maximal projection of a nominal head (noun “cabbage”). It
    is the complement of the VP and, thus, constitutes a VB;
    “the” is a D, – a maximal projection of a determiner head (article “the”). It is the
    specifier of the NP, which is inside the VB;
    “yesterday” is an AP – a maximal projection of an adverbial head (adverb
    “yesterday”). It is the adjunct of the VP and, thus, constitutes a VB;
    VP, NP, DP, AP – maximal projections;
    VB and NB – intermediate projections.

    References
    Chomsky, N. (1970). Remarks on nominalization. In R. A. Jacobs and P. S.
    Rosenbaum (eds), Readings in English transformational grammar (pp. 170–221).
    Waltham, MA: Ginn and Company.
    Jackendoff, R. (1977). Constraints on phrase structure rules. In P. W. Culicover, T.
    Wasow, and A. Akmajian (eds), Formal syntax (pp. 249–283). New York: Academic
    Press.
    — (1977). X-bar syntax: a study of phrase structure. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

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