1. Syntax 3 Ling400

2. Long-distance relations WH “movement”WH “movement” –A wh-expression (what, who, etc.) is often found in the “wrong place” and is related to another position within the same sentence. –Our theory explains this fact in terms of a “movement transformation.”

3. WH movement S NP Mary VP Vt eaten NP what Aux has

4. WH movement S What Aux has NP Mary VP Vt eaten NP [what] Aux [has]

5. Subj.-Aux. inversion John can eat fish. John can eat what? *John can eat fish what ? *John will disappear what? John will disappear. auxiliary verbs are generated between the subject NP and the main verb.auxiliary verbs are generated between the subject NP and the main verb. subj and aux then switch positions in wh- questions.subj and aux then switch positions in wh- questions.

6. Wh-movement+Subj-Aux inversion S WH What Aux has NP Mary VP V eaten NP [what] Aux [has]

7. Subj-Aux inversion in yes-no questions John can come to the party. Can John come to the party? Bill will get married next month. Will Bill get married next month? John studies mathematics. *Studies John mathematics? Does John study mathematics? [Don’t worry about this one.]

8. Embedded questions What happens in embedded questions?What happens in embedded questions? John knows what Bill can eat. *John knows what can Bill eat. *John knows Bill can eat what. Wh-movement occursWh-movement occurs Subj.-Aux. Inversion does not occur.Subj.-Aux. Inversion does not occur.

9. WH questions in other languages Not all languages move wh-words in wh-questions.Not all languages move wh-words in wh-questions. Examples: Chinese, Japanese, and many others.Examples: Chinese, Japanese, and many others.

10. WH questions in Chinese Ni shenme shihou qu yinyue hui?Ni shenme shihou qu yinyue hui? you what timego to music meetingyou what timego to music meeting ‘When will you go to the concert?’‘When will you go to the concert?’ Ni cong nali lai?Ni cong nali lai? you from wherecomeyou from wherecome ‘Where do you come from?’‘Where do you come from?’

11. WH questions in Chinese Tamen zuotian wanshang chi shenme le?Tamen zuotian wanshang chi shenme le? they yesterday night eat what asp-mkthey yesterday night eat what asp-mk ‘What did they eat last night?‘What did they eat last night? Women zenme zuo jiaozi?Women zenme zuo jiaozi? wehow make dumplingwehow make dumpling ‘How do we make dumplings?’‘How do we make dumplings?’

12. WH questions in Chinese Ta wei shenme ku le?Ta wei shenme ku le? she for what cry asp-mkshe for what cry asp-mk ‘Why did she cry?’‘Why did she cry?’ Ni shi shei?Ni shi shei? you are whoyou are who ‘Who are you?’‘Who are you?’

13. The Organization of Grammar Lexicon (finite)Lexicon (finite) Phrase structure rules (finite)Phrase structure rules (finite) Transformations (finite — very, very small in number)Transformations (finite — very, very small in number) This system is capable of generating an infinite number of sentences.This system is capable of generating an infinite number of sentences.

14. Word Order Typology English: English:They ate an apple(SVO) Russian: Russian:Oni yabloko syeli (SOV) (SOV)they apple ate Turkish: Turkish:Onlar elma yediler (SOV) (SOV)they apple ate

16. Word Order Typology SOV -Russian, Turkish, Basque, Burmese, Japanese, Hindi, Korean, Quechua, Guugu Ymidhirr, Aleut, German (?) SVO -English, Spanish, Italian, French, Latin, Chinese VSO - VSO -Irish, Welsh, Berber, Hebrew, Maori, Maasai VOS - VOS -Malagasy OVS - OVS -Amazon Basin OSV - OSV -???

17. Case Marking Typology SOV -Russian, Turkish, Basque, Burmese, Japanese, Hindi, Korean, Quechua, Guugu Ymidhirr, Aleut, German (?) SVO -English, Spanish, Italian, French, Latin, Chinese VSO - VSO -Irish, Welsh, Berber, Hebrew, Maori, Maasai VOS - VOS -Malagasy OVS - OVS -Amazon Basin OSV - OSV -???

18. Typology re Case-Marking Nominative-accusative languages (e.g. English, Japanese)Nominative-accusative languages (e.g. English, Japanese) The subject of a transitive verb and the subject of an intransitive verb receive the same case marker (nominative). Ergative-absolutive languages (e.g. Basque)Ergative-absolutive languages (e.g. Basque) The object of a transitive verb and the subject of an intransitive verb receive the same case (absolutive).

19. Typology re Case-Marking She hit him. He arrived.She hit him. He arrived. [nom] [acc] [nom] BasqueBasque Aita ethorri du. father came ‘My father came.’ [absolutive] Ni-k aita maite du. I father love [ergative] [absolutive] ‘I love my father’

20. WH questions [advanced] WH words ask questions in simple sentences, but can also ask questions in complex sentences — implying “long distance relations/dependencies”.WH words ask questions in simple sentences, but can also ask questions in complex sentences — implying “long distance relations/dependencies”. What did Bill say that Mary saw ___?What did Bill say that Mary saw ___? Where did Bill say that Tom took Mary __?Where did Bill say that Tom took Mary __? Who did Bill say that Tom claimed that Helen spoke to ___?Who did Bill say that Tom claimed that Helen spoke to ___?

22. WH and syntactic mysteries The boy that I spoke to at noon said he bought a book yesterday at the bookstore.The boy that I spoke to at noon said he bought a book yesterday at the bookstore. When did the boy say he bought the book?When did the boy say he bought the book? --At noon--At noon --Yesterday--Yesterday The question word when can be extracted from the main or embedded sentenceThe question word when can be extracted from the main or embedded sentence

23. WH and syntactic mysteries When did the boy say where he bought the book?When did the boy say where he bought the book? --At noon--At noon --*Yesterday--*Yesterday The question word when can only be associated with the main clause (= sentence), not the embedded sentenceThe question word when can only be associated with the main clause (= sentence), not the embedded sentence

24. WH and syntactic mysteries What is the difference between the two questions?What is the difference between the two questions? –When did the boy say ___ he bought the book ___? –When did the boy say ___ where he bought the book ___? The second sentence has a WH word at the left edge of the embedded SThe second sentence has a WH word at the left edge of the embedded S