Argument Structure in Flux: The Naples-Capri Papers

587 Pages·2013·3.89 MB·English

by  Elly van Gelderen

Argument Structure in Flux
Studies in Language Companion Series (SLCS)
This series has been established as a companion series to the periodical
Studies in Language.
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Editors
Werner Abraham Elly van Gelderen
University of Vienna / Arizona State University
University of Munich
Editorial Board
Bernard Comrie Christian Lehmann
Max Planck Institute, Leipzig University of Erfurt
and University of California, Santa Barbara
Marianne Mithun
William Croft University of California, Santa Barbara
University of New Mexico
Heiko Narrog
Östen Dahl Tohuku University
University of Stockholm
Johanna L. Wood
Gerrit J. Dimmendaal University of Aarhus
University of Cologne
Debra Ziegeler
Ekkehard König University of Paris III
Free University of Berlin
Volume 131
Argument Structure in Flux. The Naples-Capri Papers
Edited by Elly van Gelderen, Michela Cennamo and Jóhanna Barðdal
Argument Structure in Flux
The Naples-Capri Papers
Edited by
Elly van Gelderen
Arizona State University
Michela Cennamo
University of Naples Federico II
Jóhanna Barðdal
University of Bergen
John Benjamins Publishing Company
Amsterdam / Philadelphia
TM The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
8
the American National Standard for Information Sciences – Permanence
of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ansi z39.48-1984.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Argument Structure in Flux : the Naples-Capri Papers / Edited by Elly Van Gelderen,
Michela Cennamo, Jóhanna Barðdal.
p. cm. (Studies in Language Companion Series, issn 0165-7763 ; v. 131)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Grammar, Comparative and general--Ergative constructions. 2. Grammar,
Comparative and general--Case 3. Grammar, Comparative and general--
Syntax. 4. Generative grammar. I. Gelderen, Elly van, editor of compilation. II.
Cennamo, Michela, editor of compilation. III. Jóhanna Barðdal, 1969- editor of
compilation.
P291.5.A76 2013
415--dc23 2012047024
isbn 978 90 272 0598 8 (Hb ; alk. paper)
isbn 978 90 272 7228 7 (Eb)
© 2013 – John Benjamins B.V.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, photoprint, microfilm, or any
other means, without written permission from the publisher.
John Benjamins Publishing Co. · P.O. Box 36224 · 1020 me Amsterdam · The Netherlands
John Benjamins North America · P.O. Box 27519 · Philadelphia pa 19118-0519 · usa
In memory of our friend, Anna Siewierska

Table of contents
Argument structure in flux 1
Jóhanna Barðdal & Michela Cennamo
part i. Argument structure and encoding strategies
Non-canonical subjects in clauses with noun predicates 15
Marina Benedetti
Differential agent marking in Hinuq 33
Diana Forker
Case variation and case alternation in Indo-European and beyond:
A diachronic typological perspective 53
Leonid Kulikov
Constructional polysemy and argument realisation with the Irish GET verb 87
Brian Nolan
part ii. Argument structure and verb classes
Latin preverbs and verb argument structure: New insights from new methods 119
Barbara McGillivray
Experiencing linking: Psych verbs at the interface 135
Marijana Marelj
Introduce: Encoding a non-prototypical three-participant event across Europe 169
Anna Siewierska & Eva Van Lier
On the relationship between lexical aspect, verbal meaning, and (lexical)
argument structure 201
Gretel De Cuyper
Four Romanian verbs of occurring: The effect of argument structure on verb
meaning and use 231
Daniela Caluianu
part iii. Unexpressed arguments
The pro cycle 257
Jan Terje Faarlund
iii Argument Structure in Flux
Argument promotion and SE-constructions in Brazilian Portuguese 285
Sonia Cyrino
Unaccusativity and the diachrony of null and cognate objects in Greek 307
Nikolaos Lavidas
part i. Split intransitivity
Split intransitivity in Irish and the syntax-semantics interface 345
Aidan Doyle
Semantic constraints on the Latin impersonal passive: On telicity and agentivity 373
Maria Napoli
Auxiliary selection in German: Constructional gradience
with perfect formation 405
Elke Diedrichsen
Tornar and volver: The interplay of frequency and semantics in compound
tense auxiliary selection in Medieval and Classical Spanish 435
Malte Rosemeyer
part . Existential and presentational constructions
Control and the evolution of possessive and existential constructions 461
Denis Creissels
Existential constructions: A semasiological perspective 477
Livio Gaeta
Variation and change in the presentational constructions
of north-western Italo-Romance varieties 511
Mair Parry
Argument realization and existential pro-forms in early Italo-Romance 549
Francesco Maria Ciconte
Author index 567
Language and topic index 573
Argument structure in flux
Jóhanna Barðdal & Michela Cennamo
University of Bergen / University of Naples Federico II
This volume originates in papers given at the conference “Variation and Change in
Argument Realization”, held in Naples and Capri from May 28th to June 2nd, 2010. The
aim of the conference was to explore factors determining the coding and r epresentation
of argument structure from a diachronic and variational perspective (cf. Barðdal &
Chelliah 2009; Cennamo 2009), in particular the complex interplay of semantic, syntactic
and pragmatic factors that determine argument realization within and across languages
(cf. Cennamo 2003; Levin & Rappaport Hovav 2005; Kulikov, M alchukov & de Swart
2006; Bentley 2006; Goldberg 2006; Barðdal 2006, 2008; R amchand 2008; Malchukov &
Spencer 2009; de Hoop & de Swart 2009; von H eusinger & de Hoop 2011; Van Valin
2013, among others).
The consensus view emerging from a large body of synchronic research acknowl-
edges the key roles played by event-based notions such as aspect, e.g. telicity, verbal
semantics, e.g. control and lack thereof, as well as inherent features of argument fillers,
like animacy and definiteness, in determining the mapping from the lexical semantic
to the morphosyntactic planes (cf. Donohue & Barðdal 2011). The existence of non-
event based aspects in the encoding of arguments has also prompted current inves-
tigations of the contribution of the idiosyncratic, the root, and structural facets, the
event-structure templates, and their effects on the meaning of verbs for argument real-
ization, and the principles governing their integration (Rappaport Hovav 2008). Our
aim with the conference, therefore, was to bring together different strands of research
on event and argument structure.
Argument realization and event structure lie at the heart of all current theoretical
models in linguistics, both syntactic models and research within typology. In spite of
that, historical research on these issues is at the minimum. Our aim with the conference
was therefore to provide a platform focusing on the applicability of current theoretical
and methodological models on the concepts of event and argument structure. Our aim
was, in particular, to stimulate and further contribute to research on these models’ abil-
ity to describe and explain actual diachronic changes and variational data from different
domains, such as auxiliary selection, argument marking and linking, grammatical rela-
tions, ditransitive constructions, possessive constructions, existential/p resentational
constructions, intransitive alternations, voice alternations, etc.