The Morphosyntax of Complement-Head Sequences: Clause Structure and Word Order Patterns in Kwa

388 Pages·2003·16.774 MB·English

by  Enoch Oladé Aboh

The Morphosyntax
of Complement-Head Sequences
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The Morphosyntax of
Complement-Head Sequences
Clause Structure and Word Order
Patterns in Kwa
Enoch Olade Aboh
OXFORD
UNIVERSITY PRESS
2004
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Aboh, Enoch Olade.
The Morphosyntax of complement-head sequences:
clause structure and word order patterns in Kwa / Enoch Olade Aboh.
p. cm.
Based on the author's thesis—doctoral (1998, University of Geneva).
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-19-515989-6 (cloth) — ISBN 0-19-515990-X (pbk.)
1. Kwa languages—Syntax. I. Title.
PL8424 .A66 2003
496'.337—dc21 2002072346
246897531
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
To Marc Sessinou and Hope Assiaba
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Preface
This book is based on my 1998 Ph.D. dissertation (Universite de Geneve). It
discusses aspects of the Gbe languages (Kwa) in the light of Kayne's (1994)
universal specifier-head-complement hypothesis. In this respect, the discussion in the
following chapters shows that even in a theory that assumes the directionality
parameter, only an analysis in terms of the specifier-head-complement captures
better the Kwa data. This renders the directionality parameter theoretically
superfluous and undesirable. The discussion on the Kwa languages is therefore
extended to other Niger-Congo (e.g., Mandekan, Kru) and to certain Indo-European
language families (e.g., Germanic, Romance). For instance, a parallel is established
between word order variations in the Gbe and Kwa languages (i.e., the OV vs. VO
asymmetry) and the Germanic SOV languages. In this respect, a fine structure of the
I- and C-systems suggests that word order variations result from the interaction
between movement of the complement (i.e., 'object shift') and movement of the head
(e.g. verb movement). On the other hand, the study of the Gbe nominal sequence and
certain constructions that involve the clausal left edge leads to a clearer parallelism
between D and C as two manifestations of the same system: the left periphery. D
selects for a nominal sequence, that is, an articulated predicative structure that is
void of finiteness, while C selects for a structure that is specified for finiteness.
Most of the conclusions reached in this book would have not been possible
without the help of various linguistic scholars. I'm grateful to Liliane Haegeman and
Luigi Rizzi for making this work possible. I'm also greatly indebted to Houkpati B.
C. Capo, Chris Collins, Rose Marie Dechaine, Cinque Guglielmo, Richard Kayne,
Victor Manfredi, and Anne Zribi-Hertz for encouraging the publication of this book.
My warmest thanks also go to Felix Ameka, Hans den Bensten, Anna Cardinaletti,
James Essegbey, Thierry Etchegoyhen, Eric Haeberli, Severin Kinhou, Christopher
Laenzlinger, Peter Muysken, Nedzad Leko, Genoveva Puskas, Lucienne Rasetti, Ur
Shlonsky, Norval Smith, and Michal Starke. I apologize to any I have forgotten.
I would not have been able to come to Geneva and start my research
program without the help of my sisters and brothers, Jocelyne, Luc, Seth, Ines,
PREFACE
Alvine, Frieda, and Ethel. Thanks also to Da-Silva Urbain for believing in me. I'm
also grateful to Raoul Gomez for helping. Special thanks go to Jean-Claude and
Renee Dauvergne and to Veronique and Cyrille Delaye for providing a home and a
second family away from home.
Needless to say I owe the greatest debt of gratitude to Anne, Aniola, Femi,
and Ore for loving me and opening my eyes to a new and better world, mi do kpe.
Contents
List of Abbreviations xi
1 Introduction 3
1.1 Purpose and organization of the book 3
1.2 Theoretical background 5
2 Outline of the Grammar of Gbe 24
2.1 On the term Gbe 24
2.2 The Gbe cluster 25
2.3 Notes on tones in the syntax of Gbe 27
2.4 Word order and clause structure 30
2.5 More on the SOV versus SVO asymmetry 52
2.6. Conclusion 75
3 The Syntax of Noun Phrases 76
3.1 The Gungbe D-system and the split-D hypothesis 79
3.2 The nominal inflectional domain 90
3.3 DP licensing and snowballing movement 101
3.4 Conclusion 114
Appendix: On the Gungbe 'Fake Postpositions' 115
4 The Syntax of Pronouns 124
4.1 Theoretical background 125
4.2 The Gungbe personal pronouns 129
4.3 Conclusion 151
5 Tense, Aspect, and Mood: The Preverbal Markers 153
5.1 Setting the stage 154
5.2 The Gungbe IP-markers 158
5.3 The Gungbe CP-markers: Conjunction ni and injuncti176 1 7 6