Julia Pozas Loyo, El artículo indefinido. Origen y gramaticalización, El Colegio de México, México 2016; 304 pp.

Guevara, Ana Aguilar

doi:10.24201/nrfh.v67i2.3534

Cited by 1 publication

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“…Building on observations in previous work (Buenrostro et al 1989, García Pablo and Domingo Pascual 2007), I argue that noun classifiers are best analyzed as weak definite determiners in the sense of Schwarz 2009: they contribute a uniqueness presupposition. I further argue that the distribution of Chuj noun classifiers offers important insight into the growing literature that establishes a distinction between weak and strong definites (Schwarz 2009, Aguilar-Guevara et al 2019). As we will see, this distinction in Chuj is clearly achieved compositionally, rather than being lexically encoded in separate determiners, as proposed in Schwarz 2009, Arkoh and Matthewson 2013, and Jenks 2018.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 84%

Decomposing definiteness: Evidence from Chuj

Royer

2022

Can. J. Linguist.

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This article explores the realization of definiteness in Chuj, an underdocumented Mayan language. I show that Chuj provides support for recent theories that distinguish between weak and strong definite descriptions (e.g., Schwarz 2009, 2013; Arkoh and Matthewson 2013; Hanink 2018; Jenks 2018). A set of morphemes called “noun classifiers” contribute a uniqueness presupposition, composing directly with nominals to form weak definites. To form strong definites, I show that two pieces are required: (i) the noun classifier, which again contributes a uniqueness presupposition, and (ii) extra morphology that contributes an anaphoricity presupposition. Chuj strong definites thus provide explicit evidence for a decompositional account of weak and strong definites, as also advocated in Hanink 2018. I then extend this analysis to third person pronouns, which are realized in Chuj with bare classifiers, and which I propose come in two guises depending on their use. On the one hand, based on previous work (Postal 1966, Cooper 1979, Heim 1990), I argue that classifier pronouns can sometimes be E-type pronouns: weak definite determiners which combine with a covert index-introducing predicate. In such cases, classifier pronouns represent a strong definite description. On the other hand, I argue, based on diagnostics established in Bi and Jenks 2019, that Chuj classifier pronouns sometimes arise as a result of NP ellipsis (Elbourne 2001, 2005). In such cases, classifier pronouns reflect a weak definite description.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 84%

Decomposing definiteness: Evidence from Chuj

Royer

2022

Can. J. Linguist.

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Julia Pozas Loyo, El artículo indefinido. Origen y gramaticalización, El Colegio de México, México 2016; 304 pp.

Cited by 1 publication

References 2 publications

Decomposing definiteness: Evidence from Chuj

Decomposing definiteness: Evidence from Chuj

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