Publication details
ABA patterns and “unnatural” classes in syncretism
| Authors | |
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| Year of publication | 2026 |
| Type | Requested lectures |
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| Description | The talk explores recalcitrant patterns of syncretism from the perspective of Nanosyntax. My goal is to show that these patterns can be derived by a version of the theory that uses subextractions in its lexicalization algorithm. The empirical discussion will focus on Latin and Czech declensions. In Latin neuter declensions, some paradigms have an -s in NOM/ACC and others have -m. Baerman (2004) argued that the competition of -s and -m in the masculine declension (where -s appears in the nominative and -m in the accusative) is "impossible" to capture using a notion of natural class. A similar "unnatural" distribution of case markers exists within the Czech declension, where (simplifying) -ě is found in LOC/DAT of the feminine declension, -u is found in LOC/DAT of the masculine declension, but neuters combine the two in a way that -ě is in LOC and -u in DAT. In Czech, the issue is further complicated by the fact that -u may also be found in the genitive of some paradigms that have -ě in LOC and -u in DAT, yielding an ABA pattern. |
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