Grammatical Relations: Theoretical Approaches to Empirical Questions

Each paper in this collection provides theoretical solutions to empirically-based problems. Some papers deal with structures which are perennial favourites. Others deal with morphosyntactic issues including the representation of ergativity, mood, case, agreement, and polysynthesis. Some contributors diverge from straightforward relational accounts to use linking or mapping devices or specifier positions to represent the interface of morphology and syntax. The included data is from languages as diverse as Abkhaz, Bantu, Basque, Cheyenne, Dutch, Eskimo, French, Fula, Georgian, Italian, Halkomelem, Jakaltek, Japanese, Kwa, Malagasy, Potawatomi, Russian, Southern Tiwa, Spanish, Tagalog, Telugu, Wakashan, and Yimas. The data is derived from original fieldwork of the contributors. Thus the volume makes an empirical, as well as a theoretical contribution to linguistic research.