Jan Casalicchio - Böcker

This book considers the null-subject phenomenon, whereby some languages lack an overtly realized referential subject in specific contexts. In generative syntax-the approach adopted in this volume-the phenomenon has traditionally been explained in terms of a 'pro-drop' parameter with associated cluster properties; more recently, however, it has become clear that pro-drop phenomena do not always correlate with all the initially predicted cluster properties.This volume returns to the centre of the debate surrounding the empirical phenomena associated with null subjects. Experts in the field explore the cluster properties associated with pro-drop; the types of null category involved in null-subject phenomena and their identification; and the typology of null-subject languages, with a special focus on partial null-subject languages. Chapters include both novel empirical data and new theoretical analyses covering the major approaches to null subjects in generative grammar. A wide range of languages are examined, ranging from the most commonly studied in research into null subjects, such as Finnish and Italian, to lesser-studied languages such as Vietnamese and Polish, minority languages such as Cimbrian and Kashubian, and historical varieties such as Old French and Old High German. The research presented also contributes to the understanding of other key syntactic phenomena, such as the nature of control, the role of information structure and semantics in syntax, the mechanisms of language change, and the formalization of language variation.The breadth and depth of the volume will make it a valuable resource not only for generative syntacticians, but also for all those working in the fields of historical linguistics, typology, comparative grammar, semantics, and theoretical and descriptive linguistics more generally.

Il volume raccoglie contributi che hanno come principale tema di ricerca la multiforme realtà linguistica dell’ambiente alpino. Essi indagano fenomeni linguistici di lingue standard e di minoranza appartenenti ai gruppi romanzo e germanico. Il libro si compone di quatto sezioni: modelli teorici, valenza e lessicografia, linguistica delle varietà e multilinguismo e le lingue nel Trentino-Alto Adige. The contributions of this book deal with the diverse linguistic situation of the Alps by focusing on phenomena of standard and minority languages which belong to the Romance and Germanic group. They address four main topics which correspond to the four sections of the book: linguistic theory, valence and lexicography, variety linguistics and multilingualism, and languages in Trentino-South Tyrol.