Some notes on semi-lexical silence in Dutch noun phrases Cover Image

Some notes on semi-lexical silence in Dutch noun phrases
Some notes on semi-lexical silence in Dutch noun phrases

Author(s): Norbert Corver
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies
Published by: Editura Universităţii din Bucureşti
Keywords: silent nouns; silent PERSON; silent TIME; semi-lexicality

Summary/Abstract: In this article, it is argued that the Dutch nominal expression Anna’s in the dialectal Dutch sentence We kwamen Anna’s tegen (We met Anna’s; ‘We met Anna’) is a hidden possessive noun phrase consisting of the proper name Anna and a silent grammatical noun PERSON in the sense of Kayne (2003). A similar analysis will be proposed for a temporal expression like Dinsdags (Tuesday-s; ‘(on) Tuesday’), with the difference that TIME is the silent noun. It is further argued that PERSON and TIME have the characteristics of what Emonds (1985) calls a grammatical (i.e. semi-lexical) noun.

  • Issue Year: 2007
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 43-51
  • Page Count: 8
  • Language: English
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