
This Volume Offers Theoretical And Descriptive Perspectives On The Issues Pertaining To Ergativity, A Grammatical Patterning Whereby Direct Objects Are In Some Way Treated Like Intransitive Subjects, To The Exclusion Of Transitive Subjects. This Pattern Differs Markedly From Nominative/accusative Marking Whereby Transitive And Intransitive Subjects Are Treated As One Grammatical Class, To The Exclusion Of Direct Objects. While Ergativity Is Sometimes Referred To As A Typological Characteristic Of Languages, Research On The Phenomenon Has Shown That Languages Do Not Fall Clearly Into One Category Or The Other And That Ergative Characteristics Are Not Consistent Across Languages. Chapters In This Volume Look At Approaches To Ergativity Within Generative, Typological, And Functional Paradigms, As Well As Approaches To The Core Morphosyntactic Building Blocks Of An Ergative Construction; Related Constructions Such As The Anti-passive; Related Properties Such As Split Ergativity And Word Order; And Extensions And Permutations Of Ergativity, Including Nominalizations And Voice Systems. The Volume Also Includes Results From Experimental Investigations Of Ergativity, A Relatively New Area Of Research. A Wide Variety Of Languages Are Represented, Both In The Theoretical Chapters And In The 16 Case Studies That Are More Descriptive In Nature, Attesting To Both The Pervasiveness And Diversity Of Ergative Patterns.
This volume investigates the complex grammatical phenomenon of ergativity, questioning how and why languages categorize transitive and intransitive subjects differently. The editors, Jessica Coon, Lisa deMena Travis, and Diane Massam, compile contributions from leading linguists to synthesize theoretical and descriptive perspectives. The text evaluates how ergative patterns challenge traditional nominative-accusative frameworks and explores the lack of consistency in ergative characteristics across global language families.
What You Will Find
Scope Limits
Experts identify this volume as a comprehensive reference for researchers and graduate students specializing in syntax and typology. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which serves as a rigorous resource for those already familiar with formal linguistic theory.
Page Count:
960
Publication Date:
2017-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0191059773
ISBN-13:
9780191059773
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