Morphology - LING 21000: Instructor: Laura Stigliano

Announcements Review Person & Number
Morphology - LING 21000
Instructor: Laura Stigliano

The University of Chicago
October 19, 2020
Instructor: Laura Stigliano (UChicago) Morphology - LING 21000 October 19, 2020 1 / 19
Announcements
Changes in the Syllabus (see the new version on Canvas)

Wednesday: Person & Number (Bobaljik 2008)
For Ling majors – Sapir Scholars
Plan for today:

- Finish Embick (2015) - Chapter 4 (except Section 4.6)
- Start with Inflectional features (Person & Number)
(- Practice - Section 4.6 from Embick 2015)
Recap
- Vocabulary Insertion: the mechanism responsible for

supplying phonological information to terminal nodes
- Vocabulary Items: [αβγ] ↔ /X/

- Contextual allomorphy is the phenomenon in which a
functional morpheme doesn’t have a unique exponent,
but two or more contextually conditioned exponents
Vocabulary Items
The Vocabulary Items must be augmented so that the non-defaults

(those with the -t and -∅ exponents) apply only in the context of
some verbs, and not across the board.
(1) Vocabulary Items

√ √
a. T[+past] ↔ -t/{ Bend, Leave, ...}
√ √
b. T[+past] ↔ -∅/{ Hit, Quit, ...}
c. T[+past] ↔ -ed
→ where the notation /X means in the context of X.
VIs are ordered in terms of specificity
The Subset Principle
(2) Subset Principle: The phonological exponent of a Vocabulary

Item is inserted into a position if the item matches all or a
subset of the features specified in the terminal
morpheme. Insertion does not take place if the Vocabulary
Item contains features not present in the morpheme. Where
several Vocabulary Items meet the conditions for insertion,
the item matching the greatest number of features
specified in the terminal morpheme must be chosen.
(Halle 1997)
Blocking?
Why is *leav-ed ungrammatical?
What insures that we do not see both of the past tense exponents -t
and -ed, as in *lef-t-ed? Or two -t exponents, as in *lef-t-t, or three
-ed exponents, as in *play-ed-ed-ed, and so on?
√ √
√ √
b. T[+past] ↔ -∅/{ Hit, Quit, ...}
c. T[+past] ↔ -ed
(4)
v T[+past]
√ v
Leave
Blocking?
Why is *leav-ed ungrammatical?
What insures that we do not see both of the past tense exponents -t
and -ed, as in *lef-t-ed? Or two -t exponents, as in *lef-t-t, or three
-ed exponents, as in *play-ed-ed-ed, and so on?
√ √
√ √
b. T[+past] ↔ -∅/{ Hit, Quit, ...}
c. T[+past] ↔ -ed
(4)
v T[+past]
√ v
Leave
→ competition for insertion

Blocking?
The Vocabulary
√ Item with -t wins over the one with -ed in the
context of Leave.
(5) Uniqueness: In a derivation, only one Vocabulary Item may

apply to a morpheme.
(6) Terminal Insertion: Insertion targets only morphemes
(terminal nodes).
It is not the case that one word ‘blocks’ another word: left does not
block *bended. The ungrammatical forms –in this example, those
with ‘incorrect’ allomorphs of T[past] like *bend-ed– are never
generated or considered in the derivation of bent.
Person & Number
Person and Number

How many persons are there?
Person and Number

(7) Daga pronouns Traditional three-value person

sg pl systems: [1], [2], [3]
1 ne nu (+ number distinctions)
2 ge e [1sg], [2sg], [3sg], [1pl], [2pl], [3pl]
3 me mu
Person and Number

(7) Daga pronouns Traditional three-value person

sg pl systems: [1], [2], [3]
1 ne nu (+ number distinctions)
2 ge e [1sg], [2sg], [3sg], [1pl], [2pl], [3pl]
3 me mu
(8) Ojibwa pronouns How do we account for a four-way

sg pl contrast with only 3 ‘values’?
1ex niin niinawint
1in * kiinawint
2 kiin kiinawaa
3 wiin wiinawaa
Are there five-way distinctions? What about 6 or 7-way distinctions?

Imaginable persons
Let’s suppose there are three person features (i.e. [1], [2], [3]) that
can be combined, we could have, in principle,
Imaginable persons
can be combined, we could have, in principle, seven distinctions
Imaginable persons
can be combined, we could have, in principle, seven distinctions,
independent of other features:
(9) Imaginable persons
1 speaker(s) only
2 hearer(s) only
3 other(s) only
1+2 speaker(s) and hearer(s); no ‘others’
1+3 speaker(s) and others; hearer excluded
2+3 hearer(s) and others; speaker excluded
1+2+3 speaker(2); hearer(s) and other(s)
→ this means that we should be able to find up to seven-way
distinctions in human languages
Possible persons
Despite the logical possibility of a seven-way contrast, certain distinctions
are never morphologized → the maximal attested contrast is the four-way
contrast (e.g. Ojibwa) (many languages show even less, e.g. English)
→ Language Universal
claim that’s absolute, exceptionless (not a statistically significant trend)
Possible persons
Despite the logical possibility of a seven-way contrast, certain distinctions
are never morphologized → the maximal attested contrast is the four-way
contrast (e.g. Ojibwa) (many languages show even less, e.g. English)
→ Language Universal
claim that’s absolute, exceptionless (not a statistically significant trend)
Attested vs. Imaginable person inventories
3-person inventory Maximal partition 4-person inventory
(Daga, English, etc.) inventory (unattested) (Ojibwa, Ilocano, etc.)
(general) first 1 first exclusive
1+3
1+2+3 first inclusive
1+2
second 2 second
2+3
third 3 third
Universals in person inventories

1+3
1+2
second 2 second
2+3
third 3 third
Universal 1: No chorus ‘we’ (1 = 1+3)

No language distinguishes between a group containing only the speaker(s)
and a group containing only the speaker(s) and other(s).

1+3
1+2
second 2 second
2+3
third 3 third

Universal 2: No exclusive ‘you’ (2 = 2+3)
No language distinguishes between a group containing only the hearer(s)
and a group containing only the hearer(s) and other(s).

1+3
1+2
second 2 second
2+3
third 3 third

Universal 2: No exclusive ‘you’ (2 = 2+3)
No language distinguishes between a group containing only the hearer(s)
and a group containing only the hearer(s) and other(s).
Universal 2: No comprehensive ‘we’ (1+2 = 1+2+3)
No language distinguishes between a group containing the speaker(s) and
the hearer(s) and a group containing the speaker(s), the hearer(s) and
other(s).
For Wednesday
Read Bobaljik (2008) - Sections 1 & 2
Practice
A fragment from Latin

Three tenses for Latin laudāre:
present imperfect perfect
1s laudō laudābam laudāvī
2s laudās laudābās laudāvistī
3s laudat laudābat laudāvit
1p laudāmus laudābāmus laudāvimus
2p laudātis laudābātis laudāvistis
3p laudant laudābant laudāvērunt
What synsem features and morphemes do we need?


- Tense: present vs. past: [± past]
- Aspect: imperfect vs perfect: [± perfect] (also, [perfect])
- Agreement: person (1, 2, 3) and number (sg vs. pl): [1], [2], [3], [± pl]
- Theme vowel (i.e. conjugation): exponent of v
What’s the order of morphemes?


- Tense: present vs. past: [± past]
- Aspect: imperfect vs perfect: [± perfect] (also, [perfect])
- Agreement: person (1, 2, 3) and number (sg vs. pl): [1], [2], [3], [± pl]
- Theme vowel (i.e. conjugation): exponent of v
√
What’s the order of morphemes? Root-v-(Asp)-T-Agr
(10) Exponents of v, Asp, and T

a. v:

a. v: -ā

a. v: -ā
b. Asp:

a. v: -ā
b. Asp:
i. Perfect: -vi
ii. (Imperfect: -∅)
c. Tense:

a. v: -ā
b. Asp:
i. Perfect: -vi
ii. (Imperfect: -∅)
c. Tense:
i. Present, Perfect: -∅
ii. Past: -bā
(11) Agreement exponents

a. No allomorphy:

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s:

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s: -ō, -m, -ī

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s: -ō, -m, -ī
ii. 2s:

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s: -ō, -m, -ī
ii. 2s: -s, -stī

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s: -ō, -m, -ī
ii. 2s: -s, -stī
iii. 2pl:

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s: -ō, -m, -ī
ii. 2s: -s, -stī
iii. 2pl: -tis, -stis

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s: -ō, -m, -ī
ii. 2s: -s, -stī
iv. 3p:

a. No allomorphy:
i. 3s: -t
ii. 1pl: -mus
b. Allomorphy:
i. 1s: -ō, -m, -ī
ii. 2s: -s, -stī
iv. 3p: -nt, ērunt
Vocabulary Items
Vocabulary Items
√
(12) Root-v-(Asp)-T-Agr
(13) a. [v] ↔ -ā
b. [ +perf ] ↔ -vi
(14) VIs for T[+past]
a. T[+past] ↔ -bā/Asp[-perf]
b. T[+past] ↔ -∅
c. T[-past] ↔ -∅
(15) VIs for Agreement (no allomorphy)
a. Agr[-1,-2,-pl] ↔ -t
b. Agr[+1,-2,+pl] ↔ -mus
Vocabulary Items - Agreement

√
(16) Root-v-(Asp)-T-Agr
(17) VIs for Agreement for 1s
a. Agr[+1,-2,-pl] ↔ -m/Asp[-perf],T[+past]
b. Agr[+1,-2,-pl] ↔ -ī/Asp[+perf]
c. Agr[+1,-2,-pl] ↔ -ō

Morphology - LING 21000: Instructor: Laura Stigliano

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Announcements Review Person & Number

Morphology - LING 21000

Instructor: Laura Stigliano

October 19, 2020

Changes in the Syllabus (see the new version on Canvas)

For Ling majors – Sapir Scholars

Plan for today:

- Vocabulary Insertion: the mechanism responsible for

- Vocabulary Items: [αβγ] ↔ /X/

The Vocabulary Items must be augmented so that the non-defaults

(1) Vocabulary Items

VIs are ordered in terms of specificity

The Subset Principle

(2) Subset Principle: The phonological exponent of a Vocabulary

→ competition for insertion

(5) Uniqueness: In a derivation, only one Vocabulary Item may

Person & Number

Person and Number

Person and Number

(7) Daga pronouns Traditional three-value person

Person and Number

(7) Daga pronouns Traditional three-value person

(8) Ojibwa pronouns How do we account for a four-way

Are there five-way distinctions? What about 6 or 7-way distinctions?

Universals in person inventories

Universal 1: No chorus ‘we’ (1 = 1+3)

Universals in person inventories

Universal 1: No chorus ‘we’ (1 = 1+3)

Universals in person inventories

Universal 1: No chorus ‘we’ (1 = 1+3)

Read Bobaljik (2008) - Sections 1 & 2

A fragment from Latin

What synsem features and morphemes do we need?

A fragment from Latin

What synsem features and morphemes do we need?

A fragment from Latin

What synsem features and morphemes do we need?

A fragment from Latin

(10) Exponents of v, Asp, and T

A fragment from Latin

(10) Exponents of v, Asp, and T

A fragment from Latin

(10) Exponents of v, Asp, and T

A fragment from Latin

(10) Exponents of v, Asp, and T

A fragment from Latin

(10) Exponents of v, Asp, and T

A fragment from Latin

(11) Agreement exponents

A fragment from Latin

(11) Agreement exponents

A fragment from Latin

(11) Agreement exponents

A fragment from Latin

(11) Agreement exponents

A fragment from Latin

(11) Agreement exponents

A fragment from Latin

(11) Agreement exponents

A fragment from Latin

(11) Agreement exponents

A fragment from Latin