911吃瓜

Title

Invisible Inanimates and Problems for Polysynthesis in Kanien鈥檏e虂ha

911吃瓜 the speaker

Visiting speaker Jessica Coon of McGill University is the  in Syntax and Indigenous Languages. For the Academy Award鈥搉ominated , a sci-fi masterpiece widely regarded as the most popular portrait of a linguist since My Fair Lady, Dr. Coon served as a consultant tasked with ensuring verisimilitude in the script and the performance by lead actress Amy Adams. 

Dr. Coon鈥檚 research investigates the systems of case grammatical agreement in languages of the Mayan and Algonquian families in Mexico, Guatemala and Canada. Through original fieldwork, Coon documents and analyzes these understudied languages. 

Abstract

This talk examines puzzles in the realization and distribution of agreement markers or 鈥減ronominal prefixes鈥� in Kanien鈥檏茅ha (Northern Iroquoian), with an empirical focus on (1) an alignment split in the stative aspect and (2) restrictions on the distribution of animate arguments. In order to account for patterns, I propose鈥攊n line with recent work on Algonquian and Dene languages (Oxford 2019; Lochbihler et al. 2021)鈥攖hat inanimate nominals in Kanien鈥檏茅ha lack person, number, and gender (鈥減hi鈥�) features altogether. I show that this proposal, together with standard assumptions about argument structure and agreement, allows for an account of the complex agreement patterns. However, if correct, the absence of phi-features on inanimates also requires a rejection of Baker鈥檚 (1996) Polysynthesis Parameter, a macroparameter according to which all arguments in polysynthetic languages must be morphologically referenced on the verb. The conclusion will be that polysynthetic properties of Kanien鈥檏茅ha do not require appeal to a macroparameter, but rather can be seen as the cumulative effect of smaller independently-motivated differences.

911吃瓜 the LinguisticsNOW colloquium series

and 911吃瓜 Linguistics work in partnership to take turns hosting the joint colloquium series known as LinguisticsNOW. The series is aimed at showcasing exciting new research in linguistics while fostering collaboration between UBC and 911吃瓜. We cooperate to plan and organize this research talk each year during the Fall term, as well as a graduate studies research symposium known as LinguisticsNEW during each Spring term.