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Towards a theory of morphosyntactic focus marking.
Muriel Assmann1, Daniel Büring1, Izabela Jordanoska1,2
1Institute of Linguistics, University of Vienna, Sensengasse 3a, 1090 Vienna, Austria.
Natural Language & Linguistic Theory
|November 16, 2023
Summary
This study introduces a new formal theory for focus marking, explaining how languages mark important information morphosyntactically and prosodically. It addresses focus syncretism and proposes that complex constituents can be directly marked, governed by blocking principles.
Area of Science:
- Linguistics
- Formal Semantics
- Morphosyntax
Background:
- Focus marking is crucial for conveying information structure in human languages.
- Existing theories often focus on prosodic marking (e.g., English) or morphosyntactic marking, with limited integration.
- Focus syncretism, where different focus types share marking, presents a challenge for unified theories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a novel, unified formal theory of focus marking.
- To account for both morphosyntactic and prosodic focus marking strategies.
- To explain patterns of focus syncretism through a formal framework.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of six detailed case studies of languages with morphosyntactic focus marking.
- Development of a formal theory incorporating complex constituent marking.
- Application of the concept of blocking to govern the choice of focus marking.
Main Results:
- A novel formal theory capable of capturing diverse focus marking strategies is proposed.
- The theory successfully accounts for morphosyntactic marking in complex constituents.
- Focus syncretism patterns are explained by the interaction of marking strategies and blocking.
Conclusions:
- The proposed theory offers a unified account of focus marking across different languages and strategies.
- Direct marking of complex constituents and the principle of blocking are key to understanding focus realization.
- This work advances the formal understanding of information structure in linguistics.
Keywords:
BlockingFocusFocus alternativesFocus ambiguityFocus in African languagesMorphological focus markingUnalternative semanticsMore Related Videos
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