Cover not available

Article published In: Linguistics in the Netherlands 2020
Edited by Elena Tribushinina and Mark Dingemanse
[Linguistics in the Netherlands 37] 2020
► pp. 103–118

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF

Syntax of the Palestinian Arabic negation-associated exclusive construction

 | Al-Qasemi College
Open Access logo
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 license.

For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at rights@benjamins.nl.

Published online: 27 October 2020
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/avt.00040.kha
Abstract
This paper presents an analysis of a Palestinian Arabic negation-associated exclusive construction featuring the contrastive focus marker illa ‘but’, with theoretical implications for the syntax of negation, negative polarity item licensing, and the categorical status of the root in sentential syntax. It analyzes illa-phrases as constituents licensed by a c-commanding sentential negation (Neg), and illa as a grammatical device encoding contrastiveness. A crucial source for the exclusive semantics of the construction comes from a silent bass ‘only’ immediately following illa that constitutes a syntactic ‘shield’ against Neg scope. Rather than taking an in-situ focus-interpretation approach (cf. Rooth, Mats. 1985. Association with Focus. PhD dissertation. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar, . 1992. “A theory of focus interpretation.” Natural Language Semantics 1 (1): 75–116. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar), we argue for two covert movements at the syntax-semantics interface: quantifier raising of illa-phrases to the designated specifier of polarity Phrase followed by Polarity-to-Focus-raising of Neg. This creates the right syntactic configuration for the truth conditional import of both operators and captures the ‘classical’ thought that focus-sensitive exclusive operators like only quantify over propositional alternatives.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Salient characteristics of the NAEC
    • 2.1Ban on the distribution of illa in post-tensed verb position
    • 2.2Sentential negation licensing illa-phrases
    • 2.3 Illa-phrases fronting across sentential negation
    • 2.4Left adjunction of illa to modified cognate objects
    • 2.5 illa-phrases being syntactic island-sensitive
  • 3.Main proposal
  • 4.Proposal defense
    • 4.1Evidence for the adjunct-analysis of illa
    • 4.2 Illa-phrases undergoing QR at the syntax-semantics interface
    • 4.3Neg-to-Foc raising at the /syntax-semantics interface
    • 4.4 Illa left-adjoined to nominal cognate objects
  • 5.Concluding remarks
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
References (18)
References
Authier, Marc. 2020. “On the comparative analysis of French (ne)…que exceptive.” Probus 321: 1–54. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Erlewine, Michael. Y. & Hadas Kotek. 2018. “Focus association by movement: from binding and parasitic gap.” In Truswell, Robert. eds. Proceeding of Sinn und Bedeutung 211: 399–407.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
von Fintel, Kai & Sabina Iatridou. 2007. “Anatomy of a modal construction.” Linguistic Inquiry 38 (3): 445–485. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Homer, Vincent. 2015. “ Ne...que and its challenges.” In Proceedings of the 32nd West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics, ed. Ulrike Steindl et al.. 111–120. Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Proceedings Project.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Horn, Laurence R. 1969. “A presuppositional analysis of only and even .” In R. I. Binnick, A. Davidson, G. M. Green & J. Morgan (eds.), Proceedings of CLS 51: 98–107.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kadmon, Nirit & Fred Landman. 1993. “Any.” Linguistics and Philosophy 161: 353–422. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Khalaily, Samir. 1994. “A syntax of verbs from a nominal point of view.” In Bok-Bennema & Crit Cremers (eds.), LIN, 95–106. Amsterdam, Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1995. On the relevance of the split complementizer hypothesis. Proceeding of Console II1, 95–111.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1997. One Syntax for All Categories: Merging Nominal Atoms in Multiple Adjunction Structures. PhD dissertation, Leiden University.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Holmberg, Anders. 2013. “The syntax of answers to polar question in English and Swedish. Lingua 1281: 31–50. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
O’Neill, Teresa. 2011. “The syntax of ne…que exceptives in French.” Myler, Neil & Jim Woods (eds.), NYU Working Papers in Linguistics 31: 199–230.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Prokosch, Erich. 1983. Osmanisches Wortgut im Ägyptisch-Arabischen. Berlin: Klaus Schwarz Verlag.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Rooth, Mats. 1985. Association with Focus. PhD dissertation. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1992. “A theory of focus interpretation.” Natural Language Semantics 1 (1): 75–116. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Smeets, Liz & Michael Wagner. 2018. “Reconstructing the syntax of focus operators.” Semantics and Pragmatics 11 (6). Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Soltan, Usama. 2016. “On the syntax of exceptive constructions in Egyptian Arabic.” In Perspectives on Arabic Linguistics XXVII: Papers from the Annual Symposium on Arabic Linguistics, Bloomington, Indiana, 2013. edited by Stuart Davis & Usama Soltan. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. pp. 35–57. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Wagner, Michael. 2006. “Association by movement: Evidence from NPI-licensing.” Natural Language Semantics 14 (4): 297–324. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2012. “Contrastive topics decomposed.” Semantics and Pragmatics 51: 1–54. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Scholz, Norbert
2021. Bibliography of Recent Works 16 NOVEMBER 2020–15 FEBRUARY 2021. Journal of Palestine Studies 50:3 ► pp. 77 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 1 december 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue