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Article published In: Language and Linguistics
Vol. 25:1 (2024) ► pp.1–27

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Topic drop and pro drop

 | Harvard University
 | National United University
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Available under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license.

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

Published online: 2 January 2024
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https://doi.org/10.1075/lali.00147.yan
Abstract
One major difference between Chinese-type and German-type languages is that the former allows extensive types of argument drop, while the latter is quite limited beyond the existence of a null topic. This study argues (a) that it is necessary to distinguish among phenomena that have sometimes been referred to with the undifferentiating term “radical pro drop”; (b) that the null topic is restricted to root clauses (CP edge) based on its locality properties; (c) that the Chinese-type null topic requires licensing at the CP edge by Internal Merge; and (d) that the CP edge requirement may be lifted only under conditions of last resort. Evidence comes from our new observation of locality effects showing a contrast between overt and null topics. Specifically, while the pro option is available with an overt topic, null topics must be brought to the CP edge via Internal Merge.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Topic extraction and locality constraints
  • 3.Restrictions on topic drop
  • 4.Main clause phenomenon
  • 5.Connecting to the CP edge
  • 6.Conclusion and further remarks
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Abbreviations
  • References
References (53)
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