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In:Perspectives on Arabic Linguistics XXXIV: Papers from the Annual Symposium on Arabic Linguistics, Tucson, Arizona, 2020
Edited by Mahmoud Azaz
[Studies in Arabic Linguistics 12] 2023
► pp. 125–152

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Is morphological case a feature of individual nominal elements?

Evidence from Standard Arabic

ORCiD logo with link | KIMEP University
Published online: 6 January 2023
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/sal.12.06alr
Abstract
This study examines morphological Case marking in Standard Arabic. Hypotheses of Case distribution inside the determiner phrase are contrasted with the hypothesis that Case is a property of lexical elements only. I will show that Case is realized on nominal elements as a result of a head-to-head relation between the Case-assigner and assignee rather than a relation between a head and the whole phrase. This argument is supported by empirical evidence from Arabic as well as from other languages. I will also show that Arabic differs from other languages in that a nominal element can receive Case from a non-local head, and that Case marking does not always result from phi-agreement relations, as seems to be standardly assumed in the syntactic literature.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Background
  • 3.Case assignment: One-part model
  • 4.The relation between phi-agreement and case
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Abbreviations
  • References
References (61)
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Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Al‐Raba'a, Basem
2025. On the Syntax of Double Case Marking in Standard Arabic. Studia Linguistica DOI logo

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