Morphology & Syntax workshop

Dear all,

The organizers of the Morphology & Syntax Workshop (M&S) for AY 24-25 are excited to announce that we will be having our first meeting of the quarter and of the year this Friday, October 4th, from 12:30 to 2:30 PM CT in Rosenwald 208 and online (link). The presenter will be our own Parker Robbins; details follow:

Against an extraction analysis of discontinuous nominals in Maliseet-Passamaquoddy

Like some other Algonquian languages, Maliseet-Passamaquoddy, an Eastern Algonquian language of Maine and New Brunswick, features discontinuous nominals. Johnson & Rosen 2015 proposed one analysis of these nominals, arguing that displaced elements undergo left branch extraction (LBE). I present three arguments against an LBE analysis of Maliseet-Passamaquoddy discontinuous nominals, which also show, contrary to Johnson & Rosen’s predictions, that Maliseet-Passamaquoddy is likely a DP language. Finally, I briefly discuss a promising alternative analysis, covert pied-piping, proposed in Grishin 2023.

Note that this is preparation for a talk that Parker will be giving at the next Algonquian conference; the full abstract is attached.

Upcoming Presentations (you can also view this information at our website):

Oct 11: Luigi Rizzi (Geneva/Collège de France)

Nov 8: Mattie Wechsler (UChicago)

Dec 6: Shanti Ulfsbjorninn (Mem. University of Newfoundland)