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Universal 1108: comitative possessive ⇒ predominant balancing of simultaneous sequences

Posted in Universals Archive

Universal 1108: comitative possessive ⇒ predominant balancing of simultaneous sequences

Original
If a language has a Comitative Possessive, that language will have predominant (or sometimes even exclusive)balancing of simultaneous sequences.
Standardized
IF there is Comitative Possessive, THEN there is predominant balancing of simultaneous sequences.
Keywords
possessive, balancing
Domain
syntax
Type
implication
Status
achronic
Quality
absolute
Basis
sample of 300 languages
Source
Stassen 1998
Counterexamples

One Comment

  1. FP
    FP

    The Comitative Possessive. Features:(a) the main verb is the locative/existential item ‘to be’ (which may be zero);(b) the possessor is the subject;(c) the possessed item is constructed as a comitative (marked by an item meaning ‘with’).Evaluation: confirmed for all 61 languages with a conjunctional possessive.The conspicuous fact in all languages with a Comitative Possessive is that they do not have structural NP-coordination. The comitative item ‘with’ is the functional, though not the formal, equivalent of English ‘and’.

    1. May 2020

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