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1. May 2020
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Universal 966: O V ⇒ N PluralWord;
V O ⇒ PluralWord N

Posted in Universals Archive

Universal 966: O V ⇒ N PluralWord;
V O ⇒ PluralWord N

Original
Plural words tend to follow the noun in OV languages and precede in VO languages.
Standardized
IF basic order order is OV, THEN plural words follow the noun.
IF basic order order is VO, THEN plural words precede the noun.
Keywords
order, verb, noun, plural word
Domain
syntax
Type
implication
Status
achronic
Quality
one part absolute, the other statistical
Basis
48 languages with plural words in Dryer’s 1989b sample of 307 languages; 39 languages with plural words in Dryer’s 1992 sample of 543 languages
Source
Dryer 1989b: 880; Dryer 1992: 104-105
Counterexamples
Agta and Chamorro (both Austronesian): V O & N PluralWord.
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One Comment

  1. FP
    FP

    1. PLURAL WORD is a morpheme whose meaning and function is similar to that of plural affixes in other languages, but which is a separate word that functions as a modifier of the noun. 2. This universal follows from Branching Direction Theory (BDT) as discussed in Dryer 1992: 108-118.

    1. May 2020

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