Universal #1204

Legacy number: 1204

 Number  1200
 Original  Dislocated phrase universal:
If a language allows phrases to occur in a dislocated position associated with a rule of variable binding, then at least NPs (i.e. the syntactic category corresponding to quantifiers over the domain of discourse) will occur in this position.
 Standardized  Dislocated phrase universal:
If a language allows phrases to occur in a dislocated position associated with a rule of variable binding, then at least NPs (i.e. the syntactic category corresponding to quantifiers over the domain of discourse) will occur in this position.

That is:
IF non-NPs (e.g., APs, DPs or PPs) can occur in a dislocated position associated with a rule of variable binding, THEN NPs can also be dislocated.
 Formula  dislocation of non-NPs ⇒ dislocation of NPs
 Keywords  quantification, dislocation, variable binding, NP
 Domain  syntax
 Type  implication
 Status  achronic
 Quality  absolute
 Basis  unspecified
 Source  Barwise & Cooper 1981: 178, U2

← Back to Universals Archive

Discussion
Counterexamples
Notes
Barwise & Cooper (1981: 178) note that they “would not expect to find a natural language in which adjectives or prepositional phrases, but NOT noun-phrases, occur in dislocated positions associated with variable binding. In particular we would not expect a language to allow dislocated determiners if it did not also allow dislocated NPs.”
Comment
Frans Plank · 3 Aug 2006
Barwise & Cooper 1981: 178 note that they "would not expect to find a natural language in which adjectives or prepositional phrases, but NOT noun-phrases, occur in dislocated positions associated with variable binding. In particular we would not expect a language to allow dislocated determiners if it did not also allow dislocated NPs."