Universal #1304

Legacy number: 1304

 Number  1300
 Original  If a language is postpositional, nominalizing affixes on noun (if any) are suffixed with considerably greater than chance frequency.
 Standardized  IF there are postpositions, THEN nominalizing affixes on nouns are suffixed with considerably greater than chance frequency.
 Formula  postposition ⇒ Nominalizing affixes on N are suffixed
 Keywords  order, postposition, noun, nominalization, affix-order, suffix
 Domain  inflection, syntax
 Type  implication
 Status  achronic
 Quality  statistical
 Basis  200 languages drawn from three samples: a 113-language sample of L. Stassen, a 40-language sample of R. Perkins & J. Bybee, and a 50-language sample compiled by G. Gilligan
 Source  Hawkins & Gilligan 1988: 223

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Discussion
Counterexamples
Gilligan’s sample: 94% of postpositional languages with nominalizing affixes are suffixing, 6% are prefixing.
Notes
Moravcsik 1994: 49 summarizes universals of Hawkins & Gilligan (here ##413, 1302, 1304, and 1307) in a more general form:In postpositional languages, nominal affixes, if any, are suffixed with considerably greater than chance frequency.
Comment
Frans Plank · 3 Aug 2006
Moravcsik 1994: 49 summarizes universals of Hawkins & Gilligan (here <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry"_id=413"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">, <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=1302"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">, <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=1304"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">, and <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=1307"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">) in a more general form: In postpositional languages, nominal affixes, if any, are suffixed with considerably greater than chance frequency.