Universal #1311
Legacy number: 1311
| Number | 1307 |
| Original | If a language is postpositional, tense affixes on verb (if any) are suffixed with overwhelmingly greater than chance frequency. |
| Standardized | IF there are postpositions, THEN tense affixes on verbs are suffixed with overwhelmingly greater than chance frequency. |
| Formula | postposition ⇒ tense affixes on V are suffixed |
| Keywords | order, postposition, verb, tense, affix-order, suffix |
| Domain | inflection, syntax |
| Type | implication |
| Status | achronic |
| Quality | statistical |
| Basis | 200 languages drawn from three samples: a 113-language sample by L. Stassen, a 40-language sample by J. Bybee & R. Perkins, and a 50-language sample by G. Gilligan |
| Source | Cutler, Hawkins, & Gilligan 1985: 729; Hawkins & Gilligan 1988: 224 |
Discussion
Counterexamples
Stassen’s and Gilligan’s samples: 97% of postpositional languages with tense affixes are suffixing, 3% are prefixing.
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