Universal #1435

Legacy number: 1435

 Number  1431
 Original  The more developed a case system is, the less is its system of verbal tenses.
 Standardized  IF there is a highly developed case system, THEN the system of verbal tenses will be less developed, and vice versa.
or
IF there are many cases, THEN there are few tense oppositions.
IF there are few cases, THEN there are many tense oppositions.
 Keywords  case system, tense
 Domain  inflection
 Type  implication
 Status  achronic
 Quality  statistical
 Basis  unspecified
 Source  Serebrennikov 1974: 300

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Discussion
Notes
For example, in Hungarian there are 21 cases but only one past tense (opposed to present and future tenses). Ancient Greek and Georgian have weakly developed case systems but many verb tenses (according to Serebrennikov 1974: 300).So, it seems that “few cases” for Serebrennikov can be rather a lot, i.e. some 8. Conceivably, then, it is only the really big case inventories, with lots of local cases, which are meant to correlate negatively with (not-so-exuberant) tense differentiation.
Comment
Frans Plank · 3 Aug 2006
For example, in Hungarian there are 21 cases but only one past tense (opposed to present and future tenses). Ancient Greek and Georgian have weakly developed case systems but many verb tenses (according to Serebrennikov 1974: 300).

So, it seems that "few cases" for Serebrennikov can be rather a lot, i.e. some 8. Conceivably, then, it is only the really big case inventories, with lots of local cases, which are meant to correlate negatively with (not-so-exuberant) tense differentiation.