Universal #540

Legacy number: 540

 Number  538
 Original  If there are numerals in which the expression of the multiplier follows that of the multiplicand, the language is one in which the numeral follows the noun.
 Standardized  IF there are numerals in which the expression of the multiplier follows that of the multiplicand, THEN the numeral will follow the noun.
 Formula  Multiplicand Multiplier ⇒ Noun Numeral
 Keywords  numeral, order, noun
 Domain  word formation, syntax
 Type  implication
 Status  achronic
 Quality  absolute
 Basis  56 languages mentioned in Greenberg 1978a
 Source  Greenberg 1978a: 274 (#28)

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Discussion
Notes
1. MULTIPLICAND= a quantity to be multiplied by another.MultiplieR= a quantity by which another is multiplied.2. The two orders harmonize: Multiplier Multiplicand with Numeral Noun and Multiplicand Multiplier with Noun Numeral. Whenever this harmony is disturbed, it is always in favour of Multiplier Multiplicand order which occurs in a number of instances with Noun Numeral order, e.g. Lhasa Tibetan (Tibeto-Burman) and Maori (Oceanic, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian). Thus, as mentioned by Stampe (1976), Multiplier Multiplicand order is highly favoured over Multiplicand Multiplier in languages of the world, being even stronger than the preference for Numeral Noun order in relation to Noun Numeral (adpted from Greenberg 1978a: 275).3. See also ##59, 1365.
Comment
Frans Plank · 3 Aug 2006
1. MULTIPLICAND= a quantity to be multiplied by another. MULTIPLIER= a quantity by which another is multiplied.

2. The two orders harmonize: Multiplier Multiplicand with Numeral Noun and Multiplicand Multiplier with Noun Numeral. Whenever this harmony is disturbed, it is always in favour of Multiplier Multiplicand order which occurs in a number of instances with Noun Numeral order, e.g. Lhasa Tibetan (Tibeto-Burman) and Maori (Oceanic, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian). Thus, as mentioned by Stampe 1976, Multiplier Multiplicand order is highly favoured over Multiplicand Multiplier in languages of the world, being even stronger than the preference for Numeral Noun order in relation to Noun Numeral (adpted from Greenberg 1978a: 275).


3. See also <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=59"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">, <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=1365"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">