Universal #671

Legacy number: 671

 Number  668
 Original  Most question particles occur in sentence-initial (or enclitic to the initial constituent) or in sentence-final position. Question particles almost always occur finally in SOV languages and show a greater tendency to occur initially in other types.
 Standardized  IF basic word order is SOV, THEN question particles almost always occur sentence finally.
IF basic word order is not SOV, THEN question particles show a greater tendency than with basic order SOV to occur sentence initially.
 Formula  SOV ⇒ SentQ
 Keywords  order, interrogative sentence, question particle, SOV
 Domain  syntax
 Type  implication
 Status  achronic
 Quality  statistical
 Basis  79 languages surveyed in Ultan 1978c
 Source  Ultan 1978c: 232

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Discussion
Notes
1. See also ##495, 491. #491 can be derived by transitivity from ##671, 495.2. Dryer 1992: 102 confirms this universal on the basis of 543-language sample.
Comment
Frans Plank · 3 Aug 2006
1. See also <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=495"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">, <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=491"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">.
<a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=491"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0"> can be derived by transitivity from <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=671"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">, <a class="innerLink" href="browse.php?entry_id=495"><img src="../img/entry.gif" border="0">.

2. Dryer 1992: 102 confirms this universal on the basis of 543-language sample.