Universal #914

Legacy number: 914

 Number  911
 Original  The grammatical encoding of the causee proceeds as follows: the causee occupies the highest (leftmost) position on the hierarchy that is not already filled:
subject > direct object > indirect object > oblique object.
 Standardized  IF there is no direct object, THEN the embedded subject appears as direct object.
IF there is direct object, but no indirect object, THEN the embedded subject appears as indirect object.
IF there are both direct and indirect objects, THEN the embedded subject appears as one of the oblique cases (i.e. neither subject nor direct object nor indirect object)
 Formula  subject > direct object > indirect object > oblique object
 Keywords  causative, hierarchy, subject, direct object, indirect object, oblique object
 Domain  inflection, syntax
 Type  implicational hierarchy
 Status  achronic
 Quality  statistical
 Basis  languages in Comrie 1975a, Comrie 1976a, Comrie 1981
 Source  Comrie 1981: 169, Comrie 1975a: 14, Comrie 1976a: 263

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Discussion
Counterexamples
1. Languages allowing doubling on indirect object position. Ex. Turkish (Altaic), Punjabi, French (both IE), Tagalog (Austronesian), Georgian (S. Caucasian). 2. Languages allowing to have two accusatives. Ex. Latin, Ancient Greek, Sanskrit, in most cases German, Dutch (all Indo-European), Hebrew, Arabic, Amharic (all Semitic, Afro-Asiatic) some dialects of Saami (Uralic), Swahili (Bantu, Niger-Congo), Evenki (Tungus, Altaic).3. Languages bypassing the indirect object position to go straight to other oblique constituents: Finnish (Finnic), Hungarian (Ugric, both Uralic), Nivkh (isolate), Japanese (Japanese-Ryukyuan).4. Languages allowing doubling on subject: Japanese (Japanese-Ryukyuan) – for more details see Comrie 1975a, 1976a.
Notes
This universal is not absolute but remains a strong universal tendency. Indeed, the claim can even be strengthened beyond this. Thus, doubling on subjects is extremely rare in causative constructions; doubling on direct objects is attested, but restricted; doubling on indirect objects is very widespread. In other words, the possibilities for doubling on a given grammatical relation increase as one descends the hierarchy.
Comment
Frans Plank · 3 Aug 2006
This universal is not absolute but remains a strong universal tendency. Indeed, the claim can even be strengthened beyond this. Thus, doubling on subjects is extremely rare in causative constructions; doubling on direct objects is attested, but restricted; doubling on indirect objects is very widespread. In other words, the possibilities for doubling on a given grammatical relation increase as one descends the hierarchy.