Category: Universals Archive

Universal 279: zero person marker (indicative mood) ⇒ 1Sg v 3Sg Original If a zero expression occurs in the form of a certain person in…

Universal 295: Original In all languages: if there is VSO, SVO, SOV, an auxiliary verb, which can occupy the position before and after the main…

Universal 311: Original If among the syntactic functions of the form there is the subject of intransitive verb of state, then the subject of intransitive…

Universal 327: transitive verb agrees with SUBJ ⇒ intransitive verb agrees with SUBJ Original If transitive verbs agree with their subjects in some grammatical feature,…

Universal 343: Original If the subject expressed by an independent personal pronoun usually follows the verb, then the nominal subject also follows the verb. Standardized…

Universal 359: Original If in a language an incorporated direct object follows the verb stem, then the autonomous subject follows the predicate. Standardized IF an…

Universal 375: Original In all languages, an expression which refers to the topic of a sentence is typically definite or generic. Standardized IF an expression…

Universal 391: associative Plural ⇒ basic Plural Original If a language has a group plural, it also has a basic plural. Standardized IF there is…

Universal 407: (person marker (possessee) = person marker (INTR)) ⇒ (person marker (possessee) = person marker (TR)) Original If person marking in possessed nouns and…

Universal 423: Prep ⇒ (¬ SOV ⇒ N Rel) Original If a language has Prep word order, then if the verb position is not SOV,…