Category: Universals Archive

Universal 183: case (noun) ⇒ case (pronoun) Original If there is case-inflection on nouns, there is also case-inflection on some pronouns. Standardized IF there is…

Universal 199: Original No set of case marking elements both participate in agreement and are separable from the head noun. Standardized IF a relational marker…

Universal 215: N G (possessive construction) ⇒ QuantN (partitive construction) Original If a language has a noun-genitive order in the possessive construction, it has quantitative-noun…

Universal 231: rigid order ⇒ gradation of adjectives expressed by function words;flexible order &rArr gradation of adjectives expressed inflectionally Original If constituent order is rigid…

Universal 247: Acc ⇒ Gender Original The presence of the category of gender is connected with the development of the morphological opposition of nominative/accusative. In…

Universal 263: Original Among the morphological frequentalia of ergativity one may mention: the morphological category of words that are syntactically connected with nouns (verbs, adjectives,…

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,…