Category: Universals Archive

Universal 1490: Original Objects that qualify as generic, non-referential, indefinite, inanimate/non-human, semantically dependent, pragmatically non-prominent tend to be incorporated. Objects that qualify as specific, referential,…

Universal 1506: Original Parameters for intransitive-based passives:1 person > Volitional Human > Volitional Animate/Human > Animate & Potent > Inanimate > No Protagonist. If a…

Universal 1522: OS ⇒ ¬ relative pronoun Original Subject-final languages do not have relative pronouns. Standardized IF subject full noun phrases follow object full noun…

Universal 1538: Original In verb-initial languages, sentences which are subordinate to verbs, adjectives, or nouns invariably follow the element to which they are subordinate. Standardized…

Universal 1554: verb-initial ⇒ V-Manner Adverb Original In verb-initial languages, manner adverbs follow the verb if they are a distinct category. Standardized IF word order…

Universal 1570: Original If there are (a) passive verb forms with reflexive marker and (b) special (e.g., participial) verb forms for the passive voice, it…

Universal 1586: possession regularly head-marked ⇒ opposition alienable/inalienable possession;¬ opposition alienable/inalienable possession ⇒ possession regularly dependent-marked Original An opposition of “alienable” and “inalienable” possession is…

Universal 1602: nasal, voice, prenasalized stop, sonorant Original Languages that manifest the dependency of nasality on voicing normally have prenasalized stops. Standardized IF the feature…

Universal 1618: Edible: Manner of Ingestion, State of Food;Nonedible : Value, Purpose/Function Original The implicational hierarchy of semantic distinctions for possessive classifier systems: The primary…

Universal 1634: polysynthesis ⇒ ¬ nonfinite verb forms Original IF there is polysynthesis (essentially, noun incorporation and bound agreement/cross-reference markers for subject and object(s) on…