Category: Universals Archive

Universal 1206: Original Constraint on negating self-dual and monotone decreasing quantifiers:If a language has a syntactic construction whose semantic function is to negate a quantifier,…

Universal 1222: local case ⇒ other local expressions Original If there are local cases, then there are very likely also other expressions for localization, viz.…

Universal 1238: Original No language has uniform V.CCV division of two-segment clusters if it has final consonants. Standardized IF there are final consonants, THEN there…

Universal 1254: Original Labiovelar stops are less likely to participate in consonant gradation than other stops of the same series. Standardized Labiovelar stops are less…

Universal 1270: Original If there is one or more distinctions or remoteness in a tense-aspect system, and reference can be made to objective time measures,…

Universal 1286: Original The Animated First Principle (AFP):In simple transitive clauses, the NP which is most animated will precede NPs which are less animated. Standardized…

Universal 1302: SOV ⇒ Definiteness affixes on N are suffixed Original If a language has SOV, definiteness affixes on noun (if any) are suffixed with…

Universal 1318: Original Only the verbal domain can be the target of long scrambling. Standardized IF there is long scrambling, THEN its landing site will…

Universal 1334: Prep ⇒ ((RelN ⇒ GenN) & (GenN ⇒ AdjN) & (AdjN ⇒ DemN)) Original Prepositional Noun-Modifier Hierarchy (PrNMH): If a language is prepositional,…

Universal 1350: Original Division is always expressed as multiplication by a fraction. Only units or multiples of units are dividends, and the denominator of the…