Category: Universals Archive

Universal 1346: PP-V ⇔ Adv V;V-PP ⇔ V Adv Original Adverbs of manner overwhelmingly precede verbs in languages where adpositional phrases (PP = prepositional or…

Universal 1362: Original If 1 is expressed as a multiplier with a particular base, it is expressed with all higher bases. Standardized In numeral systems,…

Universal 1378: Original Head Noun Phrase Hierarchy:If an NP with head noun (phrase) N of semantic specificity n on the path from filler to gap…

Universal 1394: Original All languages have non-reduced adverbial constructions.If a language has reduced adverbials, these are always more restricted in their privileges of occurrence than…

Universal 1410: Original In all languages possessing the vowel ä, the a is articulated more backward (velar) than in languages which have no ä. Standardized…

Universal 1426: OV ⇒ Subordinate-Main;VO ⇒ Subordinate-Main & Main-Subordinate; OV/VO ⇒ Subordinate-Main & Main-Subordinate Original In the majority of OV languages, adverbial clause always precede…

Universal 1442: Original In all languages, if some form denotes the metaperson ‘speaker’, it cannot include among its meanings the following metapersons:(a) ‘hearer’;(b) ‘non-participant’ ,(c)…

Universal 1458: Original In an overwhelming majority of languages, if the metaperson ‘non-participant’ in the non-singular is not the only meaning denoted by some form,…

Universal 1474: Original If some form denotes the metaperson ‘speaker + hearer(s) + non-participant(s)’ then:(a) in some languages it also denotes the metaperson ‘speaker +…

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,…