Category: Universals Archive

Universal 1943: Original It appears to be only indicators of the 1st and 2nd person which combine to form new pronouns. (but see Comments) Standardized…

Universal 1959: Original … languages have special restrictions for the word-initial and word-final positions that are not valid for every syllable onset and coda, respectively.…

Universal 1975: Original When a language with a full copula begins to lose it, or when a language with a zero copula begins to develop…

Universal 1991: Original As a “natural” semantic shift alternative (a) [human vs. non-human > human male vs. other] is much less motivated than alternative (b)…

Universal 2007: Original If there is contrastive pitch accent, then there is a vocalic length contrast.If there is a vocalic length contrast, then there cannot…

Universal 2023: Original It also appears that the main universal mode for describing cognitively based feelings is in terms of a comparison, that is, via…

Universal 7: Original Where morphemes of both number and case are present and both follow or both precede the noun base, the expression of number…

Universal 23: Original In all languages, the range of cases that can be marked on the head of a Suffixaufnahme construction may never be narrower…

Universal 39: Original If a language has Suffixaufnahme with both preposed and postposed attributives at one time and at some earlier time it had it…

Universal 55: VSO ⇒ prepositions Original Languages with dominant VSO order are always prepositional. Standardized IF basic order is VSO, THEN adpositions precede their NPs…