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1. May 2020
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Universal 1419: OV ⇒ Predicate Copula;
VO ⇒ Copula Predicate

Posted in Universals Archive

Universal 1419: OV ⇒ Predicate Copula;
VO ⇒ Copula Predicate

Original
The predicate precedes copula in OV languages and follows it in VO languages.
Standardized
IF a language has OV order, THEN the predicate precedes the copula.
IF a language has VO order, THEN the predicate follows the copula.
Keywords
order, copula, predicate
Domain
syntax
Type
implication
Status
achronic
Quality
statistical
Basis
sample of 543 languages in Dryer 1992
Source
Dryer 1992: 93-94
Counterexamples
Wembawemba (Pama-Nyungan): VO & Predicate Copula (Dryer 1992: 94)
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  1. FP
    FP

    1. By copula Dryer means a word that is used with nominals, adjectives, or locatives when they are used predicatively. In most languages the word in question is a verb, analogous to English ‘be’, but in a few languages it is a nonverbal particle. 2. Cf. a similar correlation for auxiliaries #503.

    1. May 2020

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