Universal 965: (IndefArt ≠ ‘One’) & VO ⇒ IndefArt N
(IndefArt ≠ ‘One’) & OV ⇒ N IndefArt
- Original
- Languages where indefinite articles are quite distinct from the numeral ‘one’ exhibit a statistical correlation between the order of article and noun and that of verb and objects.
- Standardized
- IF indefinite articles are quite distinct from the numeral ‘one’ and the object follows the verb, THEN they will precede the noun.
IF indefinite articles are quite distinct from the numeral ‘one’ and the object precedes the verb, THEN they will follow the noun.
- Keywords
- order, verb, object, article, indefinite, numeral, noun
- Domain
- syntax, lexicon
- Type
- implication
- Status
- achronic
- Quality
- statistical
- Basis
- sample of 125 languages in Dryer 1989a
- Source
- Dryer 1989a: 92
- Counterexamples
Cf. with #966. This suggests that the correlation between the order of article and noun and that of verb and object may be strongest for articles which are categorically more distinct from other words.