List of figures = xii
List of tables = xiii
Preface to the second edition = xv
Preface to the first edition = xvii
List of abbreviations = xix
List of symbols = xxiv
1. Introduction = 1
1.1 What is typology? = 1
1.2 Typology, universals and generative grammar = 4
1.3 Cross-linguistic comparison = 6
1.4 The problem of cross-linguistic comparability = 13
1.5 Language sampling for cross-linguistic research = 19
1.6 Data sources = 28
2. Typological classification = 31
2.1 A cross-linguistically valid description of morphosyntactic structures = 31
2.1.1 Simple strategies = 32
2.1.2 Relational strategies = 33
2.1.3 Indexical strategies = 34
2.1.4 Classifiers: indexical or relational? = 37
2.1.5 More grammaticalized strategies = 38
2.1.6 Summary = 40
2.2 What is being classified? = 42
2.3 Morphological typology = 45
3. Implicational universals and competing motivations = 49
3.1 Restrictions on possible language types = 49
3.2 Unrestricted and implicational universals = 52
3.3 Competing motivations = 59
3.4 Deeper explanations for word order and affix order universals = 69
3.5 Typology, universals and generative grammar revisited = 80
3.6 Conclusion = 86
4. Grammatical categories: typological markedness, economy and iconicity = 87
4.1 Typological markedness = 87
4.1.1 Structural coding = 91
4.1.2 Behavioral potential = 95
4.1.3 Neutral value: not a criterion for typological markedness = 100
4.2 Economy and iconicity = 101
4.2.1 Structural coding, economy and syntagmatic isomorphism = 102
4.2.2 Economy, paradigmatic isomorphism and polysemy = 104
4.3 Frequency and deeper explanations for economy and iconicity = 110
4.4 Typological asymmetries in word order and phonology = 117
4.5 Conclusion = 120
5. Grammatical hierarchies and the semantic map model = 122
5.1 Grammatical hierarchies and implicational universals = 122
5.2 The animacy and definiteness hierarchies = 128
5.3 A deeper explanation for hierarchies and categories: the semantic map model = 133
5.4 Conceptual spaces, structural coding and behavioral potential = 140
5.5 The grammatical relations hierarchies = 142
5.5.1 The external definition of grammatical relations = 142
5.5.2 Subject and object, ergative and absolutive = 144
5.5.3 Objects: direct and indirect, primary and secondary = 152
5.5.4 The conceptual space for grammatical relations = 154
5.6 Conclusion = 155
Appendix: typological markedness patterns in grammatical categories = 156
6. Prototypes and the interaction of typological patterns = 158
6.1 Interactions of categories = 158
6.1.1. Place of articulation = 158
6.1.2. Person = 160
6.2 Interactions of values: typological prototypes = 162
6.3 Grammatical relations = 165
6.3.1 Animacy, definiteness and participant roles = 166
6.3.2 Transitivity = 175
6.3.3 Deeper explanations for the typology of grammatical relations = 178
6.4 Parts of speech = 183
6.5 Other prototypes and markedness reversals = 188
6.6. Conclusion = 192
7. Syntactic argumentation and syntactic structure in typology = 194
7.1 Typology and syntactic argumentation = 195
7.2 Iconicity, economy and syntactic structure = 201
7.2.1 Conceptual distance and constituent structure = 205
7.2.2 Syntactic and conceptual independence = 213
7.2.3 The encoding of objects and events = 219
7.2.4 Other universals of linguistic structure = 224
7.3 Typological conspiracies and communicative motivation = 226
7.4 Conclusion = 231
8. Diachronic typology = 232
8.1 The dynamicization of synchronic typology = 232
8.2 From states to processes = 244
8.3 Grammaticalization = 253
8.3.1 Phonological processes = 254
8.3.2 Morphosyntactic processes = 257
8.3.3 Functional processes = 261
8.3.4 Issues in grammaticalization = 264
8.3.5 Explanations for grammaticalization = 268
8.4 Inferring diachrony from synchrony = 272
8.5 Conclusion = 279
9. Typology as an approach to language = 280
9.1 Scientific approaches (research traditions) and linguistic theories = 280
9.2 Thinking like a typologist = 282
9.3 Description, explanation and generalization = 283
9.4 Typology, the Saussurean dichotomies and the evolutionary model = 286
List of references = 291
Map of languages cited = 313
Author index = 324
Language index = 329
Subject index = 333
List of tables = xiii
Preface to the second edition = xv
Preface to the first edition = xvii
List of abbreviations = xix
List of symbols = xxiv
1. Introduction = 1
1.1 What is typology? = 1
1.2 Typology, universals and generative grammar = 4
1.3 Cross-linguistic comparison = 6
1.4 The problem of cross-linguistic comparability = 13
1.5 Language sampling for cross-linguistic research = 19
1.6 Data sources = 28
2. Typological classification = 31
2.1 A cross-linguistically valid description of morphosyntactic structures = 31
2.1.1 Simple strategies = 32
2.1.2 Relational strategies = 33
2.1.3 Indexical strategies = 34
2.1.4 Classifiers: indexical or relational? = 37
2.1.5 More grammaticalized strategies = 38
2.1.6 Summary = 40
2.2 What is being classified? = 42
2.3 Morphological typology = 45
3. Implicational universals and competing motivations = 49
3.1 Restrictions on possible language types = 49
3.2 Unrestricted and implicational universals = 52
3.3 Competing motivations = 59
3.4 Deeper explanations for word order and affix order universals = 69
3.5 Typology, universals and generative grammar revisited = 80
3.6 Conclusion = 86
4. Grammatical categories: typological markedness, economy and iconicity = 87
4.1 Typological markedness = 87
4.1.1 Structural coding = 91
4.1.2 Behavioral potential = 95
4.1.3 Neutral value: not a criterion for typological markedness = 100
4.2 Economy and iconicity = 101
4.2.1 Structural coding, economy and syntagmatic isomorphism = 102
4.2.2 Economy, paradigmatic isomorphism and polysemy = 104
4.3 Frequency and deeper explanations for economy and iconicity = 110
4.4 Typological asymmetries in word order and phonology = 117
4.5 Conclusion = 120
5. Grammatical hierarchies and the semantic map model = 122
5.1 Grammatical hierarchies and implicational universals = 122
5.2 The animacy and definiteness hierarchies = 128
5.3 A deeper explanation for hierarchies and categories: the semantic map model = 133
5.4 Conceptual spaces, structural coding and behavioral potential = 140
5.5 The grammatical relations hierarchies = 142
5.5.1 The external definition of grammatical relations = 142
5.5.2 Subject and object, ergative and absolutive = 144
5.5.3 Objects: direct and indirect, primary and secondary = 152
5.5.4 The conceptual space for grammatical relations = 154
5.6 Conclusion = 155
Appendix: typological markedness patterns in grammatical categories = 156
6. Prototypes and the interaction of typological patterns = 158
6.1 Interactions of categories = 158
6.1.1. Place of articulation = 158
6.1.2. Person = 160
6.2 Interactions of values: typological prototypes = 162
6.3 Grammatical relations = 165
6.3.1 Animacy, definiteness and participant roles = 166
6.3.2 Transitivity = 175
6.3.3 Deeper explanations for the typology of grammatical relations = 178
6.4 Parts of speech = 183
6.5 Other prototypes and markedness reversals = 188
6.6. Conclusion = 192
7. Syntactic argumentation and syntactic structure in typology = 194
7.1 Typology and syntactic argumentation = 195
7.2 Iconicity, economy and syntactic structure = 201
7.2.1 Conceptual distance and constituent structure = 205
7.2.2 Syntactic and conceptual independence = 213
7.2.3 The encoding of objects and events = 219
7.2.4 Other universals of linguistic structure = 224
7.3 Typological conspiracies and communicative motivation = 226
7.4 Conclusion = 231
8. Diachronic typology = 232
8.1 The dynamicization of synchronic typology = 232
8.2 From states to processes = 244
8.3 Grammaticalization = 253
8.3.1 Phonological processes = 254
8.3.2 Morphosyntactic processes = 257
8.3.3 Functional processes = 261
8.3.4 Issues in grammaticalization = 264
8.3.5 Explanations for grammaticalization = 268
8.4 Inferring diachrony from synchrony = 272
8.5 Conclusion = 279
9. Typology as an approach to language = 280
9.1 Scientific approaches (research traditions) and linguistic theories = 280
9.2 Thinking like a typologist = 282
9.3 Description, explanation and generalization = 283
9.4 Typology, the Saussurean dichotomies and the evolutionary model = 286
List of references = 291
Map of languages cited = 313
Author index = 324
Language index = 329
Subject index = 333