Whamit!

The Weekly Newsletter of MIT Linguistics

Harvard Ling 204: Topics in Syntax: Verb Initiality

Instructors: Masha Polinsky & Jessica Coon
Time: Thursday, 1-3PM (class began on 1/27)
Place: Boylston 303, Harvard

Researchers agree that not all verb-initial languages are built the same way, and this suggests that paths toward verb-initiality may differ. The course will examine cross-linguistic patterns of verb-initial languages, with the emphasis on micro-variation and its challenges for theoretical accounts. These patterns will be analyzed with the goal of deriving verb-initial orders in current syntactic theory.