Morphological and abstract case
Posted by Claire on August 8, 2008
Winter 2008, Vol. 39, No. 1, Pages 55-101
Posted Online January 4, 2008.
(doi:10.1162/ling.2008.39.1.55)
Morphological and Abstract Case
Julie Anne Legate
Department of Linguistics, 217 Morrill Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853. jal252@cornell.edu
This article examines the relationship between abstract and morphological case, arguing that morphological case realizes abstract Case features in a postsyntactic morphology, according to the Elsewhere Condition. A class of prima facie ergative-absolutive languages is identified wherein intransitive subjects receive abstract nominative Case and transitive objects receive abstract accusative Case; these are realized through a morphological default, which is often mislabeled as absolutive. Further support comes from split ergativity based on a nominal hierarchy, which is shown to have a morphological source. Proposals that case and agreement are purely morphological phenomena are critiqued.
