Verb-Second (V2) Word Order: Cross-Linguistic Data #

@cite{westergaard-2009} @cite{vikner-1995}

Theory-neutral observations on V2 word order variation across Germanic languages and dialects. V2 is the requirement that the finite verb appear in second position in main clauses.

The Key Observation #

V2 is not uniform. It varies along at least three dimensions:

Clause type: declaratives, wh-questions, yes/no-questions, exclamatives, imperatives, embedded clauses
Lexical element: which initial element precedes the verb (long vs. short wh-words, focus adverbs, kanskje 'maybe')
Information structure: given vs. new subjects correlate with non-V2 vs. V2 in "optional" contexts

The data below document these dimensions. Theoretical analyses belong in Studies/Westergaard2009.lean and related study files.

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inductive Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.ClauseType :

Type

Clause types relevant to V2 variation.

declarative : ClauseType
whQuestion : ClauseType
yesNoQuestion : ClauseType
exclamative : ClauseType
imperative : ClauseType
embeddedDecl : ClauseType
embeddedQuestion : ClauseType

Instances For

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instDecidableEqClauseType :

DecidableEq ClauseType

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instDecidableEqClauseType x✝ y✝ = if h : x✝.ctorIdx = y✝.ctorIdx then isTrue ⋯ else isFalse ⋯

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprClauseType :

Repr ClauseType

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprClauseType = { reprPrec := Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprClauseType.repr }

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprClauseType.repr :

ClauseType → Nat → Std.Format

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqClauseType :

BEq ClauseType

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqClauseType = { beq := Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqClauseType.beq }

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqClauseType.beq :

ClauseType → ClauseType → Bool

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqClauseType.beq x✝ y✝ = (x✝.ctorIdx == y✝.ctorIdx)

Instances For

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inductive Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.V2Status :

Type

V2 status of a clause type in a given language/dialect.

obligatory : V2Status
V2 is obligatory
impossible : V2Status
V2 is impossible (verb stays low or appears finally)
optional : V2Status
V2 alternates with non-V2, conditioned by other factors

Instances For

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instDecidableEqV2Status :

DecidableEq V2Status

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instDecidableEqV2Status x✝ y✝ = if h : x✝.ctorIdx = y✝.ctorIdx then isTrue ⋯ else isFalse ⋯

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Status.repr :

V2Status → Nat → Std.Format

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Status :

Repr V2Status

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Status = { reprPrec := Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Status.repr }

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Status.beq :

V2Status → V2Status → Bool

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Status.beq x✝ y✝ = (x✝.ctorIdx == y✝.ctorIdx)

Instances For

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Status :

BEq V2Status

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Status = { beq := Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Status.beq }

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structure Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.V2Datum :

Type

A single V2 observation: what happens in a given clause type.

sentence : String
language : String
clauseType : ClauseType
v2Status : V2Status
description : String
citation : String

Instances For

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Datum.repr :

V2Datum → Nat → Std.Format

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Datum :

Repr V2Datum

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Datum = { reprPrec := Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instReprV2Datum.repr }

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instance Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Datum :

BEq V2Datum

Equations

Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Datum = { beq := Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Datum.beq }

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Datum.beq :

V2Datum → V2Datum → Bool

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Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.instBEqV2Datum.beq x✝¹ x✝ = false

Instances For

The Tromsø dialect exhibits a rich V2/non-V2 split across clause types. This is the target grammar that children in @cite{westergaard-2009}'s corpus are acquiring.

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.no_decl_nonsubj :

V2Datum

Non-subject-initial declaratives: V2 obligatory.

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.no_yesno :

V2Datum

Yes/no-questions: V2 obligatory.

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.no_wh_long :

V2Datum

Wh-questions with long (polysyllabic) wh-phrases: V2 obligatory.

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.no_wh_short :

V2Datum

Wh-questions with short (monosyllabic) wh-words: V2 optional, conditioned by information structure.

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.no_excl :

V2Datum

Exclamatives: non-V2 obligatory.

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.no_emb_decl :

V2Datum

Embedded declaratives: non-V2 (mostly).

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.de_decl :

V2Datum

German root declaratives: V2 obligatory.

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def Phenomena.WordOrder.V2.de_emb :

V2Datum

German embedded clauses with complementizer: verb-final (no V2). The verb raises to I/Fin (hence +Fin° in Table 3.1) but not to C, so it appears clause-finally due to SOV base order.

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