Parametric Variation (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780521886956)

Parametric variation in linguistic theory refers to the systematic grammatical variation permitted by the human language faculty. Although still widely assumed, the parametric theory of variation has in recent years been subject to re-evaluation and critique. The Null Subject Parameter, which determines among other things whether or not a language allows the suppression of subject pronouns, is one of the best-known and most widely discussed examples of a parameter. Nevertheless its status in current syntactic theory is highly controversial. This book is a defence of the parametric approach to linguistic variation, set within the framework of the Minimalist Program. It discusses syntactic variation in the light of recent developments in linguistic theory, focusing on issues such as the formal nature of minimalist parameters, the typology of null-subject language systems and the way in which parametric choices can be seen to underlie the synchronic and diachronic patterns observed in natural languages.

Author: Theresa Biberauer, Anders Holmberg, Ian Roberts
ISBN-10: 0521886953
ISBN-13: 9780521886956
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 12/10/2009
Pages: 376
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.58lbs
Size: 9.04h x 9.02w x 0.89d