Heads in Grammatical Theory
Greville G Corbett editor Norman M Fraser editor Scott McGlashan editor
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Cambridge University Press
Published:1st Jun '06
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
A study of the idea of the 'head' or dominating element of a phrase.
This first book-length examination of the concept of the head of a phrase tackles the problems set by the assumptions of particular theories and offers insights which have relevance across theoretical boundaries.Contemporary linguistic theories distinguish the principal element of a phrase - the 'head' - from the subordinate elements it dominates. This pervasive grammatical concept has been used to describe and account for linguistic phenomena ranging from agreement and government to word order universals, but opinions differ widely on its precise definition. A key question is whether the head is not already identified by some other, more basic notion or interacting set of notions in linguistics. Heads in Grammatical Theory is the first book devoted to the subject. Providing a clear view of current research on heads, some of the foremost linguists in the field tackle the problems set by the assumptions of particular grammatical theories and offer insights which have relevance across theories. Questions considered include whether there is a theory-neutral definition of head, whether heads have cognitive reality, how to identify the head of a phrase, and whether there are any universal correlations between headedness and deletability.
ISBN: 9780521026529
Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 20mm
Weight: 527g
352 pages