420010 SE Syntactic Variation and Change (2013S)

Comparative studies of syntactic phenomena, both from a synchronic as well as a diachronic perspective, and the problem of how to model syntactic variation have been core areas of research in modern linguistics. Since in syntax the Labovian concept of (sociolinguistic) variable is not easy to define as the variables inherently have meaning, determining semantic equivalence between two syntactic variants is a difficult task (Cheshire 1987).
In the Principles-and-Parameters model of grammar (Chomsky 1981), syntactic variation is the outcome of combinations of a finite set of discrete parameters of binary values, which determine clusters of surface properties, a view that even inside generative grammar has come under sharp criticism given the complexity of linguistic reality (Newmeyer 2004, Baker 2008). Outside generative grammar, some scholars have denied the existence of discrete parameters altogether, arguing instead that syntactic phenomena constitute no more than statistically based generalizations, and that individual languages vary unpredictably in how they meet communicative needs of shared intentionality (Evans and Levinson 2009), which in turn precludes a general theory of syntactic variation.
On the other hand, for those that have not given up hope on a general theory of syntactic variation, the focus has more recently changed from macro-parameters to micro-variation, i.e. the variation observed in closely related languages or dialects, which has resulted into a large body of empirical work on various syntactic phenomena, including doubling, negative concord, noun phrase syntax, and verb placement. The results from dialect projects such as SAND on Dutch dialects, ScanDiaSyn on Scandinavian, SADS/SynAlm on Alemannic Dialects, SyHD on Hessian dialects or SynBai on Bavarian dialects raise important questions which also highlight issues bearing on syntactic change among other things, such as what the diachronic origin of the observed microvariation is. Other important questions concern the locus of variation, how the observed differences between closely related varieties can be explained, whether and to what extent a probabilistic model is desirable to account for the patterns encountered, especially if as Muysken (2000) remarks it really is the case that "communities differ in their choice of strategy, but the difference is rarely absolute: what we find is (sometimes strong) quantitative tendencies towards particular patterns."
This seminar will thus address some of the main general issues that arise with respect to the theoretic modeling and empirical study of syntactic variation, as well as specific issues with respect to a range of particular syntactic phenomena, such as doubling phenomena, specific passive constructions, the complex interplay of morphology and syntax, and others. Special emphasis will of course be on the individual PhD projects (dealing with different syntactic questions, frameworks and approaches), which shall be presented and discussed during the course.