Author: Adrian Stegovec

Magdalena Kaufmann | Linguistics Vanguard

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Magdalena Kaufmann‘s paper with John Whitman, “Conditional conjunctions informed by Japanese and Korean” has just appeared online ahead of print in Linguistics Vanguard. Congratulations Magda and John!

Abstract: Many languages assign additional conditional interpretations to apparently regular sentential conjunctions (conditional conjunctions, CCs). Following previous ideas (Kaufmann, Magdalena. 2018. Topics in conditional conjunctions. Invited talk at NELS, vol. 49. Cornell University; Starr, Will. 2018. Conjoining imperatives and declaratives. Proceedings of Sinn und Bedeutung 21. 1159–1176), we provide additional support for the hypothesis that CCs involve topicalized first conjuncts. We argue that Japanese and Korean, which appear to lack CCs, in fact mark them quite transparently. Both languages combine sentential conjunctions with topic markers: Japanese -te=wa (standardly considered one of the language’s conditional connectives) and Korean -ko=nun (occurring naturally, not discussed in the literature). We show that Japanese conditional =to fits into the pattern of CCs as well: it is derived by topicalization of conjunctive =to. Conjunctive =to is normally restricted to NPs, but it can coordinate finite clauses so long as the finite verb does not precede =to (Koizumi, Masatoshi. 2000. String vacuous overt verb raising. Journal of East Asian Linguistics 9(3). 227–285). We argue that this requirement can be met in a topicalized clause carrying default tense; the resultant configuration is the conditional connective =to. Semantically, CCs are known to be more restricted than if-conditionals in not readily realizing epistemic conditionals. The elements -te=wa,=to, and -ko=nun are all subject to exactly this restriction, which we refine to exclude only non-predictive epistemics. Following the transparent structure in Japanese and Korean, we interpret CCs by predicating the regular conjunction distributively of the set of (contextually salient and epistemically accessible) situations described by the topicalized first conjunct. We argue that apparent cases of focus on or within the first conjunct of CCs constitute contrastive topics or corrections.

UConn Linguistics at GLOW in Asia

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The 13th Generative Linguistics in the Old World in Asia (GLOW in Asia XIII) Online Special will be held online August 4-7, 2022, hosted by the Chinese University of Hong Kong. UConn linguistics will be well represented at the conference with a plenary talk by:

  • Željko Bošković. On wh and subject positions and the EPP

… main session talks by:

  • Norio Nasu, Takayuki Akimoto, Koji Shimamura (PhD 2018, now at Kanazawa Gakuin University and Kobe City University of Foreign Studies), and Yusuke Yoda. The Categorial Status of Embedded Questions in Japanese
  • Shuki Otani and Yuta Tatsumi (PhD 2021, now at Meikai University). Light nouns and extraction from null clausal arguments
  • Shengyun Gu. H2 spread in Shanghai Sign Language: mapping syntax to phonology
  • Penelope Daniel. Deriving person-based differential argument marking in Ik
  • Myung-Kwan Park (PhD 1994, now at Dongguk University). The Placement of WHY and Intervention & Superiority

… and flash talks by:

  • Marcin Dadan (PhD 2019, now at University of Iowa). Labelers and anti-labelers: Clitics and Second Position
  • Hiromune Oda (PhD 2021, now at University of Tokyo). Large-scale Pied-piping in the Labeling Theory and Conditions on Weak Heads
  • Yusuke Yagi. Definite Description for Tenses: More Analogy Between Pronouns and Tenses
  • Akihiko Arano. On the locality of A-scrambling in Japanese
  • Tarcisio Dias. Hyper-raising and the subject position in Brazilian Portuguese

The conference will also include a one day Workshop on Workspace, MERGE, and Labelling (August 7), with a keynote address by:

  • Mamoru Saito (UConn and Notre Dame Seishin University). Two Notes on the Unification of NP-movement and Control by Form Copy

… and a talk by:

  • Adrian Stegovec. The third way: Optional object reordering as ambiguous labeling resolution

Welcome to Omar Agha

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We are pleased to announce that Omar Agha will be joining our department for the coming academic year. Omar is finishing up his dissertation in semantics at NYU with Lucas Champollion, having previously received a BA in linguistics and mathematics at the University of Chicago. He will teach courses in semantics/pragmatics and computational linguistics.

You can find more information about his research here.

Welcome Omar!