Bibliography

Andrew
Carnie

5 publications between 1996 and 2016 indexed

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2016

article

The syntax and semantics of Scottish Gaelic a' dol a^L

Schreiner, Sylvia L. R., and Andrew Carnie, “The syntax and semantics of Scottish Gaelic a' dol a^L”, Journal of Celtic Linguistics 17 (2016): 1–30.

abstract:

We claim that the 'going to' (a' dol a ^L) construction in Scottish Gaelic has undergone a reanalysis from an embedding verb-of-motion construction into an aspectual particle functional head, which expresses simple prospective aspect in meaning (locating the time of the event not after speech time (like future tense), but after the time already established by tense). In so doing it fills a gap in the paradigm of aspectual particles. A' dol a ^L is permitted in all three tenses, but not with other aspectual particles. In these ways a' dol a ^L parallels the behavior of the imperfective particle a' and perfect particle air. We take these facts to indicate that a' dol a ^L represents a distinction in aspect rather than tense. Using a number of constituency tests, we also show that despite its surface similarity to a complex embedding structure, it actually behaves like a single particle.

abstract:

We claim that the 'going to' (a' dol a ^L) construction in Scottish Gaelic has undergone a reanalysis from an embedding verb-of-motion construction into an aspectual particle functional head, which expresses simple prospective aspect in meaning (locating the time of the event not after speech time (like future tense), but after the time already established by tense). In so doing it fills a gap in the paradigm of aspectual particles. A' dol a ^L is permitted in all three tenses, but not with other aspectual particles. In these ways a' dol a ^L parallels the behavior of the imperfective particle a' and perfect particle air. We take these facts to indicate that a' dol a ^L represents a distinction in aspect rather than tense. Using a number of constituency tests, we also show that despite its surface similarity to a complex embedding structure, it actually behaves like a single particle.

2008

work

Irish nouns: a reference guide

Carnie, Andrew, Irish nouns: a reference guide, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. viii + 439 pp.

2005

article

Flat structure, phrasal variability and VSO

Carnie, Andrew, “Flat structure, phrasal variability and VSO”, Journal of Celtic Linguistics 9 (2005): 13–31.

abstract:

Contra the prevailing Chomskyan view of Modern Irish VSO, where the order is derived via verb movement, this paper proposes that Lexical-Functional Grammar provides a more explanatory account using a flat, VP-less structure. Using evidence from complex copular predicates, this paper shows that the variability in category of the initial predicate is due to a categorial underspecification in the S phrase structure rule. Further, in order to account for the fact that both phrasal and head material can appear in this position, a new kind of variable is proposed that holds over bar level. Finally, the paper accounts for the outward appearance of VP-like constituents by appealing to the fact that the language uses verbal nouns, and it has an NP rule, but no VP rule.

abstract:

Contra the prevailing Chomskyan view of Modern Irish VSO, where the order is derived via verb movement, this paper proposes that Lexical-Functional Grammar provides a more explanatory account using a flat, VP-less structure. Using evidence from complex copular predicates, this paper shows that the variability in category of the initial predicate is due to a categorial underspecification in the S phrase structure rule. Further, in order to account for the fact that both phrasal and head material can appear in this position, a new kind of variable is proposed that holds over bar level. Finally, the paper accounts for the outward appearance of VP-like constituents by appealing to the fact that the language uses verbal nouns, and it has an NP rule, but no VP rule.

2002

article

A note on diphthongization before tense sonorants in Modern Irish: an articulatory explanation

Carnie, Andrew, “A note on diphthongization before tense sonorants in Modern Irish: an articulatory explanation”, Journal of Celtic Linguistics 7 (2002): 129–148.

1996

article

A minimalist approach to some problems of Irish word order

Bobaljik, Jonathan David, and Andrew Carnie, “A minimalist approach to some problems of Irish word order”, in: Robert D. Borsley, and Ian Roberts (eds), The syntax of the Celtic languages: a comparative perspective, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996. 223–240.