Edge features and wh-movement: in search of a unified analysis of successive cyclic movement and crosslinguistic variation regarding multiple wh-interrogatives

• Grant number: 23/02128-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: July 10, 2023
• End date: July 09, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Linguistics - Linguistic Theory and Analysis
• Principal Investigator: Jairo Morais Nunes
• Grantee: Jairo Morais Nunes
• Host Investigator: Myriam Uribe-Etxebarria Goti
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Universidad del País Vasco, Álava (UPV), Spain

Abstract

To motivate successive cyclic movement in the phase-based model, Chomsky (2000) proposes that, once a phase is built, its head is assigned an EPP-feature, triggering wh-movement. Boskovic (2007) points out problems for this proposal, arguing that the triggering feature is carried by the wh-element itself. In research resulting from FAPESP support, Nunes (2021a) shows that this approach cannot handle phenomena of the that-trace type, proposing that languages can vary with respect to the lexical locus of edge features (EFs - the features that trigger successive cyclic movement); in particular, languages that display allomorphy in phase heads depending on wh-movement are languages in which EFs are lexically hosted by phase heads and the allomorphy can be local (as in English) or across-the-board (as in Irish) depending on whether or not EF is intrinsically valued. Pursuing this approach further, Nunes (2021b, 2022) argues that much of the crosslinguistic variation related to multiple wh-interrogatives can be explained if the EF on the wh-items of each language is valued or not. This project aims to extend this approach by investigating the various ways in which different languages satisfy the Superiority Condition (Chomsky 1973). Taking the typological possibilities instantiated by Basque as the main focus of analysis, the project investigates the hypothesis that the variation among languages as far as the Superiority Condition is concerned follows from the lexical locus and the intrinsic valuation of EFs in each language. If successful, the research will contribute to the formulation of a unified analysis of apparently disparate phenomena, such as successive cyclic movement, the recurrent allomorphy of phase heads, the frequent cases of subject-object asymmetry in wh-movement, the different possibilities of multiple wh-questions across languages and the different ways different languages satisfy the Superiority Condition. (AU)