Semantic case-stacking and inside-out unification

Abstract

The appearance of multiple case-marking on a single nominal is a somewhat unusual phenomenon that is characteristic of many Australian languages, and which appears problematic for many grammatical theories. In this paper I will propose and describe an analysis of multiple semantic case-marking in LFG, mostly on the basis of the unusually complex case morphology of the Australian languages Kayardild and Martuthunira. The analysis works by starting with the approach taken by Simpson (1991) for Warlpiri, and modifying it by using a notion of ‘inside out unification’ to express within LFG the basic idea of Jerry Sadock's ‘autolexical morphology’, that it is the basic stem of an inflected form rather than the entire form that is associated with the syntactic position that the form is inserted into. Show more