27.824, Diss: Fulfulde, Hausa, Ngas, Ling Theories, Syntax: Lengji Nudiya Danjuma: 'Move-α , Top and Pro Within the Minimalist Program'

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LINGUIST List: Vol-27-824. Mon Feb 15 2016. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 27.824, Diss: Fulfulde, Hausa, Ngas, Ling Theories, Syntax: Lengji Nudiya Danjuma: 'Move-α , Top and Pro Within the Minimalist Program'

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Date: Mon, 15 Feb 2016 10:49:00
From: Lengji Danjuma [ldanjuma.danjuma at gmail.com]
Subject: Move-α , Top and Pro Within the Minimalist Program: A Cross-Linguistic Analysis of: Ngas, Hausa and Fulfulde

 
Institution: University of Maiduguri-Nigeria 
Program: PhD General Linguistics 
Dissertation Status: Completed 
Degree Date: 2015 

Author: Lengji Nudiya Danjuma

Dissertation Title: Move-α , Top and Pro Within the Minimalist Program: A
Cross-Linguistic Analysis of: Ngas, Hausa and Fulfulde 

Linguistic Field(s): Linguistic Theories
                     Syntax

Subject Language(s): Fulfulde, Adamawa (fub)
                     Hausa (hau)
                     Ngas (anc)


Dissertation Director(s):
Aishatu Iya Ahmed
Mohammed Munkaila

Dissertation Abstract:

Move-alpha (move-α), TOP and PRO are  Government and Binding (GB) and
Principles and Parameter Theory (PPT) concepts which this research analyses
within  the Minimalist Program (MP) using the split-CP hypothesis. TOP is a
grammatical category and a position that serves as the landing site for
move-alpha. PRO is the subject of infinitivals, the subject of Control theory:
one of the modules of GB, the theory determines the possible antecedents of
PRO. This research is a cross-linguistic analysis, using data from Ngas
(Angas) and Hausa both Chadic languages and Fulfulde: an Atlantic-Congo
language. The primary source of data collection was interviews along with the
use of structured questionnaire. The Ngas informants were speakers of standard
Ngas as agreed by the Ngas Language and Translation Board. The informants for
Hausa and Fulfulde were native speakers of Kananci (Kano Hausa) and Adamawa
Fulfulde, respectively. Our analysis shows that Topic constructions in: Ngas,
Hausa and Fulfulde all have a declarative force head of ForceP which is
optional and the head of TopP which is null and an abstract topic affix with a
Top-specifier feature which requires a topic constituent as its specifier.
Focus constructions have a strong overt head feature (Focus Marker FM) which
attracts the focus constituents to spec-FocP. FM is optional in Hausa but
obligatory in Ngas and Fulfulde. Force head is obligatorily null in Hausa and
Fulfulde but optional in Ngas. PRO is the subject of the infinitival clause
with an affixal infinitival particle affixed to the verb and a –WH CP marked
by a declarative force in Fulfulde. In both Ngas and Hausa, there is an
intuited subject which is indicated as PRO and CP is null. Both Ngas and Hausa
have an  abstract infinitival particle. Theta-role is assigned to PRO
indirectly via merger with a V-bar compositionally in Ngas, Hausa, and
Fulfulde.  The status of move-alpha (move-α) as regards TOP and PRO is that of
an operational procedure of Merge, Attract, Agree, Raising and Move (Affix
Hopping) in Fulfulde and Merge, Attract, Agree and Raising in Ngas and Hausa.
There is a typological asymmetry in the operation of move-alpha (move-α): only
in Fulfulde in the analysis of PRO a classical movement operation of
move-alpha (move-α) occurs: Affix Hopping applies: -a the infinitival particle
is affixed to the verb wam. A typological asymmetry in the operations of Topic
and Focus constructions is observed: Topic constructions  do not exhibit any
occurrence of Topic Markers. Focus constructions exhibit Focus Markers as in
Ngas: ɗo; Hausa: ce/ne and Fulfulde: on. Theoretically, the typological
asymmetry observed between Chadic and Atlantic-Congo in the operation of the
three syntactic elements of move-alpha (move-α ), TOP and PRO confirms the
binary  selection of syntactic operations in Universal Grammar (UG). Indeed,
the Minimalist Program (MP) adequately meets the adequacy conditions of
classical Generative Grammar by describing and analyzing the syntactic
elements of move-alpha (move-α), TOP and PRO in these three African languages:
Ngas, Hausa  and Fulfulde.




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