37.2781, Confs: Morphology as Syntax 5 (USA)

Tue Sep 1 08:05:02 UTC 2026

LINGUIST List: Vol-37-2781. Tue Sep 01 2026. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 37.2781, Confs: Morphology as Syntax 5 (USA)

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Date: 31-Aug-2026
From: Benjamin Bruening [bruening at udel.edu]
Subject: Morphology as Syntax 5

Morphology as Syntax 5
Short Title: MaS5
Theme: Reducing morphology entirely to syntax

Date: 16-Apr-2027 - 16-Apr-2027
Location: Newark, Delaware, USA
Contact: Benjamin Bruening
Contact Email: bruening at udel.edu
Meeting URL: https://sites.google.com/udel.edu/mas5/home

Linguistic Field(s): General Linguistics; Morphology; Syntax

Submission Deadline: 15-Jan-2027

The Department of Linguistics and Cognitive Science at the University
of Delaware invites submissions to the workshop Morphology as Syntax 5
to be held at the University of Delaware on the 16th of April, 2027.
The goal of the Morphology as Syntax workshop series is to explore the
possibility of accounting for morphological phenomena within the
phrasal syntax. The question is whether it is feasible to have a model
of grammar with no separate component for morphology and no levels or
mechanisms other than those that are necessary for the phrasal syntax.
Description:
A fundamental question for theories of grammar is whether there is a
component of morphology that is separate from phonology and syntax.
The question is whether it is necessary to postulate a separate module
of morphology that has its own principles and operations, or whether
morphological phenomena can be reduced entirely to other modules, in
particular, the syntax.
Most current approaches to morphology do postulate a morphological
component of grammar separate from other components like the phrasal
syntax.  This is true even of approaches like Distributed Morphology
(Halle and Marantz 1993) which include a large role for syntax.
Distributed Morphology still has a post-syntactic morphological
component where operations take place that are not part of the phrasal
syntax.  Even Nanosyntax, which tries to drastically reduce the number
of non-syntactic operations, still has a post-syntactic process that
realizes abstract structures that are put together by the phrasal
syntax.
The goal of the Morphology as Syntax workshop series is to explore
whether it is feasible to have a model of grammar with no separate
component or operations for morphology.  All morphology will be
accomplished by a single component of grammar that puts all complex
items together, the morphosyntax.  Ideally, the only mechanisms and
principles that will be necessary are those that are independently
necessary for the phrasal syntax.  Some recent references arguing in
favor of such a conception of grammar include Koopman (2005), Kayne
(2010), Bruening (2018, 2026a, 2026b), Collins and Kayne (2023), Zyman
(2026).
We invite talks that address the question of whether it is possible to
reduce morphological phenomena entirely to the phrasal syntax.  Talks
that argue against the possibility of reducing morphology to syntax
are as welcome as talks that argue in favor, since it is important to
know what the challenges are for the overall research program.
Abstract Submissions:
Submissions are limited to a maximum of one individual and one joint
abstract per author or two joint abstracts per author. Abstracts
should be anonymous, written in English, and should not exceed two A4
or US letter pages (Times New Roman, 12pt font, single line spacing,
2.5 inches margins).  Examples and figures should be interspersed with
the text.
Please send your submission(s) to bruening at udel.edu by January 15,
2027. Notification will be provided by February 1st.
Talks will be allotted 30 minutes total (20 minute talk + 10 minute
discussion).
References:
Bruening, Benjamin. 2018. The Lexicalist Hypothesis: Both Wrong and
Superfluous. Language 94: 1–42.
Bruening, Benjamin. 2026a. A Purely Syntactic Account of Displaced
Morphology in German Varieties. Journal of Com-
parative Germanic Linguistics 29:5, 1–51. DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10828-026-09174-8.
Bruening, Benjamin. 2026b. Mari and Udmurt Do Not Require
Post-Syntactic Operations (A Reply to Georgieva et al. 2021
and Guseva and Weisser 2018). Natural Language and Linguistic Theory
44:33, 1–23. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11049-026-09701-y.
Collins, Chris and Richard S. Kayne. 2023. Towards a Theory of
Morphology as Syntax. Studies in Chinese Linguistics 44: 1-32.
Kayne, Richard S. 2010. Toward a Syntactic Reinterpretation of Harris
and Halle (2005). In Reineke Bok-Bennema, Brigitte Kampers-Manhe and
Bart Hollebrandse (eds.), Romance Languages and Linguistic Theory
2008, Selected papers from Going Romance Groningen 2008. John
Benjamins, Amsterdam, 145-170.
Koopman, Hilda. 2005. Korean (and Japanese) Morphology from a
Syntactic Perspective. Linguistic Inquiry 36: 601-633.
Zyman, Erik. 2026. On the Syntactic Autonomy of Theme Vowels. Journal
of Linguistics, 1-33. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S002222672610111X

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