Cambridge University Press Case: Its Principles and its Parameters: 146 (Cambridge Studies in Linguistics, Series Number 146)

Product Description In Case, Mark Baker develops a unified theory of how the morphological case marking of noun phrases is determined by syntactic structure. Designed to work well for languages of all alignment types - accusative, ergative, tripartite, marked nominative, or marked absolutive - this theory has been developed and tested against unrelated languages of each type, and more than twenty non-Indo-European languages are considered in depth. While affirming that case can be assigned to noun phrases by function words under agreement, the theory also develops in detail a second mode of case assignment: so-called dependent case. Suitable for academic researchers and students, the book employs formal-generative concepts yet remains clear and accessible for a general linguistics readership. Review 'Case is impressive in its breadth and scope, the variety of data surveyed, and thoughtful argumentation. As he has done throughout his career, Mark Baker once again helps us think about fundamental concepts of linguistic theory.' Maria Polinsky, Harvard University Book Description This book develops a unified theory of structural case and applies it to data from more than twenty unrelated languages. About the Author Mark Baker is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Linguistics at Rutgers University.