Parameterizing Ergativity: Perspective from Kurdish

Location: COMM Bldg. Rm. 311

Abstract: 

One of the central aspects of generative linguistics is comparing the properties of particular constructions across
languages to understand how human languages are very diverse yet highly constrained. While linguistic universals
enable us to understand the fundamental properties shared among languages, the study of parameters allows
us to explore their unique properties and understand the space of variation. A widely studied phenomenon in
examining parameters is morphosyntactic alignment, a system by which languages distinguish their grammatical
subjects and objects. Based on alignment systems, languages can roughly be categorized into two main classes:
nominative-accusative, and ergative-absolutive. In a nominative-accusative alignment, subjects of both transitive
and intransitive verbs follow the same pattern, while objects are treated differently. By contrast, in an ergativeabsolutive
alignment, the subject of an intransitive verb and the object are grouped together, as opposed to
the subject of a transitive verb that follows a different pattern. The high degree of cross-linguistic variation in
ergative alignments has made ergativity a vastly debated topic. Many Iranian languages showcase instances of
ergative systems in their alignment. In this talk, I will provide a system of parameters to provide an account
for microvaraiation in the ergative patterns of three dialects of Kurdish, an understudied Northwestern Iranian
language. I argue that the so-called “absolutive property”––the similarity in patterning of intransitive subjects and
objects––is not a fundamental feature of the ergative systems of these languages, but rather, a derived property
restricted to certain contexts. In particular, I propose that this property emerges as a consequence of the syntactic
behavior of pronominal arguments in these dialects. This study offers insights into a microvariationist investigation
of ergativity and its typological diversity. It further highlights how the patterns from underrepresented languages
can inform and refine linguistic models. In this talk, I will also provide the broader implications of these findings
and present directions for future research.