Research

Negation in Kaqchikel

My primary research project centers around the syntax of focus structure, cleft structures, and relative clauses in Kaqchikel. I am currently looking at the syntax of negation in this language and using it as a window to understand other parts of the syntax, in particular clefts and copular structures.

Kaqchikel negation is bipartite, meaning it uses two negative markers which frame a lexical item. The negation phrase always appears in the left periphery. I ask the questions, (i) what is the syntax of negation, (ii) how can negation trigger an apparent shift in word order, (iii) how does the negation interact with other movement operations. I propose that negation structures often involve a cleft syntax.

Q in the A Domain

It has been proposed that questions involve a functional morpheme (Q). I have a current project joint with Aron Hirsch, that looks at how Q interacts with operations in the A domain as opposed to the A-bar domain. We look at selection, Case, and A-movement to understand the syntax of the QP. In particular, we are looking at the mechanism of how features project within the QP structure.

Superiority Effects in Turkish Multiple wh

I have a project joint with Utku Turk that looks at examples of surprising superiority effects with Turkish multiple wh. Turkish has free discourse configurationality and allows overt focus movement and scrambling. Thus we do not always see superiority effects with multiple wh constructions. However, we have observed a surprising ungrammaticality pattern in which certain wh movements are banned when the wh element is an adjunct and there is another adjunct within the phrase.

Exceptives

As a part of the research project Variation in Exceptive Structures funded by the National Science Foundation (Grants BCS-2116343 and BCS-2116344), led by Masha Polinsky and Eric Potsdam, I am investigating the nature of exceptive constructions in Thai. Please navigate to this webpage to learn more about the grant project.

Copular Syntax in Kaqchikel

Through my investigation of Negation in Kaqchikel, I discovered interesting data that suggest that a particle ja which has been traditionally analyzed and referred to in the literature as a focus particle is actually a copula that surfaces in certain contexts such as pseudo-clefts or specification.