Types of relativization and relative heads in the Sabellic languages

Abstract

This paper offers a novel analysis of the formal morphological and syntactic features of the Sabellic languages. We show that Sabellic correlatives align syntactically with other Indo-European branches in terms of headedness and the use of relative pronouns. Our main contribution is that Sabellic correlatives are base generated in the left periphery. Additionally, we compare the semantics of the relative pronouns in the Sabellic languages and Latin. Unlike Latin, where pronouns derived from *kwó- can refer to both animate and inanimate referents, the Sabellic languages restrict their use to animate referents in free relative clauses. Finally, we find that Sabellic languages counterexemplify a proposed universal of relative clauses, which claims that languages with relative pronouns do not have internally-headed relative clauses. This demonstrates a broader diversity in Sabellic relative clause formation than previously assumed.