Journal of Historical Syntax

Maia Duguine & Georg Kaiser. This paper explores the evolution of verb-second (V2) patterns in Basque wh-interrogatives from the Archaic period (14-16th c.) to later periods. While in Modern Basque a systematic “residual” V2 system in wh-interrogatives is observed, in Archaic Basque the patterns appear to be mixed: synthetic verbs display systematic V2 order, whereas analytic verbs allow intervening material between the wh-phrase and the verbal complex. We put forth a multifactorial analysis of Archaic Basque interrogatives, assuming that in analytic constructions independent syntactic and morphophonological properties of auxiliaries interact with the syntax of V2 in such a way that they ‘hide’ its effects on word order. The change from Archaic to Modern Basque involves a simple change in the properties of T, independently of the syntax of V2.