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Difference between revisions of "Sentence syntax - Norwegian"

Line 66: Line 66:
  
 
+ Hun har idag hoppet.
 
+ Hun har idag hoppet.
 
+
<Phrase>23126</Phrase>
 
+ Hun har ikke hoppet.
 
+ Hun har ikke hoppet.
 
+
<Phrase>23127</Phrase>
 
+ Jeg vet at hun idag har hoppet.
 
+ Jeg vet at hun idag har hoppet.
 
+
<Phrase>23128</Phrase>
 
+ Jeg vet at hun ikke har hoppet idag.
 
+ Jeg vet at hun ikke har hoppet idag.
 
+
<Phrase>23129</Phrase>
 
For '''declarative''' clauses, another distinction between main and subordinate clauses is that in main clauses, the ''initial'' position can be held by an adverbial element or a topicalized element, where in either case the subject is then moved ''behind'' the finite verb; this is generally referred to as '''Subject-Verb Inversion'''.  
 
For '''declarative''' clauses, another distinction between main and subordinate clauses is that in main clauses, the ''initial'' position can be held by an adverbial element or a topicalized element, where in either case the subject is then moved ''behind'' the finite verb; this is generally referred to as '''Subject-Verb Inversion'''.  
  
 
+ Idag har hun hoppet langt.
 
+ Idag har hun hoppet langt.
 
+
<Phrase>23130</Phrase>
 
+ Gaver skjenket hun ham hver dag.
 
+ Gaver skjenket hun ham hver dag.
 +
<Phrase>23131</Phrase>
 +
 +
 +
 +
 +
 +
 +
  
 
In subordinate declarative clauses no such fronted position is available, however, these clauses are standardly introduced by a complementizer, such as '''''at''''' when the clause serves as an argument relative to the verb.
 
In subordinate declarative clauses no such fronted position is available, however, these clauses are standardly introduced by a complementizer, such as '''''at''''' when the clause serves as an argument relative to the verb.
Line 85: Line 93:
  
 
+ Hoppet du?
 
+ Hoppet du?
 +
<Phrase>23132</Phrase>
  
 
+ Hva skjenket du henne?
 
+ Hva skjenket du henne?
 +
<Phrase>23133</Phrase>
 +
  
 
When occurring as '''subordinate''' interrogative clauses, yes-no-questions are marked by the complementizers ''om'' or ''hvorvidt'', and no inversion, while constituent questions are marked by a clause initial occurrence of the questioned constituent (marked by ''hv-''), and no inversion.
 
When occurring as '''subordinate''' interrogative clauses, yes-no-questions are marked by the complementizers ''om'' or ''hvorvidt'', and no inversion, while constituent questions are marked by a clause initial occurrence of the questioned constituent (marked by ''hv-''), and no inversion.

Revision as of 14:47, 15 August 2011

The basic shape of a Norwegian clause can be depicted as follows. The subject precedes the verb, objects immediately follow the verb and precede any oblique arguments or adverbials; when there are two objects, the indirect object is the one occurring closest to the main verb. Case is marked only on personal pronouns, with a subject – non-subject distinction. The items marked in boldface are generally necessary for making a grammatically wellformed clause.

 (I)  Subject  Vmain  IndirectObject  DirectObject  Oblique   Adverbial

(1) With [ Subject Vmain IndirectObject DirectObject Adverbial ]:

Jeg skjenker deg et sverd før slaget.
“I give you a sword before the battle”
Jeg
jeg
1SGNOM
PN
skjenker
skjenker
givePRES
V
deg
deg
2SGACC
PN
et
et
INDEFNEUTSG
ART
sverd
sverd
sword
N
før
før
before
PREP
slaget
slaget
battleNEUTSGDEF
N


(2) With [ Subject Vmain Oblique Adverbial ]:

Jeg snakket om henne etter slaget.
“I talked about her after the battle”
Jeg
jeg
1SGNOM
PN
snakket
snakket
talkPRET
V
om
om
about
PREP
henne
henne
3SGFEMACC
PN
etter
etter
after
PREP
slaget
slaget
battleNEUTSGDEF
N


Grammar traditions often classify sentence constituents according to whether they are 'required', or 'valence bound', by the main verb; those that are, are often called arguments, and those that are not, adjuncts. (Traditions often suggest that constituents fall neatly into one or the other category, and that no further alternatives obtain, both of these assumptions may be questionable.) Among the constituents shown above, subject, object (both types) and oblique are commonly considered as arguments relative to the main verb, while adverbials, whether in final, fronted or nexal position (see below) are adjuncts.

Norwegian has a rich system of auxiliary verbs. Relative to the pattern just shown, they - in their maximal distribution - pattern as follows:

 (II)  Subject  Modal   ha   Modal   bli   Vmain  IndirectObject  DirectObject  Oblique   Adverbial

(3) A maximal example of auxiliary sequencing:

Hun vil skulle kunne ha måttet bli skjenket et sverd.
“it will be the case that it ought to be the case that it has been possible that it has been necessary that a sword has been given to her”
Hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
vil
vil
willPRESMOD
AUX
skulle
skulle
shallINFMOD
AUX
kunne
kunne 
couldINFMOD 
AUX
ha
ha
haveINF
AUX
måttet
måttet
mustPRFMODPTCP
AUX
bli
bli
beINF
AUX
skjenket
skjenket
givePRFPTCP
V
et
et
aINDEFNEUTSG
ART
sverd
sverd
sword
N


Of the verbal categories here shown, 'Modal' comprises the auxiliaries ville, skulle, måtte, burde, kunne. In the positions indicated for 'Modal', these items can occur alone or in combination. Ha is called the perfect auxiliary, and bli the passive auxiliary. The order among these items is rigid. Vmain subsumes full verbs and copulas. Of copulas there are two, være and bli (distinct from the passive auxiliary). For all of these verb categories, there are six possible forms of inflection (for their full conjugational realizations, see Verb Conjugation, while below we exemplify with one of these conjugational patterns, the -et pattern):

- infinitive (in the -et pattern having a form ending in -e)

- imperative (with a form relating to an e-infinitive by dropping the -e)

- present (with a form relating to an e-infinitive by adding -r)

- past (with a form relating to an e-infinitive by adding -t)

- past participle (with a form identical to the past form)

- present participle (with a form relating to an e-infinitive by adding -nde).


Of these forms, the present and the past are called finite forms, while the infinitive and the participles are called non-finite forms. These are considered contrasts along the dimension of Tense. Imperative is a value along the Mode dimension, and in the verbal morphology, all the other forms mentioned represent Indicative. No further values of Mode are expressed in the verbal morphology in Norwegian (but can be expressed by other means). A further category often realized in languages' verbal morphology is Aspect; however, Norwegian has no verbal inflectional form for aspectual values (but they can be expressed by other means). Finally, the category of Voice is reflected in Norwegian verb morphology through an affix -s being used in Passive while the forms without -s count as Active. Relative to the -et pattern, the forms listed above are thus active, while the corresponding passive forms are shaped as follows; only Vmain can have these inflections:

- infinitive passive (in the -et pattern) having a form relating to an e-infinitive by adding -s

- present passive being like infinitive passive

- past passive (in the -et pattern) having a form relating to an e-infinitive by adding -des (not much used).


Notably, for expressing passive, Norwegian also has a 'periphrastic' strategy with bli plus participle.


The choice among the above mentioned Tense categories is connected to the sentence schema shown in (II) as follows:

- The first verb in a sentence is finite, whichever of the verb categories occurs first.

- The verb immediately following a modal is in infinitive form.

- The verb immediately following the auxiliary ha or the auxilary bli is in the past participle form.


(4) Finite first, 2 x infinitive after Modal, past participle after ha:

Hun vil måtte ha kommet.
“it will be the case that she must have come”
Hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
vil
vil
willPRESMOD
AUX
måtte
måtte
mustINFMOD
AUX
ha
ha
haveINF
AUX
kommet
kommet
comePRFPTCP
V

(5) Finite first, infinitive after Modal, past participle after ha:

Hun må ha kommet.
“she must have come”
Hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
mustPRESMOD
AUX
ha
ha
haveINF
AUX
kommet
kommet
comePRFPTCP
V

(6) Finite first, past participle after ha:

Hun har kommet.
“she has come”
Hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
har
har
havePRES
AUX
kommet
kommet
comePRFPTCP
V

(7) Finite first:

Hun kommer.
“she comes”
Hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
kommer
kommer
comePRES
V


Relative to the above schema, adverbial elements, in addition to the final position, can also occur adjacent to the finite verb, a position often referred to as the nexus position. At this point there is a distinction between main and subordinate clauses: in a main clause, the adverbial comes after the finite verb, in subordinate clauses before the finite verb.

+ Hun har idag hoppet.

Hun har idag hoppet.
“she today has jumped”
Hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
har
har
havePRES
AUX
idag
idag
today
ADVtemp
hoppet
hoppet
jumpPRFPTCP
V

+ Hun har ikke hoppet.

Hun har ikke hoppet.
“she has not jumped”
Hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
har
har
havePRES
AUX
ikke
ikke
NEG
ADVneg
hoppet
hoppet
jumpPRFPTCP
 

+ Jeg vet at hun idag har hoppet.

Jeg vet at hun idag har hoppet.
“I know that she has jumped today”
Jeg
jeg
1SG
PN
vet
vet
PRES
V
at
at
that
COMP
hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
idag
idag
today
ADVtemp
har
har
havePRES
AUX
hoppet
hoppet
jumpPRFPTCP
V

+ Jeg vet at hun ikke har hoppet idag.

Jeg vet at hun ikke har hoppet idag.
“I know that she hasn't jumped today”
Jeg
jeg
1SG
N
vet
vet
knowPRES
V
at
at
thatDECL
COMP
hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
ikke
ikke
NEG
ADVneg
har
har
havePRES
AUX
hoppet
hoppet
jumpPRFPTCP
V
idag
idag
today
ADVm

For declarative clauses, another distinction between main and subordinate clauses is that in main clauses, the initial position can be held by an adverbial element or a topicalized element, where in either case the subject is then moved behind the finite verb; this is generally referred to as Subject-Verb Inversion.

+ Idag har hun hoppet langt.

Idag har hun hoppet langt.
“today she has jumped far”
Idag
idag
today
ADVtemp
har
har
havePRES
AUX
hun
hun
3SGFEM
PN
hoppet
hoppet
jumpPRFPTCP
V
langt
langt
 
ADV

+ Gaver skjenket hun ham hver dag.

Gaver skjenket hun ham hver dag.
“gifts she gave him every day”
Gaver
gaver
giftPL
N
skjenket
skjenket
givePRET
V
hun
hun
she3SGFEMNOM
N
ham
ham
3SGMASCACC
PN
hver
hver
everyCOMMSG
QUANT
dag
dag
day
N





In subordinate declarative clauses no such fronted position is available, however, these clauses are standardly introduced by a complementizer, such as at when the clause serves as an argument relative to the verb.


Interrogative clauses come in two varieties, yes-no-questions and constituent questions, the latter inquiring about the value of a constituent of the sentence, the former inquiring about the truth-value of the entire sentence. When occurring as main interrogative clauses, yes-no-questions are marked by Subject-Verb Inversion but with no element fronted, while constituent questions are marked by fronting of a constituent carrying the morphological shape of an interrogative constituent, namely the initial letters hv- - what may be referred to as the questioned constituent -, and Subject-Verb Inversion.

+ Hoppet du?

Hoppet du?
“did you jump?”
Hoppet
hoppet
jumpPRET
V
du?
du?
2SG
PN


+ Hva skjenket du henne?

Hva skjenket du henne?
“what did you give her?”
Hva
hva
whatNEUTSGQ
PROint
skjenket
skjenket
givePRET
V
du
du
2SGNOM
PN
henne?
henne?
3SGFEMACC
PN


When occurring as subordinate interrogative clauses, yes-no-questions are marked by the complementizers om or hvorvidt, and no inversion, while constituent questions are marked by a clause initial occurrence of the questioned constituent (marked by hv-), and no inversion.

+ Vi gjetter om du hoppet.

+ Vi gjettet hva du hadde skjenket henne.


Thus, all varieties of subordinate clauses have the constituent order shown above, preceded by a complementizer or a hv-constituent, but without Subject-Verb Inversion, whereas all interrogative main clauses have inversion, and likewise declarative main clauses with a fronted adverbial or topicalized constituent. Main constituent questions likewise have a fronted element (the questioned constituent), while main yes-no questions simply start with the (finite) verb. The nexus position for adverbials in all subordinate clauses is immediately before the finite verb, in main clauses immediately after the finite verb.


Structurally close to the types of subordinate clauses now described - to be called finite subordinate clauses - are infinitival clauses: these are introduced by the infinitival marker å, they have no subject, and their first verb is in infinitive. They otherwise have the same internal build-up as finite subordinate clauses. (There is one restriction: in Norwegian, infinitival clauses can not have interrogative function, in contrast to English, for instance, and so they never have fronted hv-elements or interrogative complementizers.)

+ Jeg snakker om å måtte bli skjenket et sverd.

Given this parallellism, we will subsume finite and infinitival subordinate clauses alike under the notion subordinate clauses. (Other languages also display subordinate structures built around participial forms, those built around present participles often called gerunds, and those built around past participles as absolutives; since these types only to a very limited extent can be used in Norwegian, we don't include them in this enumeration.)


Subordinate clauses, whether finite or infinitival, can serve as either arguments or adjuncts, and as arguments, in all of the functions mentioned above. When serving as adjuncts/adverbials, they mostly do so as complements to a preposition, but for finite subordinate clauses, there are also specific complementizers dedicated to signaling time, place, reason and other connections that the clause may express relative to the main verb.

+ han snakker mens han spiser.

+ han snakker fordi han spiser.

The possibility for subordinate clauses to be governed by a preposition is also essential when they serve as obliques.

+ han snakker om at jeg sover.

+ han snakker om å sove.

The constellation of a subordinate clause being governed by a preposition is on the whole rather particular to Scandinavian among the Germanic languages.


[to be continued] --Lars Hellan 16:37, 14 August 2011 (UTC)