Word Order In Hungarian: The Syntax Of Ā-positions (linguistik Aktuell/linguistics Today)

Hungarian word-order is characterized by large scale preposing of constituents to sentence-initial positions. This study examines systematically the elements which occur in the left periphery. Focal, wh- and negative operators which have scope over the whole sentence must appear in the left periphery overtly; topicalized elements precede the scope operators and appear in an organized system as well. The author proposes that the structure of the Hungarian sentence comprises a rich set of left-peripheral functional projections, organized into sub-systems, like the Scope field and the Topic field . On the basis of the structure of Hungarian, the study proposes to consider these sub-systems as being in turn split, that is hierarchically organized into specific functional projections. The study also examines the well-formedness conditions linked to multiple preposing. It is shown that the various well-formedness criteria apply overtly in Hungarian. This enables to make a direct link between the scope properties of affective operators and the articulated structure of the left periphery. Annotation Hungarian word-order is characterized by large scale preposing of constituents to sentence-initial positions. This study examines systematically the elements which occur in the left periphery. Focal, wh- and negative operators which have scope over the whole sentence must appear in the left periphery overtly; topicalized elements precede the scope operators and appear in an organized system as well. The author proposes that the structure of the Hungarian sentence comprises a rich set of left-peripheral functional projections, organized into sub-systems, like the Scope field and the Topic field. On the basis of the structure of Hungarian, the study proposes to consider these sub-systems as being in turn split, that is hierarchically organized into specific functional projections. The study also examines the well-formedness conditions linked to multiple preposing. It is shown that the various well-formedness criteria apply overtly in Hungarian. This enables to make a direct link between the scope properties of affective operators and the articulated structure of the left periphery Cette thèse examine les variations d'ordre des mots en hongrois. Dans cette langue, la plupart des fonctions discursives comme la négation ou l'interrogation mettent en jeu un ordre de mots plus ou moins variable, où le verbe peut être précédé d'un certain nombre d'éléments et le sujet apparaître après le verbe. L'objectif de ce travail est de démontrer que cette partie préverbale (périphérie gauche) est en fait soumise à des contraintes structurelles très rigides, qui utilisent un grand nombre de positions syntaxiques aux fonctions déterminées. Le travail examine de façon systématique les éléments qui apparaissent dans la périphérie gauche, tels les éléments négatifs, de focalisation ou de question, ainsi que les éléments topicalisés. Le travail s'intéresse aussi aux conditions de bonne formation de phrases liées à ces antépositions multiples. Il est démontré que les éléments entrant dans la périphérie gauche sont formellement légitimés dans la position où ils se trouvent Foreword 1. Introduction 2. Focus 3. Topic 4. Wh-questions 5. Negation 6. Conclusion References Index