N2 07_Definite NP (Num N, N Num) lacks a definite article or demonstrative
| Definition |
|---|
| General Note: How do definite and indefinite noun numeral combinations differ in form? This is the third of seven... To set these, use the examples for the specific contexts in N2 01 through N2 04. Check as many "yes" values as applicable. If in doubt, just leave the property value(s) unset, and contact us via email. This property is set to "yes" if there is no definite article or demonstrative in the definite contexts given in N2 03 and N2 04. Examples. 1. English is "no" for this property: the determiner is obligatory contexts that calls for a definite noun phrase: *Tell me about four letters 2. Gungbe (Porto Novo) is "yes" for this property, as the definite article/specificity marker lɔ́ can be absent in such contexts (as indicated by the parentheses). Note that there is no demonstrative either in the following example: Wémà ɛ̀nɛ̀ lɛ́ ( lɔ́ ) kò wá letter four PL (Det) already come 'The four letters already arrived.' (example from Enoch Aboh) Gungbe is also "yes" for N2 05, as the definite article/specificity marker can be present. Comment: This property will be quite difficult to set in the following situation: a language prefers using a demonstrative in the three definite contexts given in N2 03_ N2 04_ and does not have a clear definite determiner. The problem is to determine if the Num N or N Num N can also be given a definite interpretation, keeping the distribution otherwise identical. For a 'yes' value, please give an example using the contexts; for a 'no' value, please give an excluded example in the particular contexts. Add a comment ("judgment unclear, need further work, not completely sure") if the judgment is not clear. |
| Contributed by: Hilda Koopman |
| Language | Value | Contributor | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| =Hoan | No | Chris Collins | |
| Afrikaans | No | Theresa Biberauer | |
| Agni indénié | No | Amoikon Dyhié ASSANVO | |
| Albanian | Yes | Dalina Kallulli | |
| American Sign Language | Yes | Natasha Abner | |
| Amharic | No | Girma Demeke | |
| Ancient Greek | No | Richard Faure | |
| + Arabic, Gulf | No | Dimitrios Ntelitheos | |
| Bambara | Yes | Hilda Koopman | |
| Bardi | No | Claire Bowern | |
| Bengali | Yes | Priyanka Biswas | |
| Bole | No | Alhaji Gimba | |
| Brazilian Portuguese | No | Ananda Lima | |
| Bulgarian | No | Roumyana Pancheva | |
| Burmese | Yes | Timothy Ho | |
| + Calabrian (Northern) | Yes | Giuseppina Silvestri | |
| Catalan | No | Victoria Mateu | |
| Chickasaw | Yes | Pam Munro | |
| Czech | No | Pavel Caha | |
| Dagaare | No | Adams Bodomo | |
| Dholuo | No | Hilda Koopman | |
| Digo | No | Steve Nicolle | |
| Digor Ossetic | Yes | David Erschler | |
| Dutch | No | Hilda Koopman | |
| Eastern Armenian | Yes | Karine Megerdoomian | |
| English | No | Katie Redderson-Lear | |
| English (Singapore) | Yes | Adam Chong | |
| Faroese | No | Hjalmar Páll Petersen | |
| Finnish | Yes | Anders Holmberg | |
| French | No | Vincent Homer | |
| Frisian (West Frisian) | No | Jarich Hoekstra | |
| Ga | No | Mary Esther Kropp Dakubu | |
| galician | No | Naír García | |
| Garifuna | Yes | Pam Munro | |
| georgian | Yes | Lea Nash | |
| German | No | Viola Schmitt | |
| Greek | No | Arhonto Terzi | |
| + Gungbe (Porto-Novo) | Yes | Enoch Oladé Aboh | |
| Haitian | No | Michel DeGraff | |
| Hakka | No | Iris Wu | |
| Hausa | No | Michael A. Estrada | |
| Hixkaryana | Yes | Laura Kalin | |
| Hungarian | No | Anna Szabolcsi | |
| Ibibio | No | Willie Willie | |
| Icelandic | No | Jim Wood | |
| Iha | Yes | Mark Donohue | |
| imbabura quichua | No | UCLA Linguistics 210 | |
| Indonesian | No | Mark Donohue | |
| Iron Ossetic | Yes | David Erschler | |
| Italian | No | Cristina Guardiano | |
| Japanese | Yes | Ken Hiraiwa | A demonstrative is only optional. |
| KiLega | No | Kasangati Kinyalolo | |
| Kiyaka | Yes | Lukowa Kidima | |
| Korean | No | Grace Lee | |
| Kuot | No | Eva Lindström | |
| Kurdish (Sorani) | No | Yadgar Karimi | |
| Kusunda | No | Mark Donohue | |
| Laal | NA | Florian Lionnet | |
| Malagasy | No | Hilda Koopman | |
| Malayalam | Yes | Mythili Menon | |
| Mandarin | No | Arthur Wang | |
| Miya | No | Michael A. Estrada | |
| Nahuatl (Central Huasteca) | Yes | John Garcia | |
| Nahuatl (Classical) | No | John Garcia | |
| Nepali | No | Mark Donohue | |
| Norwegian | No | Marit Julien | |
| + Nupe | Yes | Jason Kandybowicz | |
| Okinawan | Yes | Ken Hiraiwa | A demonstrative is only optional. |
| Old English | No | Willem Koopman | |
| One | Yes | Mark Donohue | |
| Papuan Malay | No | Mark Donohue | |
| + Polish | No | Barbara Tomaszewicz | |
| Russian | No | Denis Paperno | |
| San Dionisio Ocotepec Zapotec | Yes | George Aaron Broadwell | |
| Sandawe | No | Helen Eaton | |
| Scottish Gaelic | No | David Adger | |
| Shupamem | Yes | Abdoulaye Laziz Nchare | |
| Skou | No | Mark Donohue | |
| Spanish | No | Victoria Mateu | |
| + Swedish | No | fredrik heinat | |
| Swiss German | No | Cecile Meier | |
| Tagalog | Yes | Edith Aldridge | If an NP is the absolutive of its clause, it will typically bave a definite or generic interpretation. The definite interpretation does not depend on the presence of a demonstrative. |
| Taiwanese Southern Min | No | Arthur Wang | |
| Thai | No | Alif Silpachai | |
| Tommo-So | No | Laura McPherson | |
| Triqui, Copala | Yes | George Aaron Broadwell | |
| Tukang Besi | Yes | Mark Donohue | |
| Turkish | No | Murat Kural | |
| Tuvan | No | Mark Donohue | |
| Ukrainian | Yes | Roksolana Mykhaylyk | |
| Vietnamese | Yes | Binh Ngo | |
| West Flemish | No | Liliane Haegeman | |
| Western Armenian | Yes | Hrayr Khanjian | |
| Wolof | No | Mariame Sy | |
| Yawa | No | Mark Donohue | |
| Yoruba | No | Johnson Folorunso Ilori |