Agreement in grammar and discourse: A research overview

Abstract

Agreement is among the most widely-researched issues in theoretical linguistics. In this introduction, we critically review some of the key issues, focussing on typological approaches to agreement, the role of agreement in establishing and maintaining reference, and the emergence of agreement diachronically. We point to the interplay of semantic, pragmatic and syntactic factors in shaping the way agreement systems function, and emphasize the need for more usage-based research in understanding the impact of extra-syntactic factors. We also argue for greater attention to lesser-researched languages, particularly those where features other than person are central in agreement relations. Finally, we offer a short synopsis of the contributions to this issue.

Redundancy can benefit learning: Evidence from word order and case marking

“…At the same time, however, redundancy is attested in different forms across languages (Hengeveld & Leufkens, 2018;Leufkens, 2020;Trudgill, 2009;Wit & Gillette, 1999). For example, many languages have agreement patterns between an argument and a verb even when both are obligatory and mark the same meaning (Haig & Forker, 2018). English, for instance, requires the morpheme -s to mark third person singular on verbs (e.g., the man walks), even though both features (third person and singularity) can be deduced from the subject, whose expression is obligatory.…”

Lexical anaphora : a corpus-based typological study of referential choice

“…third person only) are free definite pronouns, especially personal pronouns (P = 0.80) and demonstratives (P = 0.11). 5 However, there is one contentious type of reduced referring expression that merits a few additional comments: pronominal affixes/bound person indices (see Lehmann 1988;Mithun 2003;Kibrik 2011;Haig & Forker 2018; among many others, see also Haig & Schnell 2014: 31-45). Corbett (2006) observes that anaphora are related to the phenomenon of agreement, which replicates specific features of a controller, just as anaphors replicate certain features of an antecedent, though agreement usually involves much tighter relations with the controller compared to those between anaphor and antecedent.…”

Variable index placement in Gutob from a typological perspective

“…Indexes are defined as bound markers expressing argument features, most commonly person and number, and most commonly attached to the verbal predicate. Indexing (Haspelmath 2013) is a more neutral term than agreement, as it does not presuppose any syntactic relationship between the marker and the co-referential NP, nor whether the latter is obligatorily expressed (Haig & Forker 2018). Also, the morphological status of the index, as a clitic or an affix, is irrelevant, as the latter is often unjustifiably equated with obligatoriness of marking when it comes to agreement or indexing (Haig & Forker 2018: 720).…”