Information Structure in Persian: A Comparison of Systemic Functional Grammar & Role and Reference Grammar

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to compare the approaches to Persian information structure in two functional theories: Systemic Functional Grammar & Role and Reference Grammar. By selecting 400 data from scientific and educational texts, stories and newspapers we have analyzed the relationship between information structure in one hand, and phonology, semantics, morphology and syntax in another hand based on Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar & VanValin’s Role and Reference Grammar. Also, advantages and disadvantages of the mentioned approaches in relation to information structure are investigated. After discussing what is meant by information distribution in each theory, we examine the classification of focus in each approach. Finally the obtained results of Persian data show that the relationship between information structure in one hand and phonology, semantics, morphology and syntax in another hand is not regular and rule-governed. Moreover, studies represent despite the different analytical methods and the shortcomings of each theory, the obtained outcomes in the framework of these two approaches have some in common because of similarity in functional nature of the both

A metafunctional approach to word order in Persian language

“…In line with Samareh's perspective, Rasekh Mahand (2004, p. 56) has noted that "Persian language is one of those languages that are of free word order type, and in Persian language, constituents can be in several positions in a sentence". Majidi (2011) and Kazemi and Afrashi (2013) have also considered the order of words in Persian to be free. Rasekh Mahand (ibid; has discussed the function of the process of "scrambling" 8 in Persian as an evidence to prove the free order of constituents in a Persian clause and has illustrated his claim with the following sentences.…”