Statistical Universals of Definite Articles
Statistical Universals of Definite Articles
Author(s): Ivan DerzhanskiSubject(s): Language studies, Language and Literature Studies, Theoretical Linguistics, Syntax, Philology
Published by: Софийски университет »Св. Климент Охридски«
Keywords: chi-squared test; definite article; definiteness; morphosyntax; typology; universals
Summary/Abstract: The paper presents a search for statistical universals concerning definite articles. The study is based on information on 500 languages taken from the World Atlas of Language Structures (WALS) and other resources. The chi-squared test of independence is used to identify morphological, syntactic and other features which correlate with the presence of a definite article. These correlations are then checked for validity across the six macroareas of WALS. Some parallels of the discovered associations to known universals are drawn.
Journal: Съпоставително езикознание / Сопоставительное языкознание
- Issue Year: 2018
- Issue No: 3
- Page Range: 59-74
- Page Count: 16
- Language: English
- Content File-PDF