ON THE IDENTIFICATION OF NULL POSSESSORS OF RELATIONAL NOUNS IN SERBIAN

Sanja  R. Raković

doi:10.21618/fil2633250r

Autor/innen

Sanja R. Raković

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21618/fil2633250r

Schlagworte:

relational nouns, pro, possessives, identification, syntax, discourse

Abstract

This paper researches potential sources and mechanisms of the identification of null possessors (possessive-pro) of relational nouns in Serbian. It also deals with possible differences in the possessive-pro identification process between children and adult speakers. For these purposes, we conducted a pilot study in the form of a self-paced comprehension experiment. There were 30 participants, 15 children (9–10 years old) and 15 adult speakers (23–37 years old). The data were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively (in percentages). The obtained results, even though modest in size, tentatively suggest that the source of the possessive-pro identification in Serbian may be sought in the aboutness topic of the utterance, with the mechanism being coreference, rather than syntactic binding. This would imply that the identification of possessive-pro is not a strictly syntactic phenomenon. Rather, it should be placed the syntax-discourse interface domain. Additionally, we observed a qualitative and quantitative difference in the identification of pro in children compared to the adult speakers. This is in line with previous research which argues that the acquisition of null elements at the adult level happens relatively late.

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