Linguistic Circle
Speaker: Dave Kush (Norwegian University of Science and Technology)
Title: What Norwegian Can Tell Us About Island Constraints
Abstract: Mainland Scandinavian languages have been reported to allow movement from certain domains commonly considered islands cross-linguistically. Yet, the degree of island-insensitivity and the conditions that govern acceptable island violations have been difficult to pin down using traditional informal methods. I report the results of a series of formal experimental studies that we’ve run to investigate island sensitivity in Norwegian in more detail. Our results show greater variation in island sensitivity than previously reported, with respect to which islands can be violated, which dependencies can violate those islands, and what individual speakers allow. I discuss the theoretical and methodological implications of these findings. Time permitting, I’ll also discuss some new work on island sensitivity in L2.
Contact details
Linguistic Circle
Room S1, Psychology Building, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ