Univerbation of Light Verb Compounds and the Obligatory Coding Principle
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Abstract
The Obligatory Coding Principle accounts for the inventories of possible coding frames in languages that, according to the current terminology, can be characterized as consistently accusative or consistently ergative in their system of argument coding. In coding frame inventories fully consistent with the Obligtory Coding principle, every coding frame includes a given type of coding, either A (in obligatory A coding languages) or P (in obligatory P coding languages). However, languages with coding frame inventories violating this principle are not exceptional. This paper examines the questions raised by light verb constructions with respect to the Obligatory Coding Principle, in particular the possible impact of the univerbation of light verb constructions on argument coding systems initially consistent with the principle or obligatory P coding. The discussion is based on an analysis of the role of the univerbation of light verb compounds in the changes that have affected the situation of Basque with respect to the Obligatory Coding Principle, and a comparison of the situation of Basque with that of Andic languages (East Caucasian).