Functional projections in adjective modification: evidence from romance languages

Abstract

In many languages where an adjective class can be distinguished, attributive modification is possible. For syntactic analyses of the nominal domain, the behavior of attributive adjectives in Romance languages presents particular challenges, as adjectives can appear both before and after the head noun, with significant differences in interpretation. Focusing on data from Romance languages, this study examines three key proposals on the syntax of attributive adjectives: Cinque (2010), Svenonius (2007, 2008), and Laenzlinger (2005). I argue that while Svenonius’ proposal improves upon Cinque’s in crucial respects, it remains insufficient to fully account for the behavior of prenominal adjectives in Romance languages. To address this, I integrate Laenzlinger’s concept of a split DP into Svenonius’ framework, suggesting that prenominal adjectives, by merging above the internal DP, are constrained to saturate their arguments within a restricted domain. Additionally, I challenge the analysis that prenominal adjectives originate in lower syntactic positions and then move to focus/topic projections, based on their interpretive contrasts, and propose a potential focus/topic projection above the numeral.
Keywords: Adjective. Syntax. Adjective ordering. Romance languages. Portuguese.