A CP layer is only postulated in:
- finite subordinate clauses (adverbial, degree, complement etc.)
- clauses with wh-movement (direct and indirect wh-questions, relative clauses)
The CP layer is lexicalized either by a complementizer or by an element in SpecCP (e.g. a wh-phrase or a relative pronoun) or in rare cases by both.
Empty elements in C
The original Penn annotation scheme calls for a complementizer to be present in all CPs (whether overt of empty). In the CHLG, however, we have chosen not to insert empty elements in C as a general rule. There are only three cases where an empty C is inserted:
- When an empty complementizer alternatives with dat, mostly after verba diecendi (
C 0) - V1 conditionals and direct questions (
C-V1 0) - Asyndetic V2 dependent clauses, where the main sign of clause dependence is subjunctive marking on the finite verb (
C-SUBJ 0)
When an empty complementizer alternates with dat, mostly after verba diecendi (C 0)
(IP-MAT (NP-SBJ *con*) (KON vnde) (VVFIN sede) (CP-THT (C 0) ← empty complementiser (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (VMFIN wolde) (NP-TMP-WH (DPWS wat)) (VVINF ruwen)) (CP-ADV (KOUS Also) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (ADVP-TMP (AVD nu)) (ADJP-PRD (ADJD allene)) (VVFIN was)))) ) ‘And [she] said (that) she wished to rest a while, since she was now alone’
V1 conditionals and direct questions (C-V1 0)
(IP-MAT (CP-ADV (C-V1 0) ← empty complementiser (IP-SUB (VVFIN Wult) (NP-SBJ (PPER u)) (CP-THT (KOUS dat) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER yck)) (VVFIN sterue))))) (NP-SBJ (PPER yck)) (VVFIN sterue) (PP (APPR myt) (NP (NA willen))) ) V1 conditional: ‘If you want me to die, I gladly will’(CP-QUE (C-V1 0) ← empty complementiser (IP-SUB (VVFIN Meine) (NP-SBJ (PPER ghi)) (CP-THT (KOUS datt) ...)) ) Direct question: `Do you think that...'?
Asyndetic V2 dependent clauses, where the main sign of clause dependence is subjunctive marking on the finite verb (C-SUBJ 0)
(IP-MAT (CP-ADV (WADVP-2 0) (KOUS wen) (IP-SUB (ADVP-TMP *T*-2) (NP-SBJ (PPER ick)) (VVFIN vterkese))) (CP-ADV (C-SUBJ 0) ← empty complementiser (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (VVFIN sy) (NP-PRD (NP-POS (NP (NP-POS (DDARTA des) (NA keisers)) (NA vorsten)) (CONJP (KON edder) (NP (NA herden)))) (NA dochter)))) (ADVP (AVKO so)) (VVFIN wil) (NP-SBJ (PPER ick)) (CP-THT (CP-THT (KOUS dat) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (NP-PRD (DPOSA iuwe) (ADJA weldige) (NA vrowe)) (VVFIN sy)))) ) `When I choose [a bride], whether she is a daughter of a king’s lord or of a shepherd, I wish for her to be your mighty lady'
Adverbial clauses
The structure of an adverbial clause (CP-ADV) depends on the type of adverbial subordinator (KOUS) which introduces the clause.
Essentially, three different structures are available (see below for details on each):
- One structure for adverbial clauses introduced by an adverbial subordinator which is formally identical to an ordinary adverb (e.g. also, dar, do, eer, nu, so)
- One structure for adverbial clauses introduced by an adverbial subordinator which is not formally identical to an ordinary adverb (e.g. dat, eft,
wanner, want(e)) - One structure for adverbial clauses introduced by wen
Adverbial subordinators (KOUS) which project an ADVP
The following adverbial subordinators are formally identical to ordinary adverbs and project an ADVP which attaches at the IP level:
- also
- dar
- dewile
- do
- eer
- nu
- so
In such structures, the adverbial subordinator (KOUS) takes a CP-ADVP as its complement which is headed by an empty WADVP. The WADVP is then traced into the finite subordinate clause (IP-SUB).
Some examples:
also
(ADVP (KOUS also) (CP-ADV (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (DDARTA de) (NA preesters)) (VVIMP ghebeedet))) )
dar
(ADVP-LOC (KOUS dar) (CP-ADV (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP-LOC *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (PPER he)) (VVFIN sprekt) ...)) )
dewile
(ADVP-TMP (KOUS dewile) (CP-ADV (WADVP-0) (IP-SUB (ADVP-TMP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) ...)) )
do
(IP-MAT (ADVP-TMP-LFD (KOUS Do) (CP-ADV (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP-TMP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (PPER he) (VVFIN quam))))) (ADVP-TMP-RSP (AVD do)) ... )
eer
(ADVP-TMP (KOUS Eer) (CP-ADV (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP-TMP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (PPER ic)) (NP-OB1 (DPDS dit)) (VVFIN vulbrincge) (PP (APPR to) (NP (DPOSA dinen) (NA eren))))) )
nu
(IP-MAT (ADVP-TMP (KOUS Nu) (CP-ADV (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP-TMP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (PPER ik)) (NP-OB1 (DPDS den)) (PTKNEG nicht) (VVINF vorkamen) (VMFIN mach)))) (ADVP (AVKO So)) ... )
so
(ADVP (KOUS So) (CP-ADV (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-1) (NP-OB2 (PPER my)) ...)) )
Adverbial subordinators (KOUS) which head a CP-ADVP
A small set of adverbial subordinators (KOUS) – those which do not have formally identical ordinary adverb counterparts – are treated as overt complementisers, i.e. head the CP, rather than project an ADVP of which CP-ADV is a daughter. This applies specifically to the following adverbial subordinators:
- dat
- eft/of
- wanner
- want(e)
- woldat
dat
(IP-MAT (KON Mer) (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (VVFIN maket) (NP-OB1 (DDARTA den) (NA menschen)) (CP-ADV (KOUS dat) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER he)) (VVFIN wert) (NP-OB2 (NA gode)))) )
effte
(CP-ADV (KOUS effte) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER wi)) (PP (ADVP (PAVKO dar)) (PAVAP umme)) (VVFIN bidden) (VMFIN mogen)) )
wanneer
(IP-MAT (CP-ADV (KOUS Wanneer) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER ghi)) (PP (APPR mit) (NP (NA vorsate)) (NP-OB1 (NA vnrecht)) (VVFIN sweert)))) (NP-SBJ (DPDS Dat)) (VVFIN is) ... )
want(e)
(CP-ADV (KOUS want) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER he)) (NP-OB2 (PPER em)) (PTKNEG nicht) (VVFIN vnsaghe) (PP (APPR in) (NP (DDARTA dessen) (NA leuen)))) )
woldat
(CP-ADV (KOUS woldat) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (DDA dusse) (XY x) (NA mestere)) (NP-OB1 (DIA vele) (NP-POS gudes)) (VVFIN (VVFIN makeden) (KON vnd) (VVFIN deden))) )
Adverbial clauses introduced by wen
Adverbial clauses introduced by wen have their own structure.
wen projects a WADVP which heads the CP-ADV. The ADVP is then traced into the finite subordinate clause:
wen
(IP-MAT (CP-ADV (WADVP-1 (AVW Wen)) (IP-SUB (ADVP-TMP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (DDARTA de) (NA here) (VVFIN spaserde)))) (VVFIN sach) (NP-SBJ (PPER he)) ... )
That-clauses (CP-THT)
Bare CP-THTs headed by (KOUS dat)
Bare CP-THTs are headed by a (KOUS dat) which takes an IP-SUB as its complement:
(IP-MAT (PP (ADVP (PAVKO dar)) (PAVAP umm)) (VVFIN wil) (NP-SBJ (PPER ik)) (CP-THT (KOUS dat) ← KOUS as head of the CP-THT (IP-SUB (NP-OB2 (PPER my)) ← IP-SUB as complement of KOUS (NP-SBJ (DDARTA dat) (DPIS ander)) (ADJP-PRD (ADJD nutte)) (VVFIN si))) )
Bare CP-THTs where (KOUS dat) is absent
When dat is absent, a null complementizer (C 0) is inserted (see also above):
(IP-MAT (NP-SBJ *con*) (KON vnde) (VVFIN sede) (CP-THT (C 0) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (VMFIN wolde) (NP-TMP-WH (DPWS wat)) (VVINF ruwen)) (CP-ADV (KOUS Also) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (ADVP-TMP (AVD nu)) (ADJP-PRD (ADJD allene)) (VVFIN was)))) ) ‘And [she] said (that) she wished to rest a while, since she was now alone’
CP-THTs introduced by a preposition
When the CP-THT is introduced by a preposition, then the CP-THT sits within a PP which is headed by the preposition:
(IP-MAT (PP (APPR vppe) (CP-THT (KOUS dat) (IP-SUB (NP-OB2 (PPER di)) (NP-SBJ (DPDS dat)) (ADVP (AVD noch)) (VMFIN mochte) (VVINF bescheen)))) (ADVP (AVKO so)) .... )(PP (ADVP (PAVKO Dar)) (PAVAP umme) (CP-THT (KOUS dath) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER yck)) (NP-OB1 (PPER dy)) (VAFIN hebbe) (VVPP ghenomenn))) )
Degree complements (CP-DEG)
(ADJP-PRD (PTKA so) (ADJD hochtidlik) (CP-DEG (WADVP-1 0) (KOUS dat) (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (DDARTA+NA desgeliken) (ADVP-TMP (ADJV vor)) (PTKNEG nicht) (VVPP geseen) (VAFIN was)))) )(IP-MAT (NP-SBJ (DDARTA De) (NA ghiricheit)) (VVFIN is) (NP-PRD (DIARTA een) (NA ouel) (RRC (PTKA also) (VVPP gheraket) (CP-DEG (KOUS Dat) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) ...)))) )
Comparative clauses (CP-CMP)
Virtually all CP-CMPs should be a sister of a comparative head, e.g.:
alsogelik(‘like’)
(PP (KOKOM also) (CP-CMP (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (PPER wy)) (ADVP-TMP (AVD vore)) (VAFIN hadden) (VVPP ghedan))) )
Clauses which could plausibly qualify as a CP-CMP but which lack a comparative head should be annotated as a CP-ADV.
Correlative comparative clauses
(IP-MAT (ADVP (PTKA also) (ADJV dicke) (CP-CMP (WADVP-1 0) (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-1) (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (PP (ADVP (PAVKO dar)) (PAVAP mede)) (VVPP besen) (VAFIN wert)))) (ADVP (PTKA also) (ADJV dicke)) (VMFIN schal) (NP-SBJ (PPER se)) (NP-OB1 (DIARTA ene) (NA discipliuen)) (VVINF vntfan) )
Direct and indirect questions (CP-QUE)
Both direct and indirect questions are annotated as a CP-QUE which immediately dominates an IP-SUB.
In direct yes/no-questions, the CP-QUE is headed by an empty complementiser labelled C-V1 (see above):
(CP-QUE (C-V1 0) (IP-SUB (VVFIN Meine) (NP-SBJ (PPER ghi)) (CP-THT (KOUS datt) ...)) ) Direct question: 'Do you think that...'?
In direct wh-questions, the wh-phrase is traced into the IP-SUB in which it belongs:
(CP-QUE (WADVP-1 (AVW Wor)) ← wh-phrase (IP-SUB (ADVP-DIR *T*-1) ← trace of wh-phrase in IP-SUB (VMFIN wil) (NP-SBJ (DPDS desse) (VVINF gan) ...)) )
In indirect questions, the wh-phrase is traced into the IP-SUB in which it belongs:
(IP-MAT (KON Sunder) (NP-SBJ (DPIS eteswelke)) (VVFIN spreken) (CP-QUE (WADVP-1 (AVW wo)) ← wh-phrase (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-1) ← trace of wh-phrase in IP-SUB (VAFIN is) (NP-SBJ (NE christus) (VVPP gecomen) (PP (APPR uan) (NP (NE galilea)))))) )
V1 conditionals
V1 conditionals are treated as CP-ADVs with an empty complement (C-V1 0) which takes an IP-SUB as its complement (see also above):
(IP-MAT (CP-ADV (C-V1 0) (IP-SUB (VVFIN Wult) (NP-SBJ (PPER u)) (CP-THT (KOUS dat) (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ (PPER yck)) (VVFIN sterue))))) (NP-SBJ (PPER yck)) (VVFIN sterue) (PP (APPR myt) (NP (NA willen)))) ‘If you want me to die, I gladly will’
Relative clauses (CP-REL)
Relative clauses are treated as per the standard Penn scheme:
(NP-OB1 (DDARTA dat) (NA got) (CP-REL (WNP-1 (DPRELS dat)) ← relative pronoun (IP-SUB (NP-OB1 *T*-1) ← trace in finite subordinate clause (NP-SBJ he) (VVFIN erft))) )
Relative clauses introduced by pronominal adverbs
See also treatment of pronominal adverbs here.
(CP-REL (WPP-1 (WADVP (PAVREL Dar)) (PAVAP na)) (IP-SUB (PP *T*-1) ...) )
- Relative clauses can also be introduced by pronominal adverbs which are discontinuous:
(NP-SBJ (DDARTA de) (NA (NA busse) (KON vnde) (NA budel)) (CP-REL (WADVP-3(PAVREL-2 dar)) (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-3) (NP-SBJ (NP-POS (NA geodes)) (NA licham)) (PP (PAVREL *ICH*-2) (PAVAP ynne)) (VVFIN was))) )
Free relative clauses (CP-FRL)
CP-FRLs cannot attach directly at the IP-level. The basic category enclosing the free relative is identical with the gap in the free relative:
(IP-MAT (NP-OB1 (DPDS Dat)) (VVFIN do) (NP-SBJ (CP-FRL (WNP-1 (DPRELS we)) ← free relative within NP-SBJ (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ *T*-1) (NP-OB1 (PPER et)) (VVFIN wille)))) )(IP-MAT (ADVP (AVD Aldus)) (VMFIN moeghe) (NP-SBJ (PPER ghi)) (PP (APPR in) (NP (DDARTA dessen) (NA boeke))) (VVINF soeken) (NP-OB1 (CP-FRL (WNP-1 (DPWS wat)) ← free relative within NP-OB1 (IP-SUB (NP-SBJ *T*-1) ← NP gap in free relative (NP-OB2 (PPER iv)) (ADVP (ADJV best)) (VVFIN gadet)))) )(IP-MAT (NP-OB1 (DPDS dat)) (VMFIN willen) (NP-SBJ (PPER sze)) (VVINF vorschulden) (ADVP (CP-FRL (WADVP-1 (AVREL wor)) ← free relative within AVDP (IP-SUB (ADVP *T*-1) ← gap in free relative (NP-SBJ (PPER sze)) (VMFIN (VMFIN konen) (KON vnd) (VMFIN moghen))))) )
Reduced relative clauses (RRC)
RRCs almost always immediately follow their antecedent. The contain no operator or gap of their own:
(PP (APPR Jn) (NP (DIARTA enen) (NA boke) (RRC (VVP ghenoemet) (PP (APPR van) (NP (DDARTA den) (ADJA ouersten) (NA gude))))) )