CONSTITUENT STRUCTURE OF THE URDU PRONOMINAL PHRASES

Abstract

The paper discusses an analysis of the constituent structure of Urdu pronominal phrases using the X-bar structure of the Minimalist program. It highlights two main elements: DP (Determiner Phrase) and pronominal clitics. Both elements are considered lexical items that undergo checking and merger operations to resolve the unvalued case-feature of the pronominal clitics and create a new category, specifically a noun phrase, after the merger. The study also notes that Urdu is a head-final language, meaning that complements precede heads in the sentence. In this case, the DPs (pronouns) function as complements, while the clitics act as heads. When the clitics combine with the pronouns, they form noun phrases. Additionally, the distribution of these clitics is discussed, emphasizing their complementary distribution with pronominal inflections and the focus particle/clitic "hi." This distribution suggests that these clitics behave syntactically as pronominal clitics, which serve to mark cases and assign theta-roles.