On a family of Welsh constructions

Abstract

Research on unbounded dependency constructions (UDCs) has focused mainly on the properties that are shared by all UDCs, but a satisfactory theory of syntax also needs to capture the properties that distinguish specific UDCs and the properties that are shared by some but not all of them. Three Welsh unbounded dependency constructions – wh-interrogatives, free relatives, and cleft sentences – are of interest here because they show a challenging array of similarities and the differences. However, given a slightly expanded hierarchy of phrase types, HPSG can capture both the similarities and the differences in this area.