Masters Thesis

Cognate objects with unaccusative and unergative verbs in Arabic

The study examines the function and properties of the cognate object (CO) in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). The analysis of the Arabic cognate object supports the argument that the cognate objects with unaccusative and unergative verbs occupy the adjunct position because they are adverbs, not arguments, so they don�t compete with the superficial subject (that originated as an object) for the complement position. The cognate object in Arabic has traditionally been known as the absolute object among Arab grammarians and syntacticians. Even though the absolute object is an adjunct, it looks like an argument due to word order and case marking. The behavior of cognate objects in Arabic unaccusatives is linked to the fact that accusative case is inherent case. I will show that the traditional analysis is wrong in treating the Arabic cognate object as a complement (argument) in the unaccusative and unergative structures. I will argue in favor of the adverbial analysis.

Items in ScholarWorks are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.