The Syntax of Modern Breton

Mélanie Jouitteau (1) , Francesc Josep Torres Tamarit (2)

1 IKER - Centre de recherche sur la langue et les textes basques
2 UAB - Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona = Autonomous University of Barcelona = Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona

In this chapter, we provide an overview of the current state of research on Modern Breton syntax, highlighting its main characteristics and formal analyses. Additionally, this paper is a replication study that seeks to address the criticism that has been directed at theoretical linguists and descriptivists that they have been working with an idealized but inauthentic version of the language. To do so, we conducted a series of elicitations with a native speaker who had high proficiency in Standard Breton and was also able to make contrastive judgments relative to her native dialect. The topics covered in this article include the canonical word order of the Breton sentence, the case system, the main pronominal paradigms, and the agreement system. The article concludes with a summary of areas within Breton syntax that require further research and investigation.

Mots clés: Breton syntax; Standard Breton; verb-second; negation; agreement; syntax; celtic

Domaines: Linguistique

Mélanie Jouitteau, Francesc Josep Torres Tamarit. The Syntax of Modern Breton. Joe Eska, Silva Nurmio, Peadar Ó Muircheartaigh & Paul Russell; Silva Nurmio; Peadar Ó Muircheartaigh; Paul Russell. Handbook of Celtic Linguistics and Languages, Palgrave, In press. ⟨hal-04103212⟩