Nominal morphosyntax and word order in Heritage Greek across majority languages

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In this project we investigate the extent to which the varieties of heritage Greek in Germany and in the U.S. show novel grammatical patterns in the domain of nominal morphosyntax and word order. Specifically, we will investigate: (i) nominal morpho-syntax and word order within the DP, and its interaction with (ii) word order phenomena in the clausal domain, in particular, the left periphery, verb placement, and the relationship between word order and information structure. With respect to (i) we will examine phenomena that are taken to belong to morphosyntax, such as case, but also phenomena that are associated with the syntax-semantics and syntax-discourse interfaces such as the expression of genericity, indefinite/presentational demonstratives, and multiple determiners (that is both internal and external interfaces). With respect to (ii), a similar division of labor will be considered: the left periphery is associated with the interaction between syntax and discourse (external interface), whereas verb placement is taken to be a core morpho-syntactic phenomenon. Moreover, in Greek different word orders are possible, each of which realize distinct information-structure properties. All these phenomena will be investigated on the basis of systematic comparisons including different language-contact settings, registers, and age groups and matching data from monolingual speakers (crucially also including productions from informal registers). In line with RUEG's overall approach, we will examine the status of noncanonical patterns, to the extent that these can be found in Greek heritage grammars, from the point of view of our three joint ventures. The project will contribute to a better understanding of heritage grammars in different language-contact situations.