The Hidden Structure of Thai Noun Phrases

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the structure and interpretation of noun phrases in Thai and other classifier languages, focusing particular attention on whether Thai contains the same articulated functional architecture as languages with articles. I argue that while bare nouns in Thai do not project DP, noun phrases which include classifiers do, and that this DP functions as a phase for cyclic spell-out. It is argued that Thai DPs involve the obligatory movement of the NP, accounting for their noun-initial word order. A uniform analysis of clausal modification within the noun phrase is provided, driven by an analysis of the particle thii as a complementizer that derives properties from clauses, with the use of thii in relative clauses being one instance of this use. The analysis of Thai bare nouns as NPs and thii as a relative complementizer are reconciled with a head-movement analysis of Thai relative clauses, motivated by empirical considerations. Under this analysis, noun-complement clauses are analyzed as modifiers, on par with relative clauses. The property-operator analysis of thii is suggested to extend to its occurrence in clefts and infinitival clauses as well. A further construction is investigated in which modifiers do not combine directly with nouns, but instead follow classifiers, resulting in a definite interpretation. This construction provides evidence for a null determiner in Thai, which is argued to take modifiers as complements, either as CPs or as small clauses. The general prohibition against bare classifiers in Thai, alleviated by the presence of modifiers following classifiers, is argued to follow from a structural economy constraint which prefers definite bare nouns to definite bare classifiers. It is argued that this constraint can also

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