Explaining word order in the noun phrase

Abstract

This article argues that word order in the noun phrase is largely determined by three iconic principles of constituent ordering. The patterns that these principles predict for simple noun phrases are tested against data from various existing samples. It appears that the predicted patterns are all attested, with the exception of those stated to be nonexistent (or rare) by Greenberg's Universal 18. Some apparent counterexamples are examined in some detail and it is shown that they involve constituents that are not an integral part of the simple noun phrase.

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