The dissertation investigates syntactic and semantic aspects of the indefinite pronoun system in Modern Hebrew and consists of an experimental part and a theoretical part. The experimental part presents the grammaticality judgment task conducted to test three theoretical questions: (1) the relation between negation and the licensing of AF `any' and KOL `any'; (2) the contrast between EYZE `some' and EYZESEHU `some' in terms of specificity; and (3) the correlation between syntactic position and free choice readings. Three main theoretical findings are contributed by this work. First, it is shown that from a typological viewpoint, Hebrew, a Semitic language, patterns with Romance and Germanic languages, rather than Japanese-type languages, in having indefinite pronouns specialized for particular operators available in the discourse. Second, the thesis proposes a novel unified syntax-semantics for KOL which accounts for its interpretational variability. Working with the Kratzer and Shimoyama (2002) framework where indefinite pronouns generate sets of individual alternatives, the semantics of a KOL--modified noun phrase is formalized as a variable and containing a restriction. When this restriction ranges over kinds, KOL receives a generic reading; when the restriction is over a contextually specified set of entities, KOL has an episodic reading. In these cases, the KOL--phrase moves to the argument position of a universal quantifier which binds the individual alternatives generated by the KOL--phrase. If KOL stays in situ, the individual alternatives are allowed to expand into propositional alternatives, resulting in the free choice reading. Third, I discuss the DP-internal structure of [eyze(N)se-hu (N)] and [(N) kol(N)se-hu], treating 'se-hu' as a CP. I propose that there is a correlation between the postnominal position and the free choice readings of these pronouns, suggesting that domain restrictions, usually derived in the semantics-pragmatics, may also be encoded in the syntax. If this hypothesis is on the right track, it could provide us with a better understanding of how and when in the process of language acquisition domain restrictions found with indefinite pronouns are acquired.

The dissertation investigates syntactic and semantic aspects of the indefinite pronoun system in Modern Hebrew and consists of an experimental part and a theoretical part. The experimental part presents the grammaticality judgment task conducted to test three theoretical questions: (1) the relation between negation and the licensing of AF `any' and KOL `any'; (2) the contrast between EYZE `some' and EYZESEHU `some' in terms of specificity; and (3) the correlation between syntactic position and free choice readings. Three main theoretical findings are contributed by this work. First, it is shown that from a typological viewpoint, Hebrew, a Semitic language, patterns with Romance and Germanic languages, rather than Japanese-type languages, in having indefinite pronouns specialized for particular operators available in the discourse. Second, the thesis proposes a novel unified syntax-semantics for KOL which accounts for its interpretational variability. Working with the Kratzer and Shimoyama (2002) framework where indefinite pronouns generate sets of individual alternatives, the semantics of a KOL--modified noun phrase is formalized as a variable and containing a restriction. When this restriction ranges over kinds, KOL receives a generic reading; when the restriction is over a contextually specified set of entities, KOL has an episodic reading. In these cases, the KOL--phrase moves to the argument position of a universal quantifier which binds the individual alternatives generated by the KOL--phrase. If KOL stays in situ, the individual alternatives are allowed to expand into propositional alternatives, resulting in the free choice reading. Third, I discuss the DP-internal structure of [eyze(N)se-hu (N)] and [(N) kol(N)se-hu], treating 'se-hu' as a CP. I propose that there is a correlation between the postnominal position and the free choice readings of these pronouns, suggesting that domain restrictions, usually derived in the semantics-pragmatics, may also be encoded in the syntax. If this hypothesis is on the right track, it could provide us with a better understanding of how and when in the process of language acquisition domain restrictions found with indefinite pronouns are acquired.

The dissertation investigates syntactic and semantic aspects of the indefinite pronoun system in Modern Hebrew and consists of an experimental part and a theoretical part. The experimental part presents the grammaticality judgment task conducted to test three theoretical questions: (1) the relation between negation and the licensing of AF `any' and KOL `any'; (2) the contrast between EYZE `some' and EYZESEHU `some' in terms of specificity; and (3) the correlation between syntactic position and free choice readings. Three main theoretical findings are contributed by this work. First, it is shown that from a typological viewpoint, Hebrew, a Semitic language, patterns with Romance and Germanic languages, rather than Japanese-type languages, in having indefinite pronouns specialized for particular operators available in the discourse. Second, the thesis proposes a novel unified syntax-semantics for KOL which accounts for its interpretational variability. Working with the Kratzer and Shimoyama (2002) framework where indefinite pronouns generate sets of individual alternatives, the semantics of a KOL--modified noun phrase is formalized as a variable and containing a restriction. When this restriction ranges over kinds, KOL receives a generic reading; when the restriction is over a contextually specified set of entities, KOL has an episodic reading. In these cases, the KOL--phrase moves to the argument position of a universal quantifier which binds the individual alternatives generated by the KOL--phrase. If KOL stays in situ, the individual alternatives are allowed to expand into propositional alternatives, resulting in the free choice reading. Third, I discuss the DP-internal structure of [eyze(N)se-hu (N)] and [(N) kol(N)se-hu], treating 'se-hu' as a CP. I propose that there is a correlation between the postnominal position and the free choice readings of these pronouns, suggesting that domain restrictions, usually derived in the semantics-pragmatics, may also be encoded in the syntax. If this hypothesis is on the right track, it could provide us with a better understanding of how and when in the process of language acquisition domain restrictions found with indefinite pronouns are acquired.

The dissertation investigates syntactic and semantic aspects of the indefinite pronoun system in Modern Hebrew and consists of an experimental part and a theoretical part. The experimental part presents the grammaticality judgment task conducted to test three theoretical questions: (1) the relation between negation and the licensing of AF `any' and KOL `any'; (2) the contrast between EYZE `some' and EYZESEHU `some' in terms of specificity; and (3) the correlation between syntactic position and free choice readings. Three main theoretical findings are contributed by this work. First, it is shown that from a typological viewpoint, Hebrew, a Semitic language, patterns with Romance and Germanic languages, rather than Japanese-type languages, in having indefinite pronouns specialized for particular operators available in the discourse. Second, the thesis proposes a novel unified syntax-semantics for KOL which accounts for its interpretational variability. Working with the Kratzer and Shimoyama (2002) framework where indefinite pronouns generate sets of individual alternatives, the semantics of a KOL--modified noun phrase is formalized as a variable and containing a restriction. When this restriction ranges over kinds, KOL receives a generic reading; when the restriction is over a contextually specified set of entities, KOL has an episodic reading. In these cases, the KOL--phrase moves to the argument position of a universal quantifier which binds the individual alternatives generated by the KOL--phrase. If KOL stays in situ, the individual alternatives are allowed to expand into propositional alternatives, resulting in the free choice reading. Third, I discuss the DP-internal structure of [eyze(N)se-hu (N)] and [(N) kol(N)se-hu], treating 'se-hu' as a CP. I propose that there is a correlation between the postnominal position and the free choice readings of these pronouns, suggesting that domain restrictions, usually derived in the semantics-pragmatics, may also be encoded in the syntax. If this hypothesis is on the right track, it could provide us with a better understanding of how and when in the process of language acquisition domain restrictions found with indefinite pronouns are acquired.

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Cette thèse porte sur les particularités de la reprise anaphorique des pronoms indéfinis et des noms épicènes qui ont pour référents des individus humains indéfinis. Nous allons essayer de distinguer les différents facteurs (morphosyntaxiques, sémantiques et pragmatiques), qui influent sur le choix du pronom anaphorique. Ce choix ne sera pas toujours objectif. Il ne sera pas obligatoirement conforme aux règles d’accord syntaxique, puisqu’il dépendra de la décision de l’énonciateur concernant la pertinence du sexe ou du nombre d’individus faisant l’objet du discours. Ainsi, il est prouvé que le pronom personnel de la troisième personne du pluriel they est le meilleur candidat que ce soit dans les contextes où l’énonciateur et ses co-énonciateurs ignorent le sexe et/ou le nombre des personnes évoquées, dans les contextes génériques ou bien dans les contextes où l’énonciateur ne souhaite pas être précis sur l’identité de la personne dont il ou elle parle. Les pronoms personnels de la troisième personne du singulier he / she ne sont pas préférés dans ces contextes puisqu’ils rendent le référent plus défini qu’il l’est dans le discours en ajoutant des propriétés telles que le sexe et le nombre. Le choix que l’on fait pour se référer ou se coréférer sous-entend la prise d’un point de vue vis-à-vis des référents ou vis-à-vis des interlocuteurs. L’étude de plusieurs corpus, écrits comme oraux (BNC, COCA, SOAP, CHILDES, le corpus littéraire, le corpus de presse et d’émissions de télévision), nous a dévoilé que les locuteurs anglophones savent en quelque sorte manipuler le système pronominal conventionnel afin de rendre explicite ou de mettre en avant certains éléments ou bien d’en sous-spécifier ou d’en taire d’autres. / This dissertation investigates the peculiarities of pronominal reference to indefinite pronouns and epicene nouns that refer to indefinite human beings. It brings to light morphosyntactic, semantic and pragmatic factors which influence the choice of the anaphoric pronoun. This choice is not always objective, and does not necessarily match the rules of syntactic agreement. It tends to depend on the speaker’s decisions about the relevance of the sex and/or the number of individuals that are the topic of discussion. Thus, the third person plural pronoun they proves to be the best candidate when the referent’s sex and/or number is unknown by both the speaker and the hearer, as well as in generic contexts or when the speaker wishes to remain vague about the identity of the person he or she is referring to. The third person singular pronouns he / she do not fit in these contexts, since they render the referent more definite than it actually is in the discourse by adding such properties as sex and number. The choices that we make when referring or coreferring reveal our attitudes towards either referents or addressees. The study of both written and oral corpora (BNC, COCA, SOAP, CHILDES, literary, press and talk show corpora) reveals how English speakers are able to manipulate the conventional pronominal system so as to render explicit or highlight certain attributes and to underspecify others.

Abstract This thesis discusses the Veps indefinite pronoun system and its development. I show how the long lasting contact effect of Russian can be perceived in the Veps indefinite pronoun system. The approach I have adopted in this study combines insights from multilingualism and linguistic typology. The study is concerned mainly with the synchronic level of the language, but I have also examined the diachrony of the system. The data of this study consist of both sociolinguistic and language data, quantitative and qualitative data, old and new data, and data representing both written as well as spoken registers. The study consists of four separate publications. The first of them is a collaborative publication, Veps in Russia: ELDIA Case-Specific Report. The publication has a sociolinguistic viewpoint: it enlightens the linguistic situation of the Vepsians. In the article The Implicational Semantic Map for Veps Indefinite Pronouns, I describe the Veps indefinite pronouns by means of the semantic map methodology. I show that, despite the numerous similarities between the Russian and Veps pronominal series, the Veps indefinite pronouns actually constitute a distinctive system. In the article Borrowing Morphology: The Influence of Russian on the Veps System of Indefinite Pronouns, I classify the Veps indefiniteness markers as MAT (morpheme transfer) loans or PAT (morphological pattern transfer) loans, according to the manner in which they have been acquired from Russian. I show that the Veps indefinite pronominal system has undergone obvious contact-induced morphological changes. In the article Vepsän kielen paljaiden interrogatiivien indefiniittinen käyttö, I show that in addition to the interrogative-derived indefinite pronouns the use of bare interrogatives as indefinites is common in Veps. I have divided this use into nine different clause and phrase structures. In the study, I show that the diachronically unstable system of indefinite pronouns has undergone many changes in Veps, due to language contact with Russian. From the individual speaker’s mind and speech, the effect of Russian has gradually spread as a part of the linguistic system of the Veps speech community. Thus, the contacts of the Veps and Russian speech communities have resulted in changes in the Veps indefinite pronoun system. / Tiivistelmä Tarkastelen tutkimuksessani vepsän kielen indefiniittipronominijärjestelmää ja sen kehitystä. Osoitan, miten venäjän vuosisatoja jatkunut kontaktivaikutus näkyy vepsän indefiniittipronominien järjestelmässä. Tarkastelun näkökulmat olen omaksunut kontaktilingvistiikasta, monikielisyystutkimuksesta ja typologisesta kielentutkimuksesta. Tutkimus koskee pääosin kielen synkronista tasoa, mutta olen ottanut kantaa myös järjestelmän diakroniseen kehitykseen. Tutkimuksen aineistokokonaisuuteen kuuluu sekä sosiolingvististä että kieliaineistoa, kvantitatiivista ja kvalitatiivista aineistoa, uutta ja vanhaa aineistoa sekä niin kirjoitettua kuin puhuttuakin kieltä. Tutkimus koostuu neljästä erillisestä osajulkaisusta. Ensimmäinen niistä on yhteisjulkaisu, Veps in Russia: ELDIA Case-Specific Report. Julkaisu on näkökulmaltaan sosiolingvistinen: se valottaa vepsäläisten kielellistä tilannetta. Artikkelissa The Implicational Semantic Map for Veps Indefinite Pronouns kuvaan vepsän indefiniittipronomineja semanttisten karttojen metodologian avulla. Osoitan, että lukuisista venäjän ja vepsän kielen pronominisarjojen yhtäläisyyksistä huolimatta vepsän indefiniittipronominit muodostavat omaleimaisen järjestelmänsä. Artikkelissa Borrowing Morphology: The Influence of Russian on the Veps System of Indefinite Pronouns luokittelen vepsän venäjän kielestä lainatut indefiniittisyyden tunnukset niiden lainaustavan mukaan joko MAT- tai PAT-lainoiksi. MAT-lainoissa kielelliset segmentit toisinnetaan toisessa kielessä, PAT-lainoissa funktionaaliset mallit. Osoitan, että vepsän indefiniittipronominien järjestelmässä on tapahtunut selviä kontaktilähtöisiä morfologisia muutoksia. Artikkelissa Vepsän kielen paljaiden interrogatiivien indefiniittinen käyttö osoitan, että tunnuksisten indefiniittipronominien lisäksi käytetään vepsässä yleisesti myös paljaita interrogatiiveja. Olen jaotellut niiden esiintymisympäristöt yhdeksäksi erilaiseksi lause- ja lausekerakenteeksi. Tutkimuksessa osoitan, että indefiniittipronominien diakronisesti epästabiili järjestelmä on vepsässä kokenut venäjän kontaktivaikutuksesta monia muutoksia. Yksittäisen kielenpuhujan mielestä ja puheesta venäjän vaikutus on vähitellen levinnyt osaksi vepsäläisen kieliyhteisön kielen järjestelmää. Näin vepsäläisen ja venäläisen puhujayhteisön kontaktit ovat johtaneet vepsän kielen indefiniittipronominien systeemin muutokseen. / Lühenduz Ičein dissertacijas minä tarkištelen vepsän kelen indefinitižiden pronominoiden sistemad i sen kehitoitust. Ozutan, kut äjad voz’sadad olijad kontaktad tuleba sil’mnägubale vepsän kelen indefinitižiden pronominoiden sistemas. Tedotön perspektivaks olen otnu ičelein kontaktkel’oppindan, äikeližuz’oppindan i tipologižuz’oppindan pirdoid. Tedotö om tobjimalaz sinhronine, no olen tarkištanu mugažo erasid problemoid diahronižen kehitoitusen sistemaspäi. Tedotön lähtematerialoihe mülüb sociolingivistižid materialoid, kel’materialoid, kvantitativižid i kvalitativižid materialoid, uzid i vanhoid materialoid paginkelespäi i kirjutadud kelespäi. Neciš tedotös om nel’l’ erilašt kirjutest. Ezmäine niišpäi, Veps in Russia: ELDIA Case-Specific Report, om ühthižkirjutez. Necen kirjutesen nägemuz om sociolingvistine. Sen päazj om tedištada i ezitada vepsän kelen i vepsläižiden oloid nügüd’aigas. Kirjuteses The Implicational Semantic Map for Veps Indefinite Pronouns kuvadan vepsän indefinitižid pronominoid semantižiden kartoiden metodologian abul. Ozutan, miše hot’ venän i vepsän kelen indefinitižiden pronominoiden affiksoiden kogomused oma karthižed, vepsän indefinitižiden pronominoiden sistem om kaiken-se originaline. Kirjuteses Borrowing Morphology: The Influence of Russian on the Veps System of Indefinite Pronouns tarkištan venäkelespäi vepsän kel’he ottud affiksad MAT- i PAT- velgmaneran mödhe. MAT-velg znamoičeb, miše ühten kelen kel’material kopiruidas toižehe kel’he, a PAT-velgoiš kopiruidas vaiše znamoičendoid. Ozutan, miše vepsän indefinitižiden pronominoiden sistemas om sündunu morfologižid vajehtesid, miččed oma sel’ktad kel’kontaktoiden jäl’ged. Kirjuteses Vepsän kielen paljaiden interrogatiivien indefiniittinen käyttö ozutan, miše indefinitižiden pronominoiden ližaks vepsän keles voib kävutada interrogativižid pronominoid indefinitižiden pronominoiden sijas. Olen tarkištanu virkehid, kus nene azjad ezineba i olen mülütanu niid ühesandehe erazvuiččehe gruppaha. Indefinitižiden pronominoiden sistem ei ole diahronijan polespäi seižui. Ičein oppindas ozutan, miše vepsän kelen sistem om lujas vajehtanus venäkelen kontaktpainandan tagut. Ühten kelen pagižijan melespäi i paginaspäi om venäkelen painastuz aigan sirttes levitanus vepsän kelen sistemaha. Muga oma vepsän i venän pagižijoiden keskeižed kosketused vajehtanuded vepsän kelen indefinitižiden pronominoiden sistemad.