Dominance

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'''Dominance''' is the relation between two nodes in a tree structure. A node "dominates" another node if it is above it in the tree (it is a parent, grandparent, etc). In the UNL<sup>arium</sup> framework, dominance is used to represent the structure of [[Syntax|maximal projections]] and, therefore, to state the degree of adjacency (i.e., the order) of constituents in relation to the head. Dominance is represented in the dictionary, in case of compound words that do not follow general dominance rules, or in the grammar, otherwise. Dominance is not represented in UNL.
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'''Adjacency''' is the relation between two branches in a tree structure. In the UNL<sup>arium</sup> framework, adjacency is used to represent the structure of [[Syntax|maximal projections]] and, therefore, to state the distance of constituents in relation to the head.  
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== Dominance ==
  
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== C-command ==
 
 
In the UNL<sup>arium</sup> framework, syntactic relations are described in terms of a general tree structure: the [[Syntax|X-bar]], depicted below.
 
In the UNL<sup>arium</sup> framework, syntactic relations are described in terms of a general tree structure: the [[Syntax|X-bar]], depicted below.
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<pre>
 
<pre>
 
     XP
 
     XP
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   / \
 
   / \
 
   X  comp
 
   X  comp
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</pre>
 
</pre>
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In structure above, the distance between the nodes ''X'' and ''comp'' is said to be lower than the distance between ''X'' and ''adjt'', which is said to be lower than the distance between ''spec'' and ''X''. This distance can be easily measured in terms of projections between the nodes: there's only one projection (''lower XB'') between ''X'' and ''comp''; there are two projections (''lower XB'' and ''higher XB'') between ''X'' and ''adjt''; and there are ''three'' projections between ''X'' and ''spec''.
  
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In the X-bar structure above, the node '''XP''' dominates all other nodes; the '''higher XB''' dominates the nodes '''adjt''', '''lower XB''', '''comp''' and '''X''' (head); the '''lower XB''' dominates the nodes '''comp''' and '''X'''; and the nodes '''spec''', '''adjt''', '''comp''' and '''X''' do not dominate any node.
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The number and the type of intermediary projections define the values of the adjacency in the UNL<sup>arium</sup> framework, which are the following:
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The structure above, however, is only a model and it may vary a lot: it may have more than one complement (as in ditransitive constructions such as "I gave John the keys"), more than one adjunct ("He worked in the office from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM during the last year"), complement-adjunct inversions, such as in "bring home the bacon", etc. These modifications affect mainly the structure of the intermediary projection XB, which may indeed assume several different configurations, as indicated below:
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{|table align=center
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<pre>
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    XP
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  / \
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spec  XB
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    / \
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    XB  adjt
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  / \
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  X  comp
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</pre>
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<pre>
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    XP
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  / \
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spec  XB
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    / \
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    XB  comp
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  / \
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  X  comp
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</pre>
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<pre>
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    XP
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  / \
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spec  XB
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    / \
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    XB  adjt
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  / \
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  X  adjt
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</pre>
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<pre>
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    XP
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  / \
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spec  XB
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    / \
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    XB  comp
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  / \
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  X  adjt
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</pre>
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<pre>
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    XP
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  / \
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spec XB
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    / \
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    XB  adjt
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  / \
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  XB  adjt
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/ \
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X comp
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</pre>
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<pre>
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      XP
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      / \
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  spec XB
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      / \
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      XB  adjt
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    / \
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    XB  adjt
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  / \
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  XB comp
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/ \
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X  comp
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</pre>
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|...
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|}
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In order to describe such structures, the UNL<sup>arium</sup> makes use of a well-established syntactic notion: '''c-command'''.
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A '''c-commands''' B if and only if neither A nor B dominates the other, and the lowest branching node that dominates A also dominates B.
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This means that, in the first tree, X c-commands comp, the lower XB c-commands adjt, and the higher XB c-commands spec. C-command defines, thus, a sort of relation of adjacency between syntactic structures, and it is used to guide the process of generating complex sentences and multi-word expressions.
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{{#tree:id=ADC|openlevels=0|root=Adjacency (AJY)|
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*AJH: the constituent is adjacent to the head (i.e., the head and the constituent projects the lowest intermediary projection)
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*AJC: the constituent is adjacent to the intermediary projection between the head and a complement
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*AJA: the constituent is adjacent to the intermediary projection between the head and an adjunct
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*AJB: the constituent is adjacent to any intermediary projection (i.e., it constitutes the highest intermediary projection)
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*AJP: the constituent is adjacent to the maximal projection
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*:
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}}
  
 
== Dictionary ==  
 
== Dictionary ==  

Revision as of 15:35, 24 March 2010

Adjacency is the relation between two branches in a tree structure. In the UNLarium framework, adjacency is used to represent the structure of maximal projections and, therefore, to state the distance of constituents in relation to the head.

Dominance

In the UNLarium framework, syntactic relations are described in terms of a general tree structure: the X-bar, depicted below. 

    XP
   / \
spec  XB
     / \
    XB  adjt
   / \
  X   comp

In structure above, the distance between the nodes X and comp is said to be lower than the distance between X and adjt, which is said to be lower than the distance between spec and X. This distance can be easily measured in terms of projections between the nodes: there's only one projection (lower XB) between X and comp; there are two projections (lower XB and higher XB) between X and adjt; and there are three projections between X and spec.

The number and the type of intermediary projections define the values of the adjacency in the UNLarium framework, which are the following:

Dictionary

Grammar

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