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Old Spanish and the Split V2 hypothesis

Lookup NU author(s): Professor Ian MacKenzieORCiD

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Abstract

This paper uses Old Spanish as a case study to argue that verb-second (V2) syntax is not monolithic but instead involves a split between external merge (EM) and internal merge (IM) into the C-system. Building on Holmberg’s (2020) findings on Swedish, it demonstrates that the enclitic and proclitic patterns in Old Spanish finite main clauses serve as diagnostics for whether a V2 constituent reaches the preverbal field via EM or IM, reflecting a broader distinction between formal V2 and scope/discourse-related V2. The high frequency of enclisis in Old Spanish suggests a predominance of EM-driven V2, in contrast to Holmberg’s assessment of Swedish, where EM-driven V2 is claimed to be more restricted. The paper proposes a mixed model of V2 syntax, integrating EPP-driven merge into Spec-FinP (Haegeman 1996) with interpretively motivated Criterial movement (Rizzi 2006, Samo 2019). Residual V2 reflects the resilience of the interpretive component, with its assumed Spec-head configuration (Poletto 2000) reinterpreting verb movement to Fin⁰ as movement to the Criterial head. The model provides a new perspective on the interplay between formal and interpretive aspects of V2 syntax, with implications reaching beyond Old Spanish.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Mackenzie I

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Journal of Linguistics

Year: 2025

Pages: Epub ahead of print

Online publication date: 30/10/2025

Acceptance date: 06/09/2025

Date deposited: 07/09/2025

ISSN (print): 0022-2267

ISSN (electronic): 1469-7742

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

URL: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022226725100959

DOI: 10.1017/S0022226725100959

Notes: This article is due to be published in print in 2027 (volume 63)

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