Verb-second, subject clitics, and impersonals in Surmiran (Rumantsch)

Stephen R. Anderson, Yale University

Discussion of verb-second constructions has concentrated on the Germanic languages, with limited attention given to (older) Romance languages and a few others. This talk explores the nature of verb-second in a modern Romance language, the Surmiran form of Rumantsch. Verb-second constructions in this language are related to a set of clitics that double the subject (though they also sanction the optional dropping of overt subject phrases). Proposals are made concerning the structures and principles underlying these phenomena.

While verb-second in Surmiran appears at first glance to be quite similar to the corresponding facts in Germanic and other languages, further investigation reveals an unusual construction that puts matters in another light. An impersonal element (ins) that seems to be merely a subject pronoun comparable to German "man" or French "on" turns out instead to be a clitic triggered by the appearance in subject position of phonologically empty arbitrary PRO (similar in this respect to constructions in Breton and in Irish, as well as impersonal "se" in Romance). This analysis suggests in turn a different view of verb-second.