Comparative Study Of The Hanwei Multiple Attributive Word Order

The multiple modifiers are one of the syntactic construction categories existing both in Mandarin Chinese and Uygur languages. First, this thesis tries to make it clear about what might constitute the multiple modifiers in these two respective languages. Second, this thesis compares the positions of these constituents and analyzes their common and different characteristics. Based on the above findings, the thesis finally aims at exploring how and why the positions of these constituents are constrained themselves and whether they share the same characteristics and universals in this regard with that of other languages in the world.There are altogether five parts in this thesis.The first part is an introduction part, which explains the research background, theories, and methods, as well as data resources and Uygur language transfer in the international phonetic alphabet.The second part is a review of relevant research on multiple modifiers in the Chinese and Uygur languages. In this chapter, on the basis of the former research about attributives and multiple modifiers in these two languages, this thesis finds that there are far more studies of that in the Chinese language than in Uygur. Even in the Chinese language, descriptions of language phenomena overweigh explanations, while in Uygur, the explanations on the positions of these modifiers are few. Therefore, it is necessary to make a comprehensive study of the multiple modifiers in Mandarin Chinese and Uygur languages.The third part is a study of common characteristics and differences between the position and order of multiple modifiers in Chinese and Uygur languages. In the wide ranges of the previous research about the constitution of attributives, this thesis believes that the attributives in Chinese and Uygur languages is composed of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, quantifiers and onomatopoeias. Besides the above mentioned parts of speech, the following different forms of phrases can also be used to construct the attributive, such as subject-predicate phrases, verb-object phrases, modifier-center phrases, coordinate phrases, consecutive predicative phrases, appositive phrases, directional phrases, numeral-classifier phrases, set phrases, and complex sentence phrases. The differences between them include the several things. First, the distinctive pairs, verb-complement phrases, "V₁+N+V₂" phrases, prepositional phrases, particle phrases can only be used as attributives in Chinese language. Postpositional phrase can only be used as attributive in the Uygur language. In addition, verb stem can modify the head word in the Chinese language, while in Uygur language only non-personal forms of verbs such as past participles and gerunds can be used as attributives. When we see demonstrative pronouns, interrogative pronouns and numerals being attributives, in Chinese, they can not directly modify the head word, and should be used together with classifiers; Nouns, personal pronouns, adjectives and predicate phrases function as the premodifiers together in a noun phrase. The basic order of these parts in both Chinese and Uygur language is: possessive attributives (possessive nouns, personal pronouns and noun phrases)—predicate phrases—adjectives—nouns (attributive adjectives)—head word. However, there are some differences between the position and order of the multiple modifiers in these two languages. In the Uygur language, the position and order of numerals, determinative pronouns and indefinite pronouns are always fixed within the predicate phrases. In the Chinese language, numerals and determinative pronouns can stay within or outside the predicate phrases.The fourth part is a study of the internal mechanism and motivational factors constraining the position and order of multiple modifiers in Chinese and Uygur languages. By analyzing the positions of the nouns, adjectives, pronouns, numerals, phrases and verbs in multiple modifiers, its motivation and the constraint of chunk combination to word order, the thesis gives the following explanations. Reflecting the essence of an object, attributive nouns usually neighbors head words and constitutes a subcategory to the head words. The denotation of possessive noun attributives is obvious, so they do not need to follow other infinite words and usually stay at the furthest position from the head word in multiple modifiers. Showing the characteristics and features of an object and being subjective, the position of adjectives is right ahead of nouns. Personal pronouns are commonly used as possessive attributives and are located in the outmost position. Numerals and determinative pronouns are usually followed by predicate phrases and follow adjectives and attributive nouns. Phrases are composed of predicate phrases and noun phrases. Most noun phrases belong to possessive nouns and therefore are in the outmost position of the multiple modifiers, while predicate phrases are closer to the head word than possessive attributives and more further than numerals, determinative pronouns, adjectives and nouns. Verbs are often used as predicates. When they function as attributives, they can form a subcategory to the head word and are closer to head word than noun adjectives. In the Uygur language, the verb stem can not directly modify the head word unless it is changed into the past participle and gerund. The past participles are usually closer than predicate phrases and further than nouns to the head word. The attributive gerunds are closer than nouns to the head word and the possessive gerunds are furthest than others in multiple modifiers to the head word. It is common that when attributives are closer to the head word in semantic meaning, it will be closer to the head word in position. Otherwise, it will be further and needs to be marked.As we know, languages are understood through chunks of word-with-word or word-with- phrase. Since these chunks are constrained by the head word, the different head words will determine the different combination of chunks, which results in the differences of word position or order in multiple modifiers.The findings of the thesis has proven to be in accordance with the implicational universals of languages raised by Greenberg and Hawkins, etc.. Just like other languages worldwide, the word position and order of multiple modifiers in both Chinese and Uygur language embodies the same language characteristics and universals.The fifth part is the conclusion of the thesis, which concludes the main findings and raises the questions to be further studied.