Split Verb Phrase in Persian: The Distinctness of Voice and Little v

Abstract

In more than two decades, the conclusion that any verb phrase is made up of two projections, vP or voiceP and VP, has become standard among Chomskyan linguists. Recent studies, using split-vP hypothesis, however, suggest that VP can be decomposed into three layers: vP, voiceP and VP. In this hypothesis, voice is different from v: v represents the type of event, such as the causative event. On the other hand, voice introduces the external argument. VP is a projection in which the head is an acategorial root which can be categorized via its movement to v. Interaction of the causative morpheme and light verbs, in addition to introducing the external argument in complex predicates, in Persian, are some examples that challenge the bipartite verb phrase. This research aims to show, by studying causative constructions, that Persian verb phrases are tripartite, in which voice and v are different and independent.

Keywords

• split-vp hypothesis
• v
• voice
• external argument
• causative construction