Doubling in relative clauses : Aspects of morphosyntactic microvariation in Dutch

Abstract

This thesis presents a study of morphosyntactic microvariation in (long-distance) restrictive relative clauses and related constructions in Dutch. It shows that a proper understanding of the attested microvariation, and in particular pronoun doubling in long-distance relative clauses and (embedded) wh-questions, yields new insights into the structure of A-bar chains, the syntax of relative clauses, the structure of the left periphery and the nature of (relative) pronouns and their relation with complementizers. More specifically, this thesis brings forth a unified analysis of doubling in long-distance relative clauses and (embedded) wh-questions, a reevaluation and reinstatement of (a revised version of) the traditional head external analysis of relative clauses, and a new implementation of an underspecification approach to so-called multipurpose pronouns and complementizers.