Graf, Thomas

Abstract In my target paper Subregular linguistics: Bridging theoretical linguistics and formal grammar I argued that theoretical linguistics and formal grammar, despite major differences in methodology, have a lot to offer to each other, and that the recently emerged subfield of subregular linguistics provides a conduit for knowledge transfer between the two. I thank all the authors for their thought-provoking commentaries that greatly enrich the discussion that I hoped to start with the initial paper. Here I focus on some shared themes revolving around subregular syntax: the role of mappings, with Irish wh-agreement as a concrete example; the challenges of linearization, with a new Generalized Ban on Improper Movement derived from subregular limits of linearization; the importance of careful empirical analysis, including a brief discussion of existing work on gradient TSL and its empirical applications; and finally, what exactly it means to say that a specific phenomenon falls within a subregular class like TSL, and why this is orthogonal to the issue of formalisms and metalanguages.

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@article{Graf22TLresponse,
  author = {Graf, Thomas},
  title = {Diving Deeper into Subregular Syntax},
  year = {2022},
  journal = {Theoretical Linguistics},
  volume = {48},
  pages = {245--278},
  doi = {10.1515/tl-2022-2043},
  openaccess = {gold},
}

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Subregular Linguistics: Bridging Theoretical Linguistics and Formal Grammar

Sun 15 March 2026 | in Papers |
| Minimalist grammars | first-order logic | formal grammar | islands | phonology | subregular | syntax |

Graf, Thomas

Abstract Subregular linguistics is a fairly new approach that seeks a deeper understanding of language by combining the rigor of formal grammar with the empirical sophistication of theoretical linguistics. The approach started in phonology but has since branched out to morphology and even …
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Locality and the Complexity of Minimalist Derivation Tree Languages

Sat 06 August 2011 | in Papers |
| Minimalist grammars | locality | subregular hierarchy | first-order logic | model-theoretic syntax | tree automata |

Graf, Thomas

Abstract Minimalist grammars provide a formalization of Minimalist syntax which allows us to study how the components of said theory affect its expressivity. A central concern of Minimalist syntax is the locality of the displacement operation Move. In Minimalist grammars, however, Move is …
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Locality and the Complexity of Minimalist Derivation Tree Languages

Sat 06 August 2011 | in Presentations |
| Minimalist grammars | locality | subregular hierarchy | first-order logic | model-theoretic syntax | tree automata |

Graf, Thomas

Abstract Minimalist grammars provide a formalization of Minimalist syntax which allows us to study how the components of said theory affect its expressivity. A central concern of Minimalist syntax is the locality of the displacement operation Move. In Minimalist grammars, however, Move is …
read more

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