An Explanation for Inconsistent Word Order Typologies in Some Southeast Asian Languages

Abstract

In this paper we would like to begin to explore some problems in the word order typology of Southeast Asian (SEA) languages, using lexicase as the theoretical framework within which to seek explanations. We will step into one of the well-trodden areas of linguistic structure in Southeast Asia, that of quantifier constructions, an area in which Professor Vichin Panupong (1970, pp. 56-66) led the way by providing, from a structuralist point of view, the earliest insightful description for Thai. It is our purpose to show that some of the apparent anomalies in the typological characteristics of quantifier constructions are resolved when they are analyzed within the constraints of lexicase. Along the way we shall digress into the structure of noun phrases containing lexical items translated as adjectives in certain Philippine languages, which we will show to be typologically identical in many respects to noun phrase structures of some mainland SEA languages containing quantifiers.