Dual Number and Context-Sensitive Markedness Andrew Nevins * Harvard University May 31, 2007 Abstract This paper discusses diagnostics of morphological markedness and their for- mal expression within impoverishment theory (Bobaljik (2002); Bonet (1991); Halle (1997); Halle and Marantz (1993); Harley (in press); Nevins (in press); Noyer (1992, 1998)), and, using number as a case study, argue that dual is more marked than plural, in accor- dance with traditional and more recent approaches to inflectional morphology. The specific proposal is that dual is represented by a combination of the features [-singular, -augmented], and that the feature [-augmented] is marked in the context of [-singular]. Exemplification comes from syncretisms either directed at or conditioned by the dual in S´ ami, Sorbian, Slovenian, Warlpiri, and Zuni, the latter of which has been recently argued by Cowper (2005) to show that dual is less marked than plural. The larger goal of this paper is to exemplify the treatment of feature-based markedness and syncretism within the Distributed Morphology operation of impoverishment, and to illuminate some questions about the behavior of dual number as both a conditioner and under- goer of markedness-based neutralization. 1 A Review of Markedness Diagnostics There is not yet a full consensus on what constitutes morphological marked- ness within the theory of Distributed Morphology. Noyer (1998) contains an important discussion of impoverishment of marked features, but to date there is little emphasis on impoverishment caused by marked features. This paper aims to contribute to that discussion by specifically arguing that implicational statements over impoverishment operations are a diagnostic for markedness and that markedness of inflectional categories is a consequence of context- sensitivity of feature-value combinations. The category of dual number is used as a specific case study. An examination of Zuni, Slovenian, and Sorbian re- veals a role of the markedness due to the presence of dual number that triggers impoverishment of other inflectional distinctions, namely case and gender. The exemplification of this dual-triggered impoverishment of case features as the result of the markedness of the dual is of some interest because these same facts have been recently argued by Cowper (2005) to demonstrate the opposite conclusion. One consequence of the argumentation in this paper, then, will be that a look at Zuni case-impoverishment within the context of Impoverishment theory actually upholds the claim that dual is more marked than plural. Before * Many thanks to Aleksandra Derganc, Julie Legate, Lynn Nichols, Mikael Vinka, and Eduard Werner for suggestions and clarifications on the dual in the languages discussed in this article. I am grateful to two anonymous reviewers and Jeffrey Parrott for numerous comments leading to improvement of an earlier version of this paper. 1