On Internal Pair-Merge and Ambiguous Chains

This paper explores the details of Internal pair-Merge and argues that the application of Internal pair-Merge produces ambiguous chains, where two candidates for the chain head exist. Furthermore, assuming different rules for externalization in English and Japanese, the framework in this paper captures detailed mechanisms for Covert Movement in Quantifier Raising in English with its clause-boundedness and for Scrambling in Japanese as well as its A/A-bar mixed status and Radical Reconstruction. This is achieved by arguing that the two phenomena are derived from the same syntactic structure but externalized differently. Thus, the framework here derives Bobaljik and Wurmbrand’s (2012) generalization concerning Quantifier Raising and Scrambling from Internal pair-Merge without introducing any ad hoc assumptions and hence contributes to further development of minimalist theory.