Compositionality and deverbal nouns. Testing chomsky's lexcialist hypothesis

Abstract

Scholars have different attitudes to the relationship between general linguistics and LSP. In this article I will discuss my own view on this relationship and its theoretical and methodological consequences. In the wake of this I will test Chomsky’s lexicalist hypothesis on the compound deverbal noun (DN) constructions in Norwegian. More specifically, I will discuss what happens when DNs with carried over argument structure from the corresponding verb in unpacked phrases like bygging av hus (“the building of houses”) are packed down into compounds like husbygging (“house building”). The two basic argument types subject and direct object will be discussed. Finally I will briefly discuss how petrification and fossilization may be studied in an LSP context.