Re: Non-accusative, non-ergative, non-active

Quoting John Cowan <cowan@...>:

> mathias scripsit:
>
> > The door is an device that is an inalienable attribute of the house
>
> Why inalienable?  Barring major (and very recently developed) surgery,
> giving someone a new mouth is not possible, but changing the door to a
> house is a relatively straightforward operation, unless indeed the
> door is a mere opening without a closeable portion.
This is true, but in many (most?) languages with alienable/
inalienable distinctions, there are usually nouns which are
for cultural reasons considered inalienable which are notionally
alienable (religious items, frequently). Likewise, there are often
nouns which are simply assigned one class without any apparent
reason.

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Thomas Wier            "I find it useful to meet my subjects personally,
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