Oblique DOM in enriched case hierarchies

Abstract

This paper addresses syncretism patterns differential object marking (DOM) constructed with oblique morphology (dative, locative, genitive) induces cross-linguistically. It is shown that enriched case hierarchies (Starke 2017, Caha 2019, a.o.), which are also extended to ergative-absolutive systems, derive all these syncretisms. Enriched case hierarchies also capture crucial properties of the oblique DOM types discussed here: i) such categories have the syntax of direct objects, as types of structural accusatives, and not obliques, making their oblique appearance rather a matter of PF syncretism; ii) at the same time, oblique DOM can show syntactic differences from unmarked accusatives, motivating the need for more than one instance of the accusative in the hierarchy.