THE GRAMMAR OF POSSESSION IN ENGLISH

Abstract

Possessive/genitive morphemes in a number of languages, in addition to indicating that a unique. relationship obtains between two nouns, also have the property of dividing nouns into classes one class modified by pro-verbal possessives and the other by adnominal possessives. Preverbal possessives modify non-relational nouns (e.g. Oar, pencil, etc.) and adnominal possessives modify relational nouns (e.g. kinship terms—father/son 'picture nouns'—photograph, book; associations! nouns—employer/employee; etc.) and body-part nouns (e.g.; head, —hair, personality, etc.). In some languages. Only a twofold distinction is overtly reflexed in the possessive forms, in which case linguists have traditionally referred to the proverbially-modified non-relational class of nouns, as. 'alienable and the abdominally-modified sub-divided.