Nouns and Noun Phrases - University of Macau Library

982 Syntax of Dutch: nouns and noun phrases
7.1.4.3. Distribution as floating quantifiers
Floating quantifier are quantifiers that are associated to noun phrases occurring
elsewhere in the sentence, and with which they do not form a syntactic constituent.
The notion of a floating quantifier suggests an analysis according to which the
quantifier and its noun phrase associate underlyingly form a constituent, which is
split up in the course of the syntactic derivation. Here, however, the notion of
floating quantifier will be used as a pre-theoretical notion. In fact, we will come
across several indications that at least in Dutch, floating quantifiers should not be
analyzed in terms of movement.
I. Al
In present-day Dutch it is next to impossible to use bare al as a floating quantifier
(although it is used like this in at least some Flemish dialects). In idioms one can
find relics of this pattern: in (107) al is a floating quantifier associated to the third
singular neuter pronoun in the surface subject position. The pattern cannot be
productively extended beyond these idiomatic expressions.
(107) a. Het is niet al/alles goud wat er blinkt.
it is not all gold what there glimmers
b. Het is mij al gelijk.
it is me all the.same
Note that in the idiom in (107a), al alternates with the quantifier alles. This is,
however, the only context in which alles is found as a floating quantifier in presentday
Dutch. As is shown by (108), alles may combine with the singular demonstrative
pronouns dit/dat to form the noun phrase dit/dat alles (cf. example (78)),
but it cannot be used as a floating quantifier associated with such pronouns.
(108) a. Dit/Dat is overbodig.
this/that all is superfluous
b. Hij heeft dit/dat gisteren gezien.
he has this/that all yesterday seen
II. Alle + Num and allebei
Alle + Num and allebei are felicitous floating quantifiers with both animate and
inanimate a noun phrase associates. As is shown in (109) and (110), the associate of
the floating quantifier can be either a complex noun phrase or a pronoun. The
primed examples show, however, that the two types of associate differ in that the
noun phrase must precede the floating quantifier, whereas the pronoun may also
follow it when the floating quantifier is placed in clause-initial position. Note in
passing that, while alle + Num within the noun phrase can be spelled either as one
single word or as two separate words (see the introduction to Section 7.1.2.2), there
seems to be a tendency to spell the two elements as a single word when it is used as
a floating quantifier.
(109) a. Die mensen/Ze zijn gisteren alletwee/allebei uitgenodigd.
those people/they are yesterday all-two/all-both prt.-invited
a′. Alletwee/Allebei zijn ze/*die mensen gisteren uitgenodigd.