The syntax of plurals of collective and mass nouns: Views from Jordanian Arabic

Abstract This research paper provides a syntactic account of the observation that plurals of non-count nouns (i.e., collective and mass nouns) in Jordanian Arabic (JA) may express different readings, namely a counting reading and paucity in quantity. We propose that availability of such readings or lack thereof depend crucially on whether or not Division Phrase (DivP) (Borer, 2005) projects in narrow syntax. When DivP projects over nP, a counting reading is available for the plural of singulatives. On the other hand, when DivP does not project, no counting reading is available, and alternatively a small-quantity reading is held. This implies that pluralization in JA is subject to the availability of functional projections that form the relevant DP, hence supplying evidence against the lexical hypothesis of plural formation. As for paucity in quantity, we argue that it is a product of (or a subtype of) the well-known paucal plural (cf. Ojeda 1992; Mathieu 2013).