Word order, functions and morphosyntactic features of adverbs and adverbials in Arabic

Abstract

The paper discusses adverbs and adverbials in two spoken varieties of Arabic: Hijazi (HA) and Palestinian (PA) with the occasional reference to Standard Arabic (SA), within the recent version of the Minimality Program (MP). Functional properties along with hierarchical ordering, morphosyntactic features and case are implemented throughout the discussion to identify adverbs and adverbials in Arabic. Adverbials, like adverbs, are optional specifiers. They are discussed along with adjuncts as a restricted sub-class of adverbs. Conclusions show that all the above features and properties are significant in identifying the class of adverbs and adverbials in Arabic with their flexibility order and their dependence which is mainly on their semantic scope.