Locality and Accessibility in Wh-Questions

Even in relatively configurational languages, such as English, speakers frequently have a choice between different constituent orders. Many of these word order variations have been linked to complexity (Hawkins 2005; inter alia). For example, heavy-NP shift is more likely if the shifted NP is more complex than the NP it shifts over (Wasow 1997). Other cases of word order variations, however, have not been considered in these terms. The choice between different wh-phrase orders, as in (1), has been said to be determined by (categorical) grammatical constraints, such as Superiority (Kuno and Robinson 1972, Chomsky 1973; inter alia).