Italian adjective-adjective compounds: between morphology and syntax

The present paper is dedicated to Italian adjective-adjective sequences as a borderline phenomenon oscillating between morphology and syntax. AA sequences with a linking vowel -o- and a single morphological locus for agreement at the end of the sequence are undoubtedly morphological in nature, while the distinction between asyndetic AA compounds and coordinative AA phrases is a tricky matter, depending solely on semantics. The paper shows how the asyndetic compound-type arose besides the one with a linking vowel, taken over from Neo-Latin in the 17 th century and characterises their mutual relationship in present-day Italian in terms of blocking. Some restrictions and ordering preferences in modern Italian are argued to reflect this NeoLatin origin. And finally, the phenomenon of apocope of the type imperialregio, specific to Italian, is interpreted as an iconic strategy to achieve greater formal integration in asyndetic AA compounds * . 1. The demarcation line between morphology and syntax Though adjective-adjective (henceforth AA) compounds are anything but infrequent in modern Italian, the only two scholarly works – apart from the valuable comments in Migliorini (1963) – specifically dedicated to this pattern up to now seem to be D’Achille & Grossmann (2009) and D’Achille & Grossmann (forthcoming), 1 where a first synchronic and diachronic sketch has been provided. We would like to continue this research here in accordance with the general theme of the present special issue, digging deeper into one of the manifold problems presented by Italian AA compounds, namely their location at the crossroads between word formation and syntax, between compounding proper and asyndetic coordination. Some AA sequences in Italian are indisputably morphological in nature. The two AA sequences in (1a-b), for example, are clearly AA compounds, since only the second adjective agrees with the feminine head-noun, 2 while the first one remains uninflected: