How Lexical Conservatism Can Lead to Paradigm Gaps (original) (raw)

The paper investigates the phenomenon of "paradigm gaps" in the context of grammatical ineffability, focusing specifically on the Russian genitive plural forms. It proposes two distinct types of paradigm gaps: one resulting from phonotactic issues, and the other from speakers' lexical conservatism in introducing new allomorphs. The analysis utilizes a modified version of Optimality Theory and presents survey data supporting the theoretical framework, ultimately addressing potential limitations and predictions associated with Lexical Conservatism.