Universal Grammar places a restriction on self‐embedding recursion structures created through External Merge: A phasal category of type α can be embedded in a phasal category of the same type where there is a c‐command relation between the heads of the two instances of α only if the two instances of α are separated by a phase head. This restriction (the exact counterpart of the familiar c‐command cum phasemate requirement that is imposed on identical copies of a single category under Internal Merge) explains a variety of hitherto poorly understood properties of the noun phrase. The set of elements that are eligible to serve as nondative possessors in Hungarian possessive DPs is shown to fall out from the recursion restriction: all and only those possessors that are not as large as DP can be placed in the caseless possessor position in the immediate c‐command domain of the D head of the possessive noun phrase; dative possessors are in the specifier position of the possessive DP, not c‐commanded by its D head and hence immune to the recursion restriction. The recursion restriction sheds new light on the syntax of the possessive noun phrase, the nature of possessor drop, and the structure and distribution of demonstratives. The analysis also presents an empirical case for labeling of XP–YP structures via ϕ‐feature sharing.

中文翻译：

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递归限制

通用语法对通过外部合并创建的自嵌入递归结构进行了限制：类型为α的阶段类别可以嵌入在同一类型的阶段类别中，其中仅两个α实例的头部之间具有命令关系如果两个α实例被一个相头分开。此限制（与熟悉的c-command暨完全相同）在“内部合并”下对单个类别的相同副本施加的相伴要求）解释了该名词短语迄今未曾了解的各种特性。证明有资格在匈牙利所有格DP中用作非定格所有格的元素集不受递归限制的影响：所有且只有那些不大于DP的那些所有格都可以放置在紧邻C的无情占有者位置-所有格名词短语的D头的命令域; 和格属主位于所有格DP的指定符位置，不受其D头的命令，因此不受递归限制的影响。递归限制为所有格名词短语的语法，所有格丢弃的性质以及指示词的结构和分布提供了新的思路。