4.6.2. Postnominal modifiers
LIS shows a preference for postnominal modifiers. In this section, we observe how multiple postnominal modifiers co-occurring in the same nominal expression are distributed.
Considering indefinite nominal expressions, there are two unmarked orders: noun + adjective + cardinal, as shown in (a), and noun + cardinal + adjective, as shown in (b).
om
a. ix1 see dog black three
‘I suddenly saw three black dogs.’
om
b. ix1 see dog three black beautiful
‘I suddenly saw three beautiful black dogs.’
As for definite nominal expressions, there are two unmarked orders: noun + adjective + cardinal + demonstrative, as shown in (a), and noun + cardinal + adjective + demonstrative, as shown in (b).
a. cat red three ix(dem)arc poss3
‘These three red cats are his.’
b. cat three red ix(dem)arc poss3
‘These three red cats are his.’
To summarise, in complex nominal expressions, the relative order between adjectives and cardinals seems quite flexible. On the other hand, demonstratives tend to appear in the most peripheral position.
