ATLAS OF LANGUAGE

AT-NAV-G02-031 · ATLAS 259

Dependency

Dependency is a directed syntactic relation between a head and a dependent.

Part of the subject path Morphology and Word Formation

Why is this entry in the Atlas?

G · Foundational concept R2 · Necessary foundation

Dependency is needed to describe directed head relations beyond the linear order of a sentence. Its diagnosis depends on the syntactic model and the criteria relevant to the language.

Colours and admission grounds

The rectangular label identifies the entry function: F – linguistic figure or procedure; A – analytical concept; G – foundational concept; E – selected concrete case. The rounded badge indicates the admission ground: R1 – distinctive contribution; R2 – necessary foundation; R3 – justified illustrative case. This editorial rationale explains the current selection rather than claiming an undocumented original selection history.

Explanation

Dependency is a directed syntactic relation between a head and a dependent. It describes structure rather than mere adjacency. A dependency analysis identifies relations such as subject, object or modification. Decisions about heads partly depend on the analytical framework. Dependency marking answers a different question: where is the relation overtly expressed? Marking can occur on the head, the dependent, both or neither. Absence of morphological marking does not remove the syntactic relation.

Movement of thought

1. Delimit the units involved. 2. Identify the head using stated criteria. 3. Name the relation. 4. Locate its morphological marking independently.

Scientific use case

A treebank could be checked for consistent head choices and separately for the marking of grammatical relations.

Example

In “Mira reads letters”, letters can be analysed as the object of reads. A dependency arrow represents that relation, not the temporal course of reading.

Counterexample

Adjacent words need not stand in a direct dependency relation. Some representations of coordination are framework conventions.

Distinction

Distinguish linear adjacency, semantic causation and marking location. Annotation conventions and theoretical analysis do not wholly coincide.

Effect on thought and perception

Dependency analysis exposes relations that a word list leaves unspecified.

Resonance

Words do more than follow one another; they hold one another within a structure.

Provenance

Parallel source review reconciled 2026-10-07; human specialist review not claimed.

Cite this entry

Reich, Michael (Hrsg./ed.): „Dependency“. Atlas der Sprache, AT-NAV-G02-031. ATLAS 259, data model 1.6.0. https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-NAV-G02-031

https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-NAV-G02-031

The address remains stable; editorial content may evolve. Editorial reading state: 2026-10-15. Include your access date for precise references.