Dialectal variation in Norwegian imperatives

Abstract

This article discusses the formation of imperatives in Norwegian. It focuses on the cases in which phonological well-formedness requirements interfere with imperative formation. Several attested solutions are presented and receive an optimality theoretic analysis. Some speakers invoke a purely phonological solution, e.g. sonorant devoicing. Others borrow from elsewhere in the paradigm, e.g. taking the infinitive form and using it as the imperative. A third group avoid the constructions altogether, necessitating an analysis in which the null parse is optimal.