Encoding Direct Address beyond the Usual Suspects. A Cross-linguistic Study

In language, the same content may be encoded in different ways.For instance, participant relations can be encoded using case, word order and adpositions.This article examines a sample of 89 languages that do not seem to display morphologically marked case (m-case), including a vocative, on full nouns (or NPs).The principal hypothesis put forward is that direct address can be encoded in ways that go beyond the vocative phrase, the vocative and intonation contours.Having presented a brief overview of key notions, the article surveys the data from the sample and discusses them.Relevant conclusions are drawn.