General
The noun phrase has a noun (including proper names) or a pronoun as its head:
(1) the man, the happy lady, Aunt Anna, almost everyone
Often the noun phrase consists of just the head noun:
(2) a. I saw men at the riverside.
b. Somebody gave him money.
In addition to the head noun, a noun phrase may contain various kinds of determiners, quantifiers and attributes, placed before or after the head noun:
(3) the young man from Paris; John’sblue car; two soldiers; the red car, which I just bought
The noun phrase prototypically functions as the subject or the object of the clause, or as the object of a preposition. It may also function as a possessive attribute.
(4) a. Subject: The man has just arrived.
b. Object: I just lost my wallet.
c. Object of preposition: I found it behind the blue vase.
d. Possessive attribute: My mother’s new hat
In many languages, but only partially in English, the noun phrase indicates its function with case: nominative case for subjects, genitive case for possessive attribute, dative case for indirect object, and accusative for direct object. Compare the rudimentary case marking in the English example in (5a) with the full-fledged case marking of the corresponding Icelandic example in (5b):
(5) a. Olaf gave him/Peter the booklet. (him is non-nominative case)
b. Ólafur gaf honum /Pétri kveri?.
Olaf.NOM gave him.DAT/Peter.DAT booklet.the.ACC
The words contained in a noun phrase indicate in various ways who or what is referred to, how it is related to the knowledge shared by the speaker and the hearer, what kind of thing we are talking of, what properties it has, how many instances of it we have, and so on and so forth. A definite noun phrase (the boy, my house, you) indicates that it is possible for the hearer to uniquely identify the referent of the noun phrase, whereas an indefinite noun phrase (a boy, a house of mine, someone) indicates that the referent is not uniquely identifiable.
Swedish
The Swedish noun phrase has a noun, a proper name or a pronoun as its
head; in many cases the noun phrase just consists of the head.
(1) mannen; det röda huset; lilla Anna; någon
man.the the red house.the little Anna somebody
Sometimes the noun phrase lacks a head:
(2) Han gav åt de fattiga.
he gave to the poor
Since the Swedish noun is inflected for definiteness (mannen ‘man.the’), there is no need for a free definite article in the Swedish noun phrase, unless it includes an adjective; thus the contrast in (3):
(3) hästen / *den häst but den bruna hästen
horse.the the horse the brown horse
A sequence with single definiteness like den (snälle) man ‘the kind man’ is usually not available:
(3) Mannen / *Den man / Den mannen sjöng högt.
Swedish has a free indefinite article in the singular, en ‘a’ (common gender) / ett ‘a’ (neuter), see 3.3.3.5.
(4) en häst, ett hus; hästar, hus
a horse a house horses, houses
Case is rudimentary expressed in Swedish. As in English, only pronouns have different case forms:
(5) a. Jag försökte att kyssa henne.
I.NOM tried to kiss her.ACC
b. Hon försökte att kyssa mig.
she.NOM tried to kiss me.ACC
c. Hennes kyss var sval.
her.GEN kiss was cool
When used as a possessor, the noun phrase is marked with an ending -s, usually attached to the last noun in the phrase, whether or not this is the head of the noun phrase:
(6) den lilla flickans klänning mannen på gatans åsikter
the little girl.the’s dress man.the in street.the’s opinions
Swedish
The Swedish noun phrase may have modifying elements both before and
after the head noun. The order of elements in the Swedish noun phrase is
given in the scheme below. Note that the adjective is inflected for definiteness,
marked with DEF after the adjective.
| Determiner | Quantifier | Adjective | Head | Postnominal modifier |
| de
the |
båda
both |
gamla
old.DEF |
böckerna
books.the |
som jag köpte igår
that I bought yesterday |
| dessa
these |
två
two |
gamla
old.DEF |
böcker
books |
om Lund
about Lund |
| mina
my |
många
many |
gamla
old.DEF |
böcker
books |
om Lund
about Lund |
| Annas
Anna’s |
många
many |
gamla
old.DEF |
böcker
books |
om Lund
about Lund |
| böckerna
books.the |
om Lund
about Lund |
|||
| en
a |
gammal
old |
bok
book |
om Lund
about Lund |
|
| gamla
old.DEF |
böcker
books |
om Lund
about Lund |
||
| tre
three |
gamla
old.DEF |
böcker
books |
om Lund
about Lund |
|
| ett
a |
gammalt
old |
hus
house |
||
| det
the |
allra första
very first |
nobelpriset
Noble prize |
i fysik
in Physics |
It is also possible to have a quantifier in front of the determiner, as the following examples show:
(1) a. alla de många gamla böckerna b. båda mina två handknutna mattor
all the many old.DEF books.the both my two handknotted.DEF mats
Noun phrase internal agreement
Determiners, quantifiers, adjectives and past participles agree with the head of the noun phrase in number and gender; in addition, the adjective and the past participle have different forms for definite and indefinite noun phrases.
(2) a. Common gender singular: en röd bil den röda bilen all soppa
a red car the red.DEF car.the all soup
b. Common gender plural röda bilar de röda bilarna alla sopporna
red cars the red.DEF cars.the all soups.the
c. Neuter gender singular ett rött hus det röda huset allt ölet
a red house the red.DEF house.the all beer.the
d. Neuter gender plural röda hus de röda husen alla ölen
red houses the red.DEF houses.the all beers.the
(3) a. Common gender singular: en nybyggd stuga den nybyggda stugan
a newly-built cottage the newly-built.DEF cottage.the
b. Common gender plural nybyggda stugor de nybyggda stugorna
newly-built cottages the newly-built.DEF cottages.the
d. Neuter gender plural nybyggda hus de nybyggda husen
newly-built houses the newly-built.DEF houses.the
2.2.2. Indefinite Noun Phrases
Swedish
Structurally, the indefinite noun phrase is characterized negatively, lacking any marker of definiteness (a definite attribute, a noun with the definite ending, and/or an adjective with a definite form). Prototypically the indefinite noun phrase has indefinite meaning, i.e. the speaker refers to something that he does not assume that the listener can identify uniquely. The indefinite noun phrase may have a nominal head (1), an indefinite pronoun as head (2), and lack a head (3). All types take adjectival attributes, prepositional attributes, and clausal attributes.
(1) en häst tre bruna hästar ett fotografi av min hustru
a horse three brown horses a picture of my wife
(2) Jag såg allt. Han kan allt om hennes livIngenting som han säger är sant
I saw everything he knows everytning about her life Nothing that he says is true
(3) Många gamla vårdas i hemmen. Han har gjort mycket dumt.
many old are-taken-care-of in their homes he has done much stupid
In the singular, the indefinite noun phrase must be introduced by the indefinite article, unless the noun phrase is a predicative complement:
(4) Han såg en lärare i korridoren. Han är lärare vid universitetet. Vi valde honom till ledare.
he saw a teacher in corridor.the he is teacher at university.the we
chose him to leader
2.2.2.1. Indefinite noun phrase with a nominal head
An indefinite noun phrases with a noun as its head may have or lack a quantifier.
A. Indefinite noun phrase with a quantifier
(5) a. en (mycket vacker) kvinna
a very beautiful woman
b. två (mycket vackra) kvinnor
two very beautiful women
c. inga / alla / några kvinnor från Paris
no / all / some women from Paris
B. Indefinite noun phrase without a quantifier
(6) a. svensk folkmusik b. andra vackra kvinnor
Swedish folk music other beautiful women
The indefinite article in Swedish, found only in the singular, is syntactically a quantifier, formally identical to the numeral meaning ‘one’; it does not occur together with other quantifiers (6).
(7) en tavla, ingen tavla, en öl, ingen öl, allt öl, *en ingen/all öl, *inget/allt ett öl,
a picture no picture a beer no beer all beer a no/all beer no/all a beer
Like other quantifiers, the indefinite article is always placed in front of the noun, and also in front of adjectival attributes. The indefinite article comes in two gender forms, en when the head noun is in common gender, ett when the head noun is in the neuter.
(8) en bok; en häst; ett träd; ett beslut; böcker, hästar, träd, beslut
a book a horse a tree a decision books horses trees decisions
2.2.2.2. Indefinite noun phrase with a pronominal head
The indefinite noun phrase may have an indefinite pronoun as its only element:
(9) a. Alla var trötta och smutsiga (Note that alla ‘all’ is an indefinite plural pronoun)
all was tired.pl and dirty.pl i.e. Everybody was tired and dirty.
b. Hörde du någonting igår?
heard you anything yesterday i.e. Did you hear anything yesterday?
A modifying adjective occurs behind the indefinte pronoun:
(10) någonting vackert
something beautiful
2.2.2.3. Headless indefinite noun phrases
Headless indefinite noun phrases look like an ordinary headed indefinite noun phrase that lacks the head (pro)noun:
(11) a. Många gamla vårdas i hemmen.
many old are-taken-care-of in their homes
b. Somliga som bor här är rika.
some who live here are rich
c. Han fyllde femtio i går.
he filled fifty yesterday
He was fifty yesterday.
Swedish
The prototypical definite noun phrase is headed by a noun with a definite ending, and/or contains an adjective inflected for definiteness. Semantically the definite noun phrase expresses definite meaning, i.e. the speaker indicates that the referent is uniquely identifiable for the listener. From a structural point of view, there are four main types of definite noun phrases in Swedish: Noun phrases with a definite noun as head (1), noun phrases with a proper name as head (2), noun phrases with a definite pronoun as head (3), and noun phrases where something else than the head is indicating definiteness, e.g. a definite determiner or an adjective in definite form (4).
(1) hästen de två bruna hästarna Båda prisen fick hon för ...
horse.the the two brown.DEF horses.the both prices.the got she for ...
(2) Alfred Nobel föddes 1833. den tyskfödde Albert Einstein lilla Anna
Alfred Nobel was-born 1833 the German-born Albert Einstein little Anna
(3) lilla jag du som kan sjunga dem båda Vi går nu.
little I you who can sing them both we leave now
(4) Nobels fredspris hans resultat detta beslutdet bästa inom litteraturen
Nobel’s peace-prize his results this decision the best within litterature.the
2.2.3.1. Definite noun phrases with a definite nominal head
A noun phrase with a definite nominal head functions as a noun phrase by iteself (5), but it may also contain pre- and post-nominal modifiers. Before the noun there may be a definite determiner (6a) quantifiers (6b) and adjective attributes (6c), and combinations there of (6d), and after the noun there are prepositional and clausal attributes, with or without prenominal modifiers (7). Notice that prenominal adjectives are inflected for definiteness:
(5) Litteraturpriset diskuteras flitigt. De är mest kända hos allmänheten.
litterary-prize.the is-discussed regularily they are most well-known among people
(6) a. den här cykeln
this here bike.the
b. alla cyklarna hela tiden
all bikes.the whole.DEF time.the
c. majoriteten av svenska folket Vita Huset
majority.the of Swedish.DEF people.the white.DEF house.the
d. den lilla cykeln det stora trädet de många vita hästarna
the little.DEF bike the big.DEF tree.the he many white.DEF horses
(7) hästarna på gården de små grisarna som han hade köpt beslutet att stänga bron
horses.the at farm.the the small pigs.the that he had bought decision.the to close bridge.the
In cases like (6d), i.e. where the definite noun is preceded by an adjective, there are two definite articles, one free (den, det, de) and one bound (the definite ending): den lilla cykeln, det stora trädet, de vita hästarna. This is sometimes referred to as Double Definiteness.
2.2.3.2. Definite noun phrases with a proper name as head
A proper name may function as a noun phrase by iteself (8), but it may also contain pre- and post-nominal modifiers. Before the proper noun there may be a definite determiner (9a) and/or an adjective attribute (9b). A proper name may also take post-modifiers (10):
(8) Kalle kysste Lisa.
Kalle kissed Lisa
(9) a. min Maria, denne Albin
my Maria this Albin
b. min ljuva Maria, södra Sverige skadade Forsberg
my sweet.DEF Maria southern.DEF Sweden injured.DEF Forsberg
(10) Lorenz som lade grunden till etologin Tåbb med manifestet
Lorenz who laid foundation.the to ethology.the Tåbb with manifesto.the
2.2.3.3.3 Definite noun phrases with a definite pronoun as head
A definite pronoun may function as a noun phrase by iteself (11), but it may also contain pre- and post-nominal modifiers. Both before and after the pronoun there may be quantifiers (12), and the pronoun may be preceded or followed by an adjective attribute (13). A pronoun may also take post-modifying clauses or prepositional phrases (14):
(11) Jag hade gett honom den.
I had given him it
(12) alla vi tre hela jag ni alla
all we three whole I you all
(13) lilla jag söta du vi unga du själv
little I sweet you we young.DEF you self
(14) han som gjorde detta vi från Lund
he who did this we from Lund
2.2.3.4. Definite noun phrases with no definite noun (pronoun) as its head
There are two types of definite noun phrases where definiteness is not indicated on the head noun: cases where the head noun lacks the definite ending, and headless definite noun phrases.
A definite noun phrase has a noun not inflected for definiteness when it is introduced by a demonstrative pronoun (15a) or by a possessive (15b); also the head of a restrictive relative clause may be definite in the absence of a definite ending on the noun (15c):
(15) a. Denna bok läste jag inte. Detta hus ligger vid bron. Dessa skor tillhör Anna.
this book read I not this house stands at bridge.the these shoes belong-to Anna
b. Marias ögon kan jag inte glömma. Din vackra röst förtrollar mig.
Maria’s eyes can I not forget your beautiful voice enchants me
c. Den bok jag läser just nu är skriven av Guillou.
the book I read just now is written by Guillou
Headless definite noun phrases look like an ordinary headed definite noun phrase that lacks the head:
(16) a. De gamla måste få mer.
the old.DEF must get more
b. Vid ett av borden satt de särskilt inbjudna.
at one of tables.the sat the specially invited
c. Det längsta jag har simmat är 4000 meter.
the longest I have swum is 4000 meter
d. det senaste från olycksplatsen
the latest from accident-place.the
e. de mina de våra
the mine the ours
‘my family’ ‘our families’, ‘our troops’
2.2.4. Noun Phrases with Possessors
Swedish
A noun phrase with a possessive attribute has definite meaning; note that the possessive attribute is appearing in the place of determiners in the noun phrase scheme presented in 2.2.1. The possessive element is either a possessive pronoun or a noun phrase ending in -s.
(1) min bil, pappas hatt, den unga flickans ambitioner, mannen på gatans åsikter
my car daddy’s hat the young girl.the’s ambitions, man.the in street.the’s opinions
Structurally, the relation between the possessive noun phrase and the head noun is either bound or free. The possessor is bound to the head noun when it expresses a participant in the event or state referred to by the head noun (2), or a part of an otherwise established relation like the part-whole relation (3). When the possessive is free the relation between it and the head noun can be given a lot of different interpretations depending on the context (4):
(2) barnets sömn, Nobels upptäckt, min ålder, stadens erövring, bokens författare
child.the’s sleep Nobel’s discovery, my age city.the’s conquest book.the’s author
(3) bilens hjul, min far
car.the’s wheel my father
(4) lärarens stol hans cykel Annas kopp söndagens match Nobels pris
teacher.the’s chair his bike Anna’s cup Sunday.the’s match Nobel’s prize
It is sometimes possible to use either a possessive attribute or a prepositional attribute to express the same relation::
(5) a. bordets ben Å benet på bordet stadens erövring Å erövringen av staden
table.the’s leg leg.the of table.the city.the’s conquest conquest.the of city.the
A naked noun phrase has a nominal head without definite or indefinite article, and it also lack other quantifying modifiers. Such noun phrases are usually not referring to something (or only weakly referring), but are used to highlight the property characteristic of the noun. Naked noun phrases are used in the following functions:
(1) Predicative or appositional: Han är kommunist. Hon är mor till fyra barn.
he is communist she is mother to four children
Marie, amanuens vid institutionen,
Marie, amanuensis at department.the
(2) Object: Min dotter spelar tennis. Han åker bil till jobbet. Vi har sommarstuga i Halland.
my daughter plays tennis he drives car to job.the we have summer house in Halland
(3) Complement to a preposition: Det är inne med inlines. De lyssnade på radio.
it is in with inlines they listened to radio
(4) Subject Grammatik är svårt. Slips är nödvändigt. Affär är affär.
grammar is difficult tie is necessary business is business
Naked noun phrases are often found in rules and regulations and other juridical texts, and also in newspaper headlines:
(5) a. Den som tillfogar annan person skada ... b. Strejk orsakade tågkaos i Malmö.
he who inflict other person harm strike caused train-chaos in Malmoe
Swedish
Postnominal modifiers are usually prepositional phrases (1) or clauses (including infinitive phrases) (2), but also adjective phrases and participial phrases (3) and noun phrases (4):
(1) en låda med frukt, ett pris i ekonomisk vetenskap, läran om djurens beteende
a box with fruit a prize for economic science science.the of animals.the’s behavior
(2) a. den bil du ser där en man att lita på
the car you see there a man to trust on
b. beslutet att skatten skulle höjas hotet att avskeda folk
decision.the that tax.the should be-raised treat.the to dismiss people
(3) a. en låda full med kläder en låda fylld med kläder
a box full of clothes a box filled with clothes
b. två böcker, båda fulla med fantastiska noveller
two books, both full of fantastic short-stories
(4) a. Sveriges kung Carl Gustaf professor Andersson Stockholm, Sveriges huvudstad
Sweden’s king Carl Gustaf professor Andersson Stockholm, Sweden’s capital
b. en flaska vin
a bottle wine (i.e. a bottle of wine)
In a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause, the head noun may be in its non-definite form even if it is preceded by a definite determiner; this is not possible when the relative clause is non-restrictive:
(5) a. Den (röda) bil som står där är min. Restrictive relative clause
b. Den (röda) bilen som står där är min.
the red.DEF car.the that stands there is mine
(6) a. *Den röda bil, som förresten står där, är min. Non-restrictive relative clause
the red.DEF car that by.the-way stands there is mine
b. Den röda bilen, som förresten står där, är min.
the red.DEF car.the that by.the-way stands there is mine