ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that subjects of simplex sentences, heads of restrictive relative clauses, and possessor phrases of possessive constructions are logically similar in one basic respect. This similarity together with the Functional Principle explains several generalisations which hold of these constructions across languages. The chapter explains the process of understanding the reference of a functional expression (FE) as evaluating the FE. We don't know exactly what this involves psychologically, but it at least requires that we mentally identify the argument of the FE as well as the functions which apply to it. These identifications are subject to the two conditions below, which we call collectively. Thus in certain Austronesian languages like Maori, Samoan, and Tagalog many of the functions usually associate with 'subject' are in fact shared by two or more NPs, 'subjects' and 'passive agents'. It is in general very difficult or impossible to get any backward pro-nominalisation in these languages, even though 'subjects' may sometimes follow objects.
