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2.2.1.Directional van/tot + PP

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The first exception to the general rule that adpositions do not take adpositional complements involves the directional prepositions van'from' and tot'until', which refer to, respectively, the starting and the endpoint of an implied path; the exceptional behavior holds both for the spatial and the temporal uses of these prepositions.

I. Spatial van-PPs
II. Temporal van-PPs
III. Spatial tot-PPs
IV. Temporal tot-PPs
V. Other directional adpositions

[+] I. Spatial van-PPs

The preposition van'from' is a directional preposition that denotes the starting point of the implied path. It is therefore not surprising that its complement refers to a location: in (12a) the city Utrecht is the starting point of the path that ultimately leads to Groningen (the complement of the directional preposition naar'to'), and in (12b) the location of the cupboard is the starting point of the path that ultimately leads to the door.

a.		Jan reed	van Utrecht	naar Groningen.
		Jan drove	from Utrecht	to Groningen

b.		Marie liep	van de kast	naar de deur.
		Marie walked	from the cupboard	to the door

Since locations are typically expressed by means of locational adpositional phrases, it is not really surprising that we also find prepositional or circumpositional phrases as complements of van. Some examples are given in (13).

a.		van	boven/onder	de kast	(vandaan)
		from	above/under	the cupboard	vandaan

b.		van	voor/achter	het huis	(vandaan)
		from	in.front.of/behind	the house	vandaan

c.		van	naast	het huis	(vandaan)
		from	next.to	the house	vandaan

d.		van	links/rechts	van het huis	(vandaan)
		from	left/right	of the house	vandaan

That we are really dealing with van-PPs with a PP-complement, and not with morphologically complex prepositions like vanboven, can be motivated on basis of the facts given in Subsections A-C, subsection D discusses a number of cases that can readily be confused with van-PPs with a PP-complement.

[+] A. Pronominalization of the PP

The PP-complement can be replaced by the locational pro-form daar/hier'there/here', just like other locational preposition phrases: example (14), for instance, provides the demonstrative variants of the examples in (13).

		van	daar/hier
		from	there/here

[+] B. Placement of the R-word in cases of R-extraction

The examples in (15) show that, like all locational PPs, the PPs in (13) allow R-extraction. The fact that the R-word daar intervenes between van'from' and the second preposition unambiguously shows that we are not dealing with compounds.

a.		De muis	kwam	van	boven/onder	de kast	(vandaan).
		the mouse	came	from	above/under	the cupboard	vandaan

b.		De muis	kwam	van	daar	boven/onder	(vandaan).
		the mouse	came	from	there	above/under	vandaan

The fact, illustrated in the examples in (16), that the R-word must follow and cannot precede van also supports the claim that we are not dealing with compounds, given that the examples in (17) show that the R-word must precede the first member of undisputed compounds like tegenover'opposite'; cf. 1.2.1, sub II.

a.	daar	boven/onder	(vandaan).
	there	above/under	vandaan
	'from under/above it'

a'.

daar van boven/onder (vandaan)

b.	van	daar	voor/achter/naast
	from	there	in.front.of/behind/next.to
	'from in front of/behind/next to it'

b'.

daar van voor/achter/naast

c.	van	links/rechts	daar	van
	from	left/right	there	of
	'from the left/right of it'

c'.

daar van links/rechts van

a.		tegenover	het huis
		opposite	the house

b.		daar	tegenover
		there	opposite

tegen daar over

[+] C. Modification of the PP

Like other locational prepositional phrases, the complement of van can be modified by means of adverbs of orientation and distance. The primed examples in (18) show that the modifier must intervene between van and the PP-complement. This shows that we cannot be dealing with compounds, given that the modifier must precede the first member of compounds like tegenover'opposite' in (19).

a.	Er	klonk	een stem	van	diep	onder het puin	(vandaan).
	there	sounded	a voice	from	deep	under the wreckage	vandaan
	'A voice came from deep under the wreckage.'

a'.

Er klonk een stem diep van onder het puin.

b.		De auto	naderde	van	schuin/ver	achter het huis	(vandaan).
		the car	approached	from	diagonally/far	behind the house	vandaan

b'.

De auto naderde schuin/ver van achter het huis.

a.	Het café	staat	schuin	tegenover de kerk.
	the bar	stands	diagonally	opposite the church
	'The bar is situated diagonally across from the church.'

Het café staat tegen schuin over de kerk.

[+] D. Apparent cases of van with a PP-complement

Although Subsection I has shown that van'from' may take a PP-complement, not all sequences of van and a preposition-like element must be analyzed as involving complementation. We start with the form vanaf'from' in (20a), which is probably a complex preposition. One potential argument in favor of this analysis is that R-pronouns cannot intervene between van and af in (20b), but this may not be sufficient given that R-extraction does not seem to be possible at all; example (20c) is also unacceptable. However, the fact that af Groningen cannot be used as a locational PP in isolation, and cannot be replaced by the locational pro-form daar'there' (cf. (20d)) strongly suggests that we are indeed dealing with a compound.

a.	Jan zeurt al	vanaf Groningen	om een ijsje.
	Jan nags already	from Groningen	for an ice.cream
	'Jan has been pestering for an ice cream since Groningen.'

Jan zeurt al van daar af om een ijsje.

Jan zeurt al daar vanaf om een ijsje.

Jan zeurt al van??(af) daar om een ijsje.

In passing we note that the claim that vanaf in (20a) is a compound does not imply that the sequence daar van af never occurs. It does, but it has a different source, namely the circumpositional phrase van ... af in (21a). This circumpositional phrase does allow R-extraction and thus gives rise to the sequence in question; cf. (21b).

a.	Jan sprong	van het dak	af.
	Jan jumped	from the roof	af
	'Jan jumped down from the roof.'

b.	Jan sprong	daar	van	af.
	Jan jumped	there	from	af
	'Jan jumped down from there.'

Given the data in (21), the relative acceptability of (20c) can also readily be accounted for: it has more or less the same marginal status as ??Jan zeurt al van Groningen af om een ijsje.
Confusion may also arise between example (22a) and the somewhat marked example with the circumpositional phrase van deze positie uit in (22b).

a.	Van	uit	deze positie	kan	je	de optocht	goed	zien.
	from	out.of	this position	can	you	the parade	well	observe
	'You can observe the parade well from this position.'

Van deze positie uit kan je de optocht goed zien.

In fact, it is not quite clear how the construction in (22a) should be analyzed. At first sight, example (23a) seems to suggest that we are dealing with a PP headed by van and a PP complement uit deze positie. However, since hier cannot be replaced by the typical R-pronoun er, it is not evident that hier must be analyzed as an R-pronoun or as a locational pro-form. In the latter case (23a) should be analyzed as a circumpositional phrase, so we can no longer use this example to exclude the compound analysis for vanuit in (22a). The fact that (22b) is marginal at best, on the other hand, seems to go against the idea that vanuit in (22a) is a compound.

a.	Van	hier	uit	kan	je	de optocht	goed	zien.
	from	here	out.of	can	you	the parade	well	observe
	'You can observe the parade well from here.'

Hier van uit kan je de optocht goed zien.

We will not try to solve this puzzle here, but simply leave it to future research to decide what the correct analysis is for example (22a).
To conclude note that the sequence er van uit in (24b) is fine, but that this example involves neither the complex preposition vanuit nor the circumposition van ... uit. This example involves the particle verb uit gaan'to assume', which takes an obligatory PP-complement headed by van; this is clear from the fact that in (24a) the van-PP can either precede or follow the particle uit.

a.	Jan ging	<uit>	van de volgende vooronderstellingen <uit>.
	Jan went	prt.	from the following assumptions
	'Jan adopted the following assumptions.'

b.	Jan ging	er	van	uit	dat ....
	Jan went	there	from	prt.	that
	'Jan assumed that ...'

[+] II. Temporal van-PPs

The preposition van'from' takes not only locational PPs as its complement, but can also take temporal PPs. Two examples are given in (25a) and (26a). As with locational PPs, there are again several facts that suggest that we are not dealing with the complex prepositions vanvoor and vanna. First, the (b)-examples show that the temporal PPs can be combined with a modifier of “distance”, which intervenes between van and the temporal prepositions. Second, the (c)-examples show that temporal PPs allow R-extraction and that the R-words intervene between van and the temporal prepositions; the R-words cannot precede van, which would be expected if we were dealing with a compound. Finally, the (d)-examples show that the temporal PPs can be replaced by the pro-form toen'then'.

a.		van	voor	de oorlog
		from	before	the war

b.		van	vlak	voor	de oorlog
		from	just	before	the war

c.	<*daar>	van <daar>	voor
	there	from	before
	'from before it'

d.		van	toen
		from	then

a.		van	na de oorlog
		from	after the war

b.		van	vlak	na de oorlog
		from	just	after the war

c.	<*er>	van	vlak <er>	na
	there	from	just	after
	'from just after it'

d.		van toen
		from then

In passing, observe that van can also take a temporal clause as its complement, as in the primeless examples in (27). The temporal clause must be finite; infinitival clauses, as in the primed examples, lead to ungrammaticality.

a.	Dit model	dateert	van	voordat	ik	geboren	was.
	this model	dates	from	before	I	born	was
	'This model dates from before I was born.'

a'.	*	Hij herinnert	zich	dat	van	voor	te zijn	geboren.
		he remembers	refl	that	from	before	to be	born

b.		van	nadat	hij	ontslagen	was
		from	after	he	fired	was

b'.	*	van	na	ontslagen	te zijn
		from	after	fired	to be

The formation vanaf'from' does not seem to involve complementation on its temporal reading either, but instead acts like a complex preposition. Example (28b) shows that an R-pronoun cannot intervene between van and af, which is again not sufficient to claim that we are dealing with a compound, since R-extraction does not seem to be possible at all; example (28c) is also unacceptable. However, the fact that af zijn verjaardag cannot be used as a locational/temporal PP in isolation and cannot be replaced by the temporal pro-form toen'then' strongly suggests that we are indeed dealing with a compound.

Jan is al vanaf zijn verjaardag ziek.

Jan is al van daar af ziek.

Jan is al daar vanaf ziek.

Jan is al van toen ziek.

Note that the existence of the temporal circumposition van .. af does not complicate matters in this case, given that it never allows R-extraction: daar van af has only a spatial meaning.

[+] III. Spatial tot-PPs

The preposition tot'until' is also a directional preposition, but in contrast to van'from' it expresses what the endpoint of the implied path is. As in the case of van, the complement of tot refers to a location; in (29) the city Groningen is the endpoint of the path.

		Jan rijdt	tot Groningen.
		Jan drives	until Groningen

Example (30a) shows that the preposition tot can also take a locational prepositional phrase. That we are dealing with a PP-complement is clear from the following facts. First, (30a) shows that the locational PP can be combined with a modifier like vlak'just', which must intervene between tot and the locational preposition. Second, the (b)-examples show that the locational PP allows R-extraction and the R-word intervenes between tot and the locational preposition; the R-word cannot precede the preposition tot or its stranded allomorph toe, which would be expected if we were dealing with a compound. Example (30c), finally, shows that the PP can be replaced by the locational pro-forms daar/hier'there/here'.

a.		Jan reed	de auto	<*vlak>	tot <vlak>	voor de garage.
		Jan drove	the car	just	until	in.front.of the garage

b.		Jan reed	de auto	tot	er	voor.
		Jan drove	the car	until	there	in.front.of

b'.	*	Jan reed	de auto	er	tot/toe	voor.
		Jan drove	the car	there	until	in.front.of

c.		Jan reed	de auto	tot	daar/hier.
		Jan drove	the car	until	there/here

For completeness' sake, note that the constructions in (30) can be extended by means of the elements aan and toe, as in (31). These elements can also be used in constructions such as (32), in which case aan can even occupy two different positions with respect to the reference object het station'the station'. It is not clear to us what the function of the elements aan and toe is.

a.		Jan reed	de auto	tot	(vlak)	voor de garage	aan	toe.
		Jan drove	the care	until	just	in.front.of the garage	aan	toe

Jan reed de auto tot er voor aan toe.

Jan reed de auto tot daar/hier aan toe.

		tot	<aan>	het station <aan>	toe
		until	aan	the station	toe

[+] IV. Temporal tot-PPs

The (a)-examples in (33) and (34) show that the preposition tot'until' takes not only locational PPs as its complement, but can also take temporal PPs. As in the case with locational PPs, we are not dealing here with the complex prepositions totvoor and totna, which is clear from the following facts. First, the (b)-examples show that the temporal PPs can be combined with a modifier of “distance”, which intervenes between tot and the temporal prepositions. Second, the (c)-examples show that the temporal PPs allow R-pronominalization and that the R-word intervenes between tot and the temporal preposition; the R-word cannot precede tot (or its stranded alternant toe), which would be expected if we were dealing with a compound. Finally, the (d)-examples show that the temporal PP can be replaced by the pro-form dan'then'. Note that this phrase tot dan! is also used as a fixed collocation meaning “see you later!”.

a.		tot	voor de oorlog
		until	before the war

b.		tot	vlak	voor de oorlog
		until	just	before the war

b.		<*daar>	tot <daar>	voor
		there	until	before

d.	?	tot	dan
		until	then

a.		tot	na de oorlog
		until	after the war

b.		tot	lang	na de oorlog
		until	long	after the war

c.		<*daar>	tot <daar>	na
		there	until	after

d.	?	tot	dan
		until	then

The examples in (35) show that, like van, tot can also take a finite, but not an infinitival, temporal clause as its complement.

a.		Wacht	tot	nadat	we gegeten	hebben!
		wait	until	after	we eaten	have

b.	*	Wacht	tot	na	gegeten	te hebben!
		wait	until	after	eaten	to have

The (d)-examples in (33) and (34) are perhaps somewhat marked, but they improve considerably if we add the elements (aan) toe, as in (36a). This possibility is undoubtedly related to the fact, illustrated in the (b)-examples in (36), that these elements can also be added to the (b)-examples in (33) and (34). Note that, as in (32), the element aan can either precede or follow the reference object de morgen'the morning' in (37). In these cases, the function of the elements aan and toe is again not clear to us.

tot dan (aan) toe

b.		tot	vlak	voor de oorlog	(aan)	toe
		until	just	before the war	aan	toe

b'.		tot	lang	na de oorlog	(aan)	toe
		until	long	after the war	aan	toe

		tot	<aan>	de morgen <aan>	toe
		until	aan	the morning	toe

[+] V. Other directional adpositions

The previous subsections have shown that the directional prepositions van'from' and tot'until' may take a PP-complement. This may lead to the expectation that other directional prepositions behave in a similar way. This is not the case, however, which is demonstrated by means of the directional preposition naar'to' in (38). This suggests that the fact that van and tot refer to, respectively, the starting and endpoint of the path is crucial for allowing a PP as a complement.

a.	*	naar	boven/onder	de kast
		to	above/under	the cupboard

b.	*	naar	voor/achter	het huis
		to	in.front.of/behind	the house

c.	*	naar	naast	het huis
		to	next.to	the house

d.	*	naar	links/rechts van	het huis
		to	left/right of	the house

Nevertheless it should be noted that naar can be followed by intransitive prepositions if it is in construction with van'from'; see the examples with the sequence van ... naar ... in (39). The unacceptability of *? van voor naar boven'from the front to the top' shows that the intransitive adpositions must be antonyms, which suggests that we are actually dealing with lexicalized expressions.

a.		Hij	liep	van voor	naar achter.
		he	walked	from the.front	to the.back

b.		Hij	bekeek	het voorwerp	van onder	tot boven.
		he	looked.at	the object	from the.bottom	to the.top

c.		Hij	schoof	het boek	van links	naar rechts.
		he	slid	the book	from the.left	to the.right

References:

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About this article

Author(s): Hans Broekhuis

Category: Dutch Syntax

Keywords: vanvanafAdpositional Pro-formAdpositionsCompoundModificationModification of adpositional phraseP + PPro-formSpatial Adpositional Pro-formnaartotvan ... uit

Version: 1.0, December 2015

Version history:

version	editor(s)	date	remarks
1.0	Hans Broekhuis	December 2015

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