xcomp:relcl: double pronoun construction or free relative acting as complement clause
This syntactic subrelation (also implemented for csubj, ccomp and advcl) is used to distinguish a so-called free relative clause from other occurrences of clauses acting as arguments in another matrix clause, according to its function.
This is a kind of relative clause that might be interpreted as having an internal head which, in Latin, is always represented by a relative pronoun (typically, but not limited to, qui). Such pronoun is sometimes said to be “double”, because it apparently has a twofold function: one as argument inside the free relative clause, and one as argument inside the matrix clause, the latter being the same function carried out by the whole clause itself (which is thus subordinate). There appear to be strong constraints for a similar construction, in that the relative pronoun often assumes the same identical forms in both functions, even when these differ inside and outside of the free relative clause: e.g., a quod (neuter singular nominative/accusative) can act indifferently in any combination of (passive) subject or object in the relative and in the matrix clause; conversely, the occurrence of quibus (any gender plural dative/ablative) might be ruled out to occur e.g. as oblique argument in the relative clause and at the same time as object in the matrix clause. In data, however, we do observe similar asymmetries. In any case, the “double” pronoun is annotated morphosyntactically according to its function inside the free relative clause. We also observe that this pronoun extremely regularly appears at the beginning of the free relative clause: this behaviour seems to be typical for relative(/interrogative) pronouns in general, also for “prototypical” relative clauses (i.e. with an external head).
‘Nor do I recount examples for your imitation, seeing that you turn your backs, not your faces, to the car of the Spouse, and verily might be likened to them that were shown to the prophet with their backs turned towards the temple; you who scorn the fire sent down from heaven upon the altars, which now are alight with strange fire; you who sell doves in the temple where that which cannot be measured by price is made merchandise to the hurt of them that come and go therein.’ (UDante Epi-185, De Monarchia XI vi, Dante Alighieri)
- qui is the masculine singular nominative form of qui ‘that, who, which’, which is annotated with
Case=Nomacting as passive subject of ostensi ‘shown’, the whole clause acting as the complement of dici ‘being said’ with the subject necessarily intended as coinciding with qui and the same as that of possetis ‘you (pl.) could well’.
Note on the former annotation style
In previous (pre v2.11) versions of some treebanks, especially UDante, the annotation of this construction followed a different logic. Noticing the apparent constraints on the combination of internal and external functions of the relative pronoun, its position and making a parallelism with other relative constructions with explicite double pronouns (i.e. quod ‘what’ = id quod ‘that which’), the double pronoun was promoted as head, marked for its function in the matrix clause, and the rest of the clause made dependent as a relative clause where the relativised position is empty. So, the first example above appeared as:
xcomp:relcl in other languages: [la]