Zum Kategorialen Status des Vokativs. Der Vokativ in Den Klassischen Sprachen

Abstract

The article offers an examination of the evidence of classical languages concerning functions and semantics of the vocative. The author comes to the conclusion that the vocative is not a case by its nature. It occupies often a position outside the syntactical system proper. Yet it can also function as a case in syntactic positions where it is congruent with verbs in the 2nd person. Thus, the vocative may be described then as: (1) an equivalent of the nominative (a case of subject), or (2) a phantom case of mediator (by whom?).