Verb-initial word order

In syntax, verb-initial (V1) word order is a word order in which the verb appears before the subject and the object. In the more narrow sense, this term is used specifically to describe the word order of V1 languages (a V1 language being a language where the word order is obligatorily or predominantly verb-initial). V1 clauses only occur in V1 languages and other languages with a dominant V1 order displaying other properties that correlate with verb-initiality and that are crucial to many analyses of V1. V1 languages are estimated to make up 12–19% of the world’s languages.

V1 languages constitute a diverse group from different language families. They include Afroasiatic, Biu-Mandara, Surmic, and Nilo-Saharan languages in Africa; Celtic languages in Europe; Mayan and Oto-Manguean languages in North and Central America; Salish, Wakashan, and Tsimshianic languages in North America; Arawakan languages in South America; Austronesian languages in Southeast Asia. Some languages are ordered strictly as verb–subject–object (VSO), for example Q’anjob’al (Mayan). Others are ordered strictly as verb–object–subject (VOS), for example Malagasy (Austronesian). Many alternate between VSO and VOS, an example being Ojibwe (Algonquian).

The following examples illustrate the rigid VOS and VSO languages and the VOS/VSO-alternating languages.:

Q’anjob’al (VSO)

Max-ø

PERF-3ABS

y-uk’

3ERG-drink