Projections of events and propositions in Japanese: A case study of Koto-nominalized clauses in causal relations

Abstract This paper proposes a syntax and semantics of nominalized clauses headed by koto in Japanese. We argue that the koto-nominalized clause can denote either a concrete event or an abstract proposition. Koto serves as a maximality operator for clauses as well as NPs. The sentential koto is syntactically ambiguous depending on the structure with which koto merges. Finally, our analysis also has a strong implication for the linguistic distinction between physical causation and causal judgment.