Eigennamen und Definitheit

The study proposes a theory of proper names that can explain and describe both the distribution of the definite article in proper names and its relationship to generic names. One central assumption is that, in semantic terms, proper names display a complex structure requiring them to be analyzed as context-independent expressions. Further, in connection with the DP hypothesis and minimalist assumptions, proper names are conceived of as inherently definite. In other words, proper names display the feature [+definite].