One of the recurrent questions in historical linguistics is to what extent languages can borrow grammar from other languages. It seems for instance hardly likely that each "average European" language developed a definite article all by itself, without any influence from neighbouring languages. It is, on the other hand, by no means clear what exactly was borrowed, since the way in which definiteness is expressed differs greatly among the various Germanic and Romance languages and dialects.

One of the main aims of this conference is to shed some light on the question of what is similar and what is different in the structure of the noun phrase of the various Romance and Germanic languages and dialects, and what causes this similarity or difference.

Topics to be discussed at the conference might include (but are not limited to) the following:

• the emergence of the articles and the origin of the category of definiteness
• changes/variation in word order, e.g. in the position of determiners and adjectives
• changes/variation in the structure and position of possessives
• changes/variation in agreement patterns within the DP/NP
• the rise (and death) of the nominalized infinitive and other nominalizations
• changes/variation in structure and position of (reduced) relative clauses