German Syntax

So, in Syntax there are two major categories of languages. There are SVO (Subject Verb Object) languages, and SOV (you can guess) languages. Occasionally you'll run into another variation, like VSO or something, but usually it's SVO or SOV. Now, having not really studied Syntax until this semester, I was content with my 8th grade sentence structure rules, which call English an SVO language (which it is). In learning German, I had always assumed that German was also an SVO language. It makes sense. Ich esse Nudeln. I eat noodles. S V O. However, today we talked about D(eep)-Structure versus S-Structure. D-Structure draws sentences as they should appear based on the arguments needed by a verb (read: subject, direct object, indirect object, prepositional phrase, etc.) and that modify the verb (adverbs, mainly). From there the subject and verb can be moved around to make different sentences and different sentence types, and the end product is the S-Structure. So, in German "Ich esse Nudeln" looks completely the same as English "I eat noodles". However, because in German you say "Ich habe Nudeln gegessen" or "I have noodles eaten" (correct English: I have eaten noodles), the object "Nudeln" actually comes before the verb "essen" (here: "gegessen"), which means that for the present tense the verb has simply moved in front of the Object, but in reality, German is a SOV language.

World. Upside-down.

Thanks, Syntax.

(As an interesting addendum, French is SVO. Take that, Historical English theorists!)