Definitheitsmarkern
Definitheitsmarkern are linguistic elements that indicate whether a noun phrase refers to a specific, identifiable entity or a non-specific, general one. In many languages, definiteness is marked morphologically, often through articles or case endings. For instance, English uses the definite article "the" to mark a specific noun (e.g., "the dog") and the indefinite article "a" or "an" for a non-specific noun (e.g., "a dog").
The function of definiteness markers is crucial for pragmatic communication, helping listeners or readers resolve reference.
While articles are common definiteness markers, other languages employ different strategies. Some languages lack articles altogether