A subject is a grammatical relation that exhibits certain independent syntactic properties, such as the following:
The identification of the subject relation may be further confirmed by finding significant overlap with similar subject relations previously established in other languages. This may be done by analyzing correspondence between translation equivalents .
Pike, Kenneth L., and Evelyn G. Pike. 1982.Grammatical analysis. Dallas, TX: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
Pei, Mario A., and Frank Gaynor. 1954.A dictionary of linguistics. New York: Philosophical Library.
Mish, Frederick (editor). 1991.Webster's ninth new collegiate dictionary. Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster. 1,564 pages. 0877795088; indexed 0877795096; deluxe 087779510X.
Hartmann, R.R.K., and F.C. Stork. 1972.Dictionary of language and linguistics. London: Applied Science.
Crystal, David. 1985.A dictionary of linguistics and phonetics. 2nd edition. New York: Basil Blackwell.
Comrie, Bernard. 1989.Language universals and linguistic typology. 2nd edition. Chicago: University of Chicago.
Andrews, Avery. 1985. "The major functions of the noun phrase." In Shopen 1985b