Chapter 2. On the pragmatic development of modal particles in Navarrese-Lapurdian Basque
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Sergio Monforte
Abstract
The grammaticalisation of modal particles has mainly been focused on their source and historical development. This article deals with the ongoing pragmatic extension of the epistemic particle ote in the Navarrese-Lapurdian dialect. When used in questions, this particle has traditionally expressed that the speaker believes that none of the potential denoted responses will have the necessary strength of commitment and, therefore, no answer is expected. Based on the fact that questions containing ote are felt as less direct and that the particle minimises the interrogative force, speakers of such dialect have reinterpreted the use of ote as a resource to reduce the expectancy and directiveness of information seeking questions where the speakers hope to receive a response.
Abstract
The grammaticalisation of modal particles has mainly been focused on their source and historical development. This article deals with the ongoing pragmatic extension of the epistemic particle ote in the Navarrese-Lapurdian dialect. When used in questions, this particle has traditionally expressed that the speaker believes that none of the potential denoted responses will have the necessary strength of commitment and, therefore, no answer is expected. Based on the fact that questions containing ote are felt as less direct and that the particle minimises the interrogative force, speakers of such dialect have reinterpreted the use of ote as a resource to reduce the expectancy and directiveness of information seeking questions where the speakers hope to receive a response.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Grammar, discourse, and the grammar-discourse interface 1
-
Part I. Discourse markers
- Chapter 1. On the rise of discourse markers 23
- Chapter 2. On the pragmatic development of modal particles in Navarrese-Lapurdian Basque 57
- Chapter 3. On divergent paths and functions of ‘background’-based discourse markers in Korean 77
- Chapter 4. Reanalysis and the emergence of adverbial connectors in the history of Japanese 101
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Part II. Discourse markers
- Chapter 5. The meaning and functions of French je pense (que) 127
- Chapter 6. Discourse markers and brain lateralization 157
- Chapter 7. Vietnamese expletive between grammatical subject and subjectivity marker 195
- Chapter 8. The final particle like in Northern English 229
- Chapter 9. On pragma-semantics of expressives 245
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Part III. Discourse-related grammatical phenomena
- Chapter 10. A just amazing marker in French: “Juste” 275
- Chapter 11. On how the distinction between reciprocal and collective verbs affects (anti-)control 299
- Chapter 12. The rise of cause/reason adverbial markers in Yaqui (Uto-Aztecan) 313
- Index 353
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Grammar, discourse, and the grammar-discourse interface 1
-
Part I. Discourse markers
- Chapter 1. On the rise of discourse markers 23
- Chapter 2. On the pragmatic development of modal particles in Navarrese-Lapurdian Basque 57
- Chapter 3. On divergent paths and functions of ‘background’-based discourse markers in Korean 77
- Chapter 4. Reanalysis and the emergence of adverbial connectors in the history of Japanese 101
-
Part II. Discourse markers
- Chapter 5. The meaning and functions of French je pense (que) 127
- Chapter 6. Discourse markers and brain lateralization 157
- Chapter 7. Vietnamese expletive between grammatical subject and subjectivity marker 195
- Chapter 8. The final particle like in Northern English 229
- Chapter 9. On pragma-semantics of expressives 245
-
Part III. Discourse-related grammatical phenomena
- Chapter 10. A just amazing marker in French: “Juste” 275
- Chapter 11. On how the distinction between reciprocal and collective verbs affects (anti-)control 299
- Chapter 12. The rise of cause/reason adverbial markers in Yaqui (Uto-Aztecan) 313
- Index 353
