Presented to you through Paradigm Publishing Services

John Benjamins Publishing Company

Visit our Partner Page See all our books
Chapter
Licensed
Unlicensed Requires Authentication

Chapter 4. Adposition classes in Tafi and Sɛlɛɛ

  • and

Abstract

The main goal of this paper is to describe and compare the adposition classes of two Ghana-Togo Mountain (GTM) languages: Tafi (KA-GTM) and Sɛlɛɛ (NA-GTM). The core of the preposition classes in the two languages consists of a (general) locative and comitative prepositions, with Tafi showing the grammaticalization of a number of verb forms into prepositions. Both languages exhibit the postpositional use of body part nouns and locatives. There are debates as to whether Kwa languages have two classes of adpositions. The paper argues that both languages indeed have two adposition classes – prepositions and postpositions and shows the asymmetry in the distribution of the members of each class in both languages.

Abstract

The main goal of this paper is to describe and compare the adposition classes of two Ghana-Togo Mountain (GTM) languages: Tafi (KA-GTM) and Sɛlɛɛ (NA-GTM). The core of the preposition classes in the two languages consists of a (general) locative and comitative prepositions, with Tafi showing the grammaticalization of a number of verb forms into prepositions. Both languages exhibit the postpositional use of body part nouns and locatives. There are debates as to whether Kwa languages have two classes of adpositions. The paper argues that both languages indeed have two adposition classes – prepositions and postpositions and shows the asymmetry in the distribution of the members of each class in both languages.

Chapters in this book

  1. 日本言語政策学会 / Japan Association for Language Policy. 言語政策 / Language Policy 10. 2014 i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Acknowledgement vii
  4. Foreword ix
  5. Introduction 1
  6. Section 1. Fieldwork
  7. Chapter 1. Linguistic fieldwork as team science 20
  8. Section 2. Locative predication
  9. Chapter 2. Locative expressions and their semantic extensions in Tima 44
  10. Chapter 3. A comparative study of the basic locative construction in Gurenɛ, Asante-Twi, and Tongugbe 74
  11. Chapter 4. Adposition classes in Tafi and Sɛlɛɛ 99
  12. Chapter 5. Moving from verbs to prepositions in Gbe 128
  13. Section 3. Tense, aspect, mood and serialization
  14. Chapter 6. Lost siblings 154
  15. Chapter 7. The eventive functional sequence 189
  16. Chapter 8. Reduced complements 222
  17. Section 4. Verb semantics
  18. Chapter 9. Caused accompanied motion in a direction 238
  19. Chapter 10. From injecting to planting 263
  20. Section 5. Nominalization
  21. Chapter 11. Constructions with verbal nouns in Iraqw 286
  22. Chapter 12. Remarks on nominalised adjectives in Gã 314
  23. Author index 339
  24. Language index 341
  25. Subject index 343
Predication in African Languages
This chapter is in the book Predication in African Languages
https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.235.04bob

Chapters in this book

  1. 日本言語政策学会 / Japan Association for Language Policy. 言語政策 / Language Policy 10. 2014 i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Acknowledgement vii
  4. Foreword ix
  5. Introduction 1
  6. Section 1. Fieldwork
  7. Chapter 1. Linguistic fieldwork as team science 20
  8. Section 2. Locative predication
  9. Chapter 2. Locative expressions and their semantic extensions in Tima 44
  10. Chapter 3. A comparative study of the basic locative construction in Gurenɛ, Asante-Twi, and Tongugbe 74
  11. Chapter 4. Adposition classes in Tafi and Sɛlɛɛ 99
  12. Chapter 5. Moving from verbs to prepositions in Gbe 128
  13. Section 3. Tense, aspect, mood and serialization
  14. Chapter 6. Lost siblings 154
  15. Chapter 7. The eventive functional sequence 189
  16. Chapter 8. Reduced complements 222
  17. Section 4. Verb semantics
  18. Chapter 9. Caused accompanied motion in a direction 238
  19. Chapter 10. From injecting to planting 263
  20. Section 5. Nominalization
  21. Chapter 11. Constructions with verbal nouns in Iraqw 286
  22. Chapter 12. Remarks on nominalised adjectives in Gã 314
  23. Author index 339
  24. Language index 341
  25. Subject index 343
Downloaded on 14.4.2026 from https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1075/slcs.235.04bob/html
Scroll to top button