Chapter 7. The eventive functional sequence
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Ryan J.S. Kotowski
Abstract
The Kwa languages (Niger-Congo) of West Africa are well-known for displaying Serial Verb Constructions (SVCs). The literature on SVCs contains various definitions of the phenomenon and recapitulates the general observation that these constructions express fine-grained information about a complex event and the participants involved therein. This paper seeks to shed light on the structure that underlies Take and Give SVCs in Gungbe, a Gbe (Kwa) language spoken in Benin and Nigeria. The examples discussed in the paper demonstrate how Gungbe is able to employ SVCs to encode specific details about the eventive structure. The proposed analysis further sheds light on elements which were classified in the Kwa literature as ‘verbid’ (cf. Ansre 1966) for their ambiguous status between adpositions and lexical verbs. It is argued that the ambiguity reduces to the nature of roots and their functions in Gungbe: the same root can occupy different grammatical functions.
Abstract
The Kwa languages (Niger-Congo) of West Africa are well-known for displaying Serial Verb Constructions (SVCs). The literature on SVCs contains various definitions of the phenomenon and recapitulates the general observation that these constructions express fine-grained information about a complex event and the participants involved therein. This paper seeks to shed light on the structure that underlies Take and Give SVCs in Gungbe, a Gbe (Kwa) language spoken in Benin and Nigeria. The examples discussed in the paper demonstrate how Gungbe is able to employ SVCs to encode specific details about the eventive structure. The proposed analysis further sheds light on elements which were classified in the Kwa literature as ‘verbid’ (cf. Ansre 1966) for their ambiguous status between adpositions and lexical verbs. It is argued that the ambiguity reduces to the nature of roots and their functions in Gungbe: the same root can occupy different grammatical functions.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- 日本言語政策学会 / Japan Association for Language Policy. 言語政策 / Language Policy 10. 2014 i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgement vii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
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Section 1. Fieldwork
- Chapter 1. Linguistic fieldwork as team science 20
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Section 2. Locative predication
- Chapter 2. Locative expressions and their semantic extensions in Tima 44
- Chapter 3. A comparative study of the basic locative construction in Gurenɛ, Asante-Twi, and Tongugbe 74
- Chapter 4. Adposition classes in Tafi and Sɛlɛɛ 99
- Chapter 5. Moving from verbs to prepositions in Gbe 128
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Section 3. Tense, aspect, mood and serialization
- Chapter 6. Lost siblings 154
- Chapter 7. The eventive functional sequence 189
- Chapter 8. Reduced complements 222
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Section 4. Verb semantics
- Chapter 9. Caused accompanied motion in a direction 238
- Chapter 10. From injecting to planting 263
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Section 5. Nominalization
- Chapter 11. Constructions with verbal nouns in Iraqw 286
- Chapter 12. Remarks on nominalised adjectives in Gã 314
- Author index 339
- Language index 341
- Subject index 343
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- 日本言語政策学会 / Japan Association for Language Policy. 言語政策 / Language Policy 10. 2014 i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgement vii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
-
Section 1. Fieldwork
- Chapter 1. Linguistic fieldwork as team science 20
-
Section 2. Locative predication
- Chapter 2. Locative expressions and their semantic extensions in Tima 44
- Chapter 3. A comparative study of the basic locative construction in Gurenɛ, Asante-Twi, and Tongugbe 74
- Chapter 4. Adposition classes in Tafi and Sɛlɛɛ 99
- Chapter 5. Moving from verbs to prepositions in Gbe 128
-
Section 3. Tense, aspect, mood and serialization
- Chapter 6. Lost siblings 154
- Chapter 7. The eventive functional sequence 189
- Chapter 8. Reduced complements 222
-
Section 4. Verb semantics
- Chapter 9. Caused accompanied motion in a direction 238
- Chapter 10. From injecting to planting 263
-
Section 5. Nominalization
- Chapter 11. Constructions with verbal nouns in Iraqw 286
- Chapter 12. Remarks on nominalised adjectives in Gã 314
- Author index 339
- Language index 341
- Subject index 343
