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12 Applicatives in Papuan languages

  • William A. Foley
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Applicative Constructions in the World’s Languages
This chapter is in the book Applicative Constructions in the World’s Languages

Abstract

The term Papuan languages is a purely negative characterization, covering the languages of more than thirty language families plus over a dozen isolates, spoken on and around the island of New Guinea. In spite of their enormous genetic and structural diversity, Papuan languages can on the whole be categorized as head marking and, commensurate with that classification, as possessing applicative constructions. The number of applicative constructions in Papuan languages ranges from one (in typical Trans New Guinea languages of the central highlands like Fore) to thirteen (in the Macro- Sko language Barupu), but in all cases identified they historically have arisen from reanalysis of verb roots in verb compounds or serial verb constructions. The crosslinguistically most widespread applicative construction marks beneficiary participants, but languages with richer inventories go well beyond that to indicate a very wide range of erstwhile peripheral semantic roles like locations, goals, and comitatives.

Abstract

The term Papuan languages is a purely negative characterization, covering the languages of more than thirty language families plus over a dozen isolates, spoken on and around the island of New Guinea. In spite of their enormous genetic and structural diversity, Papuan languages can on the whole be categorized as head marking and, commensurate with that classification, as possessing applicative constructions. The number of applicative constructions in Papuan languages ranges from one (in typical Trans New Guinea languages of the central highlands like Fore) to thirteen (in the Macro- Sko language Barupu), but in all cases identified they historically have arisen from reanalysis of verb roots in verb compounds or serial verb constructions. The crosslinguistically most widespread applicative construction marks beneficiary participants, but languages with richer inventories go well beyond that to indicate a very wide range of erstwhile peripheral semantic roles like locations, goals, and comitatives.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Purpose and Aim of the Series V
  3. Contents VII
  4. Part I: General chapters
  5. 1 Applicative constructions: An introductory overview 1
  6. 2 Questionnaire on applicative constructions 57
  7. 3 Languages examined or referred to in the present book 61
  8. Part II: Case studies
  9. Individual languages
  10. 4 Hul’q’umi’num’ Salish applicative constructions 79
  11. 5 Applicatives in Upper Necaxa Totonac 115
  12. 6 Applicatives in Toba/Qom (Guaykuruan) 143
  13. 7 The applicative constructions of Mapudungun 179
  14. 8 Applicative constructions and non-applicative uses of applicative morphology in Tswana (Bantu) 211
  15. 9 Applicativization in Amharic 243
  16. 10 Applicative constructions in Standard Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia) 279
  17. Areal overviews
  18. 11 Contact-induced diffusion of applicatives in northwestern Amazonia? 307
  19. 12 Applicatives in Papuan languages 347
  20. 13 Applicative constructions in Australian Aboriginal languages 391
  21. 14 Applicativizing preverbs in selected European languages 419
  22. Genealogical overviews
  23. 15 Applicatives in Northern Uto-Aztecan languages 475
  24. 16 Applicative constructions in Uto-Aztecan languages from Northwestern Mexico 509
  25. 17 Applicative constructions in the Inuit-Yupik-Unangan (Eskimo-Aleut) languages 557
  26. 18 Applicatives across Algonquian 601
  27. 19 Applicative constructions in Mayan languages: An overview with special focus on Chontal 645
  28. 20 Applicative constructions in two Otomanguean families: Otomi and Zapotec 679
  29. 21 The polyfunctional applicative *-ɪd in Bantu languages 719
  30. 22 B-applicatives and I-applicatives in Atlantic languages (Niger-Congo) 749
  31. 23 Nilotic applicatives 783
  32. 24 Applicative constructions in Cushitic 835
  33. 25 Applicative constructions in the Northwest Caucasian languages 869
  34. 26 Applicative constructions in Kartvelian 913
  35. 27 Applicative derivations in Kiranti 943
  36. 28 Applicative constructions in languages of western Indonesia 971
  37. Part III: Theoretical/Comparative outlook
  38. 29 Understanding applicatives 1007
  39. 30 Applicatives cross-linguistically: Features and distribution 1033
  40. 31 Applicative and related constructions: Results and perspectives 1045
  41. Language index 1077
  42. Subject index 1083
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110730951-012

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Purpose and Aim of the Series V
  3. Contents VII
  4. Part I: General chapters
  5. 1 Applicative constructions: An introductory overview 1
  6. 2 Questionnaire on applicative constructions 57
  7. 3 Languages examined or referred to in the present book 61
  8. Part II: Case studies
  9. Individual languages
  10. 4 Hul’q’umi’num’ Salish applicative constructions 79
  11. 5 Applicatives in Upper Necaxa Totonac 115
  12. 6 Applicatives in Toba/Qom (Guaykuruan) 143
  13. 7 The applicative constructions of Mapudungun 179
  14. 8 Applicative constructions and non-applicative uses of applicative morphology in Tswana (Bantu) 211
  15. 9 Applicativization in Amharic 243
  16. 10 Applicative constructions in Standard Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia) 279
  17. Areal overviews
  18. 11 Contact-induced diffusion of applicatives in northwestern Amazonia? 307
  19. 12 Applicatives in Papuan languages 347
  20. 13 Applicative constructions in Australian Aboriginal languages 391
  21. 14 Applicativizing preverbs in selected European languages 419
  22. Genealogical overviews
  23. 15 Applicatives in Northern Uto-Aztecan languages 475
  24. 16 Applicative constructions in Uto-Aztecan languages from Northwestern Mexico 509
  25. 17 Applicative constructions in the Inuit-Yupik-Unangan (Eskimo-Aleut) languages 557
  26. 18 Applicatives across Algonquian 601
  27. 19 Applicative constructions in Mayan languages: An overview with special focus on Chontal 645
  28. 20 Applicative constructions in two Otomanguean families: Otomi and Zapotec 679
  29. 21 The polyfunctional applicative *-ɪd in Bantu languages 719
  30. 22 B-applicatives and I-applicatives in Atlantic languages (Niger-Congo) 749
  31. 23 Nilotic applicatives 783
  32. 24 Applicative constructions in Cushitic 835
  33. 25 Applicative constructions in the Northwest Caucasian languages 869
  34. 26 Applicative constructions in Kartvelian 913
  35. 27 Applicative derivations in Kiranti 943
  36. 28 Applicative constructions in languages of western Indonesia 971
  37. Part III: Theoretical/Comparative outlook
  38. 29 Understanding applicatives 1007
  39. 30 Applicatives cross-linguistically: Features and distribution 1033
  40. 31 Applicative and related constructions: Results and perspectives 1045
  41. Language index 1077
  42. Subject index 1083
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