Tensed evidentials: A typological study
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Eline Visser
Abstract
To gain more insight into evidentiality, the grammatical marking of information source, it is worth studying the category in its relation to other grammatical categories. This study explores tensed evidentials, morphemes in which tense and evidentiality are fused, in 36 languages from four macro-areas (North America, South America, Eurasia, and Papunesia). The study reveals several interactions between tense values and evidential values. As opposed to what has been claimed, firsthand future evidentials seem to exist. Visual and non-visual evidentials occur equally with present and past, whereas mental activity evidentials and reportative evidentials are much more limited to the past. These findings conform to the logic of tense: every type of evidentiality can be gathered in the past, whereas some are less suited for present or future. As a result, we find exceptionless implicational hierarchies of the form future ⊃ present ⊃ past for several evidential values.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Frank Seifart, Kees Hengeveld, and Matt Coler for their input.
Abbreviations: 1/2/3=1st/2nd/3rd person; 1>2=1st person subject, 2nd person object; ii=gender marker (gender II); abl=ablative; abs=absolutive; appl=applicative; asrt=assertive; ass=assumption evidence; aug=augmentative; bfr=buffer; cop=copula; decl=declarative; disj=disjunctive; em=emphatic; erg=ergative; exc=exclusive; f=feminine; firsth=firsthand evidence; fns=final nominal suffix; foc=focus; fut=future; inf=inferential (evidential); ipfv= imperfective; lat=lative; m=masculine; mom=momentaneous; neg= negative; neut=neutral; nonf=non-firsthand evidence; nonsbj=non-subject; nonvis=non-visual evidence; obj=object; part=participle; pcp=participatory evidence; pl=plural; pnct=punctual; poss=possessive; prog=progressive; prs=present; pst=past; quot=quotative; recpst=recent past; refl=reflexive; rempst=remote past; rep=reportative (evidential); sbj=subject; seq=sequential; sg=singular; sim=simple tense; spc=specifier; sub=subordinator; top=topic(alizer); top.non.sbj=topical non-subject case; vis=visual evidence; vs=verbal suffix.
Appendix: Sources for the sample languages
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