Abstract
We re-assess the gender system of Ogbe-Oloma, an Edoid village variety of Nigeria. System exponents are prefixes that define form class and reflect grammatical number. We find that eight agreement classes undergird fourteen genders, while seventeen nominal form classes frame twenty-five number inflections. Prefix mapping from inflection to gender is non-isomorphic. Mapping is however constrained by syllable shape, CV- versus V-, and alliterative sound quality of prefix consonant, not vowel. In addition, several number inflections trigger agreement in multiple genders leading to one gender that exclusively refers to nouns with human reference.
Funding source: U.S. Department of State
Award Identifier / Grant number: ASJY 1333
Funding source: U.S. National Endowment for the Humanities
Award Identifier / Grant number: PD-50004-06
Acknowledgments
Fieldwork related to this paper received support from the U.S. Department of State (College and University Affiliations Program grant ASJY 1333) and the U.S. National Endowment for the Humanities (PD-50004-06), with further assistance from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and the University of Ibadan. Finally, we thank an anonymous reviewer and the editors, Ines Fiedler and Tom Güldemann for their patience and constructive comments on earlier drafts.
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Preface
- More diversity enGENDERed by African languages: an introduction
- The gender system of Laal
- The gender system of Khoekhoegowab
- An areal and typological appraisal of gender in Ju
- The two concurrent gender systems of Mba
- The gender system of Longuda
- The gender system of Noon: insights into the reorganization of agreement
- The gender system of Anii
- Reassessing gender in Ogbe-Oloma
- The gender system of Durop
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Preface
- More diversity enGENDERed by African languages: an introduction
- The gender system of Laal
- The gender system of Khoekhoegowab
- An areal and typological appraisal of gender in Ju
- The two concurrent gender systems of Mba
- The gender system of Longuda
- The gender system of Noon: insights into the reorganization of agreement
- The gender system of Anii
- Reassessing gender in Ogbe-Oloma
- The gender system of Durop