Cognate objects of weather verbs in African languages of South Africa – from synchronic variation to a grammaticalization path
Date
2017
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Stellenbosch University, Department of Linguistics
Abstract
The authors argue that the synchronic variation of cognate objects of weather verbs exhibited in six African languages of South Africa (Sepedi, Sesotho, Tshivenda, isiXhosa, Xitsonga, and isiZulu) has a diachronic explanation, and may be represented as a grammaticalization path. This path gradually leads from prototypical cognate objects that disallow object agreement (pronominalization) and promotion to subjects in passive constructions to prototypical objects where both agreement (pronominalization) and promotion are grammatical. This provides further support for the modelling of cognate objects, adjuncts and arguments in terms of a continuum and for a gradient view of syntactic categories, in general.
Description
CITATION: Andrason, A. & Visser, M. 2017. Cognate objects of weather verbs in African languages of South Africa – from synchronic variation to a grammaticalization path. Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics, 48:151-160
doi:10.5774/48-0-287.
The original publication is available at http://spil.journals.ac.za
The original publication is available at http://spil.journals.ac.za
Keywords
Weather verbs -- African languages -- Grammar, comparative -- South Africa -- Grammaticalization, Grammar, comparative -- Grammatical categories
Citation
Andrason, A. & Visser, M. 2017. Cognate objects of weather verbs in African languages of South Africa – from synchronic variation to a grammaticalization path. Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics, 48:151-160
doi:10.5774/48-0-287