Grammatical Categories

1. Semantics and Anthropology Grammatical Categories1. Pronominal Systems2. Noun and Numeral Classifiers3. Locational Deixis4. Evidentials and Experiencer ConstructionsTom HornLanguage and Culture

2. 1.Pronominal SystemsGeneral Information: 1. Pronominal Systems General Aspects: - There is no language that lacks equivalents to “I“ and “YOU“- But: In some languages there are various forms of pronouns to signal - solidarity - social distance - respect - or intimacy- Some languages also have different pronominal categories like - dual pronouns - inclusive and exclusive “WE“ (depending on whether the addressee is included or not)

3. YOU - singular or plural ?- All of the world´s languages have an unique and inherently singular exponent of “I“ and most of them for the singular form of “YOU“ .Examples: French: tu Mandarin Chinese: ni Yankunytjatjara: nyuntu- English is unusual in using “YOU“ for singular and plural contexts.- Many varieties of English have different forms for the 2nd person plural. Examples:youse ya`ll

4. Who are “we“ ?- Could be: “I and some other people“- or: “I and another person““We“ indicates that there are two or more than two referents who have something in commonBut: They do not have to be a real group They are only regarded as a group for the purpose of what should be said about them.

5. Dual formsIn Yankunytjatjara there are three number categories: singular / dual / plural   one two more than two Singular Dual Plural1stngayulu ngali ngamana2nd nyuntu nyupali nyura

6. Inclusive / Exclusive pronounsExample.: Malay kita (we inclusive)kawi (we exclusive)Many languages have both the dual/plural distinction and the inclusive/exclusive distinction.Example: Palaungfirst-person pronouns Singular Dual Plural r  Inclusive yar y Exclusive

7. “Minimal augmented“ prounoun systemsExample: Rembarrnga (Australian language)MinimalUnit augmentedAugmented“I“ 1 ngunuyarrbbarrah yarru“You“ 2 ku nakorrbbarrah nakorru“I and you“1+2 yukku ngakorrbbarrahngakorru  plus one plus more than oneExample: yarrbbarrah I`m thinking of me I`m not thinking of you I`m thinking of one other person I and another person (excluding addressee) 

8. 2. Noun and numeral classifiersClassifiers = Certain grammtical devices which oblige speakers to categorise a referent along specific semantic dimensions- Two most common types: Noun classifiers and Numeral classifiers May be an affix or a word- Both originate from ordinary nouns with concrete meanings.- In some languages most classifiers are idential in form with ordinary nouns.Example: Malay: ekor is used with animals, fish and birds but it also means “tail“ used as a noun.

9. - Classifiers do not classify nouns (like a gender system) but the referents of nouns- In classifier languages there is a regular polysemyExample: Jacaltec: The Classifier for corn ixim is also used for products of corn like tortillasSocial classifiers are divided into certain categories: Humans - Non-humans male - female family - society old - young Example: ho7 for male family membersxo7 for female family members Natural classifiers: - the elements - animals - plants

10. Example: Jacaltec: versatile classifier for animals “no7“no7 nokanimalno7 miscatno7lab‘dsnakePhysical classifiers which are based on -form - size - functionExample: Cantonese: jí is used for thin and cylindrial things jí bat  penjí dekflute(choice of classifiers depending on how the speakers views the object involved)

11. Functional ClassifiersExample: Cantonese: “ga“ for vehicles and machines with moving partsga che  car ga feigeiaeroplaneNumeral Classifiers- Japanese: Numeral classifieres are suffixes to numeralsExample: suffix “hon“ for longish and thin objects empitsu ni-honkyuuri ipi-ponpencil two Cl:hon cucumber one Cl:hontwo pencils one cucumber (“pon“ and “bon“ are allomorphs of “hon“)The suffix “hon“ can be analysed in terms of a “radical polysemy“.

12.  One central meaning with various similar branchesIt is also used with: cassette tapes camera films rubber bands liquids in bottles and tubes telephone calls letters movies passes and shots in sports a.s.oNeutral Classifiers:They areused with objects whose specific nature is irrelevant or unknown tothe speaker.Example: Cantonese: goBurmese: khuVietnamese: cai

13. 3. Locational DeixisDeixis: Features of language that refer directly to the personal, temporal or locational characteristics of a situation-In English there are two basic deictis: this and that- Many other languages have a more elaborated system with three, four or more deictis- The most common semantic categories in locational deixis are - distance - visibility - elevation

14. Distance:- the most frequent distinction is between “proximal“ (near) and “distal“ (not near)- locational deixis is in most languages structured according to the relative distance from the speakerbut in some languages the distance from the addressee is also important.Example: Georgian: es near speakeregnear addresseeis/iginear neither

15. Differentiated distal degree- In languages with more than two distances the “distal pole“ tends to be more differentiated than the proximalExample: Kusaiean : nge  “ this“ngacn “that“ngoh “that over there“ngi “that way over there“

16. Visibility:- In some languages visibility of the referents also plays a roleExample: Coastal Yidiny: demonstrative stem “yu-“ is used for referents that are distant and visibleExample: Kabardian: term a for indicating a non-visible referent without telling about the distanceElevation:- appears always in languages spoken in mountainous regionsExample: Paamese: kèmai  “over there“kema“up over there“kemits“down over there“

17. - In some languages people also distinguish more degrees of elevation- there are similar degrees depending on the geographical situationExamples: uphill vs. downhill upriver vs. downriver landside vs seaside

18. Evidentials and Experiencer ConstructionsEvidentials and Experiencer Constructions-Evidentials are grammatical markers which spell out the grounds for what one says- English does not have Evidentials in the form of a grammatical systemAlternatives: 1. Epistemic use of modal verbsExamples: He must be ill. She should be there by now. 2. Usage of sentence adverbsExamples: presumably apparently reportedly-Most evidential constructions appear involving the words think, know and say

19. “Personal Experience“ EvidentialsIndicating why and how the speaker knows what he or she talks aboutExample: Kashaya (Californian language) Three suffixes: - mela Performative - ya Factual-visual - vnná  AuditoryPerformative: speaker did himself what he talks aboutFactual-visual: speaker saw what he talks about Auditory: speaker heard what he talks about

20. Evidentials indicating certainity-There are also some evidentials which show how sure the speaker is in what he says.Examples: Tarma Quechua : three suffixes: - shi “hearsay“  ( I heard it) - mi “conviction“  (I know this) - chi “conjecture“  (I think but I do not know)Hearsay Particles or Quotatives- The speaker attributes his statement to another person.Example: - shi hearsay  I say it because someone else said it but I do not know for sure.

21. “Anti-hearsay“ Evidentials- Used to stress that the information derives from direct personal experience and is not provided by someone elseExample: Huanuco Quechua suffix: -mi  I say this not because someone else said it , I know itExperiencer constructions is just another term for evidentials but these constructions also include the aspect of feeling.

22. Conclusion:- This was just a selective coverage of some grammatical phenomena within the field of semantic namely: - Pronominal sytems - Noun and Numeral classifiers - Locational deixis - Evidential constructions -Other interesting areas could be: - imperative forms - interrogative sentences - conditional clauses - singular/plural distinction and others