Toward a typology of directional motion for African Languages

2015

2016

The aim of this paper is to highlight the frequent occurrence of associated motion and compare the construction in 20 languages from the four main linguistic phyla of Africa. Associated motion is a strategy typical of Australian and South American languages whereby a motion event is subordinated to a verb’s event but is encoded by an affix from the semantic category of ‘associated motion’ (Koch, 1984) rather than by another verb or satellite clause. In this paper I show that associated motion is quite widespread in Africa, although overall little discussed. In the languages surveyed the structure exhibits the following particularities: (i) it is marked by satellites, which systematically also mark deictic path, (ii) it relates to the main verb in different ways depending on the event the latter encodes and the context, and (iii) it occurs with different lexical verb classes depending on the language. This study adds to the growing literature on the topic and seeks to highlight stron...

Nilo-Saharan issues and perspectives, 2018

This paper describes a unique system of directional morphology in Ethiopian Komo, an endangered language of the Koman subfamily. Based on original data, this paper examines how this system of obligatory verbal morphology, which codes the direction of translational kinetic motion on verbs of motion and subsequently the location of participants in non- motion events, is synchronically grammaticalizing beyond spatial deixis into a temporal/ aspectual domain and even further in other cases, into hearer-based pragmatics. The directional system in Komo is unusual in two respects. First, every finite verb must occur with one of three directional morphemes (/-i, -ʊ́ , -úk/) in paradigmatic opposition. Second, these suffixes, which occur immediately on the verb stem, are the only means available to convey temporal or aspectual meanings immediately in the verb.

requested for both intensive and extensive investigation of motion domain in the different language phyla in Africa. This article presents the expression of motion events in the Bantu languages of the Niger-Congo phylum. In the tripartite clustering of the world languages (Slobin 2004), looking on path and manner, the Bantu languages Tswana and Shona demonstrate verb-framedness (Schaefer & Gaines 1997). The findings in this study point out that the proposed verb-framedness is fully attested in the Bantu languages Swahili, Nyakyusa, Mashami and Nyambo. But the detailed analysis of dictionary as well as elicited data points towards the fact that the co-event (manner) and direction of motion are the most salient features of a typical Bantu motion events. This picture seems to deviate from proposal that path should be taken as a core-schema in the analysis of motion events. .

Studies in African Linguistics

Motion expressions in Emai, an Edoid language of Nigeria, are examined within the lexical typology of Talmy [1985]. Both directional and nondirectional motion structures involving the MANNER verb la 'to run' are analyzed, though only the former, syntactically expressed by verbs in continuous series, poses a particular problem for interpretation. Three hypotheses concerning the semantic composition of these serial verbs are considered and evaluated in terms of their distributional constraints. It is concluded that nondirectional motion can be lexicalized by either of two patterns [MOTION+MANNER] PATH or MOTION PATH ... MANNER, while directional motion allows only the single lexicalization pattern MANNER [MOTION+PATH]. Typologically, these reflect two of the incorporation patterns Talmy has identified as characteristic in languages of the world.

2021

This chapter provides an in-depth description of how the concept of Associated Motion (AM) is conveyed in Atlantic languages, which have been under-described in this matter in the existing literature. African languages have rarely been described as possessing a dedicated Associated Motion system (AM), i.e. verbal suffixes whose primary function is to add a motion co-event to the event expressed by the verb. Here I will show that, within some Atlantic languages, the dynamic deictic morphemes constitute a system of dedicated AM suffixes, whereas in others the dynamic deictic morphemes display both directional deictic and AM meanings. This so-called D-AM system is primarily a Directional Deictic system (DD) attesting AM readings with some specific verbs. The co-existence of these two distinct systems in the Atlantic languages leads us to consider their geographical and/or genetic distribution and to explore their possible origins.

1985

Characteristic patterns for the lexicalization of motion in Tswana, a Southeastern Bantu language, are explored. Examination of constraints governing classes of verb roots referring to motion events reveals two of the typological patterns put forward by Talmy [1984] for the lexicalization of motion in natural language. The distinguishing feature of each pattern lies in the particular semantic elements incorporated in a main clause verb root. The fact of Motion and Manner/Cause are incorporated in the verb root when lexi-calizing complex location-motion events. However, when lexicaliz-ing complex motion events of a directional nature, as well as both locational-and directional-motion events of a less complex nature, the verb root incorporates the fact of Motion and the Path which a moving object takes.

Studies in African Linguistics

Characteristic patterns for the lexicalization of motion in Tswana, a Southeastern Bantu language, are explored. Examination of constraints governing classes of verb roots referring to motion events reveals two of the typological patterns put forward by Talmy [1984] for the lexicalization of motion in natural language. The distinguishing feature of each pattern lies in the particular semantic elements incorporated in a main clause verb root. The fact of Motion and Manner/Cause are incorporated in the verb root when lexicalizing complex location-motion events. However, when lexicalizing complex motion events of a directional nature, as well as both locational- and directional- motion events of a less complex nature, the verb root incorporates the fact of Motion and the Path which a moving object takes.

Gwama DD, 2018

The verb system in Gwama, a Koman language spoken in Ethiopia, has two contrastive morphemes grounded in the spatial domain, which are labelled deictic-directional (DD) markers. Since there is no tense/aspect inflection on verbs, the semantics of these directional morphemes also extend into the temporal/aspectual domain. With motion verbs, the unmarked verb form signals an unspecified direction away from the deictic centre. In contrast, a verb form with DD1 indicates direction to the deictic centre/ speaker and a verb form with DD2 indicates direction to the addressee. Due to interaction with person marking and mood, these basic notions may be altered, especially with second person and imperative. With non-motion verbs, the semantics change and distancing in non-spatial domains becomes more prominent, especially for DD2. Correspondingly, this marker is found in counterfactual constructions in combination with an Intentitive auxiliary. In addition, the role of DD markers in benefactive constructions is discussed. The existing literature on Gwama does not discuss verbal direction and, also failing to address tone, has struggled to interpret verb forms meaningfully. This paper, in showing the centrality of the directional markers in the verb system, provides a much-needed basis for the interpretation of verb forms. Cite as: Hellenthal, Anne-Christie. (2018). Semantics of directional verb morphology in Gwama. In: Nilo-Saharan Issues and Perspectives. Eds. Helga Schröder & Prisca Jerono. Cologne: Rüdiger Köppe. pp. 179-192.