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Oceanic languages: A comparative investigation of pre-clausal constructions A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics at The University of Waikato by DARYL EVELINE MACDONALD 2017 Abstract This thesis presents an investigation of pre-clausal phenomena in the lesser-studied languages of the Oceanic language family. The study is innovative in that the pre-clausal structure of interest, hereinafter labelled as a PRE construction, is analysed in its entirety, and found to exhibit prototypicality in regards to its structure and function. In regards to structure, the prototype possesses pre-clausal sequencing, and an intonation break longer than 0.2 s between the pre-clausal nominal constituent and its associated simple, complex, or non- verbal clause. Also attested in the prototype is a coreferencing relation distributing syntactic and semantic meaning between the pre-clausal constituent and either a free form nominal or pronominal, and /or a verb phrase index from the associated clause. The functional explanation of PRE constructions offered in this work is also distinctive, being developed with recourse to the models of Conceptual Blending (Fauconnier and Turner 1996, 1998, 2002, 2003) and the Greater Attentional System (Oakley 2004, 2009), as well as the typology of conceptual blends proposed by Brandt (2013:415–422). Accordingly, it is argued that PRE constructions are expressions of a schematic intraspace blend [PRE,ASC], the function of which is to foreground information via the human attention system. This schematic structure [PRE,ASC] provides the template for the creation of novel interspace blends, characterised by the nature of the meaning relations created during the conceptual integration of the PRE construction components. For prototypical blends, the integration is such that the conceptual counterparts represented by the pre-clausal constituent and the associated clause are perceived as identical in the resulting blend. Additionally, in response to the difficulties associated with determining the status of pre-clausal constructions within the larger linguistic system, it is proposed that such structures exemplify a new linguistic unit of analysis referred to as an expanded clause. An expanded clause is defined as a type of complex clause, where the distributed meaning relations between the parts characterise the notions of dependency and expansion. ii Acknowledgements It is not uncommon for academic publications to acknowledge all those scholars who have gone before. As this thesis is a typological project, which relies heavily on the research of others, this sentiment is particularly relevant. This is not only in relation to the knowledge builders of yesteryear, but also to the speakers and researchers of the Oceanic languages who have so generously shared their languages and analyses, without which any cross-linguistic study such as this one would be impossible. To this very large group of people, most of whom I will never meet, I wish to acknowledge my sincere appreciation. That I have found the doctoral research journey incredibly satisfying is in no small part due to my two wonderful supervisors, Dr. Nicola Daly and Dr. Julie Barbour, who in spite of their already rather full workloads, found the time and energy to guide me expertly throughout the whole process. I particularly want to acknowledge their hands-off approach, which was just perfect for me, as it allowed me to make my own mistakes, and to develop as an independent researcher. I always came away from our meetings feeling re-energised, and totally motivated to tackle the next stage of the work, whatever that happened to be. Thank you both. At the beginning of my doctoral research, I was fortunate to be awarded a University of Waikato Doctoral Scholarship. This scholarship has not only provided financial support for over three years, but also added credibility to my work in the wider world. I would not have been able to undertake this project without this support. I trust that the results justify its bestowal. Lastly, I wish to acknowledge the support of my family: Neil, without whom this project would not have happened, and Hayden and Cassandra, who totally ‘get’ the whole research thing, and never doubted my abilities for a moment. Having now completed this project, I realise that it is just the stepping off point for many other exciting research directions. iii Table of Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. iii Table of Contents ...................................................................................................................... iv List of figures ......................................................................................................................... viii List of tables ............................................................................................................................... x Abbreviations and conventions ................................................................................................. xi Chapter 1 Thesis introduction............................................................................................... 1 1.1 The research context.................................................................................................... 1 1.2 The research topic ....................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Theoretical and methodological foundations of the study .......................................... 5 1.4 Method: The data collection process ........................................................................... 9 1.5 Method: The data analysis......................................................................................... 12 1.6 The research questions and thesis outline ................................................................. 15 Chapter 2 Establishing pre-clausal status: Sequential order ............................................... 20 2.1 Establishing pre-clausal status: Determining clause boundaries, syntactic functions and argument status.............................................................................................................. 22 2.1.1 The ASC-overt/free type ..................................................................................... 24 2.1.2 The ASC-overt/bound type .................................................................................. 25 2.1.3 The ASC-overt/zero type ..................................................................................... 33 2.1.4 The ASC-non.overt type ...................................................................................... 34 2.1.5 Summary ............................................................................................................ 35 2.2 Establishing pre-clausal status: Constituent order .................................................... 37 2.3 PRE constructions and (non-)contiguity ..................................................................... 40 2.4 PRE constructions with multiple PRE constituents ..................................................... 44 2.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 48 Chapter 3 The hierarchical status of PRE constructions ...................................................... 51 3.1 The PRE constituent ................................................................................................... 53 3.1.1 Simple NPs as PRE constituents ........................................................................... 54 3.1.2 Modified NPs as PRE constituents ....................................................................... 56 3.1.3 Complex NPs as PRE constituents ....................................................................... 60 iv 3.2 The associated clause: Basic constituent orders ........................................................ 63 3.3 The associated clause: Clause types .......................................................................... 64 3.3.1 Verbal and non-verbal associated clauses .......................................................... 64 3.3.2 Complex clauses as associated clauses .............................................................. 66 3.3.3 Speech acts as associated clauses ...................................................................... 73 3.4 The PRE construction: A type of expanded clause ....................................................