University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ASPECTS OF THE MORPHOLOGY OF C’LELA BY MUHAMMAD ANGO ALIERO THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF PHD LINGUISTICS DEGREE. JUNE, 2013 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh i DECLARATION I do hereby declare that this thesis, with exception of references that have been duly acknowledged, is the result of my own research, and that it has not been presented either in whole or in parts for another degree elsewhere. However, I alone, I am responsible for any lapses associated with this work. Muhammad Ango Aliero-------------------------------- Date------------------------ Candidate Supervisors: Professor Kofi Korankye Saah----------------------------------- Date------------------------ Professor Nana Aba Appiah Amfo------------------------------- Date------------------------ Professor Alan Stewart Duthie------------------------------------ Date----------------------- University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ii ABSTRACT The main goal of this study is to describe the morphological properties of C’lela; a Niger-Congo, Western Kainji language spoken in the eastern part of Kebbi State, Nigeria. The study mainly adopted the classic descriptive model of linguistics in particular to explore and highlight the morphological processes and properties of C’lela. The relevant data for the study were sourced mainly from the extant literature on C’lela as well as the field data. By and large, the primary data were corroborated with the secondary sources. The study established that C’lela has distinctive morphological properties akin to other languages across West Africa. C’lela uses prefixes and suffixes on nominal and verbal categories to provide information about number and tense, and equally undergoes the major morphological processes such as compounding, derivation, affixation, and reduplication. In terms of derivation it was revealed that though derivational processes in C’lela are analyzable mainly on the principles of concatenative morphology where prefixes and suffixes are in concatenative relationship with their host stems, the language also lends itself to non-concatenative morphology, where the internal stem- vowel, instead of affixes, contains the syntactic and semantic information in the derivation. This suggests that C’lela has a derivational system that exploits affixation, as well as internal modification. With regard to compounding, it emerged that C’lela is an endocentric but a left-headed language. It was also realized that the language exhibits both partial and complete reduplications, which in most cases are lexical and semantic in function. It was particularly noted that the complete reduplication of verbs that contain heavy-initial disyllabic stems in C’lela are accompanied by phonological operations such as syllable truncation and imbrication. The study while illustrating the chief morphological processes inherent in C’lela, endeavored to examine and highlight the various phonological processes that are often triggered when stems come into contact with affixes or when compounding and/or reduplication take place. These morphophonological processes include but are not limited to; vowel copying, vowel lengthening, vowel deletion, metathesis, vowel lowering, complementary distribution, syllable truncation, and imbrication. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iii DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to the C’lela speaking community University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the Almighty Allah without Whose mercies, blessings and guidance this work would not have been possible. Secondly, my profound gratitude goes to my supervisors; Prof. Kofi K. Saah, Prof. Nana Aba A. Amfo, and late Prof. Alan S. Duthie, who passed away shortly after I submitted the thesis for examination. May God continue to give his family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss. I am grateful to them all for their invaluable contributions, supports, and patience throughout the period of writing this thesis. I sincerely thank them for the things I have learnt from their wealth of academic experiences. Their invaluable feedbacks and constructive criticisms have helped in refining this study. I am also thankful to all the lecturers of the Department of Linguistics, University of Ghana, Legon particularly, the Head, Prof. Kofi Agyekum for his kindness; Dr Paul Agbedor, and Prof. E. Kweku Osam for allowing me at the very beginning to attend their Research Methodology class from which I have benefitted a lot. I am also indebted to Dr George Akanlig-Pare and Dr Hudu Fusheni for providing me at various times with suggestions especially on phonological issues arising from my work. I also thank the Department’s secretary, Mrs. Agatha Augustt for her assistance, and the Librarian, Mr. Christopher Frimpong who helped in locating reference sources. I have benefited from the articles on C’lela forwarded to me by Emerita Prof. M. E. Kropp Dakubu from an anonymous reviewer of my paper. I remain grateful to them for their kindness. I would like to acknowledge the support of the members of the C’lela Language Development Committee, especially Mr. Bulus Doro Rikoto from whom I got some materials on C’lela. I am particularly thankful to all my informants who provided much of the data for this work, as well as Umaru S. Rambo, Bala Rambo both University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh v of the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, and Balkisu Mohammed of the Kebbi State University of Science and Technology, Aliero for verifying the data used in this thesis. I am highly grateful to the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto my employer, for granting me a study leave/fellowship and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) for a financial support that enabled me pursue this programme. I would also like to thank Prof. Bello D. Bada, Dr Aminu Mode and his family, and Dr Shehu Sidi Ibrahim all of the Department of Modern European Languages and Linguistics, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto for various supports. Dr Abubakar Muhammad influenced my thinking on C’lela morphology. I thank him for the encouragement. I also owe special gratitude to Dr Hafiz Mohammed, Department of Modern Languages, University of Ghana, Legon for his useful comments and suggestions most of which were well taken. I also thank all my friends, especially Sadat Mohammed, Abdul-Razak Sulemana for their company and discussion on some materials presented in this study; as well as others who have contributed in different ways to the success of this work, but whose names could not be mentioned here due to lack of space. Lastly, I sincerely thank the members of my family; my wife, and our children Bashir, Abdul- Rasheed, Abubakar Sadeeq, Ibrahim Khalil, and Umar Farouk for their patience, affection and prayers during the writing of this thesis. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration-------------------------------------------------------------------------- i Abstract----------------------------------------------------------------------- ii Dedication------------------------------------------------------------------------ iii Acknowledgment--------------------------------------------------------------- iv Table of Contents--------------------------------------------------------------- vi List of Tables-------------------------------------------------------------------- xiv List of Figures-------------------------------------------------------------------- xv List of Abbreviations------------------------------------------------------------ xvi CHAPTER ONE: GENERAL INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 1.2 Morphology------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 1.3 Descriptive Morphological Model---------------------------------------------------- 2 1.4 The Language, C’lela------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 1.4.1 Genetic Classification and Population--------------------------------------------- 8 1.4.2 Basic Phonology---------------------------------------------------------------------- 9 1.4.2.1 C’lela Vowel Chart----------------------------------------------------------------- 9 1.4.2.2 Diphthongs-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10 1.4.2.3 Internal Vowel Harmony---------------------------------------------------------- 11 1.4.2.4 C’lela Consonant Chart------------------------------------------------------------ 13 1.4.2.5 Syllable Structure------------------------------------------------------------------- 18 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vii 1.4.2.6 Tone--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 19 1.4.3 C’lela Orthography------------------------------------------------------------------ 20 1.4.4 Dialect Information------------------------------------------------------------------ 21 1.4.5 Sociolinguistic Status---------------------------------------------------------------- 22 1.5 Statement of Research Problem------------------------------------------------------ 22 1.6 Aim and Objectives of the Study---------------------------------------------------- 23 1.7 Outline of Sources and Research Methodology----------------------------------- 24 1.8 Earlier Studies on C’lela--------------------------------------------------------------