Wushi (Babessi): The Verb Phrase

Rachel Robinson

March, 2021

Presented as part of the requirement of the MA in Field Linguistics, Redcliffe College.

Declaration

This dissertation is the product of my own work. I declare also that the dissertation is available for photocopying, reference purposes and Inter-Library Loan.

Rachel Robinson

2 Abstract

Wushi (Babessi): The Verb Phrase

Rachel Robinson, March 2021

Wushi is a Grassfields Bantu language spoken in the village of Babessi in NorthWest

Cameroon. It is a relatively undocumented language and its orthography is still in the process of being developed. This is the first linguistics paper that has been written on the verb phrase in the language. The aim of this study is to contribute to development of the language.

The verb in Wushi can be considered as the basic word class in the language. It consists of the verb root and optional affixes. Verb morphology functions primarily to provide grammatical information relating to aspect and changing valency. The verb phrase consists of the verb and its modifiers, which include markers of tense, aspect, modality, mood and negation. These grammatical markers are highly interdependent with significant tonal complexities.

Special verb constructions (notably, copula constructions and serial verb construc- tions) are also examined in this study. Serial verb constructions convey information about the ‘cognitive packaging’ of an event. Asymmetrical serial verb constructions may also convey grammatical information, such as the comparative construction.

Analysis of both lexical tone and grammatical tone in the verb phrase highlights the richness and complexity of tonal processes in the language. This research on tone should provide a contribution to developing a tone orthography for the language.

3 Contents

Declaration ...... 2 Abstract ...... 3 Preface ...... 6 List of tables ...... 7 List of abbreviations ...... 8 1 Introduction ...... 9 1.1 The Wushi language ...... 9 1.2 Objective of the current study ...... 11 1.3 Methodology and notation ...... 12 1.4 Literature relevant to the current study ...... 14 1.4.1 Theoretical model ...... 14 1.4.2 Verb studies on related languages ...... 14 1.4.3 Tone analysis ...... 16 2 The verb ...... 17 2.1 The verb root ...... 17 2.1.1 Syllable structure of the verb root ...... 17 2.1.2 Tone categories for verb roots ...... 18 2.2 Verb morphology ...... 20 2.2.1 Affixes on the verb root ...... 20 2.2.1.1 Verb suffixes ...... 20 2.2.1.2 The verb prefix mə- ...... 29 2.2.2 Verb reduplication ...... 30 2.3 Verb derivations ...... 32 2.3.1 Nominalisation ...... 33 2.3.2 The adjective class ...... 34 3 The verb phrase ...... 37 3.1 Overview of the verb phrase ...... 37 3.1.1 Structure of the verb phrase ...... 37 3.1.2 Transitivity in the verb phrase ...... 38 3.2 The tense-aspect-modality system ...... 39 3.2.1 Tense, aspect and modality markers ...... 39 3.2.1.1 Tense ...... 39 3.2.1.2 Aspect ...... 41 3.2.1.3 Modality ...... 44 3.2.2 Tone processes evident in the verb phrase ...... 45 3.2.2.1 Tone grounding ...... 45 3.2.2.2 Tone spreading ...... 46 3.2.2.3 Tone merging ...... 46 3.2.2.4 Non-automatic downstep ...... 47 3.2.2.5 Summary of tone processes ...... 48 3.2.3 Lexical indicators of tense, aspect and modality ...... 48 3.2.3.1 Lexical indicators: tense ...... 48 3.2.3.2 Lexical indicators: aspect ...... 49 3.2.3.3 Lexical indicators: modality ...... 50 3.3 Moods in the verb phrase ...... 52 3.3.1 The declarative mood ...... 52 3.3.2 The interrogative mood ...... 53

4 3.3.2.1 Polar questions ...... 53 3.3.2.2 Content questions ...... 55 3.3.3 The imperative and hortative moods ...... 57 3.4 Negation ...... 59 3.4.1 Negation in the declarative and interrogative moods ...... 60 3.4.2 Negation in the imperative and hortative moods ...... 60 3.4.3 Negative versions of indefinites ...... 62 4 Special verb constructions ...... 63 4.1 Copula clauses ...... 63 4.1.1 Copula verbs and semantic relations ...... 63 4.1.2 Verbless copula clauses ...... 66 4.2 Reflexive and reciprocal constructions ...... 67 4.2.1 Reflexive constructions ...... 67 4.2.2 Reciprocal constructions ...... 68 4.3 Passive constructions ...... 69 4.4 Causative constructions ...... 70 4.5 Applicative constructions ...... 70 4.6 Serial verb constructions (SVCs) ...... 70 4.6.1 Asymmetrical serial verb constructions ...... 71 4.6.2 Symmetrical serial verb constructions ...... 74 5 Conclusion ...... 75 5.1 Summary of findings ...... 75 5.2 Application of this research to language development ...... 77 5.2.1 Lexical tone: verb roots ...... 77 5.2.2 Grammatical tone in the verb phrase ...... 78 5.3 Areas for further research ...... 79 References ...... 81 Appendix A: Verb roots collected during this study ...... 83 Appendix B: Texts collected during this study (titles and genres) ...... 91

5 Preface

This dissertation is a study of the verb phrase in the Wushi language, spoken in the village of Babessi in the North West region of Cameroon. The main areas of research for this study are verb morphology, tense-aspect-modality marking, mood and nega- tion. Special verb constructions, most notably copula constructions and serial verb constructions, are also examined. The goal of this research is to contribute to the work of language development. In particular, the study of tone in the verb phrase should contribute to developing a tone orthography for the language. This study would not have been possible without the help of many friends and col- leagues. I am very grateful to the people of the village of Babessi for their kindness to me over the last few years. I have often been humbled by their hospitality and generosity of spirit. Without Ma Adjara (Adjara Ngoungoure), I would not have found a home and a family while I was living in the village. Without David Tiegho, I would not have had the faithful friendship and support of a reliable co-worker. I am humbled by the sacrifices he has made to help me in my research and I am thankful tohisfam- ily for allowing him to leave the village at times to work with me. I am also grateful to Confidence Jua for patiently working through long texts with me. Her helpwith this painstaking task of transcribing and interlinearising audio recordings of narrative discourse was invaluable. To all of these Babessi people, and the countless others who have been a blessing to me, I would like to say nyi jəmə ŋwi iyɔ! I would also like to thank my colleagues at SIL Cameroon for their help with this research, in particular, Jane Ingle, who patiently checked through countless surface tone transcriptions with me, and Cam Hamm, who commented on drafts of this paper. I am also grateful to Dr. Karin Zeibig, my supervisor at CLTL (Redcliffe College, UK), for her constructive criticism of my work and her encouragement throughout this project. Finally, thanks is due to my family and friends in the British Isles whose financial, moral and spiritual support has facilitated my living and working in Cameroon. 6 List of tables

Table 1 Verb phrase studies/ grammars consulted during this study ...... 15 Table 2 Syllable types for verb roots ...... 17 Table 3 Minimal tone pairs for verb roots ...... 19 Table 4 The -tə suffix: pluractional ...... 23 Table 5 Examples of verbs where -tə suffix is lexically 'frozen' on verb root . 25 Table 6 The -sə suffix: causative ...... 25 Table 7 Examples of verbs where -sə suffix is lexically 'frozen' on verb root . 26 Table 8 The -nə suffix: detransitivising ...... 27 Table 9 The -nə suffix: aspectual ...... 28 Table 10 Examples of verbs where -nə suffix is lexically 'frozen' on verb root. 28 Table 11 The -mə suffix: function ambiguous ...... 29 Table 12 Verb reduplication and aspectual functions ...... 31 Table 13 Strategies for nominalisation from verb roots ...... 33 Table 14 Examples of adjectives ...... 34 Table 15 Tenses in Wushi ...... 39 Table 16 Verb phrases in different tenses ...... 41 Table 17 Compulsory aspect marking: perfective or imperfective ...... 41 Table 18 Optional aspect marking ...... 42 Table 19 Modality in Wushi: realis or irrealis ...... 44 Table 20 Examples of lexical indicators of tense ...... 49 Table 21 Lexical indicators of phase of activity ...... 49 Table 22 Lexical indicators of degree of activity ...... 50 Table 23 Lexical indicators of modality ...... 50 Table 24 Interrogative words in Wushi ...... 56 Table 25 Constructions used for negative versions of indefinites ...... 62 Table 26 Types of copula clause ...... 63 Table 27 Asymmetrical SVCs: functions, parameters and minor verbs used . . . 72 Table 28 Grammatical features distinguished by tone ...... 78

7 List of abbreviations

1 first person hort hortative (mood) 2 second person imp imperative (mood) 3 third person inf infinitive-deriving adj adjective-deriving neg negation caus causative pl plural comp complementiser pluract pluractional cont continuous (aspect) prf perfect (aspect) cop copula verb prog progressive (aspect) detrans detransitivising p1 near past (tense) excl exclusive p2 distant past (tense) f1 near future (tense) sg singular f2 distant future (tense) tag tag (polar question in greetings)

8 1 Introduction

1.1 The Wushi language

The Wushi language is spoken in the village of Babessi in the North West region of

Cameroon. It is one of the 274 living languages of Cameroon (Eberhard et al., 2020).

The map in figure 1 below shows where Wushi is spoken.

Figure 1 The Wushi language area

The classification of Wushi given in Ethnologue (Eberhard et al., 2020) is: Niger-

Congo, Atlantic-Congo, Volta-Congo, Benue-Congo, Bantoid, Southern, Wide Grass- fields, Narrow Grassfields, Ring, South.

Ethnologue (Eberhard et al., 2020) gives the number of Wushi speakers to be 25,000 although this data is from 2008. The ISO 639-3 code for the language is bse.

Wushi is a Grassfields Bantu language spoken in the part of Cameroon that isbe- lieved to be very close to the historical source of the entire East Benue-Congo group of 9 languages. (Note that Ethnologue’s ‘Benue-Congo’ corresponds to Watters' (Watters,

2018, p.1) ‘East Benue-Congo’.) This group of languages now covers a huge geograph- ical area – most of Sub-Saharan Africa to the south of Nigeria – and is dominated by the Bantu languages (Watters, 2018, pp.3-8). It is important, however, to stress that Wushi is a Grassfields Bantu language and not a Bantu language. Both Bantu and Grassfields Bantu languages are subgroups of the

Bantoid branch within the East Benue-Congo group (Watters, 2018, p. 2). However, they are linguistically distinct. Bantu languages are typically richer in verbal and nominal morphology than Grassfields Bantu languages (Watters, 2018, p.16). The Grassfields Bantu languages, however, are widely recognised as having remarkably complex tone systems.

Wushi is one of the Ring languages - a subgroup of the Grassfields Bantu languages.

The Ring languages have particularly complex tone systems. In 1980, a linguist experi- enced in analysing Cameroonian languages described tone in Ring languages as having ‘enormous complexities’ (Hyman, 1980, p.225); he encountered tone structures that he was hitherto unfamiliar with.

Whereas in some tone languages, ‘the melody of a word in context is identical to that of the same word in isolation’ (Roberts, 2013, p.24), in Wushi and related languages, the melody of the word varies depending on the context. The numerous processes that tone can undergo in context are described by Roberts (2013, p.28) as ‘morphotono- logical’. Cahill (2019, p.117) describes these complex tone systems, where the tones change according to the context, as ‘movable tone languages’ (as opposed to ‘stable tone languages’). Hence, in Wushi, underlying tones and surface tones are not neces- sarily the same. This can be described as a ‘deep tone system’ (Roberts, 2013, p.24).

As Snider (2018, p.83) comments, extensive testing of different orthographies needs to be carried out with native speakers ‘before drawing any firm conclusions regarding the functional load of tone’. This type of testing has yet to be done in the Wushi language, but a preliminary hypothesis is that the functional load for lexical tone in

Wushi is significant. It has many minimal tone pairs (or pairs showing tone contrastin analogous environments) for noun and verb roots (Robinson, 2018, pp.44-52). Snider

10 argues that lexical tone does not require minimal pairs; ‘lexical tone exists whenever a language assigns (in an unpredictable manner) tone patterns to morphemes, especially the roots of nouns and verbs’ (Snider, 2018, p.81). There is also grammatical tone in the Wushi language. The current study will attempt to investigate some of the grammatical tone pertaining to the verb phrase. Besides the complex tone system, Wushi shares many of the other features of Grass- fields Bantu languages. In terms of the phonology, noun and verb roots have asimple monosyllabic structure. Syllables are typically open – the only type of closed syllable in Wushi is that ending with a glottal stop. The prenasalisation of plosives or fricatives is extremely common, especially in nouns. In terms of noun morphology, there is a reduced noun class system in comparison to the proto-Bantu system. A distinct feature of Wushi, in comparison to most Grassfields Bantu languages, is that noun class affixes are almost all suffixes rather than prefixes. In terms of verb morphology, Wushihas several verbal extensions as well as a complex tense-aspect-modality (TAM) system; these will be investigated in the current study. The word order in Wushi, as in related languages, is subject-verb-object (SVO) (Robinson, 2018, pp.5-6). In relation to other Grassfields Bantu languages, Wushi and the rest of the Ring group are linguistically ‘more distant’ from Bantu languages (Watters, 2003, p.227). In fact, the Ring languages are described (Kiessling, 2011, p.7) as occupying ‘a typologically – and genetically – intermediary stage between the isolating Kwa prototype [of West Africa] and the agglutinative Bantu prototype [of much of the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa]’.

1.2 Objective of the current study

To date, there are only two completed linguistics papers on the Wushi language: a phonological sketch (Robinson, 2018) and a noun phrase study (Hedinger, 2019). Hedinger’s noun phrase paper was useful for the current study when I was glossing texts and needed to disambiguate the various forms of the demonstratives and posses- sive pronouns (where there is usually noun class agreement). Just before completing this study, I was informed about a Cameroonian linguist working on the final stages of a PhD on Wushi (Hodieb, 2021). I made contact with 11 her and she willingly sent me a draft of her thesis, but advised that it was still subject to changes. For this reason, I have not interacted with her analysis in my own description of the language. The objective of the current study is to provide a further contribution to a relatively undocumented language and thus to promote development of the language. The verb phrase is an arguably under-studied topic in the Grassfields Bantu languages. Wushi is one of the four ‘South Ring’ languages, a small subset of the Grassfields Bantu lan- guages. There are no published linguistics papers specifically on the verb phrase in any of these four languages. (There is, however, a fairly comprehensive overview of the verb phrase in Schaub's description of Babungo - Schaub, 1985.)

1.3 Methodology and notation

The data used in this study is from two sources: texts and elicitation. Text collec- tion involved recording ten narrative texts from mother-tongue Wushi speakers (see Appendix B). I used a provisional orthography to transcribe, gloss and interlinearise these texts. The Leipzig Glossing Rules were followed. I also elicited data in order to collect verb paradigms and record specific types of verb phrase. Sometimes I asked the speaker to translate phrases from English and sometimes we used phrases found in the texts as a starting point for the elicitation. A useful crosscheck was to find a natural context where the phrase could be used, and ensure the data was still appropriate in that context. The advantage of texts is that the data provided is part of the natural flow of speech, in the context of storytelling. This was useful for investigating constructions such as verb reduplication and serial verb constructions. However, not all the data which was needed for the research was necessarily in these stories. Eliciting data was useful for systematically analysing grammatical features of the verb phrase, such as the tense- aspect-modality system. The disadvantage of this method, though, is that the data collected is not within the natural context of unprompted speech; this could affect the reliability of analysis if the data is not elicited carefully and with constant crosschecks. The word count of each text was between 200 and 750 words, and texts were pro- vided by five mother-tongue Wushi speakers from the village of Babessi, bothmen 12 and women, who ranged in age from early 20s to late 50s. I asked the speakers to tell

me a story of their choice - either a folk tale or a story from their own life history. Of

the ten texts, six are folk tales and four are factual stories from real life. In order to

transcribe and gloss the texts, I worked with a young woman who had grown up in the village where Wushi is spoken and so understood the language well, even though

it was not her mother-tongue language. (I did not collect texts or elicit data from this

language speaker.)

All the elicited data was provided by David Tiegho, a mother-tongue Wushi speaker

with whom I have worked since I first started studying the Wushi language in 2017. I communicated with all the language speakers in English, which is the language of

wider communication in North West Cameroon.

I used a digital, handheld voice recorder to collect data. The audio files were stored

securely in my laptop. Two SIL software programmes were used for analysing texts;

texts were segmented using SayMore and transcribed/ interlinearised using FLEx. The Wushi orthography is not yet established. For the current study, the orthography

I have used is based on my research of the phonology of the language (Robinson,

2018), as well as orthographic decisions that have been made for what is arguably

the most closely related language, Bamunka (see, for example, Sorsamo, 2006). The methodology used for tone analysis is described in 1.4.3 below.

Because the TAM (tense-aspect-modality) features of Wushi are so complex - often involving a combination of segmental and tonal data, in examples where the TAM sys- tem is being discussed, the TAM features will be described before or after the example.

Hence, the glossing in the examples themselves does not necessarily represent all the TAM features involved, due to the complexity of interaction between segments and tone.

13 1.4 Literature relevant to the current study

1.4.1 Theoretical model

The theoretical model I have used for this study is Dixon’s ‘Basic Linguistic Theory’

(Dixon, 2009; Dixon, 2010; Dixon, 2012). This approach does not insist on a list of

components which must be included in the grammatical description of a language.

Rather, it provides ‘a range of theoretical tools and a pool of conceptual categories,

each of which may be utilised in the grammar of a particular language if it fulfils a useful role there in description and explanation’ (Dixon, 2010, p.65).

For the purposes of this study, I follow Dixon in defining a verb phrase, in terms of clause structure, as a predicate and its associated grammatical categories (Dixon,

2009, p.108). These grammatical categories include tense-aspect-modality, mood and valency-changing derivations (Dixon, 2010, pp.53-54). At the word level, the pred-

icate is realised as a verb (or verbs, in the case of a serial verb construction). The

verb functions as the obligatory head of the verb phrase and the other elements can

be described as optional modifiers (Dixon, 2009, p.110).

Dixon distinguishes tense-aspect-modality from mood. I will maintain this distinc- tion in my analysis of the verb phrase in Wushi. I will follow Dixon in describing mood as being comprised of the declarative, the interrogative and the imperative.

Dixon describes grammatical categories such as the conditional and simultaneous as- pect as clause linking and so these will not be researched as they are beyond the scope of the current study (Dixon, 2012, p.41).

1.4.2 Verb studies on related languages

Research already completed on the verb phrase in languages related to Wushi was a

useful resource for the current study. As discussed in 1.1 above, Wushi’s most closely

related languages are the Ring languages. The Ring languages are a subgroup of the Grassfields Bantu languages. Verb phrase studies/ grammars from both Ring languages

and other Grassfields Bantu languages were consulted during this study. Theseare

14 listed below in table 1, along with the ISO 639-3 (Eberhard et al., 2020) codes for the languages.

Table 1 Verb phrase studies/ grammars consulted during this study

Type of Name of ISO Reference(s) language language 639-3 code Ring (Central) Babanki bbk Akumbu et al. (2020); Akumbu (2015); Akumbu and Chibaka (2012) Ring (Central) Kom bkm Shultz (1997) Ring (East) Lamnso' lns Hedinger (2015) Ring (South) Babungo bav Schaub (1985) Ring (West) Aghem agq Anderson (1979) Ring (West) Isu isu Kiessling (2011) Grassfields Baba 1 bbw Nashipu (2005) Bantu Grassfields Bafut bfd Tamanji (2009) Bantu Grassfields Chrambo bmo Wright (2009); Wright (2011) Bantu

Typologically, the verb phrase in the Ring languages and other Grassfields Bantu languages has tense categories which usually fall somewhere between the Bantu lan- guages which are rich in tense categories and the languages of West Africa where tense is barely marked as a morphological verbal category (Watters, 2018, p.16). In terms of verb morphology, the Grassfields Bantu languages lie somewhere between the heavily synthetic proto-Bantu and the more analytic structure of West African lan- guages. Typically, the verb in Grassfields Bantu languages has some verbal affixes but is mostly analytic, with isolated morphemes or clitics which contribute to the verb phrase (Watters, 2018, p.18). Whereas Bantu verbal extensions mark the valency of the verb (through causatives, applicatives, passives, etc.), Grassfields Bantu languages have verbal extensions that may mark either valence values or aspectual values (Wat- ters, 2018, p.19).

15 1.4.3 Tone analysis

The method I use in this study for transcribing and describing tone is that proposed by Snider (Snider, 2018; Snider, 2014). Snider’s theoretical stance is that tone analysis should be based on the pattern contrasts of morphemes rather than the tone contrasts of tone-bearing units (TBUs) (Snider, 2018, p.19). He argues (p.20) that ‘it is the tone pattern of the morpheme that is relevant to the native speaker, not the individual pitches on syllables’. One of the challenges of tone analysis is what Snider (2018, p.25) describes as the

‘Catch-22’ situation where it is difficult to transcribe tone data without first analysing the tone system, but ‘we also cannot analyse the tone system without first properly transcribing data’. The system used in this study for transcribing surface tone is Snider’s ‘bar system’

(Snider, 2018, p.23), which he recommends using during the initial stages of tone analysis (p.25). I transcribed surface tone for elicited data but not for data in the texts

(the texts were lengthy and transcribing tone for all of these was beyond the scope of this study). Hence, where surface tone data is missing in this paper, it is usually because the examples have been taken from texts. In these examples, however, the lack of tone data should not affect the analysis. Where grammatical features involving tone are being described, surface tone is always included in the examples.

16 2 The verb

The purpose of this chapter is to briefly describe the verb root in terms of its syllable structure and tone categories (2.1), before examining verb morphology (2.2). The forms and functions of the various verb affixes, as well as verb reduplication, are analysed in this section. Finally, verb derivations are described (2.3); there is evidence of both nouns and adjectives being derived from verbs in Wushi.

2.1 The verb root

2.1.1 Syllable structure of the verb root

Verb roots are the most basic form of verbs in Wushi. All verb roots are monosyllabic and most are open syllables. The only type of closed syllable is that ending with the voiceless glottal plosive /ʔ/ which is represented in the orthography as <’>. A light syllable consists of a consonant (which may be modified with both prenasalisation and palatalisation/ labialisation) and a short vowel. A heavy syllable has a heavier rhyme: a long vowel and no syllable coda, a short vowel and the coda consonant <’>, or the diphthong <ɨə> (Robinson, 2018, p.36).

Some examples of the two syllable types are shown in table 2 below (H or L refers to the underlying tone of the verb root, which is discussed further in 2.1.2).

Table 2 Syllable types for verb roots

Type of syllable Verb root Gloss Underlying tone of verb root Light yo be dry H ndi be lost L fyɛ offer H kwɔ like, love L ndyo till L ndwa beg H Heavy saa discuss L ndəə swing H kpaʼ clap H ndɨʼ deny, reject L gweʼ cut L ndyɛʼ lick H ndɨə be wet L tɨəʼ protect 17 H 2.1.2 Tone categories for verb roots

It is widely cited that Grassfields Bantu languages have two categories for the toneof verb roots; the verb roots have underlying high tone in one and underlying low tone in the other (e.g. Watters, 2003, p.245; Wright, 2009, p.50). However, Tamanji (2009, p.105), in his description of Bafut, proposes four cate- gories for verb tone. This could be due, though, to his inclusion of disyllabic verbs (often verb roots with verbal extensions) and echo vowels in the data, which may have complicated the analysis. In Wushi, as is typical in related languages, when only verb roots are analysed, only two verb tone categories are evident. The tone contrast between underlyingly high and underlyingly low verbs is maintained in certain contexts and neutralised in others, as demonstrated with the following data. In the first frame, the tone contrast is maintained, and in the second frame, it is neutralised. The surface tone transcriptions are shown above the segmental transcriptions. First frame (P0 tense, perfect aspect):

(1) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˨˧˦] i naʼ na 3sg prf cook ‘He has cooked.’

(2) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ] i naʼ pfəə 3sg prf hit ‘He has hit.’

The surface tone transcriptions in examples (1) and (2) above show a difference in surface tone between na ‘cook’ (underlyingly high) and pfəə ‘hit’ (underlyingly low). Hence, the tone contrast between these two verbs is maintained in this context. Second frame (P1 tense, perfective aspect):

(3) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ] i kə na 3sg p1 cook ‘He cooked.’ 18 (4) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ] i kə pfəə 3sg p1 hit ‘He hit.’

(See 3.2.1.1 for more information on the P1 tense and other tenses.) The surface tone transcriptions in examples (3) and (4) above show no difference in

surface tone between na ‘cook’ (underlyingly high) and pfəə ‘hit’ (underlyingly low).

Hence, the tone contrast between these two verbs is neutralised in this context.

The data in examples (1) – (4) above shows the importance of using the right type

of frame – the right context – to ascertain the underlying tone of a verb root. For this study, the first frame with the perfect aspect (‘He has...’) was used toascer-

tain the underlying tone of approximately 230 verb roots. (These verb roots are listed

in Appendix A.) There are many minimal tone pairs for verb roots in Wushi. Some of these are shown in table 3 below:

Table 3 Minimal tone pairs for verb roots

Verb Gloss (if verb root has Gloss (if verb root has root underlyingly high tone) underlyingly low tone) bɔ mould cover bvə give birth fall bvəʼ bend shiver chaʼ weed carry fɨ mix punch gweʼ cry cut kɔ clear (with hoe) marry kpaʼ clap think nyaʼ tip-toe write saʼ announce hunt tsə crush, crack pour tsee be silent shift tso tether, knit whisper yɔʼ swim sing

19 2.2 Verb morphology

Typically, the verb root in Grassfields Bantu languages can receive affixes, forming a stem from the root (see, for example, Hedinger, 2015, p.92). Five verbal affixes are evident in Wushi; these are described in 2.2.1 below. However, there are some aspects of verb morphology where Wushi contrasts with other Grassfields Bantu languages. For example, in languages such as Chrambo (Wright, 2009, p.50), the first person singular subject is marked on the verb as a low toneho- morganic nasal prefix. In Chrambo, the verb can also receive a high tone homorganic nasal prefix as the ‘same subject’ marker (Wright, 2009, p.51). Neither of these ver- bal prefixes are found in Wushi. In languages such asBafut (Tamanji, 2009, p.100), there is prefixing of a homorganic nasal consonant to consecutive verbs in aserial verb construction. Again, this verbal prefix is not found in Wushi. In Baba 1, asyl- labic nasal prefixed to the verb can mark imperfective aspect. The habitual markeris a ‘non-syllabic’ nasal prefixed to the verb (Nashipu, 2005, pp.192,195). Again, these prefixes are unattested in Wushi. This demonstrates significant differences between the grammatical features of Wushi (and indeed, of the Ring languages as a whole) and other Grassfields Bantu languages. The fact that none of the nasal verbal prefixes described above are evident in Wushi may be explained by considering the phonology of Wushi. Whereas in many Grass- fields Bantu languages, prenasalisation is interpreted as syllabic, in Wushi, it isinter- preted as a modification of the consonant it precedes. Thus in Wushi, prenasalisation is simply a feature of the phonology and does not have any grammatical function in the language (Robinson, 2018, pp.28-30).

2.2.1 Affixes on the verb root

2.2.1.1 Verb suffixes

Verbal suffixes in Grassfields Bantu languages are usually referred to in the literature as verbal extensions. Hyman (2018, pp.173,189) reconstructs six proto-Grassfields- Bantu verbal extensions, whereas Watters (2003, p.245) states that there are primarily four verbal extensions. 20 Verbal extensions may be aspectual (semantically driven) or valency-changing (relat-

ing to argument structure). Aspectual verbal extensions include ‘pluractional’, ‘diminu-

tive’ and ‘intensive’. Valency-changing verbal extensions include ‘causative’, ‘detran-

sitivising’ and ‘reciprocal/ reflexive’ (Hyman, 2018, pp.173,180,191). It is worth noting that most Grassfields Bantu languages have undergone consid- erable reduction in their verbal extensions in comparison to proto-Bantu. However,

Hyman (2018, pp.182-183) proposes a small geographical area in the North West of

Cameroon where widespread verbal extensions have been retained. The village where

Wushi is spoken lies within the boundaries of this area. Related Grassfields Bantu languages spoken outside this area tend to have fewer verbal extensions.

However, there still exists a disparity between the verbal extensions found in proto-

Bantu and those found in Wushi and closely related languages. Whereas Bantu lan-

guages typically allow verbal extensions to be combined in sequence, Grassfields Bantu

languages do not (see, for example, Akumbu and Chibaka, 2012, p.139; Hedinger, 2015, p.95). Furthermore, the forms of verbal extensions in Grassfields Bantu may

be polysemous, which is not the case in proto-Bantu (Hyman, 2018, p.179). There

are also some functions provided by verbal extensions in proto-Bantu that are not ev-

ident in Grassfields Bantu, notably, passives and applicatives (Watters, 2003, p.245). Hence, Grassfields Bantu languages often use periphrastic constructions, prepositions

(such as ‘for’, ‘with’), etc., where proto-Bantu languages would use verbal extensions

(Hyman, 2018, p.192).

As is widely cited for related languages (e.g. Hedinger, 2015, p.95; Akumbu et al.,

2020, p.3), the verbal extensions in Wushi are inherently toneless. The tone of the suffix depends on the tone of the verb root. This is demonstrated inexamples (5) and

(6) below:

(5) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˨˧˦ ] i naʼ ndyɛʼ 3sg prf lick ‘He has licked [one thing].’

21 (6) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] i naʼ ndyɛʼ-tə 3sg prf lick-pluract ‘He has licked [several things].’

The verb root ndyɛʼ ‘lick’ in examples (5) and (6) has underlying high tone, which surfaces in this context as a rise, as we saw in example (1). In example (6), the surface

tone of ndyɛʼtə is the same as that of ndyɛʼ in example (5); the surface tone melody has

simply been spread over the two syllables.

This is illustrated further in examples (7) and (8) below:

(7) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ] i naʼ lyɔ 3sg prf pass ‘He has passed.’

(8) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ˩˩˩˩] i naʼ lyɔ-sə 3sg prf pass-caus ‘He has transported [something].’

The verb root lyɔ ‘pass’ in examples (7) and (8) has underlying low tone, which

surfaces in this context as level low, as we saw in example (2). In example (8), the

surface tone of lyɔsə is the same as that of lyɔ in example (7); the surface tone melody

has simply been spread over the two syllables.

The data in (5) – (8) demonstrates the fact that verbal extensions in Wushi are inher- ently toneless; when a verbal extension is added to a verb root, there is tone spreading from the root to the suffix.

2.2.1.1.1 The -tə suffix

The -tə suffix in Wushi is an aspectual verbal extension with a pluractional function.

This is illustrated in table 4 below.

22 Table 4 The -tə suffix: pluractional

Verb Gloss of verb Verb root Gloss of verb root Underlying root root with suffix with suffix tone of verb root kɨ know (one kɨtə know (many things) H thing) fɔɔ sew (one whole fɔɔtə sew (different parts of H garment) garment) tsee shift (one tseetə gather L thing) nu drink (one type nutə drink (different types H of drink) of drink) tɨəʼ protect (from tɨəʼtə protect (from different H one thing) things) kpaʼ clap (once) kpaʼtə clap (repeatedly) H kɔʼ harvest (one kɔʼtə harvest (different types H type of crop) of crop) veʼ listen veʼtə learn H bvəʼ shiver (briefly) bvəʼtə shiver (prolonged) L fo go out (one fotə go out (several people) H person) chuʼ shake (briefly) chuʼtə shake (repeatedly) H yɨə sweep yɨətə sweep (more in some L places than others) fɨɨ mix (briefly) fɨɨtə mix (repeatedly) H pfə die (one pfətə die (several people) H person) fee be black (one feetə be black (many items) H item)

This pluractional function of -tə can be subdivided into repetitive, iterative and dis-

tributive functions.

An example of a repetitive function of -tə is with twɔʼtə ‘trample’, which is derived

from the verb root twɔʼ ‘walk’. The repetitions of ‘trample’ are closely spaced in time.

Hyman (2018, pp.186-187) describes this as event-internal. An iterative function, however, is event-external. An example of this is with kətə

‘give more than once’, which is derived from the verb root kə ‘give’. Kətə may mean the giver only gives a gift every few weeks or months, in which case the repetitions are not considered to be within the same event. As Hyman (2018, p.187) observes, pluractionality may ‘straightforwardly lead to augmentative or intensive interpretations’, ‘but there is also a potential relatedness 23 between pluractionality and attenuation’. In twɔʼtə ‘trample’, the action of trampling

could be interpreted as intensifying the action of walking. In kətə ‘give more than

once’, the action of giving at intervals rather than all at once could be interpreted as

attenuating the action of giving. An example of a distributive function of -tə is with tyotə ‘stand (several people)’,

which is derived from the verb root tyo ‘stand’. In this case, the pluractionality involves one action and multiple actors; the action of standing is distributed between the actors.

The -tə suffix may have more than one function in terms of repetitive, iterative or distributive. The word kətə ‘give more than once’ can also mean ‘give different things (at the same time)’, in which case -tə has a distributive rather than iterative function.

This illustrates the fact that verbal extensions in Wushi and related languages are often

polysemous. As Hedinger (2015, p.74) points out, ‘the full meaning of the derived form

is not always predictable’.

This is further illustrated with the example of buʼtə, which is derived from the verb root buʼ ‘drum’. The -tə suffix can either have a repetitive function or a distribu-

tive function: the repetitive function gives the gloss ‘drum (one person, repeatedly)’,

whereas the distributive function gives the gloss ‘drum (many people at the same

time)’. The function of the -tə suffix in Wushi broadly fits Watters' (Watters, 2003, p.245)

description of the <-tV> suffix's function in proto-Grassfields-Bantu as ‘pluraliser,

distributive, attenuative’.

Diachronically, a verb root may become inseparable from the suffix which is attached

to it. Akumbu et al. (2020, p.3) describe this as the verbal extension being ‘lexically frozen on the root’. Tamanji (2009, p.104) describes this as ‘fossilisation of the suffix’.

This type of verb can also be described as having a ‘formal extension’ (Akumbu, 2015,

p.3). Some examples of this with the -tə suffix in Wushi are shown in table 5 below,

where the verb roots are unattested on their own. These verbs are disyllabic in all contexts - ‘the meanings of the original root and suffix have fused to the extent that

separate meanings can no longer be recognised for the parts’ (Hedinger, 2015, p.95).

24 Table 5 Examples of verbs where -tə suffix is lexically 'frozen' on verb root

Verb Gloss of Verb root Gloss of verb root Underlying tone root verb root with suffix with suffix of verb root kɨɨ --- kɨɨtə shout L zeʼ --- zeʼtə hesitate L ndzəʼ --- ndzəʼtə scrub H bɨ --- bɨtə roll L kɔʼ --- kɔʼtə hurry up L voʼ --- voʼtə become fat H

2.2.1.1.2 The -sə suffix

The -sə suffix in Wushi is a valency-changing verbal extension with a causative func- tion. This is illustrated in table 6 below:

Table 6 The -sə suffix: causative

Verb Gloss of Verb root Gloss of verb root Underlying tone root verb root with suffix with suffix of verb root noo lie down noosə lay (something) L kuʼ be big kuʼsə enlarge L nwɔ suck nwɔsə breastfeed H fo go out fosə remove (something) H tɨə be small tɨəsə reduce (something) H chaʼ carry chaʼsə lift (something) L too send toosə push H fɨʼ measure fɨʼsə imitate L ghaʼ be hot ghaʼsə heat (something) H ndɨəʼ give way ndɨəʼsə sprain (muscle) H səʼ climb down səʼsə bring down H lwi be full lwisə fill H byɛ be safe byɛsə save (someone) L

The causative suffix modifies the verb by adding an argument - the ‘causer’. The argument which had been the subject becomes the object in the causative construction

(Dixon, 2012, pp.240,287).

An example from Wushi is shown below with the verb root nwɔ ‘suck’: (9) is without the causative suffix and (10) is with it:

25 (9) [ ˨˧˦ ˧˧˧˧ ˨˧˦ ] vɛɛmbwaʼ nwɔ child suck ‘The child sucks.’

(10) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˧˦ ˧˧˧˧ ] vi nwɔ-sə vɛɛmbwaʼ woman suck-caus child ‘The woman breastfeeds the child.’

The function of the -sə suffix in Wushi matches Watters' (Watters, 2003, p.245) de-

scription of the <-sV> suffix's function in proto-Grassfields-Bantu as ‘causative’.

As with all verbal extensions in Wushi, in some cases the verb root can no longer be

separated from the -sə suffix which is attached to it. Some examples of this areshown in table 7 below, where the verb roots are unattested on their own.

Table 7 Examples of verbs where -sə suffix is lexically 'frozen' on verb root

Verb Gloss of Verb root Gloss of verb root Underlying tone root verb root with suffix with suffix of verb root kɛʼ --- kɛʼsə pour H wɔɔ --- wɔɔsə pretend H wuʼ --- wuʼsə be impatient L zə --- zəsə breathe L tsee --- tseesə escort H byɛ --- byɛsə postpone H

2.2.1.1.3 The -nə suffix

The -nə suffix in Wushi is usually valency-changing with a detransitivising function.

This is illustrated in table 8 below:

26 Table 8 The -nə suffix: detransitivising

Verb root - Gloss of Verb root with Gloss of verb Underlying ambitransi- verb root suffix - root with tone of verb tive intransitive suffix root yɛ see yɛnə see H (something) kɨ know kɨnə know H (something) kpa open kpanə bear fruit L (something) ŋwe open ŋwenə be opening L (something) yu hear yunə hear H (something) kaʼ plan, promise kaʼnə plan, promise L (something) chɔʼ talk, speak chɔʼnə talk, speak L (something)

This detransitivising function can also have a reciprocal function, as shown in ex- amples (11) and (12) below.

(11) i kwɔ ŋə 3sg love 3sg ‘He loves her.’

(12) ŋwɛ kwɔ-nə 3pl love-detrans ‘They love each other.’

This is illustrated further in examples (13) and (14) below:

(13) i koo ŋə 3sg touch 3sg ‘It touched it.’

(14) ŋwɛ koo-nə 3pl touch-detrans ‘They have joined/ They touched each other.’

27 These findings correlate with Watters' (Watters, 2003, p.245) reconstruction for

proto-Grassfields-Bantu. He describes the <-nV> verbal extension as reciprocal/

valency-changing.

Note that in Wushi, when the –nə suffix has a reciprocal function, this reciprocal function is in addition to the detransitivising function. However, the –nə suffix typi-

cally has the detransitivising function alone; the additional reciprocal function is less

common.

Occasionally, the -nə suffix in Wushi has an aspectual, rather than valency-changing,

function. Some examples are shown in table 9 below:

Table 9 The -nə suffix: aspectual

Verb Gloss of Verb root Gloss of verb root Underlying tone root verb root with suffix with suffix of verb root yaa be sick yaanə be sick repeatedly H nyi enter nyinə enter completely H bee sleep beenə over-sleep H

As seen with the other verbal extensions, sometimes the -nə suffix is lexically 'frozen' on the verb root. Some examples of this are shown in table 10 below, where the verb roots are unattested on their own.

Table 10 Examples of verbs where -nə suffix is lexically 'frozen' on verb root

Verb Gloss of Verb root Gloss of verb root Underlying tone root verb root with suffix with suffix of verb root fii --- fiinə resemble H ghaa --- ghaanə yawn L bɛ --- bɛnə pick H wa --- wanə stroll H ndɨə --- ndɨənə forget, forgive L

2.2.1.1.4 The -mə suffix

In comparison to the other verbal extensions, the -mə suffix is less common in the data

and more difficult to ascribe a function to. It is also usually lexically frozen on theverb

28 root, so that the verb root and suffix can no longer be separated. This is illustrated in

table 11 below, where most of the verb roots are unattested on their own.

Table 11 The -mə suffix: function ambiguous

Verb Gloss of Verb root Gloss of verb root Underlying tone root verb root with suffix with suffix of verb root də --- dəmə be deep L jə --- jəmə help L ŋu --- ŋumə bend (tree/ person) H bii --- biimə be frightful L chu --- chumə remember H wu --- wumə humble (oneself) H ndaa --- ndaamə gossip L tyo stand tyomə wait (stand still) H

In the closely related language Babanki (Akumbu and Chibaka, 2012, p.139), the <-mə> suffix ‘does not seem to carry any meaning of its own but is bound totheroot with which it occurs’. In another, even more closely related language, Babungo, the <-mə> suffix only occurs with verb roots with a final nasal - the nasal is dropped when the suffix isadded (Schaub, 1985, p.222). Perhaps the same suffix in Wushi was historically attached to verb roots with a final nasal, at a time when nasal-final syllables were still evidentin the phonology of the language.

2.2.1.2 The verb prefix mə-

The verb prefix mə- derives the infinitive form of the verb from the verb root. Averb prefix to mark the infinitive is widely reported for related languages, e.g. Babanki (Akumbu and Chibaka, 2012, p.125) and Bafut (Tamanji, 2009, p.123). This prefix can occur with a verbal extension. In the texts collected for this study, the infinitive form is most frequently found fol- lowing the complementiser ndoo. This is illustrated in examples (15) and (16) below:

(15) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ˧˨˩ ˩˩˩˩ ˦˧˨ ˦˦˦˦] i naʼ gɛ ndoo mə-zə fa 3sg prf go comp inf-eat thing ‘He has gone to eat something.’ 29 (16) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ˧˨˩ ˩˩˩˩ ˩˩˩˩ ˦˦˦˦] i naʼ gɛ ndoo mə-baʼ fa 3sg prf go comp inf-hide thing ‘He has gone to hide something.’

In example (15), the verb zə ‘eat’ which is prefixed is underlyingly high. In example (16), the verb baʼ ‘hide’ which is prefixed is underlyingly low. In both cases, the surface tone of the mə- prefix is low. It is likely that this prefix has underlying low tone, but further data and tone analysis are needed to confirm this.

In the related language Babanki, the infinitive is sometimes used in ‘complex sen- tences where the complement and the main sentence have the same subject’ (Akumbu and Chibaka, 2012, p.126). This describes a construction comparable with that shown in examples (15) and (16) above.

Schaub (1985, p.231), in his analysis of the very closely related language Babungo, which has exactly the same form, , for this prefix, states that the prefix is used

‘in adverbial clauses indicating a purpose’. This indication of purpose is also seen in the Wushi examples (15) and (16) above.

2.2.2 Verb reduplication

Verb reduplication in Wushi is aspectual and usually has an intensive function, as shown in table 12 below. This is typical of related languages. Akumbu and Chibaka (2012, p.143) state that verb reduplication functions to intensify the action of the verb.

However, in Wushi, verb reduplication can sometimes have other aspectual functions such as repetitive or attenuative, as shown in the same table (12) below:

30 Table 12 Verb reduplication and aspectual functions

Aspectual function Verb Gloss of Reduplicated Gloss of Underlying of reduplication root verb form of verb redupli- tone of root root cated verb root form Intensive nyaʼ go nyaʼnyaʼ go very H secretly secretly yu hear yuyu listen H intently kɨ know kɨkɨ know well H bwɔ be good bwɔbwɔ be very good L fee be feefee be very H black/dirty black/dirty bee sleep beebee sleep deeply H yɛ see yɛyɛ see well H dzoʼ sit dzoʼdzoʼ sit tight L Repetitive gbɔ beat gbɔgbɔ beat H repeatedly Attenuative yi start yiyi just about L start Attenuative/ jɨ come jɨjɨ come L repetitive gradually nyi enter nyinyi enter bit by H bit lyɔ pass lyɔlyɔ pass bit by L bit

When the verb has a direct object, reduplication becomes discontinuous, as shown in examples (17) and (18) below. This is also the case in Babanki (Akumbu and Chibaka, 2012, p.145), where ‘if the direct object of the verb must be stated then it occurs between the verb root and the reduplicant’.

(17) i bwɔ mə bwɔ 3sg be.good 1sg be.good ‘I was very happy (It was very good to me).’

(18) i tyɔʼ waa tyɔʼ 3sg be.hard 1pl.excl be.hard ‘It is very hard on us.’

It is possible that the reduplicated form of the verb root can become ‘lexically frozen’ over time. An example of this is fifi ‘new’, where the verb root fi is no longer attested on its own. 31 Some of the tonal processes evident with verb reduplication are shown in the data

below:

(19) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˨˧˦] i naʼ pfə 3sg prf die ‘It has died.’

(20) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] i naʼ pfə-pfə 3sg prf die-die ‘It has completely died.’

In example (19), pfə ‘die’ is underlyingly high, which surfaces in this context as a rise. In example (20), where the verb is reduplicated, the surface tone melody is simply spread over the two syllables.

(21) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩] i naʼ twɔʼ 3sg prf walk ‘He has walked.’

(22) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ˦˧˨˩] i naʼ twɔʼ-twɔʼ 3sg prf walk-walk ‘He has trekked for a long time.’

In example (21) above, twɔʼ ‘walk’ is underlyingly low and surfaces in this context

as level low. In example (22) ,where the verb is reduplicated, the surface tone is level

low for the first syllable and falling for the second syllable.

2.3 Verb derivations

The verb may be considered the basic word class of the Wushi language; there is ample

evidence of derivation from verb roots to both nouns and adjectives. This is typical of

related languages, e.g. Babungo (Schaub, 1985, p.245) and Kom (Shultz, 1997, p.18).

32 2.3.1 Nominalisation

There are two main strategies for deriving nouns from verbs in Wushi, as shown in table 13 below. The most common strategy is to add the class 7 (Hedinger, 2019, p.34)

noun class suffixkə - to the verb root. The other strategy is to add a homorganic nasal

prefix to the verb root. Sometimes both of these strategies are applied simultaneously.

Table 13 Strategies for nominalisation from verb roots

Strategy Verb Gloss of Noun Gloss of Underlying root verb root noun tone of verb root Add class 7 noun class suffix ghɨə work ghɨəkə bone, H strength ndyo till ndyokə farm L chɔʼ speak chɔʼkə language L saʼ announce saʼkə news H yaa be painful yaakə illness H Add homorganic nasal prefix kwɔʼ climb ŋkwɔʼ leg H too send ntoo message H bɔɔ create mbɔɔ Creator H (God) Add both homorganic nasal twɔʼ walk ntwɔʼkəjourney L prefix and class 7 noun class suffix kɨʼ be afraid ŋkɨʼkə fear L

These findings are comparable with Tamanji's (Tamanji, 2001, p.174) analysis that in Grassfields Bantu languages, it is ‘most common to derive a noun from a verbusing a nasal consonant which assimilates to the place of articulation of the initial consonant of the verb root... Nouns can also be derived using noun class affixes’. In the closely related language Babanki (Akumbu and Chibaka, 2012, p.127), the nasal prefix (which is one of three nominalising prefixes) indicates ‘agentive’, but in Wushi this nasal prefix is a general nominaliser and is not limited to an agentive function. Very occasionally, there is no segmental derivation from the verb root to the noun. Examples of this are pfə ‘die’ and pfə ‘death’, as well as gɨə ‘grind’ and gɨə ‘tooth’. Further tone research on nouns without a segmental noun class affix would ascertain whether any tonal morphemes are involved in this derivational process.

33 2.3.2 The adjective class

Dixon (2010, p.62) argues that an adjective class can and should be recognised for ev- ery language, distinct from noun and verb classes. In languages related to Wushi,

adjectives are typically derived from verbs (see, for example, Shultz, 1997, p.19;

Hedinger, 2015, p.96; Schaub, 1985, p.233; Tamanji, 2001, p.173).

In Wushi, although adjectives are closely related to verbs, they are distinguishable by several criteria. Firstly, verbs must be prefixed with i- to derive adjectives. Sec- ondly, only adjectives can fill the copula complement slot in a copula clause where the

relationship between the copula subject and copula complement is ‘attribution’ (see

4.1). Thirdly, adjectives do not share all of the grammatical properties of verbs, e.g.

they do not take marking for tense as verbs do. Examples of adjectives are shown in table 14 below:

Table 14 Examples of adjectives

Adjective Verb root from Gloss of Surface tone Underlying tone of which adjective adjec- of adjective in verb root from which is derived tive isolation adjective is derived ibɨəʼ bɨəʼ bad, [˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] H broken iju ju fine, [˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] L good ibwɔ bwɔ beautiful [˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] L ishɨʼ shɨʼ strong, [˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] H healthy ibwaʼ bwaʼ soft [˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] H idzee dzee old [˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] L idaa daa long [˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] L ityɔʼ tyɔʼ difficult [˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] H ikuʼ kuʼ big [˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] L itɨə tɨə small [˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] H ibaa baa red [˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] L ilɛɛ lɛɛ clean, [˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] H clear

Adjectives can only be formed from a certain group of verbs - stative verbs. (Dixon

(2010, p.70), however, is mildly critical of using the term ‘stative verbs’.)

34 It is widely reported (e.g. Dixon, 2010, p.74) that African languages have small adjective classes. However, the fact that a significant number of verbs in Wushi can be prefixed to form adjectives may counter this assumption.

Adjectives fill the complement slot in a copula clause where the copula relation is ‘attribution’. This is shown in the data below, using an adjective derived from a high tone verb in example (23) and an adjective derived from a low tone verb in example

(24).

(23) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] i nə i-shɨʼ 3sg cop adj-be.healthy ‘She is healthy.’

(24) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] i nə i-bwɔ 3sg cop adj-be.beautiful ‘She is beautiful.’

The i- derivational prefix should not be confused with the third person singular pro- noun i. The derivational prefix has underlying low tone, whereas the pronoun has underlying high tone. This is illustrated in examples (25) and (26), using the verb root yɔ ‘be much,many’ (which is underlyingly high):

(25) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˧˦] i yɔ 3sg be.much ‘It is a lot.’

(26) [˨˨˨ ˦˦˦] i-yɔ adj-be.much ‘lots’

This is illustrated further in examples (27) and (28), using the verb root mwɔ ‘be finished’ (which is underlyingly low):

35 (27) [ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˧˦] i mwɔ 3sg be.finished ‘It is finished.’

(28) [˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩] i-mwɔ adj-be.finished ‘finished’

Example (29) below illustrates the fact that adjectives cannot be marked for tense

- it is the copula verb bə ‘be’ which is marked with kə ‘P1’ (near past tense), not the

adjective:

(29) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] i kə bə i-shɨʼ 3sg p1 cop adj-be.healthy ‘She was healthy.’

A further distinction between verbs and adjectives in terms of grammatical proper-

ties is that in its adjectival form, the verb cannot be reduplicated. Consider example (24). Reduplication is not possible in this context: * i nə i-bwɔbwɔ is ungrammatical.

Adjectives may also function like adverbs, in further specification of the reference of the verb. Dixon (2010, pp.70-71) cites this as one of the possible semantic tasks of

adjectives. This is illustrated with the adjectives iju ‘fine’ and ilɛɛ ‘clear’ in examples

(30) and (31) below:

(30) dzoʼ i-ju sit adj-be.fine ‘be content (lit: sit fine)’

(31) chɔʼ i-lɛɛ talk adj-be.clear ‘be articulate (lit: talk clear)’

36 3 The verb phrase

3.1 Overview of the verb phrase

The verb phrase in Wushi consists primarily of the verb and a set of tense-aspect- modality clitics. As Watters (2003, p.237) points out in his description of Grassfields

Bantu languages, ‘in many cases the grammatical markers are only marked by a float- ing tone’. Furthermore, grammatical markers may be identical segmentally, but have different underlying tone, so that they are actually separate morphemes. Hence,it is essential to consider surface tone transcriptions as well as segmental transcriptions when analysing grammatical data in the verb phrase.

The presence of floating tones in Wushi and related languages is due to processes in which tones lose their segmental TBUs (tone-bearing units). As Snider (2018, p.19) states, ‘this can be due to tone spreading and delinking, or to synchronic or diachronic loss of a segmental TBU’.

It should be noted that the terminology used for grammatical categories in the verb phrase is used by different linguists in very different ways, and so for the purposes of clarity and consistency in this paper, I have restricted my approach to that used by Dixon (Dixon, 2009; Dixon, 2010; Dixon, 2012).

3.1.1 Structure of the verb phrase

The basic order of modifiers in the verb phrase is:

NEGATION - TENSE - ASPECT - VERB

(In Wushi, the subject pronouns are not bound pronouns and therefore are not con- sidered part of the verb phrase.)

The structure of the verb phrase is illustrated with (32) below:

(32) [˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦] mə ti kə nɔ na 1sg neg p1 prog cook ‘I was not cooking.’

37 The negation marker ti follows the subject pronoun mə. The tense and aspect markers

are found between negation and the verb root na ‘cook’. Tense markers precede aspect

markers; in this example the tense marker kə precedes the aspect marker nɔ.

Sometimes more than one segmental aspect marker is evident in the data. An exam- ple is shown below, where both nɔʼ and kə are aspect markers:

(33) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧ ˦˦˦˦] mə wɔʼ nɔʼ kə na 1sg f1 cont prog cook ‘I will still be cooking.’

Note that special verb constructions, including serial verb constructions, will be ex-

amined in chapter 4.

3.1.2 Transitivity in the verb phrase

My analysis of transitivity is based on Dixon's (Dixon, 2010, p.116) assertion that

transitivity is a syntactic, rather than semantic, matter: ‘When a clause is said to have a certain transitivity value, and when a verb is said to show certain transitivity

possibilities, these are syntactic - not semantic - specifications’.

Most verbs in Wushi are ambitransitive; they are transitive in a transitive clause and

intransitive in an intransitive clause. Many verbs which are intransitive in English are

ambitransitive in Wushi, such as pfə ‘die’, jɨ ‘come’, bee ‘sleep’, bvə ‘fall’ and kwɛ ‘come back’.

Wushi verbs which can only occur in intransitive clauses are uncommon. These

include mwɔ ‘be used up’, vyo ‘be resurrected’, kwɔʼ ‘swell’ and ghaʼ ‘be hot’.

Often, verbs which may initially appear intransitive are actually ambitransitive. For example, the verb bwɔ ‘be good’, which normally occurs in intransitive clauses, can

sometimes occur in a transitive clause, as shown in example (34) below:

(34) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˧˦ ˧˧˧˧] i bwɔ mə 3sg be.good 1sg ‘I was happy. (It was good to me.)’

38 This prevalence of ambitransitive verbs is also found in related languages (e.g. Hedinger,

2015, pp.75-77). Schaub (1985, p.210) describes these verbs as ‘semi-transitive’.

One area for further research in Wushi is to investigate if and in what constructions

there are locative tonal morphemes between the verb and the object. This is briefly discussed in Hedinger's analysis of the Wushi noun phrase (Hedinger, 2019, pp.27-

28). If a locative tonal morpheme is always present between a verb and an object, the

verb must be intransitive. This may mean that some verbs, previously described as

ambitransitive, would actually be intransitive.

3.2 The tense-aspect-modality system

3.2.1 Tense, aspect and modality markers

3.2.1.1 Tense

There are five tenses in Wushi, as shown in table 15 below. The notation I have used

is that typically employed for related languages: ‘P’ refers to the past and ‘F’ to the

future, ‘with the attached numbers referring to degrees of past and future’ (Watters, 2003, p.246).

Table 15 Tenses in Wushi

Tense Gloss for tense Tense Underlying tone of tense marker marker marker Distant past P2 nə L Near past P1 kə L Zero tense P0 ∅ ∅ Near future F1 wɔʼ H Distant F2 la H future

P0 is the default or unmarked tense. The shift from past to future occurs within this

tense. It is the modality - realis or irrealis (see section 3.2.1.3) - which determines

whether an event in P0 has already taken place/ is taking place, or is expected to take

place. P0 usually describes events that have taken place within the same day or events

39 that are expected to take place very soon. P0 is also the default tense used in narrative discourse, once the baseline tense (e.g. P2 in folk tales) has been ‘set’ at the start of the story.

P1 is the near past tense. It usually describes events that have taken place up to several weeks, or even several months, ago. A better description of this tense is that it is used for events that are within recent memory. For one speaker, this may only be a month ago, but for another speaker, this may be several months ago.

P2 is the distant past. It typically describes events that have taken place in the speaker's more distant memory. Again, this is relative; an event that happened six months ago may be described using P1 by one speaker but P2 by another speaker.

The future tenses, F1 and F2, can be differentiated by the degree of certainty with which the event may happen. If an event is fairly certain to happen, F1 is used. This tends to correlate with events that are expected to happen in the near future. For uncertain events, such as hopeful dreams, F2 is used. This tends to correlate with events that may happen in the distant future. Schaub (1985, p.213), analysing the closely related language Babungo, describes the future tenses as having some impli- cation of modality as well as tense - F1 indicates a more certain future than F2. This corroborates my own findings for Wushi. My analysis of tense in Wushi is supported by Dixon (2012, p.14), who stresses that

‘temporal realisations are relative’ - they depend not only on the speaker, but also on the context. Watters (2003, p.246) confirms that tenses in Grassfields Bantu languages are relative rather than absolute; ‘the time reference is relative to the context provided by other tense markers and the larger context’. Table 16 below gives example verb phrases for each tense, using the verbs na ‘cook’

(underlyingly high) and pfəə ‘hit’ (underlyingly low), and the first person singular pronoun mə.

40 Table 16 Verb phrases in different tenses

Tense High verb: Low verb: Verb phrase with na ‘cook’ Verb phrase with pfəə ‘hit’ ‘I cooked/ I will cook.’ ‘I hit/ I will hit.’ P2 mə nə na [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] mə nə pfəə [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] P1 mə kə na [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] mə kə pfəə [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] P0 (realis) mə na [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] mə pfəə [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] P0 (irrealis) mə na [˥˥˥˥ ˧˧˧˧] mə pfəə [˥˥˥˥ ˩˩˩˩] F1 mə wɔʼ na [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨] mə wɔʼ pfəə [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˩] F2 mə la na [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧] mə la pfəə [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˩]

3.2.1.2 Aspect

Aspect in Wushi is primarily differentiated by the perfective versus the imperfective;

all verb phrases must be one or the other. The perfective aspect indicates that ‘the

event is regarded as a whole, without respect for its temporal constituency’, whereas the imperfective aspect ‘focuses on the temporal make-up of the event’ (Dixon, 2012,

p.35).

The perfective aspect in Wushi is marked by a tonal morpheme: a floating low-high

sequence which is a verb prefix. Snider (2014, p.718) confirms that floating tones

may be described as affixes on lexical roots. The imperfective aspect is the unmarked, or default aspect. Some examples (all in P0 tense) are shown in table 17 below.

Table 17 Compulsory aspect marking: perfective or imperfective

Aspect Marker (tonal Example verb morpheme) phrases High verb: Low verb: na ‘cook’ pfəə ‘hit’ Perfective Floating low-high verb mə na [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] mə pfəə [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] prefix ‘I cooked (recently).’ ‘I hit (recently).’

Imperfective ∅ mə na [˥˥˥˥ ˧˧˧˧] mə pfəə[˥˥˥˥ ˩˩˩˩]

‘I will be cooking ‘I will be hitting (shortly).’ (shortly).’

41 Analysis of aspect in related languages also typically primarily makes the distinction

between the perfective and imperfective aspects (see, for example, Kiessling, 2011,

p.3). However, the type of morphemes used varies significantly. In Chrambo, for

example, the perfective is unmarked and it is the imperfective that is marked (Wright, 2009, p.56).

There is further optional aspect marking in Wushi with segmental markers. These

are outlined in table 18 below:

Table 18 Optional aspect marking

Aspect Marker Marker's Restrictions on use (segmen- underlying tal) tone Progressive (‘be cooking’) kə H Only in P0 tense with realis modality kə L Only with irrealis modality nɔ LH Only in present/ habitual PO or in P1/ P2 Continuous (‘still cook’, nɔʼ H N/A ‘continue to cook’)

Habitual (‘usually cook’) la L Only with irrealis modality Perfect (‘have cooked’) naʼ HL Only with realis modality

The progressive aspect is particularly complex, with three different markers used

depending on the context (tense and modality). These markers are shown in examples

(35) – (37) below:

(35) [˥˥˥˥ ˥˥˥˥ ˥˥˥˥] i kə na 3sg prog cook ‘She was cooking.’

In example (35), the tense is P0 and the modality is realis, therefore the kə marker with underlying high tone is used.

42 (36) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] i kə na 3sg prog cook ‘She will be cooking.’

In example (36), the tense is P0 but the modality is irrealis, therefore the kə marker with underlying low tone is used. In (36), the irrealis marker is a floating high tone,

the 3SG pronoun i has underlying high tone, and the verb na has underlying high tone.

Therefore the low tone accounting for the low surface tone on kə must be from the

progressive marker kə itself.

(37) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦] i nɔ na 3sg prog cook ‘She is cooking OR She [usually] cooks.’

In example (37), the context is the present/ habitual in P0, therefore the nɔ marker

is used. Its underlying tone is a low-high sequence. This nɔ marker, when used in P0, is used to refer to an event which is unfolding at the time of speaking, or an event

which is known to definitely happen habitually. When used in P1 or P2, this nɔ marker

indicates the progressive aspect, as shown in example (38) below:

(38) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦] i kə nɔ na 3sg p1 prog cook ‘She was cooking.’

The perfect marker naʼ in Wushi can be defined as describing the present result ofa past event. It can occur in more than one tense, and therefore is an indicator of aspect rather than tense. This is illustrated in examples (39) and (40) below, where (39) is in the P1 tense and (40) is in the P2 tense:

(39) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨ ˨˧˦] i kə naʼ na 3sg p1 prf cook ‘She had cooked (near past).’

43 (40) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨ ˨˧˦] i nə naʼ na 3sg p2 prf cook ‘She had cooked (distant past).’

This analysis of the perfect as an aspect marker is supported by Dixon (2012, p.32) who criticises the tradition of labelling the perfect as a tense.

3.2.1.3 Modality

All verb phrases in Wushi are either in realis or irrealis (see table 19 below). Realis refers to ‘something which has happened or is happening’, whereas irrealis refers to

‘something which has not (yet) happened’ (Dixon, 2012, p.22). Realis is the default or unmarked modality in Wushi. Irrealis is marked by a floating high tonal morpheme which precedes the subject of the clause. This corroborates Dixon's (Dixon, 2012, p.25) analysis that in a language with a reality contrast, if one term has zero realisation, this is always realis.

As discussed in 3.2.1.1, P0 is the tense where the past shifts to the future - either realis or irrealis can be used with this tense.

Table 19 Modality in Wushi: realis or irrealis

Modality Marker (tonal morpheme) Tenses where modality is used Realis ∅ P2 P1 P0 Irrealis Floating high (before subject) P0 F1 F2

As the table above shows, the unmarked modality, realis, only occurs in the P2, P1 and P0 tenses. The marked modality, irrealis, only occurs in the P0, F1 and F2 tenses. Examples (41) and (42) below show verb phrases in the irrealis modality; (41) is with the high tone verb na and (42) is with the low tone verb pfəə. They are unmarked for tense and aspect but have a floating high tonal morpheme before the subject pronoun to mark irrealis:

44 (41) [˥˥˥˥ ˧˧˧˧] mə na 1sg cook ‘I will be cooking.’

(42) [˥˥˥˥ ˩˩˩˩] mə pfəə 1sg hit ‘I will be hitting.’

Note that in both examples above, the subject pronoun (mə) has underlying low tone, but surfaces with high tone. This high surface tone on the mə pronoun is evidence of the clause-initial floating high tone of the irrealis marker.

3.2.2 Tone processes evident in the verb phrase

All tone processes in the verb phrase are rightward.

3.2.2.1 Tone grounding

Tone grounding occurs when a floating tone attaches to a segment. In Wushi, the direction of tone grounding is from left to right. Consider example (43) below, where the tense is P0, aspect is perfective and modality is realis. (Note that where the tense, aspect or modality are not reflected in the morpheme-by-morpheme gloss, it is either because the unmarked, default category is being used, or because tonal morphemes as well as segmental morphemes are present.)

(43) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦] mə na 1sg cook ‘I cooked.’

The tone transcription in (43) is the surface tone. The underlying tone must be considered in order to demonstrate tone grounding. The derivation from underlying to surface tone is shown below: mə̀ ‵′ ná → mə̀ nǎ ˊ The floating low-high sequence before na (the tonal morpheme for the perfective aspect) must attach to a segment. It attaches to the verb root na, which displaces the 45 high tone off the verb root. This high tone does not have any segment to attach to, and so remains floating at the end of the phrase. Tone grounding is very common in related languages. Akumbu (2015, p.2) calls this process ‘tone docking’.

3.2.2.2 Tone spreading

Tone spreading in Wushi is also from left to right. This direction of tone spreading is typical in related languages (see, for example, Anderson, 1979, pp.86-135). Consider example (44) below, where the tense is P0, aspect is imperfective with progressive, and modality is realis:

(44) [˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˥˦˧˨˩] mə kə pfəə 1sg prog hit ‘I was hitting.’

The underlying tone in example (44) must be considered in order to demonstrate tone spreading. The derivation from underlying to surface tone is shown below: mə̀ kə́ pfəə̀ → mə̀ kə́ pfəə̂ The underlying high tone of the kə progressive marker spreads to the verb root pfəə (without displacing its low tone). Hence the verb root, which is underlyingly low, surfaces as a high-low sequence.

3.2.2.3 Tone merging

Tone merging occurs when adjacent identical tones fuse. As for all tone processes in Wushi, tone merging is from left to right. Consider example (45) below, where the tense is P0, aspect is imperfective with progressive, and modality is irrealis:

(45) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] mə kə na 1sg prog cook ‘I will be cooking.’

The derivation from underlying to surface tone is shown below to demonstrate tone merging: 46 ′ mə̀ kə̀ ná → mə́ ‵ kə̀ ná → mə́ kə̀ ná

After the clause-initial floating high tone (the irrealis morpheme) has grounded onto

mə and displaced the low tone from mə, there is a floating low tone between mə and

kə. There is then tone grounding of this floating low onto the kə segment where it merges with the low tone of kə.

Tone merging is widely cited for related languages, for example, Baba 1 (Nashipu,

2005, p.188).

3.2.2.4 Non-automatic downstep

Non-automatic downstep occurs when a floating low tone between two high tones lowers the pitch on the second high. This is demonstrated in example (46) below,

where the tense is F1, aspect is perfective and modality is irrealis:

(46) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧] mə wɔʼ na 1sg f1 cook ‘I will cook.’

The derivation from underlying to surface tone is shown below to demonstrate non-

automatic downstep:

′ mə̀ wɔ́ʼ ‵′ ná → mə́ ‵ wɔ́ʼ ‵′ ná → mə́ ‵ wɔ́ʼ ‵ ná

First, there is tone grounding of the clause-initial floating high tone (the irrealis marker) onto mə, which displaces the low tone from mə. This low tone then floats

between mə and wɔʼ. The floating high in the low-high sequence before na (the per-

fective marker) then grounds on na and merges with the high tone of na, leaving a

floating low between wɔʼ and na. The result is a floating low between the highs of mə and wɔʼ, and another floating

low between the highs of wɔʼ and na. Each of these floating lows produces downstep.

If we examine the surface tone transcription in (46), we can see that the pitch of wɔʼ

is slightly lower than mə. In the same way, the pitch of na is slightly lower than wɔʼ.

Hence, non-automatic downstep occurs twice in this example.

47 3.2.2.5 Summary of tone processes

Example (47) below will be used to summarise the tone processes evident in the verb phrase in Wushi. The tense is F2, aspect is perfective with continuous, and modality is irrealis.

(47) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧] mə la nɔʼ na 1sg f2 cont cook ‘I hope to still cook.’

The derivation from underlying to surface tone is shown below:

′ mə̀ lá nɔ́ʼ ‵′ ná → mə́ ‵ lá nɔ́ʼ ‵′ ná → mə́ ‵ lá nɔ́ʼ ‵ ná

There is tone grounding of the clause-initial floating high onto mə, displacing the low

of mə (which is left floating before la). There is then tone grounding of the floating high between nɔʼ and na - this grounds on na and merges with the high of na.

The result is floating lows between mə and la, and also between nɔʼ and na. This creates non-automatic downstep, as evidenced by the fact that in (47), the pitch of la

is slightly lower than the pitch of mə, and the pitch of na is slightly lower than the pitch of nɔʼ.

All tone processes in Wushi are unidirectional, from left to right. It should be noted,

though, that analyses in related languages sometimes cite bi-directional tone move-

ment (e.g. Nashipu, 2005, p.175).

3.2.3 Lexical indicators of tense, aspect and modality

Section 3.2.1 described grammatical marking of tense, aspect and modality. These features can also be indicated through lexical means, as outlined in sections 3.2.3.1 –

3.2.3.3 below.

3.2.3.1 Lexical indicators: tense

Some examples of lexical indicators of tense are shown in table 20 below:

48 Table 20 Examples of lexical indicators of tense

Lexical indicator of tense Gloss of lexical indicator ndoʼsə yesterday kuŋko tomorrow vyɛʼ now lɛɛmvə nyɛ this morning

There is still morphological marking of tense-aspect-modality when a lexical indica-

tor is used. This is illustrated in (48) below:

(48) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˩˩˩˩ ˧˧˧˧ ˨˨˨˨] mə gɛ Tisɔ ndoʼsə 1sg go Bamenda yesterday ‘I went to Bamenda yesterday.’

In (48), the tense is P0 (unmarked/ default tense), the aspect is perfective (a tonal

verb prefix) and the modality is realis (unmarked/ default modality). The perfective marker, a floating low-high sequence before gɛ ‘go’, attaches to the verb root gɛ, dis-

placing the low tone of gɛ. Hence the surface tone of gɛ is a low-high sequence.

3.2.3.2 Lexical indicators: aspect

One parameter for aspect that is often indicated lexically in Wushi is the phase of

activity. Phase of activity (Dixon, 2012, p.30) relates to whether an activity is starting, continuing or finishing. Table 21 below indicates lexical indicators of phase of activity

- these are all verb roots.

Table 21 Lexical indicators of phase of activity

Phase of activity Lexical indicator (verb root) Gloss of lexical indicator Starting luʼ start yi begin Continuing dzoʼ stay, sit Finishing gho finish mwɔ be used up

An example is shown in (49) below, using gho ‘finish’.

49 (49) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˧˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ˩˩˩˩ ˩˩˩˩] i gho mə-see kəntsantsa 3sg finish inf-say story ‘He finished telling the story.’

Further research is needed to describe the construction used in (49) above. It does not fit the pattern of a serial verb construction because the infinitive-deriving prefix

mə- is attached to the second verb root. Also, the infinitive-deriving prefix in (49) does

not have the typical purposive function that we saw in 2.2.1.2. One possibility is that

the construction in (49) is a semantic calque from Cameroonian English.

Another parameter for aspect that is often indicated lexically in Wushi is the degree of activity. Degree of activity (Dixon, 2012, p.36) relates to whether the activity is happening a little or a lot. Table 22 below shows lexical indicators of degree of activity

in Wushi - these are adjectives.

Table 22 Lexical indicators of degree of activity

Degree of Lexical indicator of degree of activity Gloss of lexical activity (adjective) indicator a little itɨə small, young a lot iyɔ much, many

The lexical indicators - adjectives - shown in table 22 above are used to modify the verb. Examples of adjectives modifying verbs are shown in (30) and (31).

3.2.3.3 Lexical indicators: modality

The modalities of ability and necessity can be expressed lexically in Wushi, as shown

in table 23 below:

Table 23 Lexical indicators of modality

Type of modality Lexical indicator of modality Gloss of lexical indicator Ability lakə can kɨ know Necessity kiʼ have

Two examples with lakə ‘can’ are shown in (50) and (51) below: 50 (50) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˩˩˩˩ ] lakə i saʼ can 3sg hunt ‘He can hunt.’

(51) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˧˧˧˧ ˥˥˥˥ ] lakə i lɨə luʼ can 3sg tap raffia.palm ‘He can tap raffia palm [to collect alcohol].’

It is probable that the historical source of lakə ‘can’ is two aspect markers; la (the low tone habitual marker, only found in irrealis modality) and kə (the low tone progressive marker, again only found in irrealis modality) - see 3.2.1.2. However, lakə does not fill the syntactic slot for aspect markers (between the subject pronoun andtheverb root) - it occurs clause initially, before the subject pronoun. It is thus likely that the aspect markers la and kə have combined and lexicalised diachronically to form lakə

‘can’. Further research is needed to confirm this analysis.

To negate ability using lakə, the negation marker ti is inserted in its normal syntactic slot, as shown in example (52) below:

(52) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˧˦˥ ˥˥˥˥ ] lakə i ti bvə can 3sg neg deliver[children] ‘She cannot have children.’

The other lexical means of expressing the modality of ability is with the verb root kɨ ‘know’. An example is shown in (53) below, which is an alternative way of expressing

(51):

(53) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˧˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] i kɨ mə-lɨə luʼ 3sg know inf-tap raffia.palm ‘He knows how to tap raffia palm [to collect alcohol].’

The modality of necessity can also be expressed lexically in Wushi, using the verb root kiʼ ‘have’. This is illustrated in example (54) below:

51 (54) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨ ˦˦˦˦ ] mə kiʼ mə-kɔʼ vyɛʼ 1sg have inf-harvest now ‘I have to harvest now.’

This lexical use of ‘have’ to express necessity is also found in related languages, e.g. Kom (Shultz, 1997, p.32). However, it is likely to be a recent semantic calque from

English, as Anderson states in his analysis of Aghem (Anderson, 1979, p.111).

In Wushi, the more common (and traditional) way to express necessity is to use the

F1 tense marker wɔʼ, as shown in example (55) below. This is an alternative way of expressing (54).

(55) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧ ˧˧˧˧] mə wɔʼ kɔʼ vyɛʼ 1sg f1 harvest now ‘I will [need to] harvest now.’

3.3 Moods in the verb phrase

Dixon (2012, pp.2-3) defines mood as indicating a type of speech act. Its scope isover the entire sentence. (Modality, in contrast, relates to the clause and its predicate.) Dixon (2012, p.2) states that every language has three moods: the declarative, the interrogative and the imperative.

3.3.1 The declarative mood

The declarative mood in Wushi is the default or unmarked mood. All the examples given so far in this paper have been in the declarative mood. Some further examples are shown in (56) and (57) below:

(56) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧ ˧˧˧˧ ˧˧˧˧] mə wɔʼ nɔʼ na yiikə 1sg f1 cont cook bitter.leaf ‘I will still cook bitter leaf.’

In example (56) , the tense is F1, the aspect is perfective with continuous and the modality is irrealis.

52 (57) [˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˧˨ ˦˦˦˦] mə ti kə nɔ pfəə ntaʼ 1sg neg p1 prog hit branch ‘I was not hitting a branch.’

In example (57) , the tense is P1, the aspect is imperfective with progressive and the modality is realis.

3.3.2 The interrogative mood

The interrogative is a grammatical category whereas questions are a type of speech act

(Dixon, 2012, p.376). There are two types of questions; polar questions and content questions. A polar question requires confirmation (‘yes’, ‘no’, ‘so they say’, etc.). A content question requires information - many languages, including Wushi, use interrogative words (‘who?’, ‘what?’, ‘where?’, etc.).

3.3.2.1 Polar questions

In Wushi, a polar question can be viewed as a statement plus what Dixon (2012, p.404) refers to as an ‘interrogative overlay’. In Wushi, this interrogative overlay consists of two features: phonetic vowel lengthening in the utterance-final syllable, plus a moderate fall in pitch in this syllable. An example is shown below, where (58) is in the declarative mood and (59) is in the interrogative mood. The phonetic segmental transcriptions are shown as well as the surface tone transcriptions to demonstrate the phonetic features of the interrogative overlay. (Note that the morpheme glossed ADJ is an adjective-deriving prefix and is discussed in 2.3.2.)

(58) [˥˥˥˥ ˩˩˩˩ ˩˩˩˩ ˧˧˧˧] [i nə i-fo ] i nə i-fo 3sg cop adj-be.white ‘It is white.’

53 (59) [˥˥˥˥ ˩˩˩˩ ˩˩˩˩ ˧˨˩ ] [i nə i-foo] i nə i-fo 3sg cop adj-be.white ‘Is it white?’

When the utterance-final syllable in the declarative mood has a rising pitch, inthe

interrogative mood the rise is reduced, as shown below, where (60) is in the declarative

mood and (61) is in the interrogative mood:

(60) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ] [ŋwi na] ŋwi na 2pl cook ‘You cooked.’

(61) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧ ] [ŋwi naa] ŋwi na 2pl cook ‘Did you cook?’

It is worth noting how one replies to a negative question in Wushi. To reply to the negative question, ‘Are you not going to Bamenda?’, the answer is ‘yes’ if you are not

going and ‘no’ if you are going. This is counter-intuitive to an English speaker.

A subtype of polar question in Wushi is the construction often used for greetings.

As Dixon (2012, p.424) states, ‘greetings frequently have interrogative form, but are

rhetorical in nature, expecting a phatic response rather than any informative answer’. In Wushi, greetings often have what Dixon (2012, p.428) describes as a ‘tag’ - some-

thing akin to the ‘isn't it?’, ‘aren't you?’, etc., in English - where there is an expected

answer. In Wushi, the form of this tag is lo or o (depending on the phonological con- text) and it is only used in greetings. (62) is a typical morning greeting and (63) is a greeting often used when approaching someone's house to visit them.

(62) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˧˧˧˧] a ndə lo 2sg get.up tag ‘You got up?’ 54 (63) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧] a bwaʼ chə lo 2sg be.good there tag ‘Are you there?’

Interestingly, the closely related language Babanki (Akumbu and Chibaka, 2012, p.181), has a particle which the speaker can use instead of the clause-final question marker to ‘emphasise the need to obtain an answer immediately’.

Another subtype of polar question in Wushi is the construction used for alternative questions. The complementiser ndoo is used, as shown in example (64) below:

(64) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˧˨ ˥˦˧˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˨˩] a nɔ taʼ mə-zə rice ndoo bɛɛkə 2sg prog want inf-eat rice or corn.porridge ‘Do you want to eat rice or corn porridge?’

3.3.2.2 Content questions

A content question can also be viewed as a statement with an interrogative overlay.

In content questions, an interrogative word replaces the normal constituent in a par- ticular functional slot (Dixon, 2012, p.405). Dixon (2012, p.407) lists eight canonical interrogative words. These interrogative words in Wushi are shown in table 24 below:

55 Table 24 Interrogative words in Wushi

Canonical Wushi Gloss Underlying tone of interrogative word interrogative interrogative word word who nde who unclear

which nyɛnə which one nyɛ H nə H what kə what L

how many/ how nchɨəʼ how many unclear much

why bɨʼkə why bɨʼ L kə L how təkə how tə H kə L where fə where H when nchɨʼkə when nchɨʼ H (more general) kə L mvəkə when mvə H (more specific - kə L which day)

The underlying tones given in table 24 are tentative; more data and further research are needed to confirm these findings. Grassfields Bantu languages typically ‘substitute the interrogative word in thesyn- tactic position of the noun phrase it questions’ (Watters, 2003, p.249). This is true of Wushi, as illustrated in examples (65) and (66) below:

(65) [ ˥˦˧ ˥˥˥˥ ˥˥˥˥ ˧˨˩] ze yi bə kə name his cop what ‘What is his name?’

(66) [ ˨˧˦ ˦˧˨ ˩˩˩˩ ˦˧˨˩] ba naʼ gɛ fə father prf go where ‘Where has father gone?’

The declarative mood for (65) would insert the noun phrase (the person's name) at the end of the clause, which is also the syntactic slot for the interrogative word kə 56 ‘what’. Similarly, the declarative mood for (66) would insert the noun phrase (the

place father has gone) at the end of the clause, which is also the syntactic slot for the

interrogative word fə ‘where’.

Note that in Wushi, the interrogative words ‘why’, ‘how’ and ‘when’ are all derived from the interrogative word kə ‘what’. Bɨʼkə ‘why’ is a combination of bɨʼ ‘because’

and the interrogative word kə ‘what’. Təkə ‘how’ is a combination of tə ‘to’ and the interrogative word kə ‘what’. Two interrogative words are used for ‘when’. Nchɨʼkə

‘time’ is a noun, but in a content question the phonetic features described at the start of section 3.3.2.1 are used to produce the interrogative word nchɨʼkə ‘when’. Mvə ‘day’ is also a noun, which is combined with the interrogative word kə ‘what’ to produce

the interrogative word mvəkə ‘when (which day)’.

The ‘what’ interrogative word is generally associated with the class of nouns (Dixon,

2012, p.427). Indeed, in Wushi, the interrogative word kə ‘what’ is probably derived

from the class 7 noun class suffix -kə. However, the concord tone of this noun class suffix is high (Hedinger, 2019, p.34), whereas the underlying tone of the interrogative

word kə (see table 24 above) is posited to be low.

The interrogative word ‘whose’ in Wushi is formed using an associative noun phrase

with the interrogative word nde ‘who’. An example is shown in (67) below, where ‘house of who’ is the associative noun phrase:

(67) [ ˨˧˦ ˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˨˩ ] nyɛ bə ndə nde this cop house who ‘Whose house is this?’

3.3.3 The imperative and hortative moods

In Wushi, the imperative mood can only be used with the second person singular.

For a command using the second person plural (or any other personal pronoun, for that matter), the hortative mood is used. This analysis of an imperative mood and a

separate hortative mood is typical for related languages, e.g. Aghem (Anderson, 1979,

p.122), Chrambo (Wright, 2009, p.59) and Kom (Shultz, 1997, p.17).

57 The imperative and hortative moods in Wushi are unmarked for modality; the un- marked/ default modality of realis is used (which is not uncommon cross-linguistically

- see Dixon, 2012, p.23).

The marker for the imperative mood in Wushi is a tonal morpheme; a high-low sequence which attaches to the end of the verb root.

With a high tone verb, such as na ‘cook’, the imperative marker derives a surface tone pattern on the verb which is a high-low sequence. With a low tone verb, such as pfəə ‘hit’, the imperative marker derives a surface tone pattern on the verb which is a low-high-low sequence. This is shown in examples (68) and (69) below:

(68) [ ˧˨˩] na cook ‘Cook!’

(69) [ ˩˨˧˨˩] pfəə hit ‘Hit!’

Interestingly, the same tonal morpheme for the imperative ‒ a high-low sequence at- tached to the end of the verb root ‒ is found in the related language Chrambo (Wright,

2009, p.59). In two other related languages, Babungo (Schaub, 1985, p.226) and Baba 1 (Nashipu, 2005, p.208), the imperative mood is marked by a floating high tone fol- lowing the verb.

Whereas the imperative mood in Wushi is only used with the second person singular, the hortative mood can be used with other personal pronouns. The hortative mood is unmarked. Some examples are shown below with the second person plural. Example

(70) uses the high tone verb na ‘cook’ and example (71) uses the low tone verb pfəə

‘hit’:

(70) [˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥] ŋwi na 2pl cook ‘You (pl.) should cook.’

58 (71) [˨˨˨˨ ˧˨˩] ŋwi pfəə 2pl hit ‘You (pl.) should hit.’

In (70), the underlying tone of the second person plural pronoun ŋwi is low and the underlying tone of the verb na ‘cook’ is high. The surface tones reflect the underlying

tones; this suggests that the hortative mood is unmarked tonally. Similarly, in (71),

the surface tone of ŋwi is low, which reflects its underlying tone. The verb pfəə is

underlyingly low. It is likely that this surfaces as a fall because an utterance-final low

tone is often realised as a low-falling pitch. This low-falling phonetic realisation of a low tone before pause is typical not only of related languages, but of languages as far

afield as those of Ghana (see Snider, 2014, p.733).

It should be noted that the markers for the imperative/ hortative moods described

in this section are for affirmative commands. For negative commands, different gram-

matical markers are used, as described in section 3.4.2.

3.4 Negation

Marking of negation in Wushi is dependent on mood. Three negation markers are

evident: the first is used in the declarative/ interrogative moods(3.4.1), the second is

used in the imperative mood (3.4.2) and the third is used in the hortative mood (also 3.4.2).

Mood-dependent marking of negation is common cross-linguistically: ‘Many lan-

guages negate an imperative in a different manner from a declarative’ (Dixon, 2012,

p.92).

A further cross-linguistic feature of negation is that the realis/ irrealis distinction does not always apply. Dixon (2012, p.23) states: ‘Some languages keep [...] negative polarity quite separate from realis/ irrealis’. This is true of Wushi, where all data collected with negation marking is grammatically unmarked for modality.

A feature of negation which is common in Grassfields Bantu languages is discontin- uous morphemes (Watters, 2003, p.250). This is not evident in Wushi but is found in

59 related languages such as Bafut (Tamanji, 2009, p.126) and Babungo (Schaub, 1985,

p.91).

3.4.1 Negation in the declarative and interrogative moods

The negation marker in the declarative and interrogative moods is ti which has under- lying high tone. Its syntactic slot in the verb phrase is shown in example (72) below,

which is in the declarative mood:

(72) [˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦ ] mə ti kə nɔ na 1sg neg p1 prog cook ‘I was not cooking.’

As example (72) shows, the negation marker ti follows the subject but precedes any

tense/ aspect markers and the verb. This fits Dixon's (Dixon, 2012, p.95) assertion that

‘cross-linguistically, there is a strong tendency for negative particles to occur early in

the clause’. A further example is shown in (73) below, which is in the interrogative mood:

(73) [˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥ ˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨ ] a ti wɔʼ yɛ mami 2sg neg f1 see mother ‘Will you not see mother?’

Note that it is not possible to negate the perfect aspect in Wushi. Thus, example (74)

is ungrammatical:

(74) * a ti naʼ yɛ mami 2sg neg prf see mother ‘You have not seen mother.’

3.4.2 Negation in the imperative and hortative moods

The marker for negation combined with the imperative mood is kəə. Its underlying tone is a high-low sequence. Whereas affirmative commands in the imperative mood are only possible with the second person singular (3.3.3), negative commands are also

60 possible with other personal pronouns. Examples with the second person singular are shown below using the high tone verb na ‘cook’ in (75) and the low tone verb pfəə ‘hit’ in (76) :

(75) [ ˥˦˧ ˦˦˦˦] kəə na neg.imp cook ‘Don't cook!’

(76) [ ˥˦˧ ˦˧˨˩ ] kəə pfəə neg.imp hit ‘Don't hit!’

For negative commands other than with the second person singular, the personal pronoun must be explicitly stated. This is shown in examples (77) and (78) below, using the second person plural:

(77) [ ˥˦˧ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] kəə ŋwi na neg.imp 2pl cook ‘Don't cook! (you pl.)’

(78) [ ˥˦˧ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨˩ ] kəə ŋwi pfəə neg.imp 2pl hit ‘Don't hit! (you pl.)’

Interestingly, in the related language Babanki (Akumbu et al., 2020, p.14) there is a very similar negation marker in the imperative mood: . The marker for negation in the hortative mood is ti. Its underlying tone is also a high-low sequence. Examples are shown below with the third person singular using the high tone verb na ‘cook’ in (79) and the low tone verb pfəə ‘hit’ in (80):

(79) [˥˥˥˥ ˥˦˧ ˥˥˥˥ ] i ti na 3sg neg.hort cook ‘He should not cook.’

61 (80) [˥˥˥˥ ˥˦˧ ˧˨˩ ] i ti pfəə 3sg neg.hort hit ‘He should not hit.’

3.4.3 Negative versions of indefinites

Dixon (2012, pp.119-122) includes examining negative indefinites in the study of negation. Some of the constructions used for the negative versions of indefinites in

Wushi are shown in table 25 below.

Table 25 Constructions used for negative versions of indefinites

Negative version Construction used Example Free translation of indefinite in Wushi & literal translation of example neither ti.... ndiʼ yi mə ti gɛ ndiʼ yi ‘I went to neither.’ neg... one of.it 1sg neg go one of.it ‘I did not go to one of it.’ never ti la mə ti la gɛ ‘I never went.’ neg f2 1sg neg f2 go ‘I did not ever go.’ nobody weʼ ti weʼ ti kə chə ‘Nobody [was there].’ person neg person neg p1 there ‘A person was not there.’ nothing fa ti fa ti chə ‘Nothing [is there].’ thing neg thing neg there ‘A thing is not there.’ nowhere ti... dzəʼkə mə ti gɛ dzəʼkə ‘I went nowhere.’ neg... place 1sg neg go place ‘I did not go to a place.’

62 4 Special verb constructions

4.1 Copula clauses

A canonical copula clause comprises a copula subject, a copula verb and a copula com-

plement. The copula verb as predicate has ‘relational rather than referential meaning’

(Dixon, 2010, p.159); it indicates a semantic relation between the copula subject and

the copula complement. An example is shown below:

(81) [˦˧˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˩˩˩˩] ze yi bə Peter name his cop Peter ‘His name is Peter.’

In (81) , the copula subject is the noun phrase ze yi ‘his name’, the copula verb is bə and the copula complement is Peter.

4.1.1 Copula verbs and semantic relations

Table 26 shows the various types of copula clause found in Wushi (according to copula

relation). For copula relations, I have adopted the terms used by Dixon (2010).

Table 26 Types of copula clause

Copula relation Copula verb used Copula complement - word class Example Identity bə noun phrase (82) Attribution nə (or bə) adjective (83) Location nə (or bə) noun phrase (84) Existence bə (or nə) chə ‘there’ (word class unclear) (85) Possession bə possessive pronoun (86)

As table 26 shows, if the copula relation is identity or possession, the copula verb bə must be used. For all other types of copula clause, the copula verb nə can also be

used; in these clauses, bə and nə are interchangeable. However, there is a preference

to use nə for attribution and location, and to use bə for existence.

Using the frame for ascertaining underlying verb tone (2.1.2), it is evident that both

of these copula verbs, bə and nə, have underlying high tone. 63 Examples of copula clauses for each of the copula relations are shown in (82) – (86) below:

(82) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨] nde bə mvəvəə today cop market.day ‘Today is market day.’

(83) [˥˥˥˥ ˧˧˧˧ ˧˧˧˧ ˩˩˩˩ ˧˧˧˧] faŋgə nə i-fee things cop adj-be.black ‘The things are black.’

(84) [˩˩˩˩ ˦˦˦˦ ˧˧˧˧] mə nə ndaʼ 1sg cop compound ‘I am in the compound.’

(85) [˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨] bɛɛkə bə chə corn.porridge cop there ‘There is corn porridge.’

(86) [˦˦˦˦ ˦˧˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦] ndɔʼ mɛ bə yi house that cop his ‘That house is his.’

Copula clauses are negated with the high tone negation marker ti which precedes the verb (see 3.4.1). An example is shown below, negating (85):

(87) [˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˧˨ ˧˧˧˧ ˨˨˨˨] bɛɛkə ti bə chə corn.porridge neg cop there ‘There isn't any corn porridge.’

If a copula clause is grammatically marked for TAM (tense-aspect-modality), it must be the copula verb bə which is used (the use of TAM marking with nə is ungrammat- ical). An example was shown in (29). A further example is shown below, where the copula verb bə is grammatically marked with the future tense marker F1: 64 (88) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨] mə wɔʼ bə ndɔʼ 1sg f1 cop house ‘I will be at home.’

There do not seem to be any restrictions on TAM features in the copula clause: in (88) above, the copula clause has modality marking (the tonal morpheme for irrealis)

as well as tense marking. Besides, there is evidence in the texts of copula clauses with

grammatical marking of aspect. However, more data, with a wider range of TAM

features in the copula clause, is needed to confirm this.

The fact that bə can be marked for TAM, but nə cannot, suggests that in terms of word class, bə is closer to being a canonical lexical verb root.

A third copula verb evident in Wushi, not yet mentioned, is the verb root ndə ‘stand,

get up’. This verb being used as a copula verb is not surprising given that many

languages develop copula verbs from verbs of stance such as ‘sit’ and ‘stand’ (Dixon,

2010, p.182). Dixon adds that sometimes ‘the original verb retains its referential sense, in addition to the new copula function’. This is true of the verb ndə ‘stand, get up’ in

Wushi.

The use of ndə as a copula verb was not found in any of the elicited data for copula

clauses, but was found in the texts (of narrative discourse). Two examples are shown below:

(89) ze yi ndə Nchə name his cop Nchə ‘His name is Nchə.’

(90) fazəkə ndə chə food cop there ‘There is food.’

Is the use of the copula verb ndə more archaic? Is it usually restricted to narrative discourse, with bə and nə being more typically used in everyday conversation? The Babessi speaker with whom I work, however, does not consider ndə to be more archaic than the other copula verbs. This is an area for further research.

65 As the copula verb ndə is also a lexical verb root, it has the full grammatical proper- ties of a verb, and so as a copula verb can be marked for TAM in the same way as the copula verb bə (as discussed above).

As well as being used as a copula verb, this verb root ndə is also often found in serial verb constructions (see 4.6.1).

4.1.2 Verbless copula clauses

In Wushi, the copula verb sometimes appears to be omitted from the copula clause.

Some examples are shown below, where (91) has the semantic relation ‘identity’ and

(92) has the semantic relation ‘location’:

(91) [˥˦˧ ˥˥˥˥ ˨˨˨˨ ˥˥˥˥] ze nyɔ Tama name my Tama ‘My name is Tama.’

(92) [˥˦˧ ˩˩˩˩] i ndɔʼ 3sg house ‘He is at home.’

In a seemingly verbless copula clause, it is possible that the copula verb is deleted segmentally but not tonally. Consider (92) above. The same copula clause with the copula verb segmentally present is shown below:

(93) [˥˥˥˥ ˧˧˧˧ ˩˩˩˩ ] i nə ndɔʼ 3sg cop house ‘He is at home.’

Comparing the surface tone transcriptions in (92) and (93) shows that the tone of the copula verb may be maintained even when its segments are deleted. In (92), the falling surface tone on the 3SG pronoun i may be explained by the presence of a tonal morpheme. However, further research is needed to confirm this hypothesis that where the copula verb is deleted segmentally, its tone is maintained as a tonal morpheme.

66 It is worth noting that the copula verb can only be omitted segmentally in the P0 tense - the functionally unmarked term in the tense system. A verbless copula clause is therefore a signal that the clause is in the P0 tense. As Dixon (2010, p.180) states, the copula verb is just a ‛dummy’ element, needed to carry morphemes providing grammatical information. In Wushi, the copula verb is obligatory segmentally when it is needed to ‘carry’ grammatical markers in the TAM system.

4.2 Reflexive and reciprocal constructions

One way of defining reflexive and reciprocal constructions is that they ‘share theprop- erty of referring to activities where the participants are not all distinct from one an- other’ (Dixon, 2012, p.138).

Reflexive and reciprocal markers in African languages typically have anominal source - ‘body’ and ‘head’ being the most common (Dixon, 2012, p.166). This is certainly the case in Wushi, where reflexive constructions typically use ‘body’ and reciprocal constructions typically use ‘bodies’ - see 4.2.1 and 4.2.2 below. Dixon (2012, p.191) states that ‘in some languages, reflexive or reciprocal is best regarded as a secondary sense of some more general category’. In the reflexive/ recip- rocal construction in Wushi, the noun ‘body’ or ‘bodies’ is part of a noun phrase where a possessive pronoun must follow the noun. Thus, another way of viewing the reflex- ive/ reciprocal in Wushi is that it is a secondary sense of the grammatical category of possession.

4.2.1 Reflexive constructions

The reflexive construction is formed using a noun phrase: the noun root ŋɨ ‘body’ followed by the possessive pronoun. Examples are shown below:

(94) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] mə shɨə ŋɨ nyɔ 1sg cut body my ‘I cut myself.’

67 (95) [˥˥˥˥ ˨˧˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] i kwɔ ŋɨ yi 3sg love body his ‘He loves himself.’

Sometimes, the noun root gha ‘skin, body’ is used, as shown below:

(96) [˥˦˧ ˨˧˦ ˧˧˧˧ ˥˦˧] ŋwɛ shu gha yɔʼ 3pl wash skin their ‘They washed themselves.’

A third noun which may be used in a reflexive construction is the noun tukə ‘head’, as shown in (97) below, taken from one of the texts:

(97) bwɔ i jɨ baʼ tukə-i fɛ be.good 3sg come hide head-her here ‘[It is] good that she should come and hide herself here.’

Data from the very closely related language Babungo (Schaub, 1985, p.110) shows a similar construction to that in (94) – (97). In fact, this construction is typical of Grassfields Bantu languages as a whole: Watters (2003, p.252) states that ‘reflexive equivalents may use the noun ‘body’ and the possessive pronoun that is coreferential with the subject in person and number’.

4.2.2 Reciprocal constructions

The reciprocal construction may be formed using verb morphology or with a noun phrase. If verb morphology is used, the -nə verb suffix, with a detransitivising and reciprocal function, is used (as already described in 2.2.1.1.3). Examples of this were seen in (12) and (14). Otherwise, the reciprocal construction is formed with a noun phrase: the noun ŋwɛnə ‘bodies’, followed by the possessive pronoun. Some examples are shown below:

(98) [ ˥˦˧ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] ŋwɛ zə-tə ŋwɛnə yɔʼ 3pl kill-pluract bodies their ‘They killed each other.’ 68 (99) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦] ŋwi zəə ŋwɛnə nyi 2pl feed bodies your ‘You fed each other.’

Though ŋwɛnə ‘bodies’ clearly occupies the syntactic slot of a noun in the examples above, it is interesting to consider its historical source. One possibility is that it is derived from ŋwɛ, the 3PL pronoun, which has been suffixed with the -nə noun class

affix to form a noun. This analysis is corroborated by the fact that in the veryclosely

related language Babungo (Schaub, 1985, p.113) reciprocity is expressed by a pronoun

phrase consisting of a reduplication of a pronoun which includes the whole group of participants. Hence, in Babungo, the transliteration of ‘Lambi and Ndula helped each

other’ is ‘Lambi and Ndula helped body their they they’.

4.3 Passive constructions

The notion of passive is expressed using the 3PL pronoun wu as the subject in an active

sentence. This differs from the 3PL pronoun ŋwɛ in that wu refers to people who are unknown to the speaker whereas ŋwɛ refers to people who are known to the speaker.

Some examples are shown below:

(100) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˨˧˦] wu naʼ zə 3pl prf eat ‘It was eaten. (They have eaten [it].)’

(101) [˥˥˥˥ ˦˧˨ ˨˧˦ ˨˨˨˨] wu naʼ zə ŋə 3pl prf kill him ‘He was killed. (They have killed him.)’

This strategy for conveying the notion of passive, using an indefinite subject pronoun

‘they’ in an active sentence, is common in related languages, e.g. Kom (Shultz, 1997, p.18) and Babungo (Schaub, 1985, p.209).

69 4.4 Causative constructions

There are two mechanisms used for the causative, either a verbal morphological pro- cess (the -sə suffixation described in 2.2.1.1.2) or a periphrastic construction.

An example of a periphrastic construction is shown below:

(102) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˦˦˦˦ ˨˨˨˨ ˨˨˨˨ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦] a nɔ bɛtə mə kə chɨəʼ 2sg prog make 1sg prog laugh ‘You are making me laugh.’

(102) is an example of what Dixon (2012, p.281) describes as a periphrastic con-

struction involving two verbs; a causative verb (in this case bɛtə ‘make’) and a lexical

verb (in this case chɨəʼ ‘laugh’). The causative verb in Wushi has, though, maintained its full lexical function as the verb bɛtə ‘do, make’ (the suffix -tə has become lexically frozen on the verb root, so that the verb root bɛ is now unattested on its own).

4.5 Applicative constructions

There is no morphological process in Wushi for the applicative. Rather, the notion of

applicative is expressed with a prepositional phrase, as shown in (103) below:

(103) [˨˨˨˨ ˨˧˦ ˥˥˥˥ ˦˦˦˦ ˦˦˦˦] mə kə saa tə ŋə 1sg give corn to 3sg ‘I gave her corn.’

This mechanism for the applicative is typical of Grassfields Bantu languages. Watters

(2003, p.252) states that ‘applicative notions [...] are generally expressed by preposi- tional phrases’.

4.6 Serial verb constructions (SVCs)

A serial verb construction (SVC) can be defined (Dixon, 2010, p.406) as a construction

where ‘two or more verbs function together like a single predicate and are conceived of as describing a single action’. There should be no ‘overt marker of coordination,

70 subordination, or syntactic dependency of any other sort’ and each component (verb) of an SVC must be able to occur on its own (Aikhenvald, 2006, p.1). Kiessling (2011, p.10) describes an SVC as a construction where all the verbs follow one another within the same clause. They ‘form a close-knit structure perceived as a conceptual unit’ and represent ‘one event’. The verbs share tense-aspect-modality values. An SVC thus represents ‘a particular cognitive packaging of an event’ (Aikhen- vald, 2006, p.52). There are two types of SVC: symmetrical and asymmetrical. Asymmetrical SVCs are more common, and so will be discussed first (4.6.1). A basic distinction in their func- tions is that asymmetrical SVCs indicate simultaneity of event components, whereas symmetrical SVCs tend to express sequentiality (Kiessling, 2011, p.31). Aikhenvald (2006, p.45) notes that languages with ‘productive’ serialisation tend to have both symmetrical and asymmetrical SVCs, which is the case in Wushi. In fact, Kiessling (2011, p.8), in his comprehensive description of SVCs in Isu, describes the Ring languages (which both Isu and Wushi fall into) as ‘strongly serialising’ compared to other Grassfields Bantu languages. The texts which were collected for this study were a useful source of SVCs; elicitation is impractical for collecting this type of data.

4.6.1 Asymmetrical serial verb constructions

In an asymmetrical SVC, there is semantic asymmetry of the verbs involved. The head of the SVC comes from an unrestricted class and is called the ‘major’ verb. The other verbs come from a small closed class of verbs and are called the ‘minor’ verbs (Dixon, 2012, p.244). There may be one or more minor verbs (see table 27 for examples of minor verbs in Wushi). Asymmetrical SVCs often function to ‘express grammatical categories’ (Aikhenvald, 2006, p.46). The table below shows some of the functions of asymmetrical SVCs in Wushi. The terminology for these functions and their associated parameters is borrowed from Kiessling (2011).

71 Table 27 Asymmetrical SVCs: functions, parameters and minor verbs used

Function of Parameter Minor verb Example SVC used Motion Deictic jɨ ‘come’ (104) ‘come’+‘take’ →‘come to get’ orientation gɛ ‘go’ (105) ‘go’+‘leave’→‘leave behind’

Path nyi ‘enter’ (106) ‘walk’+‘enter’→‘walk into’

bɨɨnə ‘return’ (107) ‘return’+‘take’→‘go back to get’

kwɔʼ ‘climb’ (108) ‘climb’+‘take’→‘reach to get’

lyɔ ‘pass’ (109) ‘be big’+‘pass’→‘be bigger’

Aspect- Termination dzoʼ ‘sit’ (110) ‘lie back’+‘sit’→‘remain’ related gho ‘finish’ (111) ‘be scattered’+‘finish’ →‘completely clear’

The examples referred to in the table above are shown below. (Note that the minor verb may either be the first or the second verb in the SVC.)

(104) pfə jɨ ndɨ ŋə death come take 3sg ‘Death took him away.’

(105) kəə gɛ te waa neg.imp go leave 1pl ‘Don't abandon us!’

(106) bvəŋgɨ twɔʼ nyi ndɔʼ dog walk enter house ‘The dog walked into the house.’

(107) maʼkəsaʼ bɨɨnə ndɨ vɛɛ kəba hunter return take children leopard ‘The hunter went back to get the leopard's children.’

(108) mə nɔ laa kwɔʼ ndɨ... 1sg prog when climb take ‘When I reach up to take [it]...’ 72 (109) a kuʼ lyɔ mə 2sg be.big pass 1sg ‘You are bigger than me.’

(110) mə sə dzoʼ ŋwɔ vɛɛmbwa 1sg lie.back sit with children ‘I stayed with the children.’

(111) vəə naʼ waʼ gho nə tsətsə market prf be.scattered finish in sun ‘The market had completely emptied by midday.’

Note that (109) shows the comparative construction. The parameter of comparison

(the major verb, in this case, kuʼ ‘be big’) is followed by lyɔ ‘pass’ (the minor verb). This use of an asymmetrical SVC with the minor verb ‘pass’ for the comparative construction is widely reported for related languages, e.g. Isu (Kiessling, 2011, p.153), Kom (Shultz,

1997, p.19) and Babungo (Schaub, 1985, p.235).

On the basis of the data collected from my 10 texts, the most common function of

asymmetrical SVCs in Wushi is the ‘motion’ function. This is also true of the related

Ring language Isu, where a broad range of path parameters are marked by SVCs in- volving path-indicating motion verbs (Kiessling, 2011, p.304). Schaub also seems to

be describing ‘motion’ SVCs in the very closely related Ring language Babungo, when

he discusses motion verbs such as ‘go’ or ‘come’ preceding a semantically unrestricted

major verb (Schaub, 1985, p.244).

One area for further research in Wushi is SVCs which involve the verbs bə ‘be’ and ndə ‘stand, get up’. As we saw in 4.1.1, both of these verbs also function as copula

verbs. Usually when one of these verbs is used in an SVC, it seems to function as the

minor verb in the SVC, as shown below:

(112) ...mbaa ndə kiʼ ŋa yi without stand have power her ‘...without having her power.’

Is (112) an asymmetrical SVC, where ndə ‘stand’ is the minor verb and kiʼ ‘have’ is

the major verb, so that the function of the SVC is to describe a state of being, where

73 the person being described is in the state of ‘not having her power’? If so, ndə could be added to table 27 as a minor verb which has the ‘aspect-related’ function.

The situation is less clear in a construction where the SVC is comprised only of copula verbs, as shown below:

(113) ndo ŋɔ ndə bə yaŋgə mvontɛ husband my stand be years 50 ‘My husband was 50 years [old].’

If (113) is a serial verb construction with ndə and bə, it is difficult to describe it as an asymmetrical SVC as it is unclear which is the major and which is the minor verb in the construction. Moreover, the series of verbs do not represent a prototypical SVC; they do not describe an event (see 4.6). A preferable analysis would therefore be to describe (113) as a copula construction with two copula verbs.

4.6.2 Symmetrical serial verb constructions

In a symmetrical SVC, each verb comes from an unrestricted class and has equal status; no verb can be considered as ‘head’ of the SVC (Dixon, 2012, p.244). Symmetrical SVCs tend to express the sequentiality of event components (Kiessling,

2011, p.31). This is illustrated in (114) below, where the daily motions of getting up, sitting down and lying down are obviously sequential:

(114) ŋwɛ nɔ kwɔʼ ndə dzoʼ noo... 3pl prog just get.up sit lie ‘They are just getting up, sitting down, lying down...’

Further examples of symmetrical SVCs are shown in (115) and (116) below:

(115) fwa bɨɨ bvə bɔɔ king be.afraid fall behind ‘The king was afraid and fell back.’

(116) i yuʼ na 3sg peel cook ‘He peeled and cooked [them].’

74 5 Conclusion

5.1 Summary of findings

The verb root in Wushi has a simple monosyllabic structure. Syntactically, most verb roots are ambitransitive. In terms of verb morphology, one prefix and four suffixes can be affixed toverb roots. A verb root can be prefixed and suffixed simultaneously, but only onesuffix is permitted at a time. The mə- prefix is an infinitive-deriving prefix. The suffixes, also known as verbal extensions, are typically aspectual or valency-changing. The -tə suffix is aspectual with a pluractional function.sə The- and -nə suffixes are typically valency-changing; -sə is always valency-increasing with a causative function and -nə is usually valency-decreasing with a detransitivising function. Verb suffixes may become diachronically 'lexically frozen' on verb roots. Forthese verbs, it is not possible to separate the verb root from its suffix, and so the gloss ofthe verb root alone is usually ambiguous. This is particularly common with the -mə suffix, which is usually lexically frozen on the verb root, so that the verb root is unattested on its own. Synchronically, the function of the -mə suffix is unclear. Reduplication of the verb root is aspectual. It usually has an intensive function, but it can also have repetitive/ attenuative functions. Verb morphology in Wushi thus has important grammatical functions in the lan- guage, mainly relating to aspect and changing valency. There are several derivational verb affixes evident in Wushi. The i- prefix is affixed to verb roots to form adjectives. To derive nouns from verb roots, the suffix -kə and/or a homorganic nasal prefix are affixed to the verb root. Verbs are therefore arguably the basic word class in the language. The verb phrase in Wushi can be defined as the verb and its modifiers. The verbis preceded by the (segmental) modifiers of negation, tense and aspect. The verbmay also be modified by tonal morphemes, e.g. the irrealis modality marker. The tense- aspect-modality features of Wushi are complex and interconnected. Tense, aspect and modality each have a default or unmarked category. Five tenses are proposed in 75 this analysis; two future tenses (F1 and F2), two past tenses (P1 and P2) and a 'zero' tense (P0). The 'zero' tense, P0, is the unmarked or default tense. Aspect is more complex, with an initial obligatory distinction between perfective (which is tonally marked) and imperfective (which is the default/ unmarked category). However, there is also optional marking of aspect, with five segmental markers having the functions of progressive, continuous, habitual and perfect. The progressive aspect is particularly complex, with two segmental markers being used - one of these segmental markers representing two different morphemes depending on the underlying tone and whether the verb phrase is in the realis or irrealis modality. Grammatical marking of modality has fewer distinctions: modality is either realis (the default/ unmarked category) or irrealis (a floating high tonal morpheme preceding the subject of the clause). A verb phrase which is grammatically unmarked for tense-aspect-modality is thus in the P0 tense, with imperfective aspect and in the realis modality. The tense, aspect and modality features are highly interdependent. For example, the irrealis modality is only possible in the P0, F1 or F2 tenses. The perfect aspect is only possible in the realis modality. The habitual aspect is only possible in the irrealis modality. This interconnectedness of tense, aspect and modality, combined with the rich distinctions within the aspect category, makes the grammatical features of the verb phrase particularly complex. Tone also contributes to complexity in the verb phrase. Although the underlying tone of verb roots is quite simple - all verb roots are either high or low underlyingly - the surface tone on verbs varies greatly depending on the context. Several tone processes are responsible for this: tone grounding (when a floating tone attaches to a segment), tone spreading, tone merging (when adjacent identical tones fuse) and non-automatic downstep (when a floating low tone between two high tones lowers the pitch onthe second high). Tone processes in Wushi are from left to right. The grammatical category of mood comprises the declarative, the interrogative, the imperative and the hortative. Polar questions are formed with a phonetic ‘interroga- tive overlay’ over the utterance-final syllable of a statement. In content questions, the interrogative word is substituted in the syntactic position of the noun phrase it ques- tions. The imperative mood can only be used with the second person singular and is 76 marked with a tonal morpheme which attaches to the end of the verb root. With other pronouns, the hortative mood is used, which is grammatically unmarked.

Marking of negation is dependent on mood. Negation in both the declarative and interrogative moods is marked with the high tone marker ti. The marker for negation in the hortative mood is also ti but its underlying tone is a high-low sequence. The marker for negation combined with the imperative mood is kəə, which can be used with various pronouns.

The most notable special verb constructions are copula constructions and serial verb constructions. Copula clauses cover various copula relations, with three different cop- ula verbs attested. If the copula clause is grammatically unmarked for tense-aspect- modality, the copula verb can be omitted, at least segmentally. Serial verb construc- tions may be asymmetrical, where there is semantic asymmetry of the verbs involved, or symmetrical, where each verb has equal semantic status.

5.2 Application of this research to language development

The main application of this research to language development relates to tone orthog- raphy. As discussed in 1.3, the Wushi orthography is still being developed. This study has highlighted the importance of tone in the verb phrase, both lexically and gram- matically. When an orthography proposal is published for Wushi, it should include recommendations about how to mark important tonal distinctions in the language. I will summarise the tonal distinctions relating to the verb phrase in 5.2.1 and 5.2.2 below. (However, an orthographic recommendation about how to mark these distinc- tions, particularly for grammatical tone, is beyond the scope of the current study.)

5.2.1 Lexical tone: verb roots

All verb roots are either high or low underlyingly. As shown in table 3, there are many minimal tone pairs for verb roots. Of the 230 verb roots used in this study,

57% were underlyingly high, so marking underlyingly low verbs would result in less overall lexical tone marking. This was also the recommendation made for the related language Chrambo (Wright, 2011, p.14). As Wright points out, lexical tone marking

77 on verbs should be consistent: if low tone verbs are being marked, they should always be marked, regardless of the context, and high tone verbs should never be marked.

This produces fixed word-images which are important for literacy.

5.2.2 Grammatical tone in the verb phrase

The grammatical features that are distinguished by tone are shown in table 28 below.

These have been divided into six areas of ambiguity.

Table 28 Grammatical features distinguished by tone

Area of Grammatical feature Segmental Underlying tone of marker ambiguity being marked marker

1. progressive aspect kə L (irrealis modality) progressive aspect (P0 kə H tense, realis modality) P1 tense kə L

2. habitual aspect la L F2 tense la H

3. negation (declarative/ ti H interrogative mood) negation (hortative ti HL sequence mood)

4. irrealis modality ∅ H (floating tone before subject of clause)

5. perfective aspect ∅ LH sequence (floating tone before verb root)

6. imperative mood ∅ HL sequence (tonal morpheme attaching to end of verb root)

78 5.3 Areas for further research

Some areas for further research are outlined below:

• The tense-aspect-modality (TAM) system: The TAM system presented in this paper is just one possible way of analysing the TAM features in Wushi. Alternative approaches to analysing the grammatical features of the verb phrase could add to the findings presented in this study. More data with more varied combinations of TAM markers could also be useful. For example, is it possible to combine tense markers in Wushi? This is attested in the closely related language Babungo (Schaub, 1985, p.213).

• Tone processes in the verb phrase: Further research with more data would ascertain whether there are any other tone processes in addition to those described in this study. More research is also needed to determine whether there is a critical order in which these tone processes occur.

• The hortative mood: More data with verb phrases in the hortative mood would be useful to confirm that this mood is grammatically unmarked in Wushi.

• Syntactic reordering in the verb phrase: This was beyond the scope of the current study, but is an area for further research, given that important discourse features are likely to be found.

• Markers of clause linking: A description of these markers was beyond the scope of the current study. However, some data collected in the initial stages of this research indicates that there is a condi- tional marker laʼ and a marker of ‘simultaneous aspect’ (Dixon, 2012, p.41) laa. These are areas for further research.

79 • Serial verb constructions (SVCs):

More data with asymmetrical SVCs would be useful to ascertain if there are further minor verbs beyond those found in this study.

Also, more research is needed on SVCs involving verbs which are also used as copula verbs. For example, when ndə ‘stand, get up’ is used in an SVC, it may be used with its full lexical status in a symmetrical SVC, such as example (114), or it may be used as a minor verb in an asymmetrical SVC, such as example (112). The use of the verb ndə both in asymmetrical SVCs (as a minor verb) and in copula constructions may be an indication of grammaticalisation of the lexical verb root. Grammaticalisation of lexical verb roots in asymmetrical SVCs is an area for further study.

80 References

Aikhenvald, A. (2006) ‘Serial verb constructions in typological perspective’. In Aikhenvald, A. and Dixon, R., eds. Serial verb constructions: a cross-linguistic typology, 1-68. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Akumbu, P. (2015) ‘Babanki verb tone’. Studies in African Linguistics 44(1):1-26. Akumbu, P. and Chibaka, E. (2012) A pedagogic grammar of Babanki - a Grassfields language of Northwest Cameroon. Cologne: Rudiger Koppe. Akumbu, P., Hyman, L. and Kiessling, R. (2020) ‘The segmental and tonal structure of verb inflection in Babanki’. Phonological Data & Analysis 2:1-33. Anderson, S.C. (1979) ‘Verb structure’. In Hyman, L., ed. Aghem grammatical structure: with special reference to noun classes, tense-aspect and focus marking, Southern California Occasional Papers in Linguistics 7:73-136. Los Angeles: Department of Linguistics, University of Southern California. Cahill, M. (2019) ‘Tone, orthographies and phonological depth in African languages’. In Lotven, S., Bongiovanni, S., Weirich, P., Botne, R. and Obeng, S., eds. African linguistics across the disciplines: selected papers from the 48th Annual Conference on African Linguistics, 103-123. Berlin: Language Science Press. Dixon, R. (2009) Basic Linguistic Theory: Volume 1 Methodology. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Dixon, R. (2010) Basic Linguistic Theory: Volume 2 Grammatical topics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Dixon, R. (2012) Basic Linguistic Theory: Volume 3 Further grammatical topics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Eberhard, D., Simons, G. and Fennig, C. (eds.). (2020) Ethnologue: Languages of the world. Twenty-third edition. Dallas, Texas: SIL International. http://www.ethnologue.com/, accessed 1.11.20. Hedinger, M. (2019) A study of the noun phrase in the Wushi language. MA dissertation. CLTL, Redcliffe College, Gloucester. Hedinger, R. (2015) ‘Lamnso' grammar sketch’. In Hedinger, R., Chin, A. and Njeck, M., eds. Lamnso'-English dictionary Ŋwà' Nsàv, 73-103. Yaounde: Cameroon Association of Bible Translation and Literacy. Hodieb, L. (2021) Description du wushi, langue Grassfields du Cameroun. Unpublished PhD thesis. l'Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Paris. Hyman, L. (1980) ‘Babanki and the Ring group’. In Bouquiaux, L., ed. L'expansion bantoue: actes du colloque international du CNRS, Viviers (France), 4-16 avril 1977, 3:225-258. Paris: SELAF. Hyman, L. (2018) ‘Common Bantoid verb extensions’. In Watters, J., ed. East Benue-Congo: nouns, pronouns and verbs, Niger-Congo Comparative Studies 1:173-198. Berlin: Language Science Press. Kiessling, R. (2011) Verbal serialisation in Isu (West Ring) - a Grassfields language of Cameroon. Cologne: Rudiger Koppe. Nashipu, J. (2005) The morpho-syntax of Baba 1. PhD thesis. The University of Yaounde 1, Cameroon. Roberts, D. (2013) ‘A tone orthography typology’. In Borgwaldt, S. and Joyce, T., eds. Typology of Writing Systems, 85-111. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Robinson, R. (2018) Wushi (Babessi): a phonological sketch. Yaounde: SIL Cameroon. Schaub, W. (1985) Babungo (Croom Helm Descriptive Grammars). Beckenham, Kent: Croom Helm. Shultz, G. (1997) Kom language grammar sketch part 1. Yaounde: SIL Cameroon. Snider, K. (2014) ‘On establishing underlying tonal contrast’. Language Documentation and Conservation 8:707-737. Snider, K. (2018) Tone analysis for field linguists. Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Sorsamo, H. (2006) Bamunka orthography guide (provisional). Yaounde: SIL Cameroon. Tamanji, P. (2001) ‘Issues in the syntax of Grassfields Bantu languages’. In Mutaka, N. and Chumbow, B., eds. Research Mate in African Linguistics: Focus on Cameroon. A fieldworker's tool for deciphering the stories Cameroonian languages have to tell, in honour of Professor Larry M. Hyman, 159-182. Cologne: Rudiger Koppe. Tamanji, P. (2009) A descriptive grammar of Bafut - a Grassfields Bantu language of Cameroon. Cologne: Rudiger Koppe.

81 Watters, J. (2003) ‘Grassfields Bantu’. In Nurse, D. and Philippson, G., eds. The Bantu Languages, 225-256. London: Routledge. Watters, J. (2018) ‘East Benue-Congo’. In Watters, J., ed. East Benue-Congo: nouns, pronouns and verbs, Niger-Congo Comparative Studies 1:1-25. Berlin: Language Science Press. Wright, J. (2009) The noun and verb phrase in Chrambo (Bambalang). Yaounde: SIL Cameroon. Wright, J. (2011) Tone in the verb phrase in Chrambo (Bambalang). Yaounde: SIL Cameroon.

82 Appendix A: Verb roots collected during this study

H = underlying high tone, L = underlying low tone

baʼ ‘hide’ L baa ‘be red’ L beʼ ‘add’ L bee ‘sleep’ H bɛ ‘hate’ L bi ‘be done’ (e.g. food) H bi ‘be the truth’ H bi ‘plant’ L bii ‘collect’ H bɨɨ ‘greet’ L bɨɨ ‘thank’ L bɨəʼ ‘be bad, be broken’ H bo ‘play’ H bɔ ‘cover’ L bɔ ‘mould’ H bɔɔ ‘create’ H buʼ ‘play drum’ H buʼ ‘try’ H buu ‘split’ L bvə ‘fall’ L bvə ‘deliver’ (baby) H bvəʼ ‘shiver’ L bvəʼ ‘bend’ H bvoo ‘untie, loosen’ L bwaʼ ‘be soft, good’ H bwɔ ‘be good, beautiful’ L byɛ ‘be safe’ L 83 byɛʼ ‘carry’ L chaʼ ‘carry’ L chaʼ ‘weed’ H cheʼ ‘cut’ H chi ‘stay’ H chi ‘drain’ H chɨə ‘be sour’ H chɨə ‘cough’ H chɨəʼ ‘laugh’ H choʼ ‘soak’ L chɔʼ ‘talk, speak’ L chɔɔ ‘be dripping’ H chuʼ ‘shake’ H chwɔ ‘appreciate’ L chwɔʼ ‘uncover’ H daa ‘be long’ L dɛɛ ‘teach’ L dɨə ‘limp’ H du ‘plan’ L du ‘attach’ L dzee ‘be old’ L dzee ‘uproot’ L dzə ‘refuse (fast from) food’ L dzə ‘blow, fan’ L dzoʼ ‘sit’ L faa ‘be diverted’ L fe ‘sell’ L fee ‘be black, dirty’ H fɨ ‘mix’ H fɨ ‘punch’ L

84 fɨʼ ‘measure’ L fɨɨ ‘mix’ H fɨə ‘blow, winnow’ H fɨəʼ ‘build’ L fɨəʼ ‘treat medically’ L fo ‘go out’ H foʼ ‘fill’ (ground) L foo ‘be white’ H fɔʼ ‘annoy, disturb’ H fɔɔ ‘sew’ H fɔɔ ‘reach, arrive’ H fyɛ ‘offer’ H gbɔ ‘beat’ H gɛ ‘go’ L ghaʼ ‘be hot’ H ghaa ‘silence (someone)’ H ghaa ‘be greedy’ H ghɨʼ ‘be wet/cold’ H ghɨɨ ‘swing’ H ghɨə ‘work’ H gho ‘finish’ L ghɔʼ ‘corrupt’ L ghɔɔ ‘fold (something)’ H gɨə ‘grind’ L gɔʼ ‘share’ L gweʼ ‘cut’ L gweʼ ‘cry’ H ja ‘catch’ L jaʼ ‘operate (medically)’ L jaʼ ‘crack’ L

85 ji ‘urinate’ L jɨ ‘come’ L ju ‘be fine’ L jyɛ ‘press down’ L kaʼ ‘plan, promise’ L kaa ‘be frying’ H kaa ‘tie’ H ke ‘award’ L kə ‘give’ H kɛʼ ‘wrap’ H ki ‘flow’ L kiʼ ‘have’ H kɨ ‘burn’ H kɨ ‘know’ H kɨʼ ‘be afraid’ L kɨə ‘dance’ L koʼ ‘exchange, barter’ H koo ‘touch’ L kɔ ‘marry’ L kɔ ‘clear (with hoe)’ H kɔʼ ‘cut, harvest’ H kɔɔ ‘scratch, scrape’ H kpa ‘clear (with cutlass)’ L kpa ‘open’ L kpaʼ ‘clap’ H kpaʼ ‘think’ L kpeʼ ‘limp’ L kpɔʼ ‘rub’ H kuʼ ‘be big’ L kwɛ ‘come back’ H

86 kwɔ ‘like, love’ L kwɔʼ ‘climb’ H kwɔʼ ‘swell’ H kye ‘separate oil & water’ L kyɛ ‘draw’ L kyoʼ ‘break, crack’ H lɛɛ ‘be clean, be clear’ H lɨə ‘tap palm wine’ L lɨəʼ ‘ululate’ H lwi ‘fill, be filled’ H lyɔ ‘pass’ L maʼ ‘contribute’ L maʼ ‘aim (at something)’ L maʼ ‘throw’ L meʼ ‘be accustomed to’ L mɛɛ ‘conclude (a matter)’ H mi ‘swallow’ L mii ‘fling’ L moo ‘try’ L moo ‘request’ L mwɔ ‘be used up’ L myɛʼ ‘throw’ L na ‘cook’ H ndə ‘stand, get up’ L ndəə ‘swing (on something)’ H ndi ‘be lost’ L ndɨʼ ‘deny, reject’ L ndɨə ‘be wet’ L ndɨəʼ ‘give way’ H ndo ‘bite’ H

87 nduʼ ‘steal’ H ndwa ‘beg’ H ndyɛʼ ‘lick’ H ndyo ‘till’ L ndzə ‘reduce, finish, disappear’ L ndzoʼ ‘turn’ H ndzɔ ‘sink’ H ndzɔɔ ‘be quenched’ H nə ‘defecate’ H noo ‘lie down’ L nu ‘drink’ H nwɔ ‘suck’ H nyaʼ ‘tip-toe’ H nyaʼ ‘write’ L nyi ‘enter’ H nyiʼ ‘sprout’ H nyu ‘run’ H ŋɨ ‘jump’ H ŋɨʼ ‘shake’ H ŋwe ‘open’ L ŋwɔʼ ‘pinch’ L pfə ‘die’ H pfəə ‘hit’ L pfo ‘close’ H sa ‘tear’ L saʼ ‘hunt’ L saʼ ‘announce’ H saa ‘discuss' L seʼ ‘turn’ L see ‘say’ H

88 səʼ ‘climb down’ H sɛ ‘be fruitful’ H shi ‘milk (cow, goat)’ L shii ‘wipe’ L shɨʼ ‘be hard, strong’ H shɔɔ ‘pin with force’ L shu ‘wash’ L so ‘drag’ L so ‘drive’ L sɔʼ ‘plant’ L taʼ ‘search, want’ L te ‘stop’ H te ‘leave, allow’ H tə ‘burst’ H ti ‘squeeze’ H tɨ ‘advise’ H tɨɨ ‘put’ H tɨə ‘kick’ H tɨə ‘be small’ H tɨəʼ ‘protect’ H too ‘send’ H tɔʼ ‘stir’ H tɔʼ ‘confuse’ H tseʼ ‘stop’ H tsee ‘be silent’ H tsee ‘shift’ L tsə ‘crush, crack’ H tsə ‘pour’ L tsə ‘spit’ L tsɛ ‘close (a small container)’ H

89 tso ‘tether, knit’ H tso ‘shoot’ H tso ‘whisper’ L tsoʼ ‘pound’ H tsɔɔ ‘be insufficient’ H tu ‘dig’ H twa ‘burn’ L twɔʼ ‘walk’ L tyeʼ ‘push’ L tyɛ ‘call’ H tyɛ ‘lift, flick (something soft/sticky)’ H tyo ‘stand’ H tyɔʼ ‘be hard/difficult’ H veʼ ‘listen’ H vi ‘put’ H voʼ ‘puff’ L vyo ‘be resurrected’ H waʼ ‘be scattered’ L yaa ‘be sick, be paining’ H yeʼ ‘take, hold’ H yɛ ‘see’ H yɛʼ ‘catch’ H yi ‘start’ L yii ‘be stiff, firm’ H yɨə ‘sweep’ L yo ‘be dry’ H yɔ ‘be much’ H yɔʼ ‘sing’ L yɔʼ ‘swim’ H yu ‘hear’ H

90 yuʼ ‘be loose’ L yuu ‘attach’ L yuu ‘lengthen’ L yuu ‘continuously remove water’ L ywi ‘buy’ H zeʼ ‘eat and be satisfied’ H zə ‘eat’ H zə ‘kill’ H zəə ‘feed [someone]’ H zoo ‘smell, stink’ L

Appendix B: Texts collected during this study (titles and genres)

Text 1: The Greedy Blind Man (folk tale) Text 2: The Old Man and the Mirror (folk tale) Text 3: A Story about Bamun Market (folk tale) Text 4: A Story about Polygamy (folk tale) Text 5: Aunty Biba's Story (factual story from real life) Text 6: The Pig Story (factual story from real life) Text 7: My Marriage (factual story from real life) Text 8: Village Culture (description of traditional culture in the village) Text 9: The Crocodile and the Monkey (folk tale) Text 10: The Pig and the Tortoise (folk tale)

91