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UC Berkeley Dissertations, Department of Linguistics UC Berkeley Dissertations, Department of Linguistics Title Runyambo Verb Extensions and Constructions on Predicate Structure Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1xp5453s Author Rugemalira, Josephat Publication Date 1993 eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Runyambo Verb Extensions and Constraints on Predicate Structure by Josephat Muhozi Rugemalira B .A. (University of Dar es Salaam) 1984 M.A. (University of Lancaster) 1986 M.A. (University of California at Berkeley) 1991 A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics in the GRADUATE DIVISION of the UNIVERSITY Of CALIFORNIA at BERKELEY Committee in charge: Professor Charles J. Fillmore, Chair Professor Sam A. Mchombo Professor Johanna B. Nichols Professor Larry M. Hyman 1993 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. The dissertation of Josephat Muhozi Rugemalira is approved: /iW ^ tqq \ Date __________ a/st; % /f fj v' ;---- Dat'e s---- L ---- _ \ / ) FvV <Lr.X--°1 KiCv . A- , 199 5 J . Date (A t!M fC^I* lyt^SL IjVOUJLo / U o o ■ / f i V S University of California at Berkeley 1993 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT RUNYAMBO VERB EXTENSIONS AND CONSTRAINTS ON PREDICATE STRUCTURE by Josephat Muhozi Rugemalira Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics University of California at Berkeley Professor Charles J. Fillmore, Chair This study presents a description of the productive verb extensions in Runyambo, a Bantu language of Tanzania. It challenges the common view that the extensions are potentially a resource for increasing the number of a verb's arguments indefinitely, and shows instead that the extensions form part of a set of interrelated mechanisms, within the Bantu languages, which ensure that the arguments of a verb remain distinguishable from each other. The first chapter provides a general background to the language and its speakers. Chapter two articulates a theoretical framework of argument differentiation which proposes a two-level theory of predicate structure (argument structure and lexical semantic structure) and helps focus attention on the means for distinguishing arguments from each other. Chapters three and four treat the two extensions (the applicative and causative) that expand predicate structure. It is argued that the distinction between them suggests that Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. the number of thematic roles that participate in grammatical generalizations can be reduced to two, viz. actor and nonactor. The actor is a causative role, while the nonactor is an applicative role. Chapter five deals with the three extensions (reciprocal, stative, and passive) that contract predicate structure. It shows that the extensions are organized around the binary distinction between actor and nonactor thematic roles. Chapter six shows that extension combinations are highly constrained by the general requirement that arguments be distinguishable from each other. It is this requirement that finds reflection in restrictions on extension repetition and cooccurrence. These restrictions furnish further evidence for the dual thematic role organization proposed in this study. In addition, evidence that undermines the significance of variable ordering of the extensions is presented and it is suggested that some of the restrictions are compatible with a template-matching view of affixation. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Runyambo Verb Extensions and Constraints on Predicate Structure Copyright 1993 by Josephat Muhozi Rugemalira Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. i i i TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables vi Abbreviations vii Acknowledgements viii Chapter One: General Background 1 1.0 Introduction 1 1.1 Geography and Society 2 1.2 Linguistic Profile of Runyambo 6 1.2.1 Phonological sketch 6 1.2.2 Nominal morphology 9 1.2.3 Verb morphology 11 1.3 The Challenge of the Verb Extensions 15 1.3.1 Identifying the extensions 15 1.3.2 Productive extensions and predicate structure 18 1.4 Materials and Methods 22 Notes to Chapter One 25 Chapter Two: A Grammar of Argument Differentiation 28 2.0 Introduction 28 2.1 On Grammatical Relations and Thematic Roles 28 2.1.1 Lexical mapping theory 30 2.1.2 Problems in defining grammatical functions 37 2.2 Predicate Structure 42 2.3 Linguistic Mapping and Argument Differentiation 45 Notes to Chapter Two 50 Chapter Three: The Applicative 56 3.0 Introduction 56 3.1 Form and Terminology 56 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. iv 3.2 Applicative Thematic Roles 59 3.2.1 Beneficiary role 59 3.2.2 Subjective role 63 3.2.3 Motive role 66 3.2.4 Locative role 68 3.2.5 Durative role 68 3.2.6 Neutral role 69 3.3 Locative Patterns 70 3.3.1 Morphosyntactic patterns 70 3.3.2 Semantic patterns 77 3.3.3 Semantic groups of verbs 84 3.4 Argument Structure and Argument Differentiation 89 3.5 Summary 99 Notes to Chapter Three 100 Chapter Four: The Causative 104 4.0 Introduction 104 4.1 Forms of the Causative Extension 104 4.2 Causative Thematic Roles 113 4.2.1 Causee role 113 4.2.2 Instrument role 115 4.2.3 Subjective role 117 4.2.4 Causee vs instrument 118 4.3 Argument Structure and Argument Differentiation 120 4.3.1 Valency increaser 120 4.3.2 Causee omission 125 4.3.3 Distinguishing causative from applicative 134 4.4 Conclusion 142 Notes to Chapter Four 142 Chapter Five: Detransitivizing Extensions 148 5.0 Introduction 148 5.1 The Reciprocal 148 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. V 5.1.1 Forms of the reciprocal extension 148 5.1.2 Syntax and semantics of the reciprocal 152 5.1.3 Comparison with the reflexive 156 5.1.4 Summary 157 5.2 The Stative 157 5.2.1 Forms and terminology 157 5.2.2 Syntax and semantics of the stative 160 5.2.3 Summary 163 5.3 The Passive 163 5.3.1 Forms and distribution of the passive 163 5.3.2 Syntax and semantics of the passive 164 5.3.3 Summary 172 5.4 Conclusion 173 Notes to Chapter Five 175 Chapter Six: Cooccurrence Restrictions 180 6.0 Introduction 180 6.1 Extension Repetition 181 6.2 Extension Cooccurrence and Ordering 187 6.2.1 Phonological conditioning 187 6.2.2 Morphologically fixed sequences 190 6.2.3 Variable order 192 6.2.4 Predicate structure constraints 193 6.2.5 Summary 197 6.2.6 Combining three extensions 200 6.3 Conclusion 206 Notes to Chapter Six 211 Bibliography 220 Appendix: Lexicon of Runyambo Extended Verbs 232 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. vi LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1 Nominal class prefixes 10 1.2 Suffix vowel harmony 14 1.3 Productive and non-productive verb extensions 16 2.1 Levels of representation of verb valency 2 9 3.1 Morphosyntactic patterns in applied locatives 72 3.2 Group two verbs 75 3.3 Group three verbs 7 6 3.4 Group four verbs 7 6 3.5 Displacing verbs 83 3.6 Time expressions (adjuncts) 96 3.7 Spatial expressions (arguments) 97 4.1 -is;- causative in CV roots 105 4.2 and -is;- causatives in C-final roots 106 4.3 Selective use of in Kiswahili 108 4.4 -is;- causative in "new consonants" 110 4.5 Distribution of and -is;- causative forms 111 4.6 Causee omission verbs 126 5.1 Passives with variable argument structure requirements 169 6.1 Cooccurrence and ordering restrictions: choice of two extensions 198 6.2 Cooccurrence and ordering restrictions: choice of three extensions 200 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. vii ABBREVIATIONS A Applicative AS Argument Structure C Causative CG Construction Grammar r Double Stem FUT Future Tense FV Final Vowel GB Government and Binding I Intensive L Locative LC Locative Clitic LFG Lexical Functional Grammar LMT Lexical Mapping Theory LSS Lexical Semantic Structure NEG Negative P Passive PF Perfective PR Present Tense PST Past Tense PSY Yesterday Past Tense R Reciprocal RF Reflexive S Stative TP Today Past Tense V Reversive Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. viii Acknowledgement s I would like to thank the members of my dissertation committee - Charles Fillmore, Larry Hyman, Sam Mchombo, and Johanna Nichols - for ensuring that this project came to a successful conclusion. Many thanks also to my friends, especially Kathleen Hubbard and Joyce Mathangwane, for invaluable assistance, and to all of my teachers at Berkeley. For financial assistance, I am particularly indebted to the University of California at Berkeley, and to the James Grubb Scholarship Foundation. My wife Leah not only took care of me and our daughters, Neema and Namara, but she also provided tremendous assistance as my language consultant as I struggled to compile the data in the appendix. For all this, thanks Leah. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 CHAPTER ONE GENERAL BACKGROUND 1.0 Introduction The aims of this study are two-fold. First it seeks to present a detailed description of the productive verb extensions (suffixes) in Runyambo, viz. the applicative, causative, passive, stative, and reciprocal extensions. Second, it seeks to show that although on the face of it these extensions are potentially a resource for indefinitely increasing the number of arguments on any verb, there are general predicate structure constraints which restrict the realization of this potential. In the course of realizing these aims, the study will articulate a theoretical framework of argument differentiation which makes no use of the notion of grammatical relations and severely restricts the inventory of thematic roles that participate in grammatical generalizations to two, viz.
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