A grammatical sketch of Upper Necaxa Totonac by David Beck University of Alberta Department of Linguistics 4-45 Assiniboia Hall Edmonton, AB T6G 2E7 Canada (780) 492-0807 FAX: (780) 492-0806 e-mail: [email protected] Table of Contents Abbreviations and symbols.......................................................................................... iii 0. Introduction....................................................................................................................4 1. Phonology ......................................................................................................................3 1.1. Consonants..........................................................................................................3 1.2. Vowels................................................................................................................3 1.3. Stress, tone, and prosody.....................................................................................4 1.4. Sound symbolism................................................................................................4 2. Morphology....................................................................................................................5 2.1. Noun...................................................................................................................5 2.1.1. Number...........................................................................................................6 2.1.2. Possession.......................................................................................................7 2.1.3. Pronouns .........................................................................................................9 2.1.3.1. Personal pronouns....................................................................................9 2.1.3.2. Determiners ...........................................................................................10 2.1.3.3. Interrogative and relative pronouns ........................................................10 2.1.4. Bodyparts......................................................................................................11 2.1.5. Locative nak= ...............................................................................................13 2.1.6. Determinative ßa- (DTV) ................................................................................14 2.1.7. li…- ‘GENERIC’ (GNC).......................................................................................15 2.1.8. ka…- ‘place of’ (PLC).......................................................................................16 2.2. Modifiers: Adjectives, adverbs, and numerals ...................................................17 2.2.1. Adjectives .....................................................................................................17 2.2.1.1. lak-/laÓ÷- ‘ADJECTIVAL PLURAL’ (APL)......................................................20 2.2.1.2. a…- ‘ADDITIVE’ (ADD) ..............................................................................21 2.2.1.3. -wa ‘SEMBLATIVE’ (SEM) ........................................................................21 2.2.2. Adverbs and ideophones................................................................................22 2.2.3. Numerals and numeral classifiers ..................................................................26 2.3. Verb..................................................................................................................28 2.3.1. Person-affixes ...............................................................................................28 2.3.1.1. Subject-markers .....................................................................................28 2.3.1.2. Object-markers ......................................................................................30 2.3.1.3. Indefinite actors .....................................................................................31 2.3.2. Tense ............................................................................................................32 2.3.3. Aspect...........................................................................................................33 2.3.3.1. Imperfective...........................................................................................33 2.3.3.2. Perfective...............................................................................................35 2.3.3.3. Perfect ...................................................................................................38 2.3.3.4 Progressive ...............................................................................................i 2.3.3.5. Stative verbs ..........................................................................................41 2.3.4. Mood ............................................................................................................45 2.3.4.1. Optative .................................................................................................45 2.3.4.2. Unrealized..............................................................................................48 2.3.4.3. Counterfactual........................................................................................51 2.3.5. Valency-altering affixes ................................................................................52 2.3.5.1. Causatives..............................................................................................52 2.3.5.2. Applicatives...........................................................................................58 2.3.5.3. Valency-reducers ...................................................................................64 2.3.6. Bodypart prefixes..........................................................................................70 2.3.7. Quasi-inflectional affixes ..............................................................................73 2.3.7.1. -pa…lá… ‘REPETITIVE’ (RPT).......................................................................73 2.3.7.2. -÷o ‘all, completely’ ...............................................................................74 2.3.7.3. -te…¬á ‘AMBULATIVE’ (AMB) ....................................................................75 2.3.7.4. te…- ‘in passing’ (PATH)...........................................................................76 2.3.7.5. ki…- ‘ROUNDTRIP’ (RT) .............................................................................77 2.3.7.6. -tßá ‘DISTAL’ (DST) .................................................................................77 2.3.7.7. -tßi ‘PROXIMAL’ (PRX) .............................................................................79 2.3.7.8. -kutún ‘DESIDERATIVE’ (DSD)..................................................................79 2.3.7.9. -eÓ… ‘OBLIGATION’ (OBG)...........................................................................80 2.3.7.10. maÓ÷- ‘in the domain of others’ (AJENO)...................................................80 2.3.7.11. lak-/laÓ÷- ‘DISTRIBUTIVE’ (DTB)................................................................81 2.3.7.12. ÷a…- ‘SIMULTANEOUS’ (SMT)....................................................................83 2.3.8. Derivation from verbs ...................................................................................83 2.3.8.1. -niÔ ‘DEVERBATIVE’ (DVB)........................................................................83 2.3.8.2. Prosodic apophony.................................................................................88 2.3.8.3. -(V)t ‘NOMINALIZER’ (NM) ......................................................................90 2.3.8.4. Instrumental nominalization...................................................................90 2.3.8.5. -nV ÂÓ ‘AGENTIVE NOMINALIZER’ (AGT).......................................................91 3. Syntax ..........................................................................................................................92 3.1. Simple sentence ................................................................................................92 3.1.1. Copular clauses .............................................................................................93 3.1.2. Negation........................................................................................................95 3.1.3. Questions ......................................................................................................96 3.2. Complex sentences............................................................................................97 3.2.1. Coordination .................................................................................................97 3.2.2. Subordination................................................................................................98 3.2.2.1. Relative clauses......................................................................................98 3.2.2.2. Complement clauses ............................................................................100 3.2.2.3. Adverbial clauses.................................................................................102 4. Sample text: “The story of a nagual” ..........................................................................106 Bibliography..............................................................................................................112 ii Abbreviations and symbols 1, 2, 3 = first-, second-, third-person LOC = locative ADD = additive MTV