Pernilla Hallonsten Halling

[attr pred] lexeme overlap

Almost two thirds of the sample languages (37/60) have a lexeme overlap of the attr and pred functions. Note that this overlap is encountered in more languages on the lexeme level than on the root level. However, many languages with an overlap of attr and pred on the lexeme level include roots that are used also in adv, thereby yielding a total overlap on the root level. The lexeme level overlaps of attr and pred are attested in the form of adjectives, as items where adjectives cannot be distinguished from or property words are found among nouns, and as stative verbs. The lexemes manifesting the overlap belonging to a traditional adjective class (i.e. a class of property words that are used attributively and predicatively) are discussed under the heading ‘Adjectives’ below. Those languages where the items used in the overlap cannot be distinguished from nouns are described under the heading ‘Nouns/adjectives’. Finally, the languages that have stative verbs in their overlap of attr and pred are exemplified in the section named ‘Stative verbs’. The results of the [attr pred] overlap are summarized at the end of the section with a table of all languages where the overlap is attested.

Adjectives

Mam (Mayan) has Adjectives in attr and pred, suffixed with a person marker (which may be zero) in pred (England 1983: 75).
(6.14) Mam (Mayan) (England 1983: 149, 238)

1. 
   ajaj
   

dem
oox
three
tx’yaan
dog
saq

white

attr

‘these three white dogs’

2. 
   saq-Ø
   

white-3sg.abs

‘It is white.’


pred

The same lexeme saq ‘white’ is used in the two examples above, but is not attested in adv. Mam thus has an overlap of attr and pred, on the level of the lexeme, instantiated by its Adjectives.

Nouns/adjectives

In some languages, the lexemes used in the attr and pred functions cannot really be distinguished from nouns, although they show some characteristics that nouns in general lack. In Gooniyandi (Bunaban), such an apparent subclass of Nouns can be identified: its members do not occur in all the roles that Nouns in general do. In attr, they may either precede or follow the head that they modify.

(6.15) Gooniyandi (Bunaban) (McGregor 1990: 265, 297) [attr pred]

1. 
   yoowooloo
   

man
‘a big man’
nyamani

big

attr

2. 
   ngirndaji
   

this
labawoo

white

jiga
flower
attr

‘This is a white flower.’
In pred, these property lexemes are used in the same form. There is no copula, but
the property lexeme must follow the subject (with very few exceptions). As illustrated in example (6.16), this may result in a meaning overlap, or ambiguity between the attr and pred functions.
(6.16) Gooniyandi (Bunaban) (McGregor 1990: 300) [attr pred]

biliga
middle
thiwa

red

attr/pred

‘The middle is red. / the red middle’
Accordingly, Gooniyandi shows a clear lexeme overlap of attr and pred. Gooniyandi in fact also has an overlap on the level of the construction (see section 7.2). For use in adv, however, a derivational ending must be attached to the property lexemes in question (see examples in appendix B).

Stative verbs

The [attr pred] overlap may also be instantiated by stative verbs. This is attested in Jamul Tiipay (Cochimi-Yuman) and nine other languages. Jamul Tiipay Stative Verbs are used in a relative clause in attr. The whole NP containing the modifier in the form of the relative clause and the head is indicated with square brackets in example (6.17).²
(6.17) Jamul Tiipay (Cochimi-Yuman) (Miller 2001: 207–208) [attr pred]

... shenyaaw-pu
acorn-dem
[suukwiny [pot
kw-atay]-lly
sbj.rel-be.big]-in
shuuwii...
put.in.container
attr

‘... she put the acorn [flour] into a big pot (lit. pot which was big)...’
In pred, the Stative Verb is inflected for person. The Verb ‘to be big’ from (6.17) is used in pred in (6.18).³
(6.18) Jamul Tiipay (Cochimi-Yuman) (Miller 2001: 151, 138) [attr pred]

me-tay
2sg-big
‘you are big’
pred

Jamul Tiipay is thus an example of a languages with an [attr pred] overlap on the level of the lexeme, manifested by stative verbs.
² This example is repeated from (5.5a).
³ This example is repeated from (5.5b).

Summary of languages with [attr preD] lexeme overlap

All languages with an overlap of attr and pred are listed in table 6.4, where it is also indicated what category the lexemes in question belong to. One language that does not fit into the classification of lexemes and that is therefore exemplified here is Kham (Sino- Tibetan), which has nominalized Stative Verbs in attr and pred. While nominalized Action Verbs can also be used in attr, they are not allowed in pred (Watters 2002: 115).

(6.19) Kham (Sino-Tibetan) (Watters 2002: 114, 116)

1. 
   gyo:h-wo
   

big-nmlz

mi:
person
attr

‘the big person’

2. 
   ao
   

this
gyo:h-wo

big-nmlz

li-zya
be-cnt
pred

‘This is big.’

Yimas (Lower Sepik-Ramu) is the only language in the sample that has been found to have two types of lexemes, adjectives and stative verbs, found in both attr and pred. It should nonetheless be emphasized that category boundaries are occasionally difficult to draw. In addition, different language descriptions may use different criteria to posit the same categories. All the more important is the finding that more than half of the sample languages have a lexeme overlap of attr and pred. Clearly, this overlap does not always consist of a traditional adjective class.

overlap no overlap

Figure 6.3. Languages with [attr pred] lexeme overlap

Table 6.4. Languages with [attr pred] lexeme overlap



Languages with adjectives Languages with nouns/adjectives Bambara (Mande) Bininj Gun-Wok (Gunwinyguan) Bukiyip (Nuclear Toricelli) Gooniyandi (Bunaban)
Estonian (Uralic) Imbabura Quechua (Quechuan)
Ewe (Atlantic-Congo) Imonda (Border)
Georgian (Kartvelian) Kewa (Nuclear Trans New Guinean)
Hup (Nadahup) Swahili (Atlantic-Congo)
Jamsay (Dogon) Turkish (Turkic)
Kilivila (Austronesian) Languages with stative verb
Lezgian (Nakh-Daghestanian) Guaraní (Tupian)
Ma’di (Central Sudanic) Jamul Tiipay (Cochimi-Yuman) Maltese (Afro-Asiatic) Kalaallisut (Eskimo-Aleut)
Mam (Mayan) Kambera (Austronesian)
Marathi (Indo-European) Kiowa (Kiowa-Tanoan) Mian (Nuclear Trans New Guinean) Krongo (Kadugli-Krongo) Nama (Khoe-Kwadi) Nishnaabemwin (Algic)
Paumarí (Arawan) Warekena (Arawakan)
Sahaptin (Sahaptian) Yimas (Lower Sepik-Ramu)
Sango (Atlantic-Congo) Languages with

Yagua (Peba-Yaguan) nominalized stative verbs Yankunytjatjara (Pama-Nyungan) Kham (Sino-Tibetan) Yimas (Lower Sepik-Ramu)

2. [pred adv] lexeme overlap

On the level of the lexeme, the overlap of pred and adv is attested in six languages.
As illustrated in section 5.2, Mian (Nuclear Trans New Guinean) is one of the languages in the sample that has a class of simple adverbs. Some of these Adverbs can be used in pred as well, combined with the predicator =o and an enclitic marking illocutionary force. The example pair in (6.20)⁴ illustrates two different Adverbs from the same class used in pred and adv, respectively.
(6.20) Mian (Nuclear Trans New Guinean)(Fedden 2011: 121, 123) [pred adv]

1. 
   ¯e
   

3sg.m
buk
book
ki-m-in=o
read-ipfv-vn=n2
fiab=o=be
slow=prd=decl
pred

‘He reads slowly.’ (lit. ‘His book reading is slow.’)

⁴ Example (6.20b) is repeated from (5.1) in section 5.2.

2. 
   naka=e
   

man=sg.m
hebmamsâb
fast
wen-b-e=be
eat.ipfv-ipfv-3sg.m.sbj=decl
adv

‘The man is eating fast.’
Interestingly, the same type of construction as is found for pred in (6.20a) is also used with Adjectives in pred (see appendix B). A subset of the Adjectives used in the attr and pred functions can also be used in adv, meaning that [pred adv] is not the only overlap attested on the lexeme level in Mian (cf. section 6.4.4). However, the point

illustrated in (6.20) is that Mian is one of the languages with a lexeme overlap of and adv.
pred

Yankunytjatjara (Pama-Nyungan) also has an overlap of pred and adv. According
to Goddard (1985: 17), two classes of Adjectives can be discerned here: a stative class and an active class. Stative Adjectives are primarily used in attr and pred (cf. table 6.4), although some of them can also be used in adv (see table 6.6). Active Adjectives

“essentially describe an actor ‘in action’ ” (1985: 17). They can be used in
pred
and

adv, but not in attr. The term adjective can thus be questioned for the active group. For practical reasons, Goddard’s use of these terms will nonetheless be followed for now. In the pred function, Active Adjectives take nominative case and are combined with an intransitive stance verb such as nyina-Ø ‘sit, live’ (1985: 18). As this is a full lexical verb that can be exchanged for a number of intransitive stance Verbs, this seems to be a case where pred and adv cannot be separated (see section 7.3.2).
(6.21) Yankunytjatjara (Pama-Nyungan) (Goddard 1985: 29) [pred adv]