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Article published In:
Linguistics in the Netherlands 2023
Edited by Sterre Leufkens and Marco Bril
[Linguistics in the Netherlands 40] 2023
► pp. 155–177

Copular constructions in Makhuwa‑Enahara

| Université Libre de Bruxelles
| Leiden University

This paper describes the possible predication strategies in Makhuwa-Enahara and under what circumstances each occurs. Makhuwa-Enahara (Bantu P31E) has three main copular constructions: Predicative Lowering, the invariant copulas ti (affirmative) and kahi (negative), and the verbal copulas ori and okhala. It was previously posited that the choice between predication strategies depended on the syntactic type of the predicate, but further analysis shows that deference is instead given to the semantic type of the predication. The underlying structures of Makhuwa-Enahara are identical for Equation, Predication, and Identification; Specification shows a different structure, and Locative predication yet another. Predicative Lowering and the invariant copula are argued to be different spell-outs of the Pred head, depending on its raised position within the syntactic tree and whether or not the initial element of the predicate is long enough to undergo Predicative Lowering.

Keywords: Bantu, morphosyntax, copula, non-verbal predication, Makhuwa
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Copulas
  • 3.Predication strategies in Makhuwa
    • 3.1Predicative Lowering
    • 3.2The invariant copula
    • 3.3The verbal copulas
    • 3.4Non-verbal negation
  • 4.Predication strategy selection
    • 4.1Selection for tense
    • 4.2Selection for phonology
    • 4.3Selection for non-verbal predication type
  • 5.The structure of non-verbal predication
    • 5.1Predication, Equation, and Identification
    • 5.2Specification
    • 5.3Short predicates and non-verbal negation
    • 5.4Non-present
    • 5.5Locative
  • 6.Summary
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Abbreviations and symbols
  • References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license.

For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at [email protected].

Published online: 3 November 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/avt.00085.kuj
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