Chapter in:
Grammatical and Sociolinguistic Aspects of Ethiopian LanguagesEdited by Derib Ado, Almaz Wasse Gelagay and Janne Bondi Johannessen †
[IMPACT: Studies in Language, Culture and Society 48] 2021
► pp. 229–244
Case-marking in Semitic in the light of the evidence in the Ethiopian language area
Linguistic convergence and divergence
Lutz Edzard | University of Erlangen-Nürnberg
Languages in the Ethiopian language area typically exhibit a
two-case system from a morphological point of view. This paper discusses the
question as to how this observation can be aligned with the circumstance that, for
Semitic in general, a three-case system is usually reconstructed. It will be argued
that case endings can also emerge in a secondary process, as is widely recognised in
typological linguistics, and that the cyclicity observed in this context can well be
framed in terms of processes of linguistic convergence and divergence. Thereby, both
the morphological aspects of case as well as the thematic roles of case will be
discussed.
Keywords: Amharic, Afroasiatic, Arabic, Berber, case, convergence, Cushitic, Gəʿəz, Hebrew, Omotic, re-analysis, thematic roles
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