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Article published In:
Language and Linguistics
Vol. 24:2 (2023) ► pp.391–436

A more special use of the third person singular pronoun in Shanghainese

| Shanghai International Studies University

This paper investigates the syntax and semantics of the third person singular pronoun ɦi⁶ in Shanghainese in its non-referential use. Evidence from its phonological dependence and syntactic integration with the preceding host verb is presented to show that the non-referential ɦi⁶ is a clitic. It is further observed that this use of ɦi⁶ requires licensing from the [+subjunctive] feature, echoing Qian (2004) and Jin (2016). However, my analysis diverges from theirs in treating the ɦi⁶ in question as an expletive licensed by the [+subjunctive] feature, rather than a subjunctive marker itself on grounds that it is not obligatory in a subjunctive sentence and that the subjunctivity must always be encoded by other elements in the sentence. ɦi⁶ in this use serves as an emphatic, strengthening the effect of deontic or imperative force in subjunctive contexts. Furthermore, it is shown that the licensing must obey a locality condition, whereby the expletive ɦi⁶ must be licensed by a c-commanding licenser in its local domain. From the perspective of grammaticalization, I propose that ɦi⁶ is going through an intermediate stage of becoming a purely modal functional marker. A final stage of this “upward” grammaticalization can be found in the expletive use of the third person pronoun keoi in Cantonese, which has become a more grammaticalized marker that has scope over the sentence. It is pointed out that the development of the expletive pronoun suggests that being at the right-periphery is a crucial factor in motivating and facilitating grammaticalization in Chinese. Last, a comparison between the non-referential ɦi⁶ and the Mandarin non-referential third person pronoun ta in the V-ta-ge-NP/AP construction is presented, showing that both cases manifest interactions between VP-internal projections and higher functional categories.

Keywords: expletive, mood/modal, clitic, locality condition, grammaticalization
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Distinguishing ɦi⁶ 2 from D-pronouns
    • 2.1Syntactic position of ɦi⁶ 2
    • 2.2Antecedent
    • 2.3Semantic constraints
  • 3.Non-referential ɦi⁶ 2 as a clitic
    • 3.1Phonological dependence
    • 3.2Host
    • 3.3Scope
  • 4.Deriving V-ɦi⁶ 2 structure
    • 4.1The licensing condition of ɦi⁶ 2: Subjunctive
    • 4.2Deriving V-ɦi⁶ 2 structure: Locality condition
    • 4.3Advantages and implications of the analysis
  • 5.Further implications on grammaticalization
    • 5.1Why subjunctive? Why agentive?
    • 5.2Some speculations on the grammaticalization process
    • 5.3A comparison between ɦi⁶ 2 and ta
  • 6.Concluding remarks
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Abbreviations
  • 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: 9 April 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/lali.00135.zhu
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