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Lexical Polycategoriality: Cross-linguistic, cross-theoretical and language acquisition approaches
Edited by Valentina Vapnarsky and Edy Veneziano
[Studies in Language Companion Series 182] 2017
► pp. 101–153

Polycategoriality and hybridity across Mayan languages

Action nouns and ergative splits

| Artis Research
| LESC/EREA-CNRS, Université Paris Nanterre
| LESC/EREA-CNRS, Université Paris Nanterre
| LESC-CNRS, Université Paris Nanterre

This article presents a comparative study of Mayan languages belonging to three different branches (Cholan, Tseltalan and Yucatecan), with respect to polycategoriality. Mayan languages appear to be particularly interesting for exploring polycategoriality for several structural reasons, as well as for the way relevant properties vary across the Mayan family. We analyze levels and processes of categorial determination and their relationship with other facts, in particular the ergative splits (aspectual and agentive). We study morphophonological, morphosyntactic and semantic properties for evaluating polycategoriality at the root or stem level. At the structure level, we put forth the hypothesis of a hybrid nature based on simultaneous nominal and verbal properties. For some cases, a reanalysis from nominal to verbal stems is proposed.

Keywords: Mayan languages, lexical category, polycategoriality, ergativity, verbal noun, agency
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • 1.Three contrasting Mayan branches: Yucatecan, Cholan, Tseltalan
  • 2.Main word-formation patterns for V/N changes and polycategoriality
    • 2.1The semantics of nouns in possible polycategorial pairs
    • 2.2Implications for roots and lexical categories
  • 3.Polycategoriality and the aspectual split
    • 3.1 Action nouns and the imperfective: Main constructions
    • 3.2The role of Aspect in imperfective constructions
      • 3.2.1Aspect as main predicate
      • 3.2.2The prepositional construction (PC)
      • 3.2.3Direct combination with Aspect (DCA)
        • 3.2.3.1Contrasting properties of Aspect markers
        • 3.2.3.2DCA in Yucatecan languages
        • 3.2.3.3DCA in Cholan languages and Tseltal
      • 3.2.4Adverbial distribution in PC and DCA
      • 3.2.5The –Vl suffix
    • 3.3Conclusive remarks on imperfective forms, hybridity and polycategoriality
  • 4.Agentives and the agentive split
    • 4.1Agentives in Yucatecan languages
    • 4.2Agentives in Cholan languages
    • 4.3An agentive/non-agentive distinction in Tseltal?
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 1 November 2017
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.182.05loi
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