From ergative case-marking to hierarchical agreement
A reconstruction of the argument-marking system of Reyesano
(Takanan, Bolivia)
Antoine Guillaume | Laboratoire Dynamique du Language (CNRS & Université Lyon 2)
This paper reconstructs the history of a set of innovated 1st and 2nd
person verbal prefixes in Reyesano which manifest the phenomenon of
‘hierarchical agreement’ in transitive clauses, according to a
2>1>3 hierarchy. I argue that these prefixes come from
independent ergative-absolutive pronouns which first became
case-neutral enclitics in 2nd position in main clauses and then verb
prefixes. And I show that the hierarchical effects that the prefixes
manifest in synchrony have nothing to do with the working of a
hierarchy during the grammaticalization process. In doing so, the
paper contributes to the growing body of diachronic evidence against
the idea that the person hierarchy is a universal of human language
reflecting a more general principal of human cognition.
Article outline
1.Introduction
2.Reyesano argument-marking system
2.1Marking of nominal and pronominal NPs
2.2Verbal agreement
2.2.13rd person agreement
2.2.2SAP agreement
3.
Araona, Cavineña, Ese Ejja and Tacana argument-marking
systems
3.1Ergative marking of nominal and pronominal NPs
3.2Verbal agreement
4.Reconstructing the history of the Reyesano argument-marking
system
4.1Loss of ergative case marking
4.2Rise of person prefixes
4.2.1Innovation rather than retention
4.2.2From independent pronouns to agreement prefixes
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