18.1143, Qs: Existential Constructions; Emphatic embracing negation

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LINGUIST List: Vol-18-1143. Sun Apr 15 2007. ISSN: 1068 - 4875.

Subject: 18.1143, Qs: Existential Constructions; Emphatic embracing negation

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1)
Date: 12-Apr-2007
From: Ljuba Veselinova < ljuba at ling.su.se >
Subject: Existential Constructions 

2)
Date: 12-Apr-2007
From: Hilary Barnes < hab183 at psu.edu >
Subject: Emphatic embracing negation

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-------------------------Message 1 ---------------------------------- 
Date: Sun, 15 Apr 2007 17:50:14
From: Ljuba Veselinova < ljuba at ling.su.se >
Subject: Existential Constructions 
 


In English (as well as other languages I am familiar with) existence can be
expressed by a special 'existential construction' as in (i) below or by a
clause with the verb 'exist' as in (ii)

(i) There is such a thing as non-alcoholic beer
(ii) Non-alcololic beer exists

(i) represents the 'normal'/frequent/unmarked way to express existence
whereas (ii) can be shown to be marked in many ways: it is less frequently
used, functionally restricted etc.

When grammars report on existential constructions, typically constructions
of the type of (i) are presented. I would like to check in what other
languages there is marked construction like (ii) above used to express
existence.

The languages I know are Bulgarian, Swedish, French and Russian. I would
very much appreciate data from other languages.

Thanks a lot in advance! I will post a summary if there is enough interest.

All good wishes,
Ljuba 

Linguistic Field(s): Typology


	
-------------------------Message 2 ---------------------------------- 
Date: Sun, 15 Apr 2007 17:50:17
From: Hilary Barnes < hab183 at psu.edu >
Subject: Emphatic embracing negation 

	

Non-canonical or emphatic negation, as exemplified in (1), implies a
correction on the hearer's presuppositions that something happened when it,
in fact, did NOT happen. 

(1)	I did NOT see Mary.
English uses a special intonation to add this meaning. Other languages
(some dialects of Spanish, Catalan and Veneto, among others) use embracing
negation, which consists of the repetition of the negative marker at the
end of the clause. Consider the following examples in Spanish, Veneto and
Catalan:

(2)	Spanish: embracing negation
No 	  lo 	      vi	           no.
NEG	it	see.1SG.PRET. 	NEG
"I did NOT see it."

(3)	Veneto: embracing negation
No 	   só 	           a  qué         ora 	  que 	         i 	 
neg 	know-1sg  at what 	time 	that 	SCL-3pl
nda         vía 	no.
go-3pl there 	neg

"I do NOT know what time they are going."
(4)	Catalan: embracing negation
No	     l'      he         vist 	       no,    a la          meva 	
neg	cl.3sg.	see 1sg.pres.pft. neg.	to the 	mygermana. sister

"I have NOT seen my sister."
The repetition of the negative marker at the end (embracing negation) is
used to convey the meaning of a non-canonical negation. We are interested
in the extension of this phenomenon as well as its development. Thus, we
would like to know: 
(a)	the languages where this structure is present,
(b)	the meaning of this structure; is it emphatic ?,
(c)	the possibility of omitting the first negative marker,
(d)	if the language is in contact with any other language. 

Linguistic Field(s): General Linguistics
                     Syntax
 



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