Arabic-L:LING:Silent 3ms suffix pronoun in dialects query

[Dilworth Parkinson]

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Arabic-L: Fri 24 Oct  2003
Moderator: Dilworth Parkinson <dilworth_parkinson at byu.edu>
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1) Subject:Silent 3ms suffix pronoun in dialects query

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1)
Date: 24 Oct  2003
From: "Michael T. Wescoat" <wescoat at cruzio.com>
Subject:Silent 3ms suffix pronoun in dialects query

I am interested in a phenomenon in certain Arabic vernaculars
where masculine third-person singular attached pronouns (`him'
or `his') are realized by empty morphs when suffixed to
vowel-final stems. For example, Erwin (1963, p. 283) cites the
following paradigm from Iraqi Arabic for the preposition
_wiyya_ `with':

        MSg         FSg           Pl
   3  wiyyaa     wiyyaa-ha    wiyyaa-hum
   2  wiyyaa-k   wiyyaa-c     wiyyaa-kum
   1       wiyyaa-ya          wiyyaa-na

All of these forms display the "suffixing stem" which ends
in a long vowel, as opposed to the independent form _wiyya_,
which ends in a short vowel.  The 3MSg form _wiyyaa_ `with
him' differs from the rest of the paradigm in that it
consists of just the suffixing stem with no audible pronoun
suffix; all the other forms express the pronoun explicitly.

I wish to know more about the geographic distribution of this
phenomenon.  Erwin (1963, 1969) describes this phenomenon in
Iraqi Arabic, and Cowell (1964) discusses it with reference
to Syrian Arabic.  Also Sieny (1978) describes a similar
phenomenon in Urban Hijazi Arabic, where the zero morph may
alternate with _-h_ after a vowel-final stem.

   Where else (geographically) is the zero-morph 3MSg
   pronoun used??????

   Are there grammars for other vernaculars that include
   descriptions, however brief, of this phenomenon??????

I am very, very, very new to Arabic linguistics, and I know
very, very, very little about the literature and nothing
whatsoever about Arabic dialect geography.  Please deluge
me with any information you possess about this phenomenon.
If you say something like this in your dialect, please tell
me; if you know of a grammar that mentions such a paradigm,
please tell me.  NO observation or reference is too obvious
to bother pointing out.

Many, many thanks in advance,
Michael T. Wescoat, UC Santa Cruz
wescoat at cruzio.com

P.S.  Can anyone recommend a good general introduction to
Arabic dialectology?  Thanks again.

Cowell, Mark W. 1964. A Reference Grammar of Syrian Arabic",
     Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press.

Erwin, Wallace M. 1963. A Short Reference Grammar of Iraqi
     Arabic, Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press.

Erwin, Wallace M. 1969. A Basic Course in Iraqi Arabic,
     Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press.

Sieny, Mahmoud Isma'il. 1978. The Syntax of Urban Hijazi
     Arabic, London and Beirut: Longman Group Ltd. and
     Librairie du Liban [Ph.D. dissertation, Georgetown
     University, 1972].

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End of Arabic-L:  24 Oct  2003