prefixing verbal template and OV

[De Reuse, Willem]

Dear Guillaume, bonjour!

Thank you for sharing this.  I will definitely send you comments.  One comment on your statement that "there are very few strict OV languages with mainly prefixing verbal templates (as far as I know only Na-Dene, Ienissean and Rgyalrong)".  I can think of one other language family, Siouan, which would also conform to this description.   So you might want to write to the Siouanist language discussion group as well. They are a pretty lively bunch.

Best,

Willem de Reuse
________________________________
From: ATHAPBASCKAN-L [ATHAPBASCKAN-L at LISTSERV.LINGUISTLIST.ORG] on behalf of Guillaume Jacques [rgyalrongskad at GMAIL.COM]
Sent: Sunday, September 15, 2013 6:28 AM
To: ATHAPBASCKAN-L at LISTSERV.LINGUISTLIST.ORG
Subject: prefixing verbal template and OV

Dear Athabaskanists, yá'át'ééh !

I have just published an article (in Linguistic Typology) on the issue of disharmony between affix ordering and basic word order. Here is an offprint:

http://www.academia.edu/2008163/Harmonization_and_disharmonization_of_affix_ordering_and_basic_word_order

The article mainly discusses the verbal template of Japhug Rgyalrong, a polysynthetic Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Eastern Tibet  (which, like Athabaskan languages, has strict verb final order with overwhelmingly prefixing verbal morphology) in a historical perspective (how particular morphemes were grammaticalized as prefixes rather than suffixes, despites the fact that the basic corresponding construction should have led to the grammaticalization as suffixes).

I did not really discuss Athabaskan in detail due to my insufficient knowledge of this field. However, I think that typologically similar phenomena are probably attested in Athabaskan.

I would be much interested to have feedback from Athabaskanists on this particular topic (in particular, concerning the idea proposed by Givón 2000 on the origin of some prefixes in Tolowa); there are very few strict OV languages with mainly prefixing verbal templates (as far as I know only Na-Dene, Ienissean and Rgyalrong), and typological comparison of the morphosyntax of these languages could be interesting, but it is not a one-man project.

Best wishes to all of you,

Guillaume Jacques


--
Guillaume Jacques
CNRS (CRLAO) - INALCO
http://cnrs.academia.edu/GuillaumeJacques
http://himalco.hypotheses.org/
http://panchr.hypotheses.org/
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