[Lingtyp] languages where 'able, can' and 'until, up to' are polysemous/homophonous

[Timur Maisak]

Dear Ellen,
another common source for both meanings can be "arrive at, reach": the
World Lexicon of Grammaticalization by Kuteva et al. (2019: 63-64) contains
two relevant grammaticalization paths, namely
*arrive* (‘arrive at’, ‘reach’) > (2) *pi-possibility (Ability)* - with
examples from Koranko, Mandarin Chinese
and
*arrive *(‘arrive at’, ‘reach’) > (4) *until (temporal)* - with examples
from Sinitic languages, also Khmer, Zande, Bulu, Kikuyu, Tswana

Best,
Timur Maisak

вт, 5 янв. 2021 г. в 15:53, David Gil <gil at shh.mpg.de>:

>
> Dear Ellen.
>
>
> A possible diachronic case of what you're looking for is provided by the
> biconsonantal Semitic root morpheme *k-l*.
>
>
>
> Appended below is a passage from an encyclopaedia article on quantifiers
> about the realizations and functions of *k-l* in Hebrew.  Among these
> functions you can find 'be able to' and 'ability'.  As for 'until', you
> can express that periphrastically by means of the *k-l-y* root meaning
> 'finish', though it's not the most common way of expressing that meaning.
>
>
>
> So Hebrew gives you the coexpression you're looking for, with the provisos
> that the relationship between the two is indirect, being mediated by
> several additional functions, and also synchronically opaque, reflecting
> word-formation processes  some of which may date back to proto-Semitic or
> even earlier.
>
>
> Speculating, the range of functions of Semitic *k-l *might be consistent
> with paths of grammaticalization somewhat like the following, which, in
> conjunction, would yield can/until coexpression:
>
>
> HAVE MASTERY OVER > FINISH > UNTIL
>
> HAVE MASTERY OVER > CAN
>
>
>
> *****
>
>
>
> "Consider, for example, the Modern Hebrew universal quantifier *kol*
> 'all'.  Synchronically it is clearly monomorphemic; however, in its
> diachronic origins, it reflects an ancient biconsonantal root morpheme
> *k-l*.  Such roots form the basis of much of the Afroasiatic lexicon;
> however, in the Semitic family, the biconsonantal roots are often expanded
> into tri-consonantal ones, by the addition of a third root consonant.  Resulting
> from this historical process, and also from the synchronic processes of
> word formation in Modern Hebrew, is a large family of words, all containing
> reflexes of the original root *k-l *morpheme, and all connected via a
> semantic network based on the related concepts of ability, containment,
> consumption, exhaustiveness, and the like.  Some members of this family
> include verbal forms such as *yaxal* 'be able to' (from root *y-k-l*);
> *axal* 'eat', *ʔikel* 'consume' (*ʔ-k-l*); *ʕikel* 'digest' (*ʕ-k-l*);
> *kala* 'end', 'cease to exist'; *kila* 'finish', 'exterminate' (*k-l-y*);
> *kala* 'imprison' (*k-l-ʔ*); *kal* 'measure', *hexil* 'contain' (*k-w-l*);
> *kiyel* 'calibrate' (*k-y-l*); *kalal* 'include', *hixlil* 'generalize',
> *šixlel* 'improve' (*k-l-l*); and *kilkel* 'support', 'provide for' (
> *k-l-k-l*); and also related nominal forms such as *oxel* 'food'; *kli*
> 'utensil'; *kila* 'bed curtain'; *meyxal* 'container'; *heyxal* 'palace';
> *mixlala* 'college'; *makolet* 'grocery store'; *kele* 'jail'; *klal*
> 'rule'; *kilayon* 'extermination'; *yexolet* 'ability'; *kalkala*
> 'economy' and many others.  (Note that in many of the above examples, *k*
> is reflected by its allophone *x*.)"
>
>
>
> Gil, David (2001) "Quantifiers", in M. Haspelmath, E. König, W.
> Oesterreicher and W. Raible eds., *Language Typology and Linguistic
> Universals, An International Handbook*, Volume 2, Walter de Gruyter,
> Berlin, 1275-1294.
>
>
>
>
>
> On 05/01/2021 14:11, Smith-Dennis, Ellen wrote:
>
> Happy New Year all!
>
> Could you help?
>
> I'm looking for languages where the word for 'able, can' is
> polysemous/homophonous with 'until, up to, for (X amount of time)'. This is
> the case in Papapana (Austronesian, Papua New Guinea) and Tok Pisin
> (pidgin/creole, PNG) so I'm especially (but not only!) interested in
> languages of the Pacific region.
>
> Many thanks in advance,
> Ellen
> E.Smith-Dennis at warwick.ac.uk
>
> *Dr. Ellen Smith-Dennis, FHEA*
> Assistant Professor
> Widening Participation/Schools Liaison Officer
> Centre for Applied Linguistics, The University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4
> 7AL
> Email: E.Smith-Dennis at warwick.ac.uk OR E.L.Smith at uon.edu.au
> Tel: (+44) (0)24 76 575912 (internal: 75912)
>
> _______________________________________________
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>
> --
> David Gil
>
> Senior Scientist (Associate)
> Department of Linguistic and Cultural Evolution
> Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History
> Kahlaische Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
>
> Email: gil at shh.mpg.de
> Mobile Phone (Israel): +972-556825895
> Mobile Phone (Indonesia): +62-81344082091
>
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