[Lingtyp] Term needed

[Zingler, Tim]

Hi all,


there’s a verbal prefix “der-“ in Bavarian/Austrian German (but not in Standard German), one of whose functions appears to be exactly the same as that of the Philippine constructions you mention. I say “appears to” because I’m not a native speaker of those varieties and mostly know about this element because I ask my native-speaking students and colleagues about it all the time. In case it’s relevant, this seems to be an actual, bona fide prefix, not a “separable” one (which is a contradiction in terms anyway).


The few sources dedicated to this prefix that I’m aware of are all in German. Of the ones freely available, this one is perhaps the most substantive:


https://www.jstor.org/stable/41698956



The author describes the relevant function as “circumstantial modality.” I personally like to think of it as an “anti-frustrative” but haven’t put too much thought into the matter.

Best,

Tim
________________________________
Von: Lingtyp <lingtyp-bounces at listserv.linguistlist.org> im Auftrag von Tom Payne <tpayne at uoregon.edu>
Gesendet: Donnerstag, 11. Mai 2023 21:04
An: lingtyp at listserv.linguistlist.org
Cc: Voltaire Oyzon
Betreff: [Lingtyp] Term needed

Greetings. We have recently come across two constructions in a Philippine language that we need a good term for. These are morphosyntactic constructions involving a dependent verb form and unusual case marking. The meaning of both constructions is that the actor accomplished the activity after overcoming some obstacle. With one construction, the obstacle is understood as internal/psychological, while with the other the obstacle is more external. Translation into English is challenging, but the senses lie somewhere in the areas of “be able to VERB” and “manage to VERB”, though there is a distinct abilitive construction. We are considering the term “vincentive” for these constructions, based on the Latin verb vincere. We would appreciate any and all suggestions on this term, or other possibilities. Also, if anyone else has encountered such a construction, we would very much like to hear about it.
Thank you.
Tom Payne and Voltaire Oyzon
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