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Do adnominal property words (defined semantically as property concepts; value, shape, age, dimension) used attributively require the same morphological treatment as verbs?

Summary

This feature asks whether adnominal property words, synonymous with "adjectives" in certain linguistic contexts,require significantly similar morphological treatment as verbs when used attributively, i.e. within a noun phrase (NP). This includes instances when property words are used in their relativized forms. Keep in mind that property words do not need to bear all verbal markings. If there exists at least some shared marking between verbal and adnominal property words, this is coded as 1. Even non-finite forms such as participles are considered as attributively used verbs. As an example, if the language forms modifying verbs by participles ('the running man') and this is similarly applied for adnominal property word roots ('the redding man'), including their relativized forms, this counts as 1.

Procedure

1. Code 1 if adnominal property words, including in their relativized forms, receive markers which are used on attributive verbs (e.g. participles or relativized verbs).
2. Code 1 if neither adnominal property words nor attributive verbs receive marking.
3. Code 0 if adnominal property words are obligatorily accompanied by elements which are not obligatory with attributive verbs.
4. Code 1 if some adnominal property words follow this pattern whereas others do not.

Examples

Choctaw (ISO 639-3: cho, Glottolog: choc1276)

Coded 1. The grammar states that Choctaw likely does not have a lexical class of adjectives and that their meanings are conveyed via stative verbs. The author states, however, that is useful to use the term 'adjective' because they show "peculiarities not shared by other verbs." Choctaw verbs require a tense marker. Adnominal adjectives must also take a tense marker as seen in the examples below (Broadwell 2006: 50–51, 172–173, 221–225).

(1) Hattak  chaaha-h  pga-li-tok. 
    man     tall-TNS  see:INCMPL-1SG.CL1-PST
   ‘I saw the tall man.’ (Broadwell 2006: 173)

(2) Hattak-at    chaaha-h.
    man-NOM      tall-TNS
   ‘The man is tall.’ (Broadwell 2006: 51)

Akha (ISO 639-3: ahk, Glottolog: akha1245)

Coded 0. Adjectives are generally stative verbs, however, when used attributively they take the prefix jɔ- which denotes a temporary quality. This prefix does not appear on verbs (Hansson 2017: 893–894).

ŋɑ̀-sjhà         jɔ-né
CL.fish-fish    ADJ-red
‘red fish’ (Hansson 2017: 893)

Further reading

Dixon, R. M. W. 2010. Basic linguistic theory, Volume 2: Grammatical topics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

References

Broadwell, George Aaron. 2006. A Choctaw reference grammar. (Studies in the Anthropology of North American Indians.) Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Hansson, Inga-Lill. 2017. Akha. In Graham Thurgood & Randy J. LaPolla (eds), The Sino-Tibetan languages, 885–901. London: Routledge.

Related Features

• GB068 Do property words (defined semantically as property concepts such as value, shape, age, dimension) act like verbs in predicative position?

Patron

Jay Latarche and Jeremy Collins