A Discourse Explanation of the Transitivity Phenomena in Kavalan, Squliq, and Tsou

Abstract

In this study, we investigate the discourse-functional properties of the extended intransitive clause (EIC) in relation to other clause types in three Formosan languages: Tsou, Kavalan, and Squliq. We offer evidence, based on tracking behavior of NPs, to show that case-marking in EICs is motivated by a core/oblique distinction, and that the core/oblique distinction arises in a systematic way from recurrent patterns in discourse. The referents of the oblique-marked argument nominals in EICs in these languages are shown to be consistently much less likely to be tracked or to be continuous than either the nominative or the ergative argument of a nonactor voice clause. The data derived from investigating the tracking behavior of noun phrases suggest that the validity of a grammatical transitive/intransitive distinction in these languages is quite robust, and that the distinction can best be correctly discerned by examining the functioning of various argument nominals in discourse.

Voice and Valency Morphology in Äiwoo

“…The relative prominence or salience of participants is a key factor in symmetrical voice systems in general; see eg. Naylor (1986) and Himmelmann (2005b) on Tagalog, Arka ( 2008) on eastern Indonesian languages, or Huang and Tanangkingsing (2011) on Formosan languages. It may also be noted that the suffixes marking the actor argument in the undergoer voice (and the circumstantial voice, to be discussed in section 5) reflect POc possessive pronouns; this again patterns with Western Austronesian voice systems, where the actor in nonactor voices is marked by possessive forms.…”

Restrictions on wh-in situ in Kavalan and Amis

“…cut.down-PV-3ERG ABS pillar GEN house GEN old.woman 'They cut down the pillars of the old woman's house.' Huang and Tanangkingsing (2011) have further argued that the discourse distinction between salient/topical and non-salient/non-topical arguments in Kavalan has been grammaticalized as the formal distinction between core and oblique arguments in the morphosyntactic case system. Their discourse study on Kavalan reveals that the absolutive DP in a patient voice sentence is more topical than the tu-marked oblique DP in an agent voice sentence with regard to their participant tracking behaviors in discourse.…”

Voice at the Crossroads: Symmetrical Clause Alternations in Äiwoo, Reef Islands, Solomon Islands

“…Arka (2008:196) suggests that in various eastern Indonesian languages, promotion to core/ SUBJ status, that is, being selected as the most prominent argument by the voice system, is licensed by pragmatic prominence. Huang and Tanangkingsing (2011), in discussing the Formosan languages Kavalan, Squliq, and Tsou, use the term "saliency," and note that this is not a property of the verb as such, but of the entire discourse context "at the point of planning for the production of a discourse fragment" (Huang and Tanangkingsing 2011:115). Wouk (1996), writing about voice alternations in Indonesian, employs the term "thematicity" and defines it in terms of "being the focus of attention."…”