A Study of Second-Position Enclitics in Cebuano

Abstract

Second-position enclitics in Cebuano are syntactically dispensable and truth-conditionally irrelevant; however, they add emotional flavor to utterances. This study investigates second-position enclitics in Cebuano, including their form and how they are used to express stance. The objective of this study is to investigate the form and functions of two groups of second-position enclitics, “aspectual” enclitics, and emphasizer and intensifier enclitics, as well as to examine their distribution in enclitic clusters. Conversational data show that the “aspectual” enclitics convey attitudinal stance: =na can convey emphasis, determination, and desperation, while =pa is used to imply “incompletion” or “lack,” leading to annoyance. In addition, I discuss =man , illustrating how it is used for downtoning and for showing politeness. I also tease apart the meanings of four seemingly synonymous high-frequency enclitics that differ in their relative frequency and preferred position in a cluster. As to function, =ka’ayo and =gyud serve to emphasize and intensify, but =ka’ayo has a scope over a predicate, while =gyud has scope over an entire proposition. On the other hand, =lagi and =gud have to be inspected in discourse: =lagi has the additional function of asserting one’s stance on the hearers, while =gud has the additional element of disagreement or dissatisfaction. Finally, I propose a relative ordering involving these two groups of enclitics in clusters.

Pragmatic functions of formulaic expressions in Cebuano

“…Cebuano language contains various particles that frequently appear in natural conversations. According to Trosdal (1992) in Tanangkingsing (2009), these particles are hardly found in a written corpus as they can only be found in conversations since they are used in particular contexts. Hence, these particles have pragmatic interpretations according to their contextual use.…”

“…Therefore, the speakers infer optimism in their language when they use agreeing formulaic expressions. Tanangkingsing (2009) claims that these pragmatic particles are the common ways to convey positive messages in the Cebuano language. Sometimes, other particles or markers are also attached to these expressions to make a strong emphasis and convey an emotion.…”

“…The radio conversation is in the public domain since it was recorded on-air; therefore, the researchers do not need permission to record the conversation or the radio program. The framework of the study is the Cebuano reference of Tanangkingsing (2009) about particles and common formulaic expressions in the Cebuano language. The analysis of the study is reviewed and evaluated by teachers in linguistics.…”

“…As mentioned earlier, the Cebuano language also contains formulaic expressions, most notably when speakers convey agreement and disagreement. Since these expressions have pragmatic functions or contain meanings beyond literal understanding, they are treated as pragmatic or discourse markers (Tanangkingsing, 2009). van Dijk (1977) asserts that pragmatic functions or pragmatic interpretations are delegated to utterances of natural language that are syntactically well-formed, semantically meaningful, and satisfiable.…”

“…Hence, this study deals with the formulaic expressions of agreeing and disagreeing in the Cebuano language, namely o/ oo, lagi, bitaw, mao, wala, and dili. This study employs qualitative study, specifically discourse analysis, as a method in conducting the study and uses the framework of Tanangkingsing (2009) to analyze the functions of the formulaic expressions of agreeing and disagreeing in the Cebuano language. This study elucidates one of the significant topics in the Cebuano language that discusses the versatility of its pragmatic particles.…”