Open AccessYorùbá Sentential Negative Markers
Author(s) -
Taofeeq A. Adebayo
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
studies in african linguistics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2154-428X
pISSN - 0039-3533
DOI - 10.32473/sal.v50i1.120778
Subject(s) - morpheme , linguistics , allomorph , focus (optics) , psychology , yoruba , mood , philosophy , physics , social psychology , optics
The main claim of this paper is that Yoruba has only four sentential negative markers, kìí, kò, kọ́ and má, contrary to a traditional assumption that there are six of them (Fabunmi 2013). It is argued that these markers can be subcategorized into two morphemes: the k-morpheme and the má-morpheme. The k- and má-morphemes are distinguished based on mood. The k-morpheme is used in realis mood while the má-morpheme is used in irrealis mood. Kìí, kò, and kọ́, which are taken to be allomorphs of the k-morpheme, are distinguished based on aspect and focus. It is shown that when the SN markers occur in a different modal-aspectual environment, this generally gives rise to the kind of form-interpretation mismatches described for functional items in Carlson (2006).