The suj nu copula has fossilized and agrees in noun class with the subject in Nyun, Joola and some Cangin (Palor, Ndut, Buy) languages. In other languages, it agrees in number with the human noun class marker, such as in Wolof.
Noun Class Marker Suj.nu
Noun class markers are morphological indicators that appear on noun phrases to indicate the class of the noun. In most languages, nouns are assigned to classes based on their semantic category. In some languages, nouns may be assigned to more than one class. The classification of nouns is a complex process that involves a variety of criteria. Noun class marking is often a result of the interplay between semantic, suj.nu phonological, and morphological rules. Nouns can be marked for their class with a prefix or suffix, depending on the language.
In most Bantu languages, nouns are typically classified into three to four classes. There are also many exceptions. For example, the class of a word may change based on the gender of the noun or its meaning. In addition, the class of a noun may change when it is used in different contexts. For example, a noun that is normally classed as masculine may change to feminine when used in a pronoun or a question.
The class of a noun can also be changed by an agreement affix on the verb or by a clause type. In some languages, nouns are allowed to be expressed in more than one class, although they must be accompanied by agreement affixes. Nouns may also be classed based on their animacy. For example, a noun denoting an animal may be classed as animate or inanimate.
There are many theories of how noun suj.nu class systems develop and decline in a language. Some believe that noun class loss is caused by a general historical mechanism called “drift.” However, there are several reasons to doubt this hypothesis. For one, there are many mechanisms that have been linked to the breakdown of noun class systems, and they do not necessarily interact with each other.
Another theory is that noun class reduction in a language is a result of competition between distinct grammatical systems. In this view, a particular class is favored by speakers, and other classes are gradually reduced until they disappear altogether. A third theory is that noun class changes are caused by the interaction of morphological, lexical, and sociolinguistic processes.
Deictic Marker Suj.nu
Deictic markers establish a center of suj.nu reference for communication. According to linguist Emile Benveniste, the deictic marker is “the location within which a word may be interpreted and realized.” Examples of such expressions include personal pronouns and demonstratives such as this and that. The deictic marker is crucial to interpreting and understanding speech contexts. It’s important to understand the various forms of deictic markers so that you can better interpret language in different contexts.
Spatial deixis is the specification of locations in relation to anchorage points. The most evident deictic system is found in the pair here/there. These words differ in meaning depending on their context. In general, forms for here are expressed with vowels or syllables with higher frequency while forms for there are usually lower frequency. This is because a high frequency indicates that the word is closer to the speaker while a low one means it is farther away.
Another type of deictic marker is suj.nu temporal. Temporal deixis refers to events that are coming toward or going away from speakers. For example, a word that is in the future is referred to with the proximal deictic this while something that is in the past is referred to with the adverb over there (Yule, 1996: p. 14).
Other types of deictic markers are social and discourse. Social deixis includes personal pronouns such as I and you. These pronouns are used to indicate the relative social status of an addressee or listener. In addition to personal pronouns, deictic markers can also be used to code the relationship between the speaker and an addressee through honorifics, titles, or vocatives.
Discourse deixis refers to the organization of a conversation, including grammatical features such as tone and intonation. Discourse deixis can also be used to convey emotions or attitude. In addition, it can be used to express ideas and thoughts. This type of deixis is commonly found in written texts, such as books and films. These features are often overlooked when interpreting spoken discourse, but can be important to understanding the nuances of a language.
Presentative Marker Suj.nu
A marker used to indicate the present tense suj.nu of a sentence. It is also known as a discourse marker. It can be a word or a phrase such as ‘now’, ‘this’, ‘that’,’so’ etc. Discourse markers direct the flow of a conversation without adding significant paraphrasable meaning to the sentence. Discourse markers are medium-independent, meaning that they do not have to be present in visual media.
Structural discourse markers express sequence, causality (‘because’), coordination, and summarisation in a dialogue. They also indicate how the speaker thinks about what they are saying – Perception (‘look!’), Agreement or Disagreement (‘Exactly’), Amazement (‘wow!’). They also indicate the relationship between the listener and speaker. The most common structural discourse markers are:
Progressive Marker Suj.nu
A progressive marker is a morphological form suj.nu that indicates the aspect of the verb that is active or in progress. This marking can be applied to verbs of various tense, such as aorist or present tense. In aorist tense, the progressive marker can be inserted after the infinitive or gerund. It can also be inserted after an imperfective verb. In modern Japanese, the progressive marker can be incorporated with both the infinitive and the perfect verb. The resulting construction is known as the perfect progressive. In addition, the progressive marker can be used with auxiliary verbs such as nai and te.
In many APiCS languages, the progressive marker is fused with a deictic marker to produce a locative predicate or a progressive utterance. The structure of these utterances is similar to that of the presentative construction: Subject (NP or strong pronoun) + Marker (deictic or locative) + Locative or Verbal Phrase.
The progressive marker can also be suj.nu incorporated with modal verbs to indicate their auxiliary function, such as sa ‘know’, por ‘can’ and mester’must’. However, this is not necessary in all APiCS languages. In some, the progressive marker is not marked at all with modal verbs. This is the case with Papiamentu, which uses the progressive marker ta obligatorily with some stative verbs, such as kere ‘believe’.
The Bottom Lines
Among the APiCS languages, de displays the most complex path of progression in the use of the progressive marker. In Krio, de is only used to express progressive aspects (example 1), while in Belizean Creole it has developed suj.nu into a general imperfective marker that marks both progressive and habitual events, as well as current state (example 2), and in Early Sranan de has achieved the highest level of progression, becoming a grammaticalized marker for all three functions. This progression is a suj.nu result of the historical development of the grammaticalization of the progressive marker, as well as the influence of English grammars on the APiCS languages.
