Typological Studies in Language
Creoles, their Substrates, and Language Typology
edited by Claire Lefebure
95
Creoles, their Substrates, and Language Typology
Typological Studies in Language (TSL) A companion series to the journal Studies in Language. Volumes in this series are functionally and typologically oriented, covering specific topics in language by collecting together data from a wide variety of languages and language typologies.
Editor Spike Gildea University of Oregon
Editorial Board Balthasar Bickel Leip1ig
John Haiman St Paul
Marianne Mithun Santa Barbara
Bernard Comrie Leip1ig I Santa Barbara
Martin Haspelmath Leipzig
Doris L. Payne Eugene, OR
Denis Creissels Lyon
Bernd Heine Koln
Franz Plank Konstanz
William Croft Albuquerque
Paul J. Hopper Pittsburgh
Anna Siewierska Lancaster
Nicholas Evans Canberra
Andrej A. Kibrik Moscow
Dan I. Slobin Berkeley
Carol Genetti Santa Barbara
Franti.Sek Lichtenberk Auckland
Sandra A. Thompson Santa Barbara
Volume95
Creoles, their Substrates, and Language Typology Edited by Claire Lefebvre
Creoles, their Substrates, and Language Typology Edited by
Claire Lefebvre University of Quebec at Montreal
John Benjamins Publishing Company Amsterdam I Philadelphia
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences - Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI z39.48-1984.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Creoles, their substrates, and language typology I edited by Claire Lefebvre. p. em. (Typological Studies in Language, ISSN 0167-7373 ; v. 95) Includes bibliographical references and index. Creole dialects. 2. Typology (Linguistics) I. Lefebvre, Claire.
1.
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Table of contents
Preface
IX
Part I. Introduction The problem of the typological classification of creoles
3
Claire Lefebvre Part II. Creoles spoken in Africa and in the Caribbean :hd6 influence on Santome: Evidence from verb serialisation
37
Tjerk Hagemeijer and Ota Ogie A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Portuguese Creole of Santiago Island (Cape Verde)
61
!Urgen Lang Substrate influences in Kriyol: Guinea-Bissau and Casamance Portuguese-related Creole
81
AlainKihm One substrate. two creoles: The development of segmental inventories in St. Lucian and Haitian
105
Anne-Marie Brousseau. Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles: Haitian Creole, Saramaccan and Papiamentu
127
Claire Lefebvre Assessing the nature and role of substrate influence in the formation and development of the creoles of Suriname
Bettina Migge
155
VI
Creoles, their Substrates, and Language Typology
African substrata! influence on the countertactual in Belizean Creole
181
Genevieve Escure Substrate features in Nicaraguan, Providence and San Andres Creole Englishes: A comparison with Twi
201
Angela Bartens Palenque(ro ): The search for its African substrate
225
Armin Schwegler Part III. Creoles spoken in Asia Convergence-to-substratum and the passives in Singapore English
253
BaoZhiming Tone in Singlish: Substrate features from Sinitic and Malay
271
Lisa Lim The Cantonese substrate in China Coast Pidgin
Umberto Ansaldo, Stephen Matthews and Geoff Smith Substrate influences in Mindanao Chabacano
303
Anthony P. Gra.nt Negation in Ternate Chabacano
325
Eeva Sippola Aspect and directionality in Kupang Malay serial verb constructions: Calquing on the grammars of substrate languages
June Jacob a.nd Cha.rles R Gtimes Sri Lanka Malay and its Lankan adstrates
Umberto Ansaldo Dravidian features in the Sri Lankan Malay verb
Peter Slomanson
337
Table of contents
Part IV. Creoles spoken in the Pacific Papuan Malay of New Guinea: Melanesian influence on verb and clause structure
413
Mark Donohue The influence of Arandic languages on Central Australian Aboriginal English
437
Harold Koch Roper River Aboriginal language features in Australian Kriol: Considering semantic categories
Jennifer Munro Substrate influences on New South Wales Pidgin: The origin of -im and -fela
Ha.rold Koch Limits of the substrate: Substrate grammatical influence in Solomon Islands Pijin
513
Angela Terrill Substrate reinforcement and the retention of Pan-Pacific Pidgin features in modern contact varieties
531
Jeff Siegel The copula in Hawai'i Creole English and substrate reinforcement
557
Sarah ]. Roberts KOn traduit Ia langue en fran~ais": Substrate influence in the TMA system ofTayo
575
Ba.rbara. Sandeman Part V. Conclusion Creoles and language typology
599
Bernard Comrie Index of authors
613
Index of languages and language families
619
Index of subjects
623
vn
Preface
This book is about creoles, their contributing languages, and language typology. At the tum of the millennium, the issue of the typological classification of creoles gave rise to a relatively large body of literature. It soon became evident to me that discussions on the topic would benefit a great deal from detailed case studies of creoles and their contributing languages, with special attention to their substrate languages. I therefore organised a one-day workshop on creoles and their substrates within the context of the 2007 International Conference on Historical Linguistics. In view of the success of the workshop, and given the interest in the theme, I decided to enlarge the scope of the originally planned book to a much wider sample of creole languages. This initiative resulted in the project that eventually led to this book. The bulk of the content of this book consists of 25 chapters comparing some 30 creoles and their respective substrate languages. As the substrate languages of these creoles are typologically different. the detailed investigation of substrate features in the creoles leads to a particular answer to the question of the typological classification ofcreoles. Thus, the first chapter, by myselt~ introduces the material analysed in the various chapters of this book from the point of view of language typology. The last chapter, by Bernard Comrie, which echoes the first, provides the typologist's point of view on the problem of the typological classification of creole languages and on the theoretical questions at stake in the discussion of this issue. I would like to thank all the authors who contributed to this book for bearing with the comparative approach set forth as a methodological tool at the beginning of this project and for their collaboration in reducing the length of their chapters and in addressing comments and questions by several reviewers. This brings me naturally to the review process adopted tor the production of this book. Each chapter was commented on by at least three readers. I would like to thank the following scholars for their thorough reviews of a subset of chapters: Umberto Ansaldo, Angela Bartens, Anne-Marie Brousseau, Hugo Cardoso, Clancy Clements, Marta Dijkhoff, Genevieve Escure, Antony Grant, Tjerk Hagemeijer, Christine Jourdan. Alain Kihm, Harold Koch, Lisa Lim, Angelika Lutz, Stephen Matthews, Bettina Migge, Robert Papen, Kevin Rottet, Jeff Siegel, Anand Syea, and Bao Zhiming. Naturally, I also commented on all the chapters. Lucie Kearns and Zofia Laubitz copy-edited the manuscript. I would like to thank them for the wonderful job they have accomplished considering the number oflanguages involved in the book, as well as the large number of non-native speakers of English who authored chapters of this book. Thanks to Annie Trudel for her assistance in the preparation of the indexes and in the submission of the final manuscript to the publishers. Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for its financial contribution to the production of the final manuscript. Claire Lefebvre Universite du Quebec aMontreal, Montreal, December 1, 2009
Introduction
The problem of the typological classification of creoles* Claire Lefebvre Universite du Quebec aMontreal
This book contains 25 chapters bearing on detailed comparisons of some 30 creoles and their substrate languages. AB the substrate languages of these creoles are typologically different, the detailed investigation of substrate features in the creoles leads to a particular answer to the question of how creoles should be classified typologically. The present chapter therefore introduces the material analysed in the chapters of this book from the point of view oflanguage typology. I begin with a discussion of the problem of the typological classification of creole languages, and of the aims and limitations of this chapter. The bulk of the chapter provides an overview of the results of the research contained in the various chapters. First, I outline the ways in which the typological features ofthe substrate languages are manifested in the creoles. Second, I lay out a global picture of the variation found among creoles for various subsystems of the grammar. To a great extent, this variation reflects that displayed by the substrate languages of the creoles. Third, based on each author's proposals, I review the processes that led to such a situation and the constraints that are acting upon them. The chapter ends with my overall evaluation of the problem of the typological classification of creoles.
1.
The problem
Since creole languages draw their properties from both their substrate and superstrate sources, the typological classification of creoles has long been a major issue for creolists, typologists, and linguists in general Several proposals have been put forward in the literature. Because the labels of the lexical entries of creoles are derived from their superstrate languages, creoles have often been genealogically classified with their superstrate language. For example, Hall ( 19 50: 20 3) classifies Haitian Creole as a French dialect: "Haitian Creole is to be classified
The research underlying this chapter was partially financed by SSHRCC. I would like to thank Renee LambertBretiere for her assistance in documenting various aspects of the content ofthis chapter, and Annie Trudelfor contributing to producing the map showing the distribution of the creoles under investigation in this book. I am also grateful to the following colleagues for their insightful comments on an earlier version of this chapter: Umberto Ansaldo, Chuck Grimes, Harold Koch, Jiirgen Lang, Usa Urn, Stephen Matthews, Jeff Siegel, Armin Schwegler, Peter Slomanson and Bao Zhiming. Thanks to Andree Belanger for formatting the manuscript
4
Claire Lefebvre
among the Romance languages, and especially among the northern group of the Gallo- Romance branch, on the basis of its systematic phonological, morphologicaL syntactical and lexical correspondences:' Goodman (1964: 136) makes a similar statement: "I do feel impelled to restate, however, that on the basis of no purely linguistic criteria for genetic relationship which have thus far been advanced, including that of'parente syntaxique' advanced by Sylvain (1936: 121-122), can Creole French be classified with any specific language other than French:' Some authors have further claimed that, even from a typological point of view, creoles pair with their superstrate languages. Chaudenson (2003: 38), for example, writes: "[Les creoles sont] des idiomes issus des langues europeennes et qui se sont formes dans les societes coloniales entre le XVIe et XVIIIe siecles" ["[Creoles are] idioms that emerged from European languages and were formed in colonial societies between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries"] [our translation from French] . He further writes: "Si fon se place un point de vue typologique, la distance entre le fran~ais et les cn~oles fran~ais est assez restreinte" (p. 177) ["From a typological point of view, the distance between French and the French creoles is quite small"] [our translation from French]. Because the properties of a creole's lexical entries are derived from those of its substrate languages, some scholars have classified creoles as hybrid languages. Adam (1883:47) makes the following statement: "I go so far as to claim ... that the so-called patois of Guyana and Trinidad constitute Negro-Aryan dialects. By that I mean that the Guinean Negroes who were transported to the colonies adopted the words of French but. as much as possible, kept the phonetics and grammar of their mother tongues ... Such a formation is clearly hybrid ... The grammar is no different from the general grammar of the languages of Guinea" [our translation from French]. Speaking of Haitian Creole, Sylvain ( 19 36: 178) observes that: "We are in the presence of a French that has been cast in the mould of African syntax or ... of an Ewe language with a French vocabulary" [our translation from French]. Lefebvre (1998) shows at some length that. even though the phonological representations of Haitian Creole lexical entries are drawn from French phonetic strings, Haitian Creole shares its lexical properties, morphosyntax, concatenation prindples and the salient features of its parametric values with its West African substrate languages. In this approach, creole languages would pair typologically with their substrate languages rather than with their superstrate. A third approach is Bickerton's (1984) proposal that children, who are exposed to the impoverished pidgin grammar and lexicon spoken by their parents, fill in the gaps by drawing on language universal principles, thus creating a creole. The resulting creole languages are claimed to manifest only the unmarked values oflanguage. Further, due to the way they emerge, all creole languages are claimed to be alike. This may suggest that, from a typological point of view, creole languages constitute an identifiable group of languages that can be set apart from other natural languages. To my knowledge, Bickerton never went as far as to making this claim. McWhorter (2001), however, did, very specifically, as he wrote that: "Creole grammars constitute a synchronically identifiable class." This claim builds on an earlier one (McWhorter 1998:790) that creole languages constitute a "synchronically definable typological class." As can be seen from this brief summary of the major positions on the typological classification of creole languages, the topic is a controversial one. It has been the subject of hot debates as witnessed by the papers in, for example, the following volumes: Muysken and Smith (1986), Substrata 1'ersus Universals in Creole Genesis; the special issue of Linguistic Typology: "Creoles: A
a
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
Structura-l Typer (2001); Michaelis (2008), Roots of Creole Structures: Weighing the Contribution ofSubstrates and Superstrates; Neumann-Holzschuh and Schneider (2001), Degrees ofRestru.cturing in Creole Languages; and Ansaldo et al (2007), Deconstructing Creole. 1
2.
Aims and limitations of this chapter
This chapter explores the problem of the typological classification of creole languages on the basis of a representative sample of some 30 creoles that have emerged from typologically different substrate languages. Creoles that have African languages as their substrates are Belizean Creole, Haitian Creole, Kriyol, Ndyuka, Nicaraguan, Palenque(ro), Pamaka, Papiamentu, Portuguese Creole of Santiago Island, Providence Island Creole, Saramaccan/Saamaka, San Andres Islands Creole, Santome, Sranan Tango and St. Lucian; those that have Asian languages as their substrates are China Coast Pidgin, Kupang Malay, Mindanao Chabacano, Singapore English or Singlish, Sri Lanka(n) Malay and Ternate Chabacano; those that have Pacific languages as their substrates are Central Australian Aboriginal English (CAAE), Hawai'i Creole, Kriol, New South Wales Pidgin (NSWP), Papuan Malay, Solomon Islands Pijin and Tayo. The location of these languages is indicated on the world map below. As can be seen above, for ease of presentation, the creoles have been grouped by geographical area. In the case of creoles spoken in Africa or in the Caribbean, the substrate languages are all from the same language family: Niger-Congo. However, in the case of creoles spoken in Asia and in the Pacific, the situation is not as simple. For example, several Malay-based creoles are described in this volume. While Malay itself is an Austronesian language (western branch), the substrate languages that are involved in the Malay-based creoles are varied. Kupang Malay has other Austronesian languages (central branch) as its substrate languages. Papuan Malay has various (non-Austronesian) Papuan languages as its substrate languages. Sri Lanka(n) Malay has substrate languages that belong in different language families, with Tamil, a Dravidian language, and Sinhala, an Indo-European language, as two major substrate languages (in Slomanson's view) or adstrate languages (in Ansaldo's view). CAAE, Kriol and NSWP have Australian languages as their substrate languages. Tok Pisin, Bislama, Solomon Islands Pijin and Tayo, spoken in the Pacific, have mainly Austronesian languages as their substrate, as does Chabacano spoken in the Philippines. In the list of creole languages enumerated above, all except four are commonly referred to as creoles. China Coast Pidgin and New South Wales Pidgin are commonly referred to as pidgins on the basis of the fact that they do not have native speakers (as opposed to creoles, which do have native speakers). In the literature on the "New Englishes" of the world, Singapore English and Central Australian Aboriginal English are generally considered to be varieties of English. In this chapter, I will use the term Kcreole" as an overall term for the languages referred to as such, as well as for these two pidgins and these two varieties of"New Englishes': In doing this, I do not want to open a debate on the status of these four contact languages. The reason for using the term "creole" is merely practical. But it is also in line with the fact that scholars have started referring to 1.
See also Lim and Gisborne (2009), The 7ypology of Asian Englishes.
Q\
()
j[
-
~
~,,;=~
·•
."'• ..•
.
-~· "'"'
41&
~ ~
-
~
r
~
-~
'\loo
~
8'
• .,•
•
Cl
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~
otj~~"1~ •. ...... - ,•,-
i
•
•
'e
.., @!I /;. -.... 1. Hawai'i Creole 2. Belizean Creole 3. Nicaraguan Creole 4. San Andres Creole
5. Palenque(ro) 6. Hatitian Creole 7. Providence Creole
8. St. lucian Creole 9. Papiarnentu 10. Sararnaccan!Saamaka Pam aka Ndyuka Sranan Tongo 11. Santiago Island Creole
Map 1. Creole languages discussed in this book
12. Casamance Creole 13. Kriyol 14. Santome 15. Sri Lanka(n) Malay
19. Mindanao Chabacano 20. Ternate Chabacano 21. Melanesian Pidgin 22. Kupang Malay
16. China Coast Pidgin 17. Chinese Pidgin English 18. Singapore English
23. Papuan Malay 24. Tok Pisin 25. Solomon Island's Pijin
26. 27. 28. 29.
Bislarna Kriol New South Wales Pidgin Tayo
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
pidgins and creoles as PCs, suggesting that they fall within a single category (e. g., Hancock 1980; Mufwene 1990; Mi.ihlhausler 1980, 1986). The rationale behind this grouping is that the creation of pidgins and of creoles involves the same processes (e.g., Lefebvre 1998). As for the two varieties of English referred to above, the context in which they emerged differs from that in which the plantation creoles were created. These two contexts, however, share an important feature. They both involve multilingual communities in need of a lingua franca. Hence, Singapore English was created in a multilingual community- involving Malay and several Sinitic languages- in need of a lingua franca. Likewise, Central Australian Aboriginal Pidgin was also created in a multilingual community- involving several Australian languages - that needed a lingua franca. Furthermore, the creation of these New Englishes makes use of the same processes that are at work in the formation of pidgins and creoles (see the chapters by Baa, Koch and Siegel). Finally, this grouping is in line with Koch (a), who considers the variety of CAAE he is reporting on in this volume as a post-pidgin variety that is quite distinct from other varieties also referred to as CAAE (such as those discussed in Eades 1991, 1996), which in fact constitute dialects of English. The book contains 25 chapters that set out detailed comparisons of subsystems of the above sample of creoles with their respective major substrate languages. The major subsystems of ereales' grammars and lexicons discussed in this book include segmental inventories, pronouns, case systems, the syntactic properties of verbs, copulas, Tense-Mood-Aspect (TMA), negation, serial verbs and discourse structures. The results of these comparisons constitute test cases for the various positions summarised above on the typological classification of creoles. As will be seen below, the bulk of the data argue that creoles are best typologically classified with their substrate languages. As will be further discussed in Section 4.2, this may reflect the fact that, except for two chapters, all the chapters in this book discuss data that belong in the lexical or in the syntactic components of the grammar. These are two components in which we expect substrate features to manifest themselves in the creoles, due to the processes that create creoles' lexicons and syntax (see Section 3.3). As for the phonological component of the grammar, it is discussed in only two chapters. Brousseau addresses the source of the segmental inventories of Haitian and St. Lucian creoles, and Lim discusses the source of tones in Singlish. More detailed comparisons of segmental inventories, prosodic and syllabic structures of creoles and their contributing languages are needed for a thorough discussion of the typological features of creoles in this component of the grammar. The same remark applies to word order. The fact that there are so few chapters on the phonological component of the grammar and none on word order is not intentional. It simply reflects the fact that few authors volunteered chapters on the phonology and none on word order. I now turn to a discussion of the results from a global perspective.
3·
Overview of the results
First, I will summarise the various ways in which the typological features of the substrates are manifested in creoles. Next I will consider data from various subsystems of the grammar across creoles from different substrate languages, showing that the typological differences between these data reflect the typological differences between the substrate languages. Then I will review the various processes proposed to account for the presence of substrate features in the creoles.
7
8
Claire Lefebvre
Finally, I will provide an overview of the various constraints invoked by authors to explain why some substrate features did or did not make their way into the creoles.
3.1
Ways in which the typological features of the substrate are manifested in creoles
3.1.1
Creoles spoken in Africa and in the Caribbean
Hagemeijerand Ogie study the inventory of serial verb constructions (SVC) in Santome and Edo. They conclude that "pretty much the full range of types ofSVCs in Edo can also be found in Santome." They note, however, that "the languages often differ with respect to the more fine-grained properties of SVCs, which is expected from many centuries of independent development and, foremost, due to the creolisation process itself.' Lang compares the manifestation of Aspect in Santiago Creole and in Wolof. He shows that "... the Santiago Creole progressive has retained only the progressive meaning of the imperfective variety of the Wolof'situative~ abandoning its 'situative' meaning:' He suggests that levelling accounts for the difference between the two: "This simplification would have occurred to ease the joining of other groups whose language may have had a progressive, but not a 'situative' with a progressive meaning in the imperfective." In the same vein, Migge compares the Tense, Mood and Aspect systems of the Surinamese creoles with those of the Gbe languages. While the com paris on between the two sets manifests many similarities, Migge notes that substrate influence is not a "unified process" since "its operation and outcomes appear to take different forms, most likely due to its interaction with other processes and sources:' Escure studies the influence of the substrate languages ofBelize Creole on its tense and mood system: "... maintenance of African elements, including the intact preservation of some essential verbal morphology such as ANT me and its counterfactual structure. Direct African antecedents have been found for this structure (Ibibio/Efik, Kituba, Swahili and generally Bantoid languages). Its anteriority morpheme, the specific shape of its futurity/irrealis marker and its related counterfactual combinations appear to closely mirror aspects of Bantu morphology, as well as the semantics of hypothetical events." In her chapter on the phonology of Haitian and St Lucian, Brousseau compares the segmental inventories of the two creoles with those of French and of Fongbe in order to evaluate the impact of the substrate languages on the development of these systems. She concludes that "The influence of the substrate is pervasive in the inventories of the two creoles, even for cases where we could convincingly argue for the role of Universal Grammar:' Lefebvre compares the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles - Haitian, Saramaccan and Papiamentu - with those of their contributing languages: Fongbe, an important substrate language, and French, English and Spanish, the respective lexifier languages of the three creoles. The verbal properties that are compared are the following: BODY-state expressions, WEATHER verbs, raising verbs, control verbs, double-object verbs and serial verbs. The three-way comparison shows that first, the properties of verbs in the three creoles often contrast with those of the corresponding verbs in their respective superstrate languages; second, these properties systematically parallel those of the corresponding verbs in their substrate languages; and third, the properties of the substrate verbs manifest themselves in all three creoles, in spite of the fact that they have different superstrate languages.
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
Bartens compares some 30 phonological, morphosyntactic and lexical features in Twi and in the English-based creoles spoken on San Andres and Old Providence (Colombia) and on the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua. Her conclusion is the following: "In a number of cases, it was impossible to make a case for exclusive substrate influence and it seems preferable to speak of convergence. However, there are also many language structures for which substrate influence offers the most likely explanation:' As for Schwegler, he compares Palenquero and Kikongo. His assessment of the situation is as follows: "... We have noted that substrata! influence can be detected in multiple domains: in the creole's lexicon, where dozens of words are traceable to Kikongo etyma; in its phonology, where several features (including prenasalisation, the free [d], [r] and [1] alternations, and peculiar intonational patterns) point to Kikongo roots; and in its morphosyntax, where nominal pluralisations with ma and reiterative PIN marking in the singular (e.g., yo i kele-lo 'I want it'), and a host of other traits are similarly suggestive of Kikongo input." However, Palenquero has not preserved the class-concord agreement system that characterises many Bantu languages. To sum up, the creoles with a Niger-Congo substrate discussed in the first part of the book all appear to manifest features of their substrate languages. As some authors note, however, certain substrate features may not appear in the creole due to interaction between various processes (e.g., transfer and levelling in Lang's chapter, several processes in Migge's chapter) (see also Section 3.3). Kriyol. spoken in Guinea-Bissau, departs from this general tendency. Kihm's explanation of why this is so will be discussed in Section 3.4. 3.1.2
Creoles spoken in Asia
Two chapters concern Singapore English!Singlish (two appellations for the same language variety), one about syntax, the other about phonology. Bao compares the patterns of the passive constructions in the Singaporean component of the International Corpus of English with the substrate passive constructions. He shows that the substrate passives are adversative and that the Singapore English passives exhibit a clear adversative bias. Furthermore, he shows that the quantitative analysis supports two distinct mechanisms of substratum influence: "the abrupt substratum transfer (the locally derived passives) and the gradual convergence-to-substratum (the English-derived passives):' Lim's chapter focuses on the origin of tones in Singlish, the mesolectal!basilectal variety of English spoken in Singapore. Singlish has two major substrate languages: the Sinitic substrate languages, which have tones, and Malay, which does not A first hypothesis would posit that the tone observed in Singlish originates in the Sinitic substrate languages. As Lim points out, however, the situation is more complex. As she puts it, "even when the foa.ture of tone may be ascribed to the tone language substrates, the actual realisation in terms of prosodic patterns - for instance, in the case of Singlish, the location of the H tone at word or phrase level- can be influenced by the prosody of a non-tone language; in the case of Singlish, this is Malay. What is also significant is that this is the language of a population - the Peranakans - that is recognised as having been an earlier or founder population in the ecology, which therefore exerts a significant influence on the structure of the emergent contact language." In their comparative study of serial verbs, classifiers, properties of verbs, copulas, negation, TMA, pronouns, Wh-interrogatives, topic-comment structures and compounds, Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith argue that Cantonese typological features are reproduced in China Coast Pidgin.
9
10
Claire Lefebvre
Grant and Sippola study two creole varieties spoken in the Philippines: Mindanao Chabacano (MC) and Ternate Chabacano (TC), respectively. Grant concludes that "between Spanish, Central Philippine languages and some sort of Manila Bay Creole, almost all the grammar of MC could be included as 'substrate features:' As for Sippola, she concludes her study of negation as follows: "... It can be affirmed that the main pattern of Ternate Chabacano negation follows its adstrate language Tagalog when distinguishing the standard clausal negation and the negation of existentials and possession." The chapter by Jacob and Grimes describes the serial verb constructions of Kupang Malay and those ofits substrate languages. The parallel between the structures, functions, and semantics of SVCs in Kupang and those in the substrate languages is quite striking, whereas there are simply no parallels found with standard Malay grammar. There are two chapters on Sri Lanka(n) Malay (SLM). Ansaldo shows that the Lankan case system has been reproduced in SLM: "SLM has developed agglutinative morphology with incipient fusional tendencies in the nominal system, which indicates a typological shift away from the isolating type." As for Tense and Aspect, the results are split between the two contributing languages. While tense reflects the Lankan tense system, the as pectual system retains some of the aspectual categories of Malay. Slomanson's study of the morphosyntax of SLM leads him to the following conclusion: "... The morphosyntax of SLM substantially reflects influence from the Sri Lanka(n) sprachbund [... ] While a small number of features and processes from vehicular Malay persist in SLM, such as the fixed pre-verbal position of those functional contrasts directly marked on lexical verbs and the categorial flexibility of adjectives, the language's morphosyntax has incorporated more features from its Shonam model language than it has retained from vehicular
Mala}( To sum up, the creoles spoken in Asia all appear to manifest features of their substrate languages. 3.1.3
Creoles spoken in the Pacific
Donohue investigates the serial verb constructions of Papuan Malay and its substrate languages. His conclusion is that Papuan Malay SVCs manifest the properties of its New Guinea Papuan substrate languages. The first chapter by Koch (hereafter Koch a) discusses data from three areas of the grammar of CAAE, and compares it with Kaytetye, one of the Arandic substrate languages. It shows how two relatively exotic grammatical categories found in Kaytetye (and other Arandic languages) -"dyadic" in kinship nouns and "associated motion" in verbs- are replicated in CAAE using formal material derived from English. Koch (a) further compares the use of CAAE prepositions, whose forms are from English, with Kaytetye case functions. He concludes that "the organisation of the semantic 'functions' of the cases is replicated in considerable detail in the use of the CAAE prepositions" (see Section 3.2.5). Munro considers pronouns, TMA markers and case in Kriol and its substrate Australian languages. She reaches a conclusion similar to that ofthe aforementioned authors: The properties of the lexical items involved in the Kriol subsystems of the grammar reproduce those of its substrate languages. She emphasises the fact that Aboriginal languages are agglutinating languages and how the properties of the affixes are reproduced in free morphemes in the creole (see Section 4.3).
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
In his study of N SWP and its contributing languages, Koch (hereafter Koch b) shows that the grammatical features of zero expression third-person singular objects and Noun Phrase head nouns are indirectly reflected in -im and -fela, respectively. Siegel considers pan-Pacific Pidgin features in modern contact varieties. Many grammatical features of Pacific Pidgin English, NSWP and Chinese Pidgin English were attested in the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), Solomon Islands, New Guinea Islands, Hawai'i and the Northern Territory of Australia in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In the creole that later developed in each of these locations, a different subset of these "Pan-Pacific" features was retained. Siegel examines nine of these features to see whether their presence or absence in each of the five modern contact varieties can be accounted for by the presence or absence of the same features in the substrate languages. The results show that "for at least seven of the nine Pan- Pacific features, when the feature is present in the contact variety, a corresponding feature is also present in the substrate languages, and when it is absent in the contact variety, it is absent in the substrate languages." The chapter by Roberts "presents comparative and diachronic evidence indicating that substrate patterns played a significant role in the development of the copula in Hawai'i Creole English (HCE). The predominantly Cantonese, Portuguese, Hawaiian, and Japanese substrate did not contribute much to the innovation oflexical forms since HCE drew on a pre-existing pidgin, but the transference and reinforcement of semantic and syntactic properties from these languages with the exception of Japanese - is detectible in the copula system that arose in H CE:' About Tayo, Sandeman writes: "Research carried out to date on Tayo indicates that many of its structures depart radically from what has been considered a 'typical' creole pattern; instead, they appear to more closely resemble structures in the substrate languages:' Her specific study of the TMA subsystem illustrates this more general claim. To sum up, here again the creoles appear to manifest the properties of their substrate languages. Since the last chapter of this section, by Terrill on Solomon Islands Pijin, is dedicated to constraints on transference, it will be discussed in Section 3.4. 3.1.4
Summary
The data reported on in this section show that, to a great extent, creoles reproduce the features of their substrate languages. This conclusion becomes even more evident when we compare subsystems of the grammar across creoles.
3.2
Subsystems of the grammar across creoles
This section considers subsystems of the grammar across creoles from typologically different substrates. The following subsystems will be discussed in tum: pronominal forms, classifiers, TMA systems, negation, semantic case systems, transitivity markers, the properties of verbs, serial verbs, verb-doubling phenomena and discourse structures. In the paragraphs that follow, it is shown that typological differences between subsystems of the grammar across creoles reveal typological differences between their respective substrate languages.
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3.2.1
Pronomina.l fm·ms
Creole languages differ with respect to their pronominal inventories. For example, Kriol has a pronominal system that distinguishes between singular, dual and plural pronouns, and also between first-person plural inclusive and exclusive. These forms are all constructed on the basis of English pronominal forms (e.g., mi < me, yu
Table 1. The pronomlnal system ofKriol (adapted from Munro 2004: 123) Singular
Dual
Plural
yunduhala dubala
yumop
yunmi
wi
mindubalalminbala
melabat/mela
ailmi
yu
2 3
im inclusive exclusive
olabat
Table 2. The pronominal system of Haitian Creole (from Valdman et al. 1981; Fattier 1998, vol. 2: 850)
mwen ou/[wu]
li nou
yo
'I, me' 'you (sG)'
HAITIAN
'he/she/it/him/her' 'we/UB/you (PL)' 'they/them'
2. Note that, as is reported in Lefebvre (1998: 142), traditional Fongbe grammars (e.g., Anonymous 1983) sometimes represent the form meaning 'we' as ml (bearing a complex1ow-high tone) and the form meaning 'you (PL)' as mi (bearing a mid-tone). Mid and low-high tones are phonetic variants (see Capo 1991); the distinction between the two is thus phonemically irrelevant Furthermore, extensive fieldwork by Brousseau (1995) on the tonological specification of the form m{ reveals that this form always bears a phonological high tone.
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
Table 3. The pronominal system of Alawa (Munro 2004: 122) Singular
Dual
Plural
wurru yirrurla
wulu yilurla
nyanu ngarru
nyalu ngalu
ngina
nyagana nurla (M) nga durla (F)
2 3
inclusive exclusive
Table 4. The pronominal system ofKriol substrate languages (adapted from Munro 2004: 121)
2 3
Singular
Dual
Plural
"
""" "
"" ""
"
inclusive exclusive
Table 5. The pronominal system ofFongbe (= (18) in Brousseau 1995) ny£ hwe
e(ye) m{
>-e
i,me' 'you (so)' 'he/she/it/him/her' 'we/us/you (PL)' 'they/them'
for second-person singular and plural, and it has a first-person plural inclusive/exclusive distinction, like the Philippine languages. 3.2.2
Classifiers
Not all creole languages have classifiers. As expected, classifiers are found only in those creoles whose substrate languages have them. For example, noun phrases in China Coast Pidgin (Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith) have the patterns [NUM-CL-N] and [DEM-CL-N), reproducing the classifiers of its Sinitic substrate languages. 3.2.3
TMA systems
The TMA systems of creole languages exhibit variation. This is supported by the comparison of the Kriol TMA system reproduced in Table 6 from Munro, with that of Haitian Creole in Table 7 from Lefebvre (1996). In this book, TMA systems are documented for the following creoles: Surinamese (Migge), Tayo (Sandeman), Sri Lanka(n) Malay (Ansaldo, Slomanson), Kriyol (Kihm), China Coast Pidgin (Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith), Santiago Creole (Lang) and Kriol (Munro). Again, all authors agree that the features of the TMA systems of these creoles most resemble those of their
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Table 6. The TMA system ofKriol (=Table 6 in Munro) Realis tense
bin 0
Irrealis mood
Aspect
oldei stil stat onli jes -bat
Past Present
Continuative Durative Incipient Limitational Proximal Pro12:essive Habitual
yusdu
garra -l mait gin
gan lafda
Obligatory (Future) Definite lsG Potential Abilitive Inabilitive Necessary
Table 7. The TMA system ofHaitianCreole (from Lefebvre 1996:239) ANTERIOR
IRREALIS
NON-COMPLETE
Past or Past perfect
Definite future
Imperfective
te
ap
ap
Indefinite future
a-va Subjunctive pou
Table 8. Irwentories of'IMA markers in Haitian Creole and Fongbe (= (115) in Lefebvre 1996:263) NON-COMPLETE
ANTERIOR
IRREALIS
Past or Past perfect
Definite future
H
F
H
F
te
kO
ap
n4
Habitual H
Imperfective F
H
F
n3
ap
c(O••• we
Indefinite future H
F
a-va
na-wd
Subjunctive H
F
pou
n{
respective substrates, such that, the typological differences between them manifest typological differences between their substrate languages. Munro shows that the semantics associated with the categories of tense, mood and aspect reflects substrate features, such as the distinction between past punctual and past continuous aspect, and the expression of future and potential mood. She remarks that "evitative" mood, tound in TMA systems of the substrate languages, is not manifested in Kriol She explains this absence by the unavailability of an appropriate form in the superstrate language to transfer evitative mood to (see Section 3.4). The TMA systems of Atlantic creoles reproduce the particularities of their West African substrate languages. This is illustrated in Table 8 for Haitian Creole and Fongbe from Lefebvre (1996 and the references therein).
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
Except for the fact that it does not distinguish between definite and indefinite future, the TMA system of Saramaccan is very similar to those of Haitian and Fongbe. It encodes tense, mood and aspect by means of an inventory of TMA markers made up of the marker of anteriority bi (< English been), the future marker 6 (< English go), the subjunctive marker fu (< English for), and the imperfective marker ta (
3- The TMA system of Papiamentu used to be seen as departing from that of the other Caribbean creoles (e.g., Muysken 1981b). The analysis in Kouwenberg and Lefebvre (2007), however, shows that the TMA system of this language is in fact quite similar to those of the other Caribbean creoles and thus to those of its Gbe substrate languages.
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In his comparison of SLM with its superstrate and adstrate (Sinhala) languages, Ansaldo concludes that the TMA system of SLM draws from both its sources. Slomanson argues in his comparison of SLM with its superstrate and Shonam substrate language, that, in SLM, TMA categories are pre-verbal bound markers modelled on Shonam: "There are clear parallels in the functional contrasts that are explicitly morphologised in SLM, using processes comparable or identical to those that we find in Shonam, such as inflection and agglutination (... )." Furthermore, he shows that SLM manifests contrastive tense marking, just as Shonam does. The fact that Ansaldo and Slomanson do not reach exactly the same conclusion appears to be linked to the fact that they do not evaluate the role of the various contributing languages in the same way. While Ansaldo emphasises the role of Sinhala and Tamil, Slomanson focuses on Shonam. 3.2.4 Negation Negation, which is discussed for several creoles - Ternate Chabacano (Sippola), China Coast Pidgin (Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith), Belizean Creole (Escure), Mindanao Chabacano (Grant) and Sri Lanka(n) Malay (Slomanson) - is another subsystem of the grammar in which creoles manifest the typological differences of their substrates. For example, Sippola shows that the properties of the negation system in Ternate Chabacano, namely standard clausal negation and negation of existentials and possession, are analogous to what is observed in Tagalog. Another example comes from Belizean Creole which encodes past negation by a morpheme (neva) that is different from that used to encode general negation. Past negation markers are also found in the Mrican substrate languages of Belizean Creole such as lbibio, Mandinka and Swahili. In Sri Lanka(n) Malay, there is an interaction between the expression of negation and finiteness. Slomanson shows that SLM has two etymologically unrelated negation markers, the choice of which is solely determined by the finiteness of an associated verb. He further shows that overt tense morphology is suppressed when a lexical verb is negated. Both these features of negation are attributed to Shonam. As Slomanson mentions, the second feature is not found in other substrate languages of Sri Lanka(n) Malay such as Sinhala. 3.2.5 Semantic case systems Some creoles manitest overt semantic cases and some do not Creoles that do manifest overt semantic cases are those whose substrate languages do so as well. In this book. the case systems of three creoles are documented: Sri Lanka(n) Malay and its Sinhala adstrate (Ansaldo), Kriol and its Australian substrate languages such as Alawa (Munro), and CAAE and its Australian substrate languages such as Kaytetye (Koch a). As will be seen below, all three reproduce the case inventories of their respective substrate languages. Ansaldo shows that the case system of SLM reproduces the Sinhala case system almost to perfection. This is shown in Table 9. Ansaldo sees one difference between the creole and the Sinhala case systems: "In SLM, Genitive and Locative receive different marking; SLM therefore has a specialised Possessive marker, an innovation in relation to the adstrates." Munro and Koch (a) both show that the Australian creoles they study reproduce the case inventories of their respective substrate languages. In this case, however, the inventories are realised as prepositions instead of as suffixes. Table 10, from Munro, shows the similarity in the case systems of Kriol and Alawa. There is one difference: In Alawa, "Accompaniment is [... ] not marked
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
Table 9. The semantic case systems ofSLM and ofSinhala (adapted from Table 2 inAnsaldo) Functions expressed Agent Experiencer Goal Beneficiary Possessor Patient Possession Location Instrwnent Source Assodation
SINH ALA
SRI LANKA(N) MALAY
Case suflrus (forms not given)
Case suffixes
Nominative Dative Dative Dative Dative Accusative Genitivenocative Genitivenocative Instrwnental/ablative Instrwnental/ablative Comitative
Nominative Dative Dative Dative Dative Definite object marking Genitive Locative Instrwnental/ablative Instrwnental/ablative Comitative
-"
_,umg -1Jang _,Jang -1Jang -yang
-pe -ka
-ring -ring
-le
Table 10. The semantic case systems of Kriol and Alawa (from Munro) Functions expressed
ALAWA
KR.JOL
Case suffixes
Prepositions
Location
-rru 'allative'
langa, la
Goal
-rru 'allati ve'
langa, la
Source
-yunu 'ablative'
burrum, brom
Possession
-ja 'genitive'
blang, bla
Purpose
-ja 'genitive'
blonJY bla
Instrwnent
-rri 'instrwnental'
garra
Accompaniment
(no case; nominal suffix -wanjt)
garra
through a case suffix as such. The fact that Accompaniment is expressed with the same form as Instrument in Kriol is therefore unexpected:'4 Table 11 from Koch (a) shows the similarity in the case systems of CAAE and Kaytetye. As Table 11 shows, however, some CAAE prepositions may correspond to more than one form in the substrate language. As Koch (a) comments: "The syncretism in the expression of the Locative and Allative by longa and the use offrom to express a number of semantic functions that are distinguished in Kaytetye does not seem to indicate a simplification of the system of semantic functions so much as the lack of available lexical items in English that could be recruited for their expression" (see Section 3.4).
4· Harold Koch (p.c.) comments: i believe the Location function should be -rri 'locative' (Sharpe 1972: 62)- the same form as Instrwnent. If this is correct, a second difference between Alawa and Kriol is the fact that Location and Instrwnent are expressed differently in the latter. (This may reflect the grammar of other substrate languages rather than Alawa: Australian languages differ as to whether they express Instrwnent by a form identical to Locative or something else (usually Ergative or the 'having' case); it seems that Kriol garra (from gotfem) reflects the latter strategy, which was probably present in some of the Kriol substratwn languages.")
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Table 11. The case systelll8 ofCAAE and Kaytetye (adapted from Table 3 in Koch a) Functions expressed Location Instrumental Goal Purpose Specific location/goal Terminative Perlative Source Cause Comparison Material source Prior condition Aversive Possessive Purpose Purpose Recipient Proprietive Proprietive Privative
Case suffixes
CAAE Prepositions
-le, -nge 'locative' -le, -nge 'locative' -warle 'allative' -warle 'allative' x N -let-nge/-warle -wartetye 'terminative' -a,Jgkwerre 'perlative' -theye 'ablative' -theye 'ablative' -theye 'ablative' -penhe 'sequentive' -penhe 'sequentive' -ketye 'aversive' -arenge 'possessive' -warle 'allative' -we 'dative' -we 'dative' -akake 'proprietive' -akake 'proprietive' -wanenye 'privative'
longa longa longa longa x longa right up longa through lo,Jga from from from from from from blong(int)a blong(int)a for for with gottem,got (got) no
KAYTJ!TYJ!
To sum up, the data on semantic case discussed above show that SLM, Kriol and CAAE feature different subsets of cases. Each subset in the creoles corresponds to the respective subset of the creoles' substrate languages, within the limits imposed by the constraints that act on the processes responsible for this state of affairs (for further discussion, see Section 3.4).
Transitivity markers Creole languages vary with respect to the availability of transitivity markers, which attach to transitive verbs, thus allowing for a grammatical distinction between transitive and intransitive verbs. By hypothesis, transitivity markers should manifest themselves in creoles whose substrate languages make a grammatical distinction between transitive and intransitive verbs. Thus, this feature is expected not to appear in creole languages with a West African substrate since the latter do not feature this distinction. This expectation is borne out by the data, as no Caribbean or West Mrican creole has been reported to have transitivity markers. However, transitivity markers are expected to appear in creole languages with Austronesian substrate languages such as Tangoan, Kwaio or Tolai, since the latter do feature this distinction. Siegel identifies the availability of transitivity markers as a Pan-Pacific Pidgin feature. For example, they are found in the three dialects of Melanesian Pidgin reported on in (1) to ( 3) (= (82) to (84) in Siegel). 3.2.6
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
(1)
(2)
(3)
stll 'commit theft' kuk'cook.' bon 'be burning'
stll-im 'steal [something]' kuk-um 'cook [something]' bon-em 'burn [something]'
luk1ook' stil 'commit theft' dig 'dig'
luk-im 'see' stil-im 'steal [something]' dig-im siton 'dig up a stone'
bruk 'break, be broken' kuk'cook.' wok 'work, be busy>
bruk-im 'break. tear' kuk-im 'cook [something]' wok-im 'to make [something], build'
BISLAMA (Crowley 2004: 77) PIJIN (Keesl..ng n.d.) ToKPISIN (Mosel1980:41)
The presence of a transitivity marker in these dialects of Melanesian Pidgin reproduces the pattern of their substrate languages, as is shown in (4) to (6) ( = (86) to (88) in Siegel). (4)
(5)
For Btslam.a:
sua-i 'paddle [something]' inu-mi 'drink, swallow [something]'
keco 'be hanging'
keco-ci 'hang [something]'
For Pijin:
aga 1ook' beri 'commit theft' takwe 'dig' (6)
TANGOAN
sua 'to paddle' inu 'drink'
KWAIO
aga-si-a 'see (it)' beri-a 'steal it' takwe-a fou 'dig up a stone'
For Tok Pisin:
gumu 'dive, bath' tang! 'cry, weep' ngarau 'be afraid'
(Camden 1979:90)
(Keesing n.d.) To LAI
gumu-e 'dive for [something]' tani-e 'mourn for [someone or something]' ngarau-ane 'be afraid of [someone or something]' (Mosel1980: 42-43)
This would appear to be just like the other cases discussed so far were it not for the fact that some creoles spoken in the Pacific region do manifest transitivity markers while their substrate languages do not This is the case, for example, of creoles that have Australian languages as their substrate languages. For example, Kriol manifests a transitivity marker, as shown in (7) (= (85) in Siegel). (7)
rid 'read'
kuk'cook.'
barn 'be burning'
rid-im 'read [something]' KRioL kuk-um 'cook [something]' barn-im 'burn [something or someone]' (Sandefur & Sandefur 1979)
CAAE and NSWP also manifest transitivity markers (Koch a and b). These three creoles all have Australian languages as their substrates that do not manifest transitivity markers. A possible conelusion would be that, in these cases, the presence of transitivity markers on the verb cannot be claimed to reproduce a feature of the substrate languages. Nevertheless, Koch (b) argues that the development of transitivity markers on verbs in these creoles was motivated by the properties of their substrate languages. His argument can be summarised as follows: Australian languages have a syntactic ergative case system whereby the subject of a transitive verb bears Ergative case
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and that of an intransitive verb bears Nominative case (Blake 1987; Koch 2007). This case system reflects a deeper typological characteristic of Australian languages: Every verb "is either strictly transitive ... or strictly intransitive" (Dixon 1980: 378). Koch (b) thus suggests that Kergative casemarking of NPs is a surface manifestation of a deep lexico-grammatical principle of language organisation, namely the rigid distinction between transitive and intransitive verbs (and hence clause types). And it is this grammatical principle, ingrained in the consciousness of AL speakers, that was influential in promoting, in the developing pidgin, the polarisation in form between transitive verbs (VERBim) and intransitive verbs (VERB). The existence of a recognisable termination -im (and perhaps its minor variant -it) was exploited by native speakers of 'ergative' languages to keep separate the two categories of verbs which their internalised grammars led them to expect in the pidgin they were learning, and whose distinctiveness could not otherwise be signalled." Siegel further comments: "lt seems clear that having a marked distinction between transitive and intransitive verbs may have reinforced the use of the feature." At the end of this discussion, there remains the question of whether the syntactic ergative case system of these Australian languages has been reproduced in the relevant creoles. The answer to this question is no. This topic will be addressed in Section 3.4. 3.2.7 The properties of1'erbs In the same vein, verbs and verb classes do not have the same properties in all creoles. Again, the properties of creole verbs manifest those of their substrate languages. This is evidenced by data presented by Lefebvre and by Bartens for Caribbean creoles, by Koch (a) for CAAE, and by Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith for China Coast Pidgin. For example, CAAE has associated motion verbs modelled on its substrate Australian languages (Koch a). Creoles without such substrate languages do not manifest this feature. Caribbean creoles have double-object verbs, like their substrate languages (Lefebvre). As Michaelis and Haspelmath (2003) note, double-object verbs are found only in those creoles whose substrates manifest the construction. 3.2.8 Serial verbs Serial verb constructions are available in some creoles but not in others. They exist in creoles whose substrate has the construction (e.g., creoles with a West African or a Sinitic substrate). They are not available in creoles whose substrate does not have the construction (e.g., creoles with an Australian substrate). Furthermore, although there might be some overlap between the concatenation of verbs in languages that teature this construction, by hypothesis, the concatenation of verbs might not necessarily be the same for all the languages that manifest the construction. In this book, serial verbs are documented for Santome (Hagemeijer and Ogie), Kupuang Malay (Jacob and Grimes), Papuan Malay (Donohue), and China Coast English (Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith). According to all these authors, the concatenations of verbs in the above-mentioned creoles replicate those found in their respective substrates. While the authors do provide the possible concatenations of verbs in the languages they study, they do not list the impossible ones (a task which would have been far beyond what was expected of them). The fuller identification of differential concatenations of verbs among the creoles under investigation will therefore have to await future research.
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
3.2.9 Verb -doubling phenomena Creole languages also vary with respect to the availability of verb-doubling phenomena. These are partially discussed in Hagemeijer and Ogie, and in Bartens. They involve four constructions: temporal adverbial, causal adverbial and factive clauses, as well as the predicate cleft construction. The full range of these constructions is shown in (8) for Haitian Creole and Fongbe. (8)
a
TEMPORAL ADVERBIAL
Wd Jan wa Rive Jan rive
(tr616)
bj epi
Mar£ yl. Mari patL
FoNGBE HAITIAN
arrive John arrive as-soon-as and-then Mary leave ~ soon as John arrived, Mary left' b.
(= (1) in Lefebvre 1994)
CAUSAL ADVERBIAL
Wii Jan wa utU Mar£ yl. Rive Jan rive Marl paN. arrive John arrive cause Mary leave 'Because John arrived, Mary left: C.
FONGBE HAITIAN
(= (2) in Lefebvre 1994)
FACTIVE
Wii q_e,eJan wa 6 Vivf nU nj tjn. FONGBE Rive rJ Jan rive fo manman li kontan. HAITIAN arrive oP John arrive DEF make(-happy) for mother his happy 'The fact that John arrived made his mother happy.' (= (3) in Lefebvre 1994) d.
PREDICATE CLEFT
Wd Se rive
we
Jan Jan
wa.
FONGBE
rh•e.
HAITIAN
it-is arrive it-is John arrive 'It is arrive that John did (not e.g. leave):
(= (4) in Lefebvre 1994)
Saramaccan also exhibits these four constructions, as is illustrated in (9). (9)
a.
TEMPORAL ADVERBIAL
Ko Rohit ko a wosu pala, hen Rowe go. arrive Rohit arrive Loc house as-soon-as and.then Rowe leave 1\s soon as Rohit arrived at the house, Rowe left: b.
(Lefebvre's field notes)
CAUSAL ADVERBIAL
Waka a
waka, a
ko wei.
SARAMACCAN
walk 3rd walk 3rd get tire 'Because she wa1ked, she got tired: C.
SARAMACCAN
(Lefebvre's field notes)
FACTIVE
Di waka a waka, hen mel a
ko wei.
walk 3rd walk it cause 3rd get tire 'The fact that she walked caused her to get tired:
SARAMACCAN
DEF
d.
(Lefebvre's field notes)
PREDICATE CLEFT
Waka a waka loutu dl wosu. walk 3rd walk go around DEF house 'He really wa1ked around the house:
SARAMACCAN
(= (llb) in van den Berg 1987: 104)
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Papiamentu exhibits the same four constructions, as is shown in (10). (10)
a
TEMPORAL ADVERBIAL
Yega ku Juan a
yega, Maria a
arrive LOC John PERF arrive Mary ~ soon as John arrived, Mary left: b.
PERF
PAPIAMl!NTU
(Kearns 2008)
CAUSAL ADVERBIAL
E
yegt~
ku
Juan a
yega, Maria a
arrive COMP John PERF arrive Mary 'Because John has arrived, Mary left: DEF
C.
bal. go
PERF
bal. go
PAPIAMl!NTU
(Kearns 2008)
FACTIVE
E
yega ku
Juan a
yega
a
hasi su
mama fells.
arrive COMP John PERF arrive PERF make POSS mother happy 'The fact that John has arrived made his mother happy.'
PAPIAMl!NTU
DEF
d.
(Kearns 2008)
PREDICATE CLEFT
Ta kome el
a
kome.
it.is eat 3SG 'He has eaten:
PERF
eat
PAPIAMl!NTU
(= (332) in Maurer 1988: 141)
The fact that verb-doubling phenomena are available in Haitian Creole, Saramaccan, Papiamentu, and other Caribbean creoles such as Martinican Creole (Bernabe 1983), as well as in Santome, cannot be attributed to their superstrate languages (French, English, Portuguese, Spanish) since the latter do not manifest these phenomena. The fact that Caribbean creoles and Santome do manifest verb-doubling phenomena is most probably due, however, to their substrate languages, in which verb doubling is a typological feature. Not surprisingly, this particular cluster of phenomena are found only in creoles that have a West African substrate; they are not found in creoles spoken in Asia or in the Pacific. 3.2.10
Discourse structures
Discourse structures also vary among creoles. Once more, creoles reflect the typological differences of their substrate languages. For example, China Coast Pidgin reproduces the pattern of Cantonese, whereas Papuan Malay reproduces that of Melanesian languages. While China Coast Pidgin has a topic-comment discourse structure similar to the one tound in Cantonese (Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith), Papuan Malay makes use of tail-head linkage, a discourse strategy widely observed in the languages of Melanesia (Donohue). 3.2.11
Summary
The sample of data discussed in this section shows that creole languages vary with respect to their typological features and that this variation reflects the typological differences manifested by the respective substrate languages. I now turn to a discussion of the processes identified by the various authors to account for this state of affairs.
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
3·3
Processes
Several processes have been called upon by various authors, as the means by which the substrate features are reproduced in the creoles. Most authors claim that the process of transfer plays a role (Ansaldo, Bao, Brousseau, Hagemejier and Ogie, Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith, Munro, Roberts, Schwegler, Siegel, and Terrill). This process, which goes back to Weinreich (1953: 1), refers to the use of features of their first language by learners who are speaking a second language. For Andersen (1983: 7), this process may also manifest itself in second language acquisition: "Transfer from a learner's previously acquired language (... ) is assumed to interact with the normal acquisitional process by causing the learner to perceive input in terms of certain aspects of the structure of the previously acquired language." For Siegel (1997: 120, 2001), transfer is the main process in the formation of creole languages: "Here I am defining substrate influence as the evidence of transfer (or interference) at an earlier stage of development. Transfer refers to speakers unconsciously carrying over teatures from one language (usually their first) when speaking (or trying to speak) another language." Other authors appeal to the process of calquing (Ansaldo, Hagemejier and Ogie, Jacob and Grimes, Ansaldo, Matthews and Smith, Migge). Keesing (1988) defines calquing as the process by which creole speakers copy the properties of their native languages when speaking a creole. A similar definition is given by Holm ( 1988: 86): "Calquing is a process whereby words or idioms in one language are translated word-for-word (or even morpheme-by-morpheme) into another." Jacobs and Grimes appeal to the process of relexification. Muysken (1981 a: 61) defines relexification as follows: "Given the concept oflexical entry, relexification can be defined as the process of vocabulary substitution in which the only information adopted from the target language in the lexical entry is the phonological representation." The process is presented in (11), adapted from Muysken's schema. (11)
J
SOURCE LANGUAGE
[
/phonology/1 [semantic] 1 [syntactic] 1
LEXIPffiR LANGUAGE
[
~
/
NEW LANGUAGE
[
/phonology/i [semantic]j [syntactic].
/phonology/1 [semantic], [syntactic];
J
1
J
This process is exemplified in (12) on the basis of Media Lengua. The lexical entry derived from Quechua and Spanish has the semantic and morphosyntactic properties drawn from the corresponding Quechua lexical entry, but a phonological form derived from a semantically related Spanish word.
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Claire Lefebvre
(12)
[
[;E: l
=-~A
SPANISH
+V
NP-ta NPBEHUNGRY NP =
HUNGER
+ animate
/
MEDIA LENGUA
~a;-bri-na-/ [
NP-ta
l
NPBEHUNGRY NP =
+ animate
(= (18) in Muysken 1981a:62)
According to this definition, relexification is a mental process that builds a new lexical entry by copying a lexical entry, and by replacing its phonological representation with a new representation derived from another language. Lefebvre also appeals to the process of relexification, which, she argues, is best characterised as relabelling (Lefebvre 2008). Relabelling can be represented as in ( 13 ). Given a lexical entry, as in (13)a, assign this lexical entry a new phonological representation drawn from another language, as in ( 13b ), and eventually remove the original phonological representation, yielding (13c ). (13) a
[
/phonology/1 [semantic], [syntactic] 1
J
b.
[ /phonology/1 ,/phonology/y [semantic]; [syntactic],
c.
[
/phonology/y [semantic]; [syntactic];
J
J
The new lexical entries so formed have the semantic and syntactic properties of the original ones, and phonological representations derived from phonetic strings drawn from another language. 5 An example of a lexical entry formed by means of relabelling is provided in (14) on the basis of Haitian Creole and its source languages, French and Fongbe (taken as representative of the substrate languages). (For a detailed discussion of the semantics of the lexical entries involved, see Lefebvre 1997:69-70.)
5· The phonological representation derived from another language is identified as l rather than as j. The prime represents the fact that the new phonological fonn associated with a lexical entry is not that of language j, but rather a phonological form established on the basis of a phonetic form in language j interpreted with the phonological principles of language i (see Brousseau).
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
(14)
a
b.
c.
!hU/1 'to murder' 'to mutilate' !hU/1, /ansasinen/j' (< Fr. assassiner 'to murder') 'to murder' 'to mutilate' /ansasinen/f 'to murder' 'tomutUate'
FoNGBB
PoNG BE/HAITIAN
HAITIAN
As has been pointed out in the literature, relexification/ relabelling may be viewed as a particular case of transfer (Naro 1978:337). Migge uses the term "reinterpretation": "... Substrate influence emerged in creoles because the creators of creoles structurally reinterpreted the kinds of superstrate structures that they encountered on the plantations according to the grammatical patterns and strategies of their L1s." I believe that Migge's use of the term "reinterpretation" corresponds to the process referred to as relexification/ relabelling above (see Lefebvre 2008 for further discussion of this point). Are all these processes equivalent? From a cognitive point of view, transfer/ calquing and relexification/relabelling are not entirely equivalent. While the former means that L1 material (e.g., phonological, semantic, syntactic properties) is dragged along into the L2 versions of individual speakers, the latter entails that L2 material (the labels oflexical entries) is incorporated in the L1 lexicon as a parallel label. In spite of this difference, the processes are similar in that they take the individual, that is the second language learner, as the locus where the processes take place. Furthermore, these processes are semantically driven; indeed, the lexical items that are associated by these processes must share at least partial semantics. For example, in (12), ya.rika.- be hungry' and ambre 'hunger' are semantically related, although they are not of the same syntactic category. Likewise, in (14) hit 'to murder, to mutilate' and assassiner 'to murder' overlap semantically, though they are not entirely equivalent The relevance of this state of affairs will be further explored in Section 3.4. Another process, "restructuring" (of the target language), is referred to by a few authors in the book (Ansaldo, Donohue and Slomanson). In my view, "restructuring" is conceptually different from the other processes discussed above. First. it refers to the learner acting upon the structure of L2 (see also Mufwene 2006, and the references therein). Thus, the process is not defined in terms of the individual, but in terms of the second language itself. Second, the semantic constraint (see below) involved in the first group of processes is absent from the concept of "restructuring:' Since the nature of the processes that determine the presence of substrate features in a given creole is still a matter of debate in the literature (see the references in Section 1), I shall leave further discussion of this issue to future research. In light of the above review, I now tum to a discussion of the constraints that favour or disfavour transfer/relabelling.
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3·4
Constraints on transfer/relabelling
In this section, I shall use the terms "transfer/relabelling" to refer to all the processes discussed in Section 3.3 except "restructuring." The first constraint imposed on transfer/relabelling is provided by the very nature of the processes themselves. Indeed, as we saw above, these processes are semantically driven. Consequently, items that have semantic content can be transferred/relabelled. Those that do not, cannot be. A striking example of this state of affairs is provided in this book by data pertaining to case. As we saw in Section 3.2.5, the semantic case systems of creoles' substrate languages have been transterred/relabelled in the creoles either as suffixes (e.g., Sri Lanka(n) Malay) or as prepositions (e.g., Kriol and CAAE). In contrast, the syntactic case systems of substrate languages have not made their way into the resulting creoles. Siegel, Koch (a) and Munro all mention that the ergative case system of Australian languages has no parallel in Kriol, CAAE or in NSWP. Speaking of Mindanao Chabacano, Grant writes: Up till now, as Nolasco (2005) points out, MC and other varieties of PCs have not developed an ergative model of syntax despite the fact that Austronesian Philippine languages, in which many MC speakers are fully bilingual. customarily use ergative syntactic models which are more complex than the Spanish and MC nominative-accusative syntax.
The contrast between the transfer/relabelling of semantic and syntactic cases follows straightforwardly from the fact that transfer/relabelling is semantically driven. On this account, semantic cases are predicted to be transferred/relabelled, and so they are (see Section 3.2.5). In contrast, syntactic cases, which are deprived of semantic content, are predicted not to be transferred/relabelled, and they are not. Note, however, that, as we saw in Section 3.2.6, the creators of creoles, who were native speakers of syntactic ergative case languages, found a way to manifest the distinction between transitive and intransitive verbs that is pervasive in their native languages by developing transitivity markers in their respective creoles. The fact that the processes of transfer/relabelling are semantically driven requires the starting point item to have semantic content, as we just saw above. It also requires that there be a form in the superstrate language that can be semantically associated with the substrate item. Transfer/relabelling is thus constrained by whether the superstrate language has a form available to transfer or relabel a substrate lexical entry. The first formulation of this constraint is known as the "transfer to somewhere principle" of Andersen (1983). This inspired Siegefs (1999) Availability Constraint, which states that the superstrate language must have a form that is available for a substrate feature to transfer to (see also Munro). Likewise, relexificationl relabelling is constrained by what the superstrate language has to offer to relexif)r/relabel a substrate lexical entry (see Lefebvre 1998 for an extensive discussion of this point). The chapter by Terrill on Solomon Islands Pijin (SIP) illustrates this constraint. Terrill addresses the following question: "What grammatical elements of a substrate language find their way into a creole?" She writes: "Grammatical features of the Oceanic substrate languages have been shown to be crucial in the development of Solomon Islands Pijin and of Melanesian Pidgin as a whole (Keesing 1988), so one might expect constructions which are very stable in the Oceanic tamily of languages to show up as substrate influence in the creole:' Terrill's chapter investigates three Oceanic language constructions which have been
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
stable over thousands of years and persist throughout a majority of the Oceanic languages spoken in the Solomon Islands. She shows that, in the case of the locative, possessive and transitive constructions, "there was no congruent construction or available lexical item to be brought in to express any of these distinctions:' She therefore concludes that "despite the ubiquity, stability and uniformity of the locative, possessive and transitive constructions in the substrate languages, none of them appear in SIP': Her study argues that the constraint imposed by the superstrate language in terms of availability of linguistic material is more important than the ubiquity, stability or uniformity of the structure in the substrate languages as a predictor of linguistic transfer from a substrate into a creole. Munro also appeals to this constraint in accounting for why "evitative" mood is not manifested in Kriol although it is part of the TMA system of its substrate languages. As we saw in Section 3.2.5, Koch (a) appeals to the same constraint in explaining the range of meanings covered by a single creole form while the substrate languages have different forms to encode their various meanings. The convergence of substrate and superstrate languages on a given feature is assumed to favour transfer/relabelling of a substrate feature in a creole (see Bartens, Kihm, Siegel, Sandeman and Escure). In such a case, semantic and phonological features are con.flated to produce a creole's lexical entry. An example of con.tlation is given by Kihm in his account of the sources of the negation marker ka in Kriyol. This word has a form similar to the negative form nunca 'never' in Portuguese. The reason why the form of the negation is ka can be explained by the presence of this syllable as a negative morpheme in substrate languages, such as kaka 'negative imperfective imperative' in Mandink.a, ke 'negation marker' in Balanta, and dika. 'negative imperfective' in Manjaku. Kihm goes so far as to claim that substrate influence in creoles occurs precisely in cases of semantic and phonological conflation. The typological congruence of the substrate languages (Ansaldo) is also claimed to favour transfer of a substrate feature into a creole. Siegel speaks of substrate reinforcement: "Substrate reinforcement occurs when a particular variant has a corresponding feature in a numerically or socially dominant substrate language or languages. By a corresponding feature, I mean one that occurs in the same surface syntactic position and that can be interpreted (or misinterpreted) as having the same or a closely related function." In his study of the nine Pan-Pacific teatures, Siegel finds that when a feature is present in the contact variety, a corresponding feature is also present in the substrate languages, and when it is absent from the contact variety, it is absent from the substrate languages. He concludes that "the presence or absence of substrate reinforcement during levelling can account for the retention of particular features:' A last constraint on transfer is discussed by Kihm. This one appears to be social rather than linguistic. Kihm shows that, in contrast to other creoles with an African substrate, which reproduce the typological features of their Mrican substrate (e.g., Haitian Creole), Kriyol does not reproduce many features of its African substrate: "In fact, substrate influence, although readily visible, turns out to be limited as can be shown by comparing core grammatical phenomena between Kriyol and a selection oflocallanguages (Balanta, Diola, Manjaku, Mankanya)." Kihm proposes that there are two main reasons for this state of affairs: First, the creole-creating grumetes soon formed a tightly united group with its own culture; second, they were perfectly bilingual in Kriyol and one or more local languages and therefore able to keep their grammars separate. This study claims that, if the creators of a creole are very bilingual, speaking the creole and the
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Claire Lefebvre
substrate languages fluently, this will constrain (negatively) the amount of transfer from substrate languages into a creole. 3·5
Summary
This section was dedicated to a discussion of the results of the comparisons of some 30 creoles and their substrates from a global perspective. The various ways in which the typological features of the substrate languages are manifested in creoles were first considered. Then, several subsystems of the grammar across creoles were discussed, showing that creole languages vary among each other with respect to typological features. The variation among creoles was shown to reflect the typological differences manifested by their respective substrate languages. The cognitive processes of transfer/calquing or relexification/relabelling were identified as the means by which substrate features enter creole languages. These processes were shown to be constrained in various ways, both linguistically and socially, such that not all the features of substrate languages can be reproduced in the creoles. & a result, creole languages cannot be claimed to be exact replicas of their substrate languages. 6 Other processes were identified by some authors as playing a role in the development of creoles. For example, levelling and its interaction with transfer are briefly discussed by Lang, Migge and Siegel. Reanalysis and its role in a creole's development are discussed by Koch (b). In light of the contents of this section, I now turn to a more general discussion of creoles and language typology.
4·
Creoles and language typology
In this section, I shall address three questions: Do creoles constitute an identifiable typological class? To what extent do creoles replicate the typological features of their substrate languages? Why are creole languages typologically isolating? 4.1
Do creoles constitute an identifiable typological class?
In Section 3.2, it was shown that pronominal forms, classifiers, TMA systems, negation, case systems, transitivity markers, the properties of verbs, serial verbs, verb-doubling phenomena, and discourse structures are not the same in the various creoles. This argues that creoles cannot be claimed to be "alike." Furthermore, it was shown that the variation among creoles reflects the variation observed among their respective substrate languages, such that creoles largely reproduce the typological features of their substrate languages. This argues that creoles cannot be claimed to constitute an identifiable typological class. Assuming this general conclusion, I will now turn to further discussion of the typology of creole languages. 6. Creoles cannot be said to be exact replicas of their substrate languages not only because some substrate features cannot be transferred/relabelled, but also because, as is the case in other languages, creoles may innovate and diverge from their contributing languages (see Ansaldo).
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
4.2
To what extent do creoles replicate the typological features of their substrate languages?
The data discussed in this book show that creoles massively replicate the typological features of their substrate languages. This conclusion may, however, reflect the fact that the great majority of the chapters consider data related to the lexicon and to syntactic constructions (e.g., serial verb constructions, verb-doubling phenomena, etc.). The fact that the properties of creole lexicons should replicate those of their respective substrate languages follows from the analysis that creole lexical entries are, to a great extent, created by means of transfer/ calquing or relexification/relabelling (see Section 3.3 ). The tact that the syntactic constructions of creoles should replicate those of their respective substrate languages follows from the fact that, to a great extent. these are adopted wholesale in the creoles (by a process, or processes, not discussed here)? Would the same conclusion hold for the phonological component of the grammar or for word order phenomena? Below, I briefly discuss these two areas of the grammar and identify topics for future research. The phonological inventories of creoles are derivable in a straightforward way from those of their respective substrate languages. This is what the chapter by Brousseau convincingly shows on the basis of Haitian Creole, St. Lucian and their contributing languages. However, it cannot be claimed that these creoles are typologically similar to their substrate languages in all aspects of their phonology. For example, Brousseau shows that in the formation of the Haitian and St. Lucian creoles, the complex consonants (/kp/, I gb/, etc.) of the substrate languages were abandoned. For this feature at least the creoles typologically diverge from their substrate languages. Likewise, the prosodic systems of substrate languages are not necessarily reproduced in the creoles. For example, most West Mrican languages have tones. Saramaccan has tones, but its tonal system does not reproduce that of its substrate languages, according to the analyses in Good (2004) (see also Ham 1999). In contrast. Haitian Creole does not have tones but it has a complex accentual system (Brousseau 2003). Another complexity of the prosodic systems of creoles is brought up by Lim. In her study of tones in Singlish, Lim investigates the possibility that the presence of a high tone in Singlish might not be attributable only to its tonal substrate languages, but also to the intonation pattern of Malay, its non-tonal substrate. In the same vein, the syllable structures of creoles constitute a problem for typologists. For example, Saramaccan and Haitian Creole both have Gbe languages as their main substrate languages. Gbe languages exhibit V and CV but no *CVC syllable structures (Capo 1991). While the syllable structures of Saramaccan replicate those of the Gbe languages in manifesting V and CV structures but no *CVC structures (Smith 1987), Haitian Creole exhibits CVC structures as well as V and CV ones (e.g., Brousseau & Nikiema 2006). So, with respect to syllable structure, Saramaccan is typologically like its Gbe substrate languages but Haitian Creole is not It thus seems that. as regards the phonological component of the grammar, creoles do not reproduce the typological teatures of their substrate languages as straightforwardly as they do in the lexicon and the syntax.
7. One account of this fact lies in the relexifu:ation/relabelling of functional categories (see Lefebvre 1998). Another account, based on construction grammar, advocates the transfer of whole construction frames. The latter view is explored by Aboh (n.d.) and by Gerrit Dirnrnendaal (p.c.).
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Claire Lefebvre
Word order is another area of creole grammars that presents a challenge for the typological classification of creoles. Although none of the chapters in this book are dedicated entirely to word order, there are some observations on word order in various chapters. For example, in China Coast Pidgin, some word orders follow Cantonese, thus the word order of its substrate language (Matthews, Ansaldo and Smith). Likewise, Sri Lanka(n) Malay has adopted the OV ordering of its adstrate languages Sinhala and Tamil (Ansaldo). Koch (a, b) and Munro, however, claim that creoles' word order generally follows that of their superstrate languages. Kihm shows that this claim is borne out in some cases but not in others, where the word order seems to follow that of the substrate languages.8 So, as is the case with the phonological component of the grammar, word order in creoles does not appear to straightforwardly reflect the properties of the substrate languages. I leave this matter for future research. It therefore appears that creole languages do not equally reflect the typological features of their substrate languages in all components of the grammar. Furthermore, a striking feature of creoles is that. regardless of the typological option of their substrate languages, creoles are typologically isolating, a topic to which I now turn. 4·3
Why are creole languages typologically isolating?
With a few exceptions (Ansaldo on case suffixes, Koch (b) on -im and -fela and Siegel on -im), creoles tend to be typologically isolating languages regardless of whether their substrates are isolating or agglutinating languages. The three varieties of creoles- CAAE, NSWP and Kriol- that have evolved from a hundred agglutinating Aboriginal languages in Australia, discussed in the two chapters by Koch and the chapter by Munro, illustrate this clearly. For example, the bulk of the TMA suffixes of the Australian languages have been reproduced as preverbal periphrastic markers in Kriol. Likewise, the properties of the case suffixes of the Australian languages have been reproduced in prepositions in both CAAE and Kriol. In the same vein, Bartens shows that Twi affixes have not been reproduced as such in the Caribbean creoles that she studies. The fact that substrate affixes are generally realised as free morphemes in creoles follows from the way the processes that play a role in their formation apply in creole genesis (see Section 3.3). All authors agree that the superstrate forms that are selected for transfer/calquing or for relexification/relabelling must be free forms. Hence, person markers are transferred/relabelled on the basis of personal pronouns, case markers on the basis of prepositions, and so on. This explains why creoles are isolating languages (see also Lumsden & Lefebvre 1994).
5·
Conclusion
As we saw throughout this chapter, creoles manifest a great deal of variation among themselves. Thus, they cannot be claimed to be "alike" in any sense of the word, nor to constitute a typological class as such. As regards the semantic and syntactic properties of their lexical entries and their
8. For a detailed discussion of word order in creole languages, see Plag (2008).
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
syntactic constructions, creoles generally manifest the typological features of their substrate ianguages. This rules out the claim that creole languages should be typologically classified with their superstrate languages. As for the phonological component of the grammar (segmental inventories, tonaVprosodic systems and syllable structures), as well as word order, the extent to which the creoles reproduce (or not) the typological features of their substrate languages remains to be further documented. My general conclusions open up a whole new set of questions. For example, from a typologist's perspective, are substrate features in a given creole important enough to lead one to conclude that creoles should be typologically classified with their substrate languages? What should be the parameters involved in measuring the weight of features favouring one or the other view? These are but a few questions raised by the results of the research discussed in this chapter. The concluding chapter by Comrie provides the typologist's point of view on these issues.
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Mufwene, S. S. 2006. The Ecology of Language Evolution. Cambridge: CUP. Miihlhli.usler, P. 1980. Structural expansion and the process of creolisati.on. In Theoretical Orientations in Creole Studies, A. Valdman & A. Highfield (eds), 19-56. New York NY: Academic Press. Miihlhli.usler, P. 1986. Pidgin and Creole Linguistics [Language in Sodety II]. Oxford: Basil BlackwelL
The problem of the typologic:al classification of creoles
Munro, J. M. 2004. Substrate Language Influence in Kriol: The Application of Transfer Constraints to Language Contact in Northern Australia. PhD dissertation, University of New England, Armidale NSW. Muysken, P. C. 1981a. Half-way between Quechua and Spanish: The case for relexification. In Historicity and Variaticm in Creole Studies, A Highfield & A Valdrnan (eds), 52-79. Ann Arbor MI: Karoma. Muysken, P. C. 1981b. Creole Tense/Mood/Aspect systems: The unmar.lred case? In Gtmerative Studies o,J Creole Languages, P. C. Muysken (ed.), 181-199. Dordrecht Foris. Muys.lren, P. & Smith, N. (eds). 1986. Substrata versus Universals in Creole Gtmesis [Creole Language Library 1]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Naro, A J. 1978. A study of the origins ofpidginisation. Language 54:314-347. Neumann-Holzschuh, I. & Schneider, E. W. (eds). 2001. Degrees of Restructuring in Creole Languages [Creole Language Library 32]. Amsterdam: John Benj amins. Nolasco, R. M. 2005. The Chabacano challenge to Philippine ergativity. In Linguistics mul LmJguage Education in the Philippines and Beyo,ul: A Festschrift in Honor of Ma. Lourdes S. Bautista, D. Dayag & S. Qua.lrenbush (eds), 401-433. Manila: De La Salle University Press. Plag. I. 2008. Creoles as interlanguages: Syntactic structures. Journal of Pidgin am Creole LmJguages 23: 307-329. Rountree, C. S. 1992. Saramaccan Grammar Sketch. Paramaribo: Summer Institute ofLinguistics. Sandefur, J. R. & Sandefur, J. L 1979. Beginnings ofa Ngukurr-Bamyili Creole Dictionary. [Work Papers ofSIL-AAB B4]. Darwin: Summer Institute of linguistics. Sharpe, M. C. 1972 Alawa Phonology mJd Grmnmar. Canberra: Australian Institute of Agoriginal Studies. Siegel, J. 1997. Mixing, levelling and pidgin I creole development In The Structure am Status ofPidgins and Creoles [Creole Language Library 19], A K. Spears & D. Winford (eds), 111-149. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Siegel, J. 1999. Transfer constraints and substrate influence in Melanesian Pidgin. journal of Pidgin am Creole Languages 14(1): 1-44. Siegel, J. 2001. Koine formation and creole genesis. In Creolization mul Contact [Creole Language Library 23], N. Smith & T. Veenstra (eds), 175-197. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Smith, N. 1987. The Genesis of the Creole Languages of Surinam. PhD dissertation, University of Amsterdam. Sylvain, S. 1936. Le creole haftitm: Morphologic et syntaxe. Wetteren: Irnprirnerie De Meester/Port-au-Prince: By the author. Valdrnan, A et al. 1981. Haitian Creole-English-French Dictionary, 2 Vols. Bloomington IN: Indiana University, Creole Institute. van den Berg, H. 1987. A note on predicate cleft in Saramaccan. In Studies in Sarmnaccan LmJguage Structure [Caribbean Culture Studies 2], M. Alleyne (ed.), 103-112 Amsterdam: Universiteit van Amsterdam. Veenstra, T. 1996. Serial Verbs in Saramaccan: Predication and Creole Genesis. Dordrecht: Holland Institute of Generative Linguistics. Weinreich, U. 1953. LmJguages in Contact. The Hague: Mouton. Winford, D. & Migge, B. 2007. Substrate influence on the emergence of the TMA systems of the Surinamese creoles. journal of Pidgin am Creole Languages 22: 73-100.
33
Creoles spoken in Africa and in the Caribbean
Ed6 influence on Santome Evidence from verb serialisation Tjerk Hagemeijer and Ota Ogie Centro de Lingufstica da Universidade de Lisboa I Notwegian University of Science and Technology
Ferraz (1979) convincingly shows the impact of two typologically distinct African strata in the making of Santome: ed6 and Klkongo. In this paper, it will be shown that the extensive verb serialisation found in Santome shows a significant amount of typological overlap with Ed6 multi-event and compound verb constructions. Since the impact of Ed6 on Santome goes dearly beyond verb serial!sation and Is also found in the other Gulf of Guinea creoles, the findings strongly suggest an early ed6 founder impact in detriment ofKikongo and Bantu in general Keywords: ed6, Santome, verb serialisation
1.
Introduction
Santome (Sao-Tomense) is a Portuguese-related creole language spoken on the island of Sao Tome, in the Gulf of Guinea, and the short name for Lungwa Santome (language of Sao Tome). Locally, the language is also known as F6l6 or its Portuguese counterpart Farro, as well as Dialecto (dialect). The social group associated with the language is the so-called Forros, which is the historical designation for freed slaves. According to the 2001 census, 72.4% of the total population older than 5 of the country Sao Tome and Principe (137,599 inhabitants in the same census) speaks Santome, but no distinction is made between native and non-native use. The census suggests that the rate ofSantome speakers is dropping considerably among young people. Santome is the diachronic continuation in space and time of the proto-Gulf of Guinea Creole (PGGC) whose formative period starts at the end of the fifteenth century, in 1493, when the northeast of the island ofS. Tome was permanently settled. In addition to Santome, three other creoles are offshoots ofthis PGGC, namely Lung'ie (Principense, spoken on the island ofPrincipe), Fa d'AmM (Annobonense. spoken on the island ofAnnob6n) and Lunga Ngola or, in short. Ngola (Angolar). 1
Ferraz (1979:9): "This first Creole, the original Sao Tomense, later changed into four Creoles through geographical separation, and possibly also because of differences which might have existed to some extent in the substratum."
1.
38
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
In the former two cases, the PGGC or a variety thereofwas exported to the islands of Principe and Annob6n, whereas Ngola is nowadays generally considered a maroon creole that was formed by slaves who constantly escaped from the plantations from the very early stages on (Lorenzino 1998). While Ngola was long thought of as a Bantu language that was becoming creolised (Valkhoff 1966, among others), at least as far back as the nineteenth century, writers have noted that there are considerable similarities between Santome, Lungie and Fa d'AmM (Matos 1842, among others). Notwithstanding the earliest brief descriptions of Santome by Schuchardt (1882), Coelho (1880-1886) and Negreiros (1895 ), Ferraz' (1979) The Creole of Sao Tomt is the first monograph on Santome and still an important reference work for scholars working on the GGCs. Other work mostly focuses on the morphosyntax of Santome (Alexandre & Hagemeijer 2002, 2007; Hagemeijer 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007), on several GGCs at the same time (Lorenzino 1998; Schang 2000) or on the lexicon (Fontes 2007; Rouge 2004). Ferraz' (1979) study also stands out because of its discussion on the historical and linguistic relevance of two African strata for Santome: :bd6 and Kikongo. The present paper focuses primarily on so-called serial verb constructions (SVCs), which constitute a core feature of Santome's grammar where particularly strong impact from the Niger Delta typology, and .td6 in particular, is felt 2
1.1
Historical background
Between 1487 and 1507, the period that coincides with the settlement of the island ofS. Tome, a Portuguese trading post functioned intermittently in Ughoton (Gwato ), a village on a side arm of the Benin River (Rio Formoso) (Mota 1976; Ryder 1977) from where intensive contact was established by land with the Ed6 speaking Kingdom of Benin. The first permanent settlers of S. Tome were granted trade privileges in the Niger Delta. Ryder (1977: 35) writes that "[King] John II had given the captain of the island a licence to import 1.080 slaves from the 'slave rivers' [which includes Benin River] over a period of five years. By July 1499 about 920 of this number had been landed." Many of the slaves imported to S. Tome were traded for gold at the fortress of Sao Jorge da Mina (Ghana). In the will of Alvaro de Caminha, the first donatory captain of the island, dating back to 1499, several references are made to "Bini" CBd6) slaves. In what is probably the most reliable historical descriptive source on slave areas from the early sixteenth century, Esmeralda Situ. Orbis (ca. 1505), written by eyewitness Duarte Pacheco Pereira (ca. 1506), it is mentioned that most slaves were from the Kingdom of Benin and few from the area between Rio Real (eastern Nigeria) and the Congo. Therefore, there is a small but important time lapse between the settlement stage (societe d'habitation) and the shift towards a plantation economy (societe de plantation), around 1520, which coincides roughly with the shift of the slave trade from the Niger Delta towards the Congo and, slightly later, Angola (Almeida Mendes 2008a, b). The island of Principe was permanently settled around 1500, from S. Tome. At least 1514 to 1518 slaves were directly imported from the Kingdom of Benin during the period known as
2. Note that in the past, Edoid belonged to the Kwa branch of Niger-Congo. Although Edoid is now considered an independent branch, it shares many features with the Kwa languages.
Ed6 influence on Santorne
Carneiro's contract (Ladhams 2003). As for Annob6n, permanent settlement occurred in the mid-sixteenth century (Caldeira 2006).
1.2
:Bd6 and Santome in a typological perspective
This subsection provides a brief overview of a few typological features of Ed6 and Santome. :Ed6 is a north-central Edoid language. It exhibits seven oral vowels and five nasal vowels, tones (high and low), strictly consonant-initial verbs and strictly vowel-initial nouns, and absence of consonant clusters (Agheyisi 1990; Elugbe 1989 ). Ed6 exhibits preverbal TMA-marking and uses suffixes and tone for temporal distinctions and is further quite productive in derivational processes and verbal and nominal compounding (Agheyisi 1990). :Bd6 is a SVO language exhibiting widespread verb serialisation and allows for Double Object Constructions. The DP is strongly head-initial. Only determiners precede the head noun, whereas modifiers (possessives, adjectives, nominals, quantifiers and demonstratives, clauses) are post-nominal (Agheyisi 1990). Santome exhibits seven oral and five nasal vowels and is a pitch-accent language (Ferraz 1979). Maurer (2008), however, argues that Santome is a tone language, a claim he also makes for Ngola and Lung'ie (Maurer 1995, 2009). All verbs are strictly consonant-initial. While Santome exhibits consonant clusters (Ferraz 1979 ), these are absent in the three sister creoles, which means that they were arguably missing in the proto-creole of the Gulf of Guinea. Santome is a strongly isolating SVO language exhibiting preverbal TMA-marking, widespread verb serialisation and Double Object Constructions. With respect to the DP, determiners and quantifiers precede the nouns whereas other modifiers (demonstratives, possessives, adjectives, nominals, clauses) are postnominal (Alexandre & Hagemeijer 2004, 2007). Note that in sister creoles Lung'ie and Fa d'AmM, quantifiers are postnominal and therefore possibly constituted a feature of the protocreole of the Gulf of Guinea.
1.3
A few specific :Bd6 features in the Gulf of Guinea creoles
Lexicon The first study of the African lexicon in Santome was carried out by Ferraz (1979:90-97), who provides a Bantu etymology, mostly from Kikongo, for 60 items, and a Niger Delta etymology, almost without exception from E,d6, for 36 items. Rouge (2004) lists 381 items which he considered to be of non-Portuguese origin (African, other, unknown, in his classification). Ladhams (forthcoming) presents an appendix of slightly more than 100 African lexical items, based on Ferraz (1979) and Rouge (2004), and concludes that 37% of the etymologies can be assigned to :Bd6 and 63% to Bantu. In closely related Lung'ie, Ladham's calculated that these percentages are 76% and 24% respectively. In the introduction to his Lung'ie glossary, Maurer (2009:211) mentions that the African lexicon in this creole is almost exclusively Edoid-related. These percentages
39
40
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
are consistent with a few phonological features that are exclusively found in Lungie and refer to the Niger Delta, such as labial velars3 and trills (Gunther 1973; Ferraz 1975; Maurer 2009). Since several Edoid items in Santome are also found in the other GGCs, whereas shared Kikongo items are clearly less common, this is a strong indication that Ed6 constitutes an older lexical layer.
Interrogation The GGCs exhibit a specific interrogative structure with a final interrogation marker of place that questions DPs only: ( 1)
Lomba e, moto b6 b6? Lomba VOC motorbike POS INT 'Oh Lomba, where ls your motorbike?'
(2)
P.le b6? 3SG
SANTOME
(Hagemeljer's field notes) SANTOMJ!
INT
'Where ls he?'
(Hagemeijer 2007: 25)
This structure and the interrogative marker itself are calqued on :Bd6 1'b06 [u06], where this marker also questions the locus ofDPs and, similarly to ST, requires the use of strong pronouns: (3)
Owa rut vb06? house 2sG INT 'Where ls your house?'
(4)
Ren vb06? 3SG INT
'Where ls he?'
En6 (Agheyisi 1986: 160)
En6 (Melzlan 1937:218)
Furthermore, with respect to the paradigm of fronted interrogatives, STand Ed6 follow basically the same Wh-formation strategy, which consists of a question word and a noun. However, Ed6 exhibits one simplex Wh-word, namely gha 'whO, in alternative to domwim (from: de + Om.wan = Q +person) (Agheyisi 1990). ST also exhibits a simplex and a complex forms for 'whO, namely ken and k€ nge (lit. Q +person), as well as for 'where' (andji-ke xitu-k€ kamya) and 'how'
(kuma-ke modu). Reflexivisation Like many other creole languages (Muysken & Smith 1994), ST exhibits so-called body-part reflexives. The four GGCs are exceptional among creole languages in the sense that not only the reflexive strategy can be assigned to .td6 but also the word for 'bodY, ubwe in ST and igbe in Lung'ie, both from Ed6 egbe.
3- Labial velars are typologically rare phonemes that constitute an areal feature of Kwa and Niger Delta languages. Considering the common etymologies, the Proto-Gulf of Guinea Creole on the island of S. Tome must have exhibited labial ve1ars as well at some stage. This phonological feature survived in Lung'ie, but not in the other c.reoles arguably because of later massive contact with Bantu slaves. In Santome, in particular,/gb/ became labial /kw/ or /bw/- e.g., Lung'ie [igbe] 'body', ST [ukwe], from Ed6 ikpe 'seed, gram
Ed6 influence on Santorne
(5)
a
E
mat'ubw~ d~
buta.
SANTOMB
3SG kill-body POS throw b.
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
'S/he committed suicide? 0 gbUgbe ere rua.
En6
3sG kill-body 3sG away
(Ogie's field notes)
'S/he committed suicide? (6)
a
b.
E toma
ubw~ d~
3SG take
body POS give PRJ!P-Stone
da
n'budu.
'S/he bumped against a stone.' 0 mu-egbe gbe okutd.
SANTOMB
(Hageme~jer's
field notes) En6
3sG carry-body against stone
'S/he bumped against a stone?
(Ogie's field notes)
So far, we have argued that Ed6 was both historically and linguistically important for the formation of the GGCs. In the remainder of this paper, it will be shown that evidence from verb serialisation in Santome reinforces this claim.
2.
Verb serialisation
So-called serial verb constructions (SVCs) constitute a distinctive areal feature essentially restricted to the Kwa area (Watters 2000) and a number of Nigerian language clusters, such as Yoruboid (Awoyale 1988; Bamgbose 1982), Edoid (Agheyisi 1990; Melzian 1942; Ogie 2004; Stewart 1998) and Ijoid (Williamson 1965), but are atypical of Bantu languages. Assuming McWhorter's (1992) typological claim that SVCs occur in creole languages with serialising substrates, it follows that widespread verb serialisation found in the GGCs (Gunther 1973; Hagemeijer 2000, 2001; Maurer 1995, 1999, 2009; Post 1992) ought to be related to the oldest slave trade area, namely the Niger Delta. The classification of SVCs and even the label itself is not uncontroversial For comparative purposes, we will adopt mostly traditional labels such as 'give'-serials, 'take'-serials, locative serials, which are mostly based on the meaning of the fixed or most grammaticalised verb in the construction. It should be noted, however, that in the Ed6 tradition the label multi-verb has now often been adopted as a means to distinguish between different types of constructions according to certain morphosyntactic properties (Baker & Stewart 2002; Ogie 2004).4 Moreover, Ed6 exhibits so-called compound verbs, which do not pertain to the class of multi-verb constructions. Agheyisi (1990: 42) defines them as the set of derived verbs forming a tight semantic unit which are made up of either two basic verbs, or a verb plus an adverbial particle. In sum, the label "serial verb construction" ranges over both multi-verb and compound verb constructions. In fact, any typology of verb sequences relies heavily on the degree of grammaticalisation of one of the verbs
4· The term multi-verb constructions is defined as consisting of verbs in series that can function as independent verbs in simple sentences, with at least one shared argument and no marking of syntactic dependency (Ameka 2005:2).
41
42
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
in the series, as mentioned by Lord (1993) for SVCs in general, Melzian (1942) and later authors for £d6, and by Hagemeijer (2000, 2001) for Santome. We assume the following basic criteria for the constructions under discussion: two (or more) verbs expressing a single event; a single overt subject; one specification for tense and negation; one negation marker on Vl; no subordinate or coordinate conjunctions; no discursive pauses; objects can be extracted from both VPl and VP2. In addition. it is illustrated in (7) that both :Bd6 and Santome allow for verb clefting with a verb copy, which is a property common to many other serialising languages, with the difference that the clefted verb in .td6 is overtly nominalised. (7)
a b.
K6le so
inen kOM lentla ke.
run Foe
3PL
SANTOMB
run enter house
1-rhulf
Qrf ira11 rhUle lad awd. NOM-run Foe 3PL run enter house Both: 'It is running they ran into the house.'
En6 (Hagemeijer/Ogie's field notes)
The possibility ofverb clefting from serial verb constructions depends on the type of construction and the status of the verb in verb series, since V2s typically tend to be gramrnaticalised to some extent. This also follows from the fact that some V2s can take an aspect marker. Table 3 (Section 3) summarises how the different serial verb constructions in .td6 and Santome behave with respect to clefting and aspect marking. 'Give' -construction
2.1
In Santome, da. functions both as a main verb ('to give') and as a prepositional element with the meaning 'for, to, from: introducing benefactive, goal, experiencer and recipient, as in (8) to (11) respectively: (8)
Sela pa n
toma zawa pa n
ba pya da b6.
must for 1so take urine for 1so go look for 2sG 'I must take urine to go check you out: (9)
Po se kye da son.
(Hagemeijer 2000: 25) SANTOMB
tree sP fall hit ground 'The tree in question fell down.' (10)
SANTOMB
Fogon sa kentxi da non. kitchen be hot for 1PL 'The kitchen is hot for
us:
(Hagemeijer's field notes) SANTOMB
(Hagemeijer 2000: 101)
Sd6 influence on Santorne
(11) N gdg6 da sa11 6. 1sG please for you CTP 'I'm pleased for you.'
SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
A number of syntactic tests, such as subject drop, null VPs or predicate cleft, show that prepositional da. exhibits the same properties as the limited number of prepositions proper in Santome (Hagemeijer 2000).5 In this sense, these constructions are not true SVCs. There is, however, one property that distinguishes prepositional da. above from prepositions proper, namely preposition stranding. In Santome, prepositions proper are obligatorily stranded with an invariable element corresponding to the third person singular, also labelled spelled-out trace in the literature (Veenstra & den Besten 1994). This is illustrated in (12), where the interrogative construction leaves the preposition proper stranded with spelled-out trace~ (ku ~).but in (13), da has to be stranded without this trace. (12)
Ke
kwa
ku
e
va nha
ku e!*ku?
what thing coMP 3sG cut wood with 3sG/with 'What did he cut the wood with!' (13) Ke nge ku e tlaba dal*dH what person coMP 3sG work for/for-3sG 'Who does he work for?'
SANTOMB
(Hagemeijer's field notes) SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
In this respect, da behaves like the second verb in SVCs, which can readily be stranded, showing that this is not a case of covert coordination. (14)
a
San 1 so e ligi mina tlega [-lr lady POC 3SG lift-up child give 'It was the lady she handed the child to:
b.
"San 1 so
2 ligi
SANTOMB
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
mina tlegt,.
lady POC 3SG lift-up child give-3SG
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
With respect to .td6, Melzi.an (1942: 33) argues that net is a verb that always occurs in the second position of verb combinations. However, Ed6linguists nowadays agree that ne!na is a preposition (Agheyisi 1986:99, 1990: 63; Baker & Stewart 2002:26, 36; Ogie 2002:85; Stewart 1998: 169) which always occurs in second positions in compound verb constructions. In addition, :Bd6
5· Note that da can be preceded by aspect marker ka, but this implies a change in meaning, as follows from the contrast between (i) and (ii): (i) E
ka
aaba da mu. work give me 'He (habitually) works for me:
SANTOME
3SG ASP
(ii) E ka aaba ka da mu. ~he works, he gives me (his earnings): *'He (habitually) works for me:
SANTOME
Crucially, then, repeated ka triggers a proportional reading, which does not qualify as a unitary syntactic event
43
44
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
uses both da(a) and gbe for Goal arguments. The following examples illustrate the uses of these items in Ed6. Ne/Na 'for, to, from' (15)
1
rh!e
~e nu~n. 6
(16)
(Melzian 1937: 127)
nwlmi 11d
En6
(Recipient)
work for 'To work for' (17)
:en6
(Benefactive)
1SG take.PST 3SG PREP-2SG.OBL 'I gave it to you.'
(Melzian 1942: 103)
(Source)
l€re na
6n6 (Melzian 1942: 103)
'to hide from'
Daa 'stretch out toward~ 'toward' (18)
Mu ar6 dad m~n. take eye toward 1so 'Turn (your) face towards me:
(Goal) (Agheyist 1986: 16)
(19) gi~ dad mw~n laugh towards 1so 'Laugh towards me:
(Goal)
En6 (Melzian 1937:22)
Gbe 'againsf (20) Erhdn de gbe fk~n. tree fallPsT against wall 1\. tree fell against the wall:
(Goal) (= (34) inAgheyisi 1990:66)
Similarly to ST da, Ed6 ne can also be stranded in final position, where it has to be obligatorily realised as na, as illustrated in the following focus construction. (21)
[0z6]i ~re Q rhie {gh6 nd Ozo Foe 3so take.PST money to 'It was Ozo s/he gave money to:
a. (Agheyisi 1986:99)
But, as in Santome, true prepositions - i.e. elements that lack verbal features - cannot be stranded in .Bd6, as follows from the case of vbe in (22a) and (22b ). (22)
0 rre
a
vbe Owi(. 3so came in morning 'He came in the morning:
b.
Ow~
g,e
9
(= (30) inAgheyisi 1990:65)
yal na rre.
morning FOC 3SG SEQ come.PST 'It was in the morning that he
came:
En6 (= (32) inAgheyisi 1990:65)
Upon extraction of the object of a preposition proper, owie 'morning: the preposition vbe in .Bd6 is deleted and replaced by an adverbial clitic particle. In order to tormalise this distinction, we
6.
Nutn is composed of the following morphemes ne (prep) + rU4 (second person direct object pronoun).
Ed6 influence on Santorne
will adopt the label "dynamic preposition" for cases like .Ed6 ne!na and "prepositions proper" for cases like 1'be. It is highly suggestive that dynamic prepositions are derived from verbs. Note further that Wescott (1962: 151) claims that of all .Ed6 verbs, nan 'to give' is "phonetically the most affix-like" with the behaviour of a lexicalised compound verb construction, as in: (23)
mu-na
En6
take/carry-to 'to give (something big or bulky) to'
In fact, this also applies to da in ST, where at least the following two items are fully lexicalised: (24)
a b.
fa-da 'to tell' (lit. speak-give) tan-da 'to hand over' (lit take-give)1
SANTOMB SANTOMB
Note finally that Ed6 na also means 'to narrate!, a meaning also associated to ST da. - e.g., da ua soya 'narrate a story'. In sum, ST da conflates a number of functions that are expressed by different items, typically dynamic prepositions, in :Bd6. The exclusive use of ST da, derived from Portuguese dar 'to give, is not surprising, since not only is it the prototypical verb of transfer, but it also has the secondary meaning 'to hit' (cf. (9), Ed6 gM).
Locative constructions
2.2
To express the endpoint of movement, the GGCs use a highly productive construction with the partly grammaticalised verb p~ 'to put' (from Old Ptg. poer 'to put') in the second position (Hagemeijer 2000, 2001; Maurer 1999). (25)
N ga zuga
kupi pe son.
SANTOMB
I ASP throw saliva put ground 'I spit on the ground' (26)
Sun ka vumba
pi! boka-poto
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
se.
SANTOMB
he ASP introduce put mouth-door sP 'He puts (it) in the keyhole.'
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
In Hagemeijer (2000, 2001), it is shown that~ as V2 in an SVC exhibits properties of verbs and prepositions with respect to a number of syntactic tests. One of the tests shows that pe patterns with verbs with respect to stranding (cf. da). (27)
e
[Djelu] 1 so tufu jibela pe [-] 1• money Foe 3sG stick pocket put 'It was money that he stacked in his pocket'
SANTOMB
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
Note further that locatives that do not imply movement typically make use of locative preposition ni 'in, at, on, frotn: which is briefly addressed in Section 3.
7.
Note that tan 'to take' is the reduced form of toma 'to take:
45
46
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
ST locative~ above corresponds to .td6 ye!yf. Melzian (1937, 1942) argues that yfis a verb, because it is tonally marked for imperfective and perfective, indicating the direction in which an action is performed. However, as in the case oftd6 na, nowadays the prepositional status of ye/y{ is generally accepted (Agheyisi 1990:64; Baker & Stewart 2002:36; Stewart 1998: 169). Agheyisi (1990:64) further states that ye is a preposition that expresses location, which takes on the form yf when it occurs in sentence-final position. Differently from Santome pe, Ed6 ye!yf does not operate as a main verb. (28) 1 rhie ~re ye evba. 1sG take.PsT 3so on there 'I put it there:
En6 (Melzlan 1937: 228)
Extraction of the object leaves ye stranded with the extraction being marked by vowel and tonal changes, yielding y£ in the final position, as exemplified by the following sentences. (29) a
b.
lgan (Ire Oz6 rhie ye l}ok6ro. feather Poe Ozo take on small.chair 'It's a feather that Ozo put on the small chair: ~iok6ro (Ire Oz6 rhie lgan yf. smallchair Poe Ozo take feather on 'It's on a small chair that Ozo put the feather:
En6 (= (41b) in Stewart 1998: 169)
En6 (= (41c) in Stewart 1998: 169)
However, as shown above, prepositions proper do not strand in td6 which shows that yetyf still has properties that are reminiscent of a former verbal status.8 In sum, both languages exhibit locative construction with substantial overlap of semantic and syntactic properties, but to which applies a different degree of grammaticalisation. 2.3
Resultative constructions
As illustrated in examples (30) to (32), Ed6 and ST both exhibit resultative constructions, where VP2 indicates the resultative state of the event expressed by VP 1. (30)
a
Budu
b.
Okutd gbe ukpu guqgh9. stone hit cup break 'The stone broke the cup:
(31) a b.
Zon
da
kopu kebla.
kye m6le. Oz6 de wu. ZI:Jn/Ozo fall die ''ZI:Jnl Ow fell to his death:
SANTOMJ!
En6 (Hagemeijer's field notes;= (39a) in Stewart 1998: 131) SANTOMR
En6 (Hagemeijer's field notes;= (11a) in Stewart 1998: 18)
8. A monosyllabic transitive verb (or preposition) subcategorising for an extracted direct object, adopts the tonal (morphological) signature of an intransitive predicate (Beermann, Hellan & Ogie 2002: 1).
Sd6 influence on Santorne
(32)
a
La11ta
mundja.
SANTOME
to raise stand/stop 'Get up: I 'Pull yourselftogether: b.
Kpaa
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
En6
mudia.
to raise stand/stop 'Get up: I 'Put in upright position.'
(Melzlan 1937: 116; Ogie's field notes)
Note that in (32a), mu.ndja not only occurs in an identical td6 construction, it is also a lexical item borrowed from Ed6. Interestingly, mz'uiia is a compound form in Ed6 (mu+dia), which was integrally borrowed into Santome. Directed motion
2.4
As in most serialising languages, combinations of directed motion and manner of motion are highly productive in Santome and Ed6, where the following types can be found: Direction away/towards (33) a P. nda be nda bi. b. Q khia11 v6 khian rre. 3sG walk go walk come ST: 'He walked to and fro: EDO: 'He is walking to and fro: (34)
a b.
a b.
En6 (Hagemeijer's field notes) (Melzi.an 1937: 228)
Inen Mle lentla ke.
SANTOMB
owa.
En6
fran rhUlt. /eM 3PL ran enter house
'They ran into the house: (35)
SANTOME
Inen x~ ka fran kpag a
ba
( = ( 36)
in Agheyisi 1990: 66; Hagemeijer's field notes)
poson.9
SANTOMJ!
En6
rrie EkO.
leave TMA go town/Lagos 'They left and went to town/Lagos: 3PL
(36)
a b.
Zon Oz6
(Agheyisi 1986: 90; Hagemeijer's field notes)
sata vala ubwa. saan rra 6gba.
'ZI:Jn!Ozo jump cross fence 'ZI:Jn!Oz6 jumped over the fence:
SANTOMB
En6 (HagemeijeriOgie's field notes)
9· Unlike other motion verbs, the verb kpa::> 'to leave' does not take a direct locative object but an object preceded by preposition vbe. A similar restriction can be found in ST: (i) N
1
X~
ni
ke
kpaa vbt! owa
1SG leave PREP house 'I left the house:
(SANTOME,
Hagerneijer's field notes) (Sn6, Ogie's field notes)
47
48
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
Circwnvention (V +modifier) (37) a E fe ubwa loja b. 0 gbd 6gba legda
ke ~Owa re. 3sG bulld fence go-around house his/her 'S/he built a fence around his/her house:
SANTOME
En6 (Agheyisi 1986: 90; Hagemeijer' field notes)
Accompaniment (V+modifier) (38) a lema 1~1~ awa. b. gua lele ~ze.
row follow river 'to row alongside the river:
SANTOME
En6 (Hagemeijer's field notes; Melzlan 1942:98)
Not only do accompaniment constructions in STand td6 exhibit identical syntax, this SVC is yet another case where STuses a lexical item, lt!le, drawn from Ed6 in the second position, which was also the case of mundja, in (32a) above. Overtaking (V+modifier) (39)
a.
b.
Orne se nda vala mu ni lwa. man sP walk surpass me on street 'The man (in question) overtook me on the street: Dkpid nif khidn gbemi.a mwtn vbe ukpO. man DBM walk.PsT pass 1sG on street 'The man overtook me on the street:
Origin (40) E vwa
xe matu. he fly leave bushes 'He rushed out of the bushes:
(41)
.fo
tluvisu ba ke. come-out work go home 'I go home from work:
N
ga
SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
En6 (Ogie's field notes)
SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes) SANTOMB
1sG ASP
(42)
N bi .fo tluvisu. I come from work 'I came from work:
(Hagemeijer's field notes) SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
F6 is interesting because it is arguably derived from a nominal item, namely Portuguese fora 'outside' (Maurer 2005). However, the possibility of aspect marking onfo (ka.fo) shows that this item exhibits verbal properties. Although td6 also exhibits origin constructions, the origin (ke) precedes the motion verb. Similarly to nMne and ye/yf, Melzian (1937) considers ke a verb, but recent work on Ed6 (Agheyisi 1986, among others) assumes that we are dealing with a preposition. Word order shows that itis likely that kewas originally a verb, since PPs in Ed6 typically follow the V(P). (43)
ke iwinna y6 owa. 1sa from work go house 'I go home from work'
I
En6 (Ogie's field notes)
Sd6 influence on Santorne
(44)
&16
1 1ce dee Edo lsG from come.PROG 'From Benin I am coming:
En6
(Melzian 1937: 1109)
Ed6 ke is further used as a verb meaning 'to be next to/neat, which is expressed by (nominal) preposition bodo in ST. Although serialisation involving directed motion is one of the most common types crosslinguistically, several of its subtypes, such as accompaniment or origin, occur less frequently and show that there is a significant amount of overlap between the full range of constructions. 2.5
Comitatives
ST may use a SVC with the verb zu.nta. 'to join to express togetherness: (45)
( 46)
Bamu zunta kopla minjan. let's join buy remedy 'Lefs buy the remedy together: Nen zunta kume. 3PL join eat 'They ate together.'
SANTOMI!
(Hagemeijer's field notes) SANTOMJ!
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
More often, however, adverb zuntu 'together' expresses togetherness- e.g., zuga bola zuntu 'play (foot) ball together'. In Ed6 this construction (V +infinitival complement) appears to be far more prolific, to the extent that it can be expressed by three different verbs that can be found in free variation: gbti, kokO and kugbe 'to jom. (47)
k~gbe-re
rr£ izf.
En6
they join.together.PsT-rv eat rice 'They ate the rice together:
(= (10) in Ogie 2004: 5)
Iran
Despite this difference between ST and Ed6, the base line is once more that both languages exhibit a typologically less common type of serial verb construction. 2.6
Degree constructions
ST has two verbs that can be used in comparative constructions: pasa. and vala. The latter is also used for overtaking constructions (Section 2.4). (48)
.Mwala sa glavi pasa/vala woman be pretty surpass 'The woman is prettier than the man:
SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
Degree constructions are also attested in Ed6, where the verb is different from the verb used in the overtaking construction.
49
so
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
(49)
Oz6 mase
Azari.
En6
Ow be-beautiful surpass Azari 'Ow is more beautiful than Azari.'
(= (21) in Ogie 2004:7)
An interesting property of comparative constructions is that they allow Wh-movement, as illustrated in the following example: (50)
Ke
kali
inen mina mosu Zon sa maxi tamen pas'e?
what which 3PL little boy Zon be more big 'Zon is taller than which boys?' (lit: ..Which boys is Zon taller than him?')
SANTOME surpass-3sG (= (15) in Alexandre & Hagemeijer 2002: 24)
:Bd6 also allows this type ofWh-movement but, unlike in Santome, there is no invariable spelledout trace (Veenstra & den Besten 1994) in the locus of extraction. (51) De fbi~ka lkpiti ne Oz6 tan-r~n sM? INT.PRON little boy.PL COMP Ow tall.PST-rV surpass 'Ow is taller than which boys?'
En6 (Ogie's field notes)
In ST, pasa 'surpass' is also used in excessive constructions, a use not found in Ed6: (52)
Maya sa glavi pasa.
SANTOME
Maya be pretty surpass 'Maya is very pretty.'
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
These constructions in Ed6 and ST do not exhibit the properties of true SVCs because pasa., vala, on the one hand, and on the other, fail to respond to tests that determine their verbal status, such as the possibility of aspect marking or verb clefting. It also follows that Ed6 and ST do not fully overlap with respect to these constructions. In fact, the broad typological overlap observed in general is not a warranty for overlap of fine-grained details of each construction.
see
2.7
Completive constructions
The items kaba in ST and fo6 in Ed6 both modify predicates and have the meaning 'to finish' as main verbs. The emphasis of the construction lies in the completion of the event (53)
a b.
Zon Oz6
fla
kaba.
guan-r~n
fo6
SANTOME (11~)
ZonJOw speak finish (perfective) 'Zon/Ozo spoke once and for all/had finished talking?
En6 (Hagemeijer/Ogie's field notes)
Thus, both Santome and :Bd6 use the verb meaning 'to finish' in the second slot but, as in the case of pasa/vala in the previous section, in neither language does the respective item exhibit verbal properties.
Sd6 influence on Santorne
2.8
'Particle' -constructions
:bd6 exhibits compound verbs in which typically a 'launch' -verb is followed by the adverbs/particles foa!kiui 'away, off' (Agheyisi 1986; Melzian 1942; Stewart 1997). According to Stewart (1997), the choice depends on the plurality of the object (count versus mass). In ST, this function is rendered exclusively by buta 'away, off' - from Portuguese botar 'to throw' - which also behaves like a particle in the sense that it is intransitive and lacks verbal properties overall. (54)
a
Zon bloka awa buta.
b.
Oz6 tue ame kua. Ozo pour water away 'Ozo poured water away.'
(55) a b.
En6 (Hagemeijer's field notes; = (26a) in Stewart 1997: 164)
Zon zuga budu buta. Oz6 fi ugbe foa. Ozo throw stone away 'Ozo threw the stone away.'
(56) a b.
SANTOMI!
SANTOMJ!
:En6 (Hagemeijer's field notes; = (29a) in Stewart 1997: 165)
kota buta. fian foa.
SANTOME
'to cutoff'
(Hagemeijer's field notes; Melztan 1937: 60)
:En6
It follows from the descriptions that :bd6 foa and kua and ST buta are unable to select for objects. If the location of the 'launch'-verb is indicated, the transitive locative construction (Section 2.2) is typically used: (57) Omali klaga lodoma zuga p~ ple. sea carry bottle throw put beach 'The sea threw the bottle on the beach!near the river: (58) Oje slla 61£ udO fi o vbi ukp6de. Oje push the stone throw cL we road 'Oje pushed the stone onto the road:
SANTOME (Hageme~Jer's
field notes)
(Schaefer & Egbokhare 2002: 67)
There are also cases where movement is expressed differently in td6 and ST. In fact, it follows that ST buta is used more restrictively than bd6 fM/kua. (59) ElfkhilkhU tin fod. pigeon fly.PsT away 'The pigeon flew away.' (60) Bisu vwa be. bird fly go 'The bird flew awaY:
:En6 (Agheyisi 1986: 143) SANTOME (Hageme~Jer's
field notes)
In sum, both languages exhibit similar constructions, but .Bd6 exhibits a semantically more finegrained system to distinguish between mass and count nouns. On the other hand, ST uses, for
10.
Emai is a North-Central Edoid language.
Sl
52
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
instance, a directed motion verb to indicate movement away from the deictic centre, whereas Ed6 uses a particle for this meaning. 2.9
'Take' -serials
STand Ed6 exhibit all types of what is sometimes labelled in the literature as 'take-serials. Depending on the type of taking/carrying, a significant number of other verbs fulfils the 'take'-function in ST: ligi 'lift. up. pega 'to take, to grab: klaga 'to carrY, etc. These are all syntactically fullfledged verbs in and outside SVCs and essentially vary with respect to their semantics. In Ed6, these constructions are extremely productive, with the difference that some of the 'take'-verbs, such as mu and ya, exhibit clear signs of grammaticalisation and are better accounted for as light verbs (Grimshaw & Mester 1988), forming lexical chunks with other verbs. (61)
a
b.
(62)
a
b.
(63)
a
b.
Z.m tom~ bi. Zon take-3so come 'Zon brought herlhim/if. Oz6 rhie ~re rre. Ozo take.PsT 3so come 'Ozo brought her/him/if. ZiJn toma basola bali. Zon take broom sweep 'Zon swept with a broom.' Atlti ya 6wt kpol6. .Atiti use.PsT broom sweep 'Zon/.Atiti swept with a broom.' ZiJn toma faka kota Ianza. Zon take knife cut orange 'Zon cut the orange with a knife: Oz6 rhltf ehq fian alfm6f. Ozo take.PsT knife cut orange 'Ozo cut the orange with a knife:
SANTOMl!
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
:en6 (Ogie's field notes) SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
En6 (= (25) inAgheyisi 1990:94) SANTOME
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
En6 (= (14) in Ogle 2004: 5)
Although both languages exhibit the same range of 'take' -constructions, none of the 'take'-verbs in ST shows the signs of grammaticalisation found in Ed6.
2.10
Consequential constructions
Both Ed6 and Santome exhibit consequential constructions. Irrespective of the analysis for these constructions, these structures are characterized by the absence of a pronominal object following V2 co-referent with the object ofVl. Neither Ed6 nor Santome exhibit object drop.
Ed6 influence on Santorne
(64)
(65)
a
Thma mpo11 va.U
b.
Mu
ebredi fian. take bread cut 'Slice the bread' I 'Take and slice the bread'
a
Zon ka
b.
Oz6 le ~ze re. Ozo ASP cook rice eat 'Ozo cooks rice and eats it'
kuji
1656 kume.
SANTOMB
En6
(Hagemeijer/Ogie's field notes) SANTOMB
En6
(Hagemeijer/Ogie's field notes)
In :bd6, consequential constructions are considered true SVCs (Baker & Stewart 1999, 2002; Ogie 2008; Stewart 1998 ).
Summary
3·
It follows from the previous sections that there is a significant amount of typological overlap between SVCs in STand bd6. Although SVCs constitute an areal feature that goes far beyond :bd6, historical and other linguistic evidence pinpoint :bd6 as the crucial stratum where these structures were transferred from. In fact, in a few constructions the verb in V2, the most grammaticalised slot, was directly borrowed from f;d6 (/€M, mzmdja). Since the prepositional function in strongly serialising languages is typically rendered by verbs and not by a special class of prepositions, inclusion of the following table summarily shows how E.d6 and ST behave in this respect and comparatively to each other. It tallows that both languages typically use nominals and verbs for the prepositional function, exhibiting a low number of prepositions proper, [-N, - V] . Although it was argued that some verbs in the second slot of SVCs do not exhibit verbal properties or only vestiges of verbal behaviour, we have included these items in the class of elements with the specification [-N, +V]. In addition to the prepositional function represented in Table 1, ST and :bd6 also exhibit a number of common complex elements with the structure Prep+Noun that function as complex prepositions. Finally, Table 3 contrastively sums up the properties of the different serial constructions in :bd6 and Santome considered throughout this paper for the features aspect marking on V2, verb clefting and stranding. The most striking contrast between serialising constructions in E.d6 and San tome arises within the class of directional constructions. In :bd6, these constructions are typically Verb+ Modifier constructions, with a grammaticalised item in the V2 slot, as tallows from the impossibility of aspect marking and verb cleft; in Santome, however, it can be concluded that, according to the
11. The difference between Ed6 and ST is that mu is a more grammaticalised item than toma (cf. Table 3). Yet, Santome also exhibits a more grammaticalised use of toma, as illustrated in the following example:
(i)
Toma ope be.
(SANTOME)
take foot go 'Goon foot.'
(Hagemeijer's field notes)
53
54
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
Table 1. The prepositional function in tld6 and Santome [-N,-V] (prepositions/particles)
[+N,-V] (nominals)
~6
Santome
~d6
di'of'
aro 'in front of, 'in front of, the front, eye' the front, eye' oddro 'front, forward direction, ahead
1ifle 'in, from, ni 'in, from, at' on, at' yadn'on' an~
'until, to'
[-N, +V] (V2/d:ynamic preposition in serialising structures)
Santome
we
iyeke 'behind,
.t\d6
Santome
ne/nd 'to, for'
da 'for, from, to, on'
ghee 'towards, in the (to give, to hit) direction'
tlaxi 'behind, the back part, back'
ye!y!'on, in at'
p~ 'in'
back'
uwa 'inside'
gMntu 'inside,
yo/rrie'tci (to go)
be/ba 'to' (to go)
(to put)
the inside'
ftna 'from, since'
s~ 'without'
leu 'with, and'
kild/fild 'away, buta 'away, off'
off'
pla 'for'
iikhUnmwim 'on top. above' ilhUnmwim 'head, upside, upward, on top' odUkhunmwim 'top(side), up, skies'
liba 'on top of, upper part' (e.g., ST liba oke, ~d6
OtotlJ 'under, bottom of' otQ 'bottom of, floor, ground'
basu 'beneath,
rre 'from' (to come) bi 'from' (to come)
t'thtlnmwun ilk£ Cup-hill')
hin 'up, go up, from' subli 'up' (to go up)
under(neath), lower part'
ades~ 'centre, middle, between, core, kernel'
dm~ 'centre, middle, between'
tuore 'to hang low, descend'
d~~ 'down' (to go down)
egpe 'side, body'
bodo 'next to, side'
l~gaa
'around' (to surround, to go around) sikM 'next to, by side'
loja 'around'
lele 'along, with, after'
We 'alongside'
kt 'from, since'
fd 'from, since'
q~n
'side of, edge of'
(to encircle, to go around)
(to follow, to accompany) (to come from)
gberrad, rrd 'to pass, vala 'across' to cross, to go through'
(to pass)
de 'to fall'
kyt 'in(side), on' (to fall)
Ed6 influence on Santorne
Table 1. (continued) [-N, -V] (prepositions/par- [+N, -V] (nominals) tides) Santome
:ado
[-N, +VI (V2/d.ynamic preposition in serialising structures)
Santome
~6
Santome
kpaa 'away from'
x~ 'away from,
(to leave)
of' (to leave)
out
lad 'inside' (to enter) lentla 'inside' (to enter)
f6 'finish'
kaba 'finisH
s~~ 'than'
pasa!vala 'than'
(to surpass)
(to surpass)
mitdid 'to stop. stand'
mundja 'up(right)' (stop, stand)
d:Jd 1oin together' kild:Je 'join together'
zunta 'together,
to join'
k0k6 'gather together'
Table 2. Examples of the use of nl/vbe+N ~6
Santome
Gloss
Meaning
vbe-awu vbe-tmwdn vbe-evbd 1ifle-aro, 1ifle-odaro vbe-!yektl 1ve-obQ vbe-illdnmmwUn vbt!-QJcM:n
n-gMntu rfai rfala niwt ,Ji tlaxi nimon niliba nibodo
'inside' 'here' 'there' 'in front' 'behind'
vbe-ades~
r(iJ~
P +inside P+here P+there P+eye P + back/behind P+hand P+ above P+ side P+ centre
'from' 'on top'
'by the side of' 'in the centre'
same tests, V2 in directional constructions exhibit verbal properties, despite signs of grammaticalisation. It also follows that resultative serial constructions do not exhibit the same behaviour in Santome and Ed6: In the latter language, none of the verbs in resultative constructions can be clefted (Baker & Stewart 1999: 24) nor is possible to license an aspect marker before V2; in Santome, these restrictions do not apply.
4·
Conclusions
The linguistic impact of Ed6 (Bini) on Santome and the Gulf of Guinea creoles in general was first proposed by Ferraz (1979), especially for the lexicon, but also with respect to a few grammatical
55
56
Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
Table 3. Properties of verbs in verb serialisation Dynamic prepN2 V2 give-construction
~6
nd (nt)
Aspect marking
,.
diuf
Stranding
Verb cleft VI
./ ./
V2
,.
./
gbe V2locative construction V2 completive Degree
ST
da
~6
ye ()of)
ST
pe
~6
ST
fo6 kaba
~6
see
ST ST Directional
~6 ST
,.
vala
pasa y6, me, rre
Mli
./
~6
gberraa
ST
vala lee 'next to' (V2) lee 'from' (VI)
,.
./
,. ,.
./
,.
ST ~6 ST
fo
~6 ST
h!n subli
~6
tuere
ST
dese
~6
de
,.
ST
kye
./
~6
lad lentla
./
ST ~6
foa leU a
ST
buta
~6
gbd
ST
./
??!*
,.
??
./ ./ n.a. n.a. ./ ./ ./
./ ./ ./ ./ ./ ./ ./
./
./ ./ ./
,.
./
,.
./ ./
kpaa
kyi
./ ./ ./ ./ ./ ? ./ ./
./
ST
~6
Vl comitat:ive
./
./
~6
V2partide
./
ba-be, bi Iegaa loja lele
~6 ST
./
./
,.
./
,.
./
,. ,.
./
./ ./ ./ ./ ./ ./ ./
./ ./ ./
,.
kOkO kUgbe
./
./
zunta
./
./
./
,.
./
,.
./ ./ ./ ./ n.a. ./ n.a. ./ ./ ./ ./ n.a. ./ ./ ./ n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Ed6 influence on Santorne
Table 3. (continued) Dynamic prepfV2 Aspect marking
Verb cleft VI
~6
VI-take
Consequential Resultative
ST Ed6 ST Ed6 ST
Stranding
V2
..
rhie ya
./
..
./
mu
./ ./ ./ ./
./ ./ ./ ./
.
./
./
./
./
toma, klaga, pega
.
..
./
n.a. n.a . n.a. n.a. ./
..
n.a. n.a .
./ = grammatical; * = ungrammatical; ? = marginal; ?? = unlikely; n.a. =not applicable.
properties. In this paper, we have shown that Santome verb serialisation (in a broad sense), the categories used for the prepositional function (Tables 1 and 2) and several other features briefly addressed in Section 1.3 underscore the typological impact of Ed6 and possibly other, generally less well described languages from the Edoid cluster. These findings are consistent with a founder effect that brought in contact Ed6 and Portuguese-speaking people in the early settlement. In fact, it was shown that pretty much the full range of types of SVCs in Ed6 can also be found in Santome. Nevertheless, the languages often differ with respect to the more fine-grained properties of SVCs, which is expected from many centuries of independent development and, foremost, due to the creolisation process itself. It can be noted that Ed6 exhibits a richer variety within several types of constructions, for instance 'take'-serials, comitatives and particle constructions. But not only does Ed6 use a greater number of verbs to the same end, it is also more prolific with respect to compound verb constructions (not studied in this paper), which have lexicalised and therefore become semantically opaque. Thus, our contribution intends to show that partial substrate transfer of, or calquing on, the substrate typology played an important role in the making of a new language.
List of abbreviations ASP
CL COMP CTP DEM DET FOC INT
NOM OBL
aspectmarker clitic complementiser clause-typing particle demonstrative determiner focus particle interrogative particle nominalizer oblique
POS PRI!P PRN PROG PST
rv SEQ
SP TMA
voc
possessive preposition pronoun progressive marker past root vowel sequential marker specific marker tense-mood-aspect vocative
S7
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Tjerk Hagerneijer and Ota Ogie
References Agheyisi, R.N. 1986. An Edo-English dictionary. Benin City: Bthiope Publishing Corporation. Agheyisi, R.N. 1990. A grammar ofEdo. Ms. Unesco. Alexandre, N. & Hagemeij er, T. 2002 Pronomes reswnptivos e abandono de preposic;:ao nos crioulos at:IAnticos de base lexical portuguesa. In Aetas do XVII Encontro da .Associtlflio Portuguesa de Lingufstica, A. Gon<;:alves & C. Nunes Correia (eds),17-30. Lisboa: APL. Alexandre, N. & Hagerneijer, T. 2004. The nominal domain in Santome. In Los criollos de base iberica: ACBLPE 2003, M. Ferrul..ndez, M. Fernandez-Ferreiro & N. Vazquez Veiga (eds), 85-100. Frankfurt/Madrid: Vervuert/ Iberoamericana. Alexandre, N. & Hagemeijer, T. 2007. Bare nouns and the nominal domain in Santome. In Noun Phrases in Creole Languages: A Multi1aceted Approach [Creole Language Library 31], M. Baptista & J. Gueron (eds), 37-59. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Almeida Mendes, A. de. 2008a. Les reseaux de la traite iberique dans l'Atlantique nord. Aux origines de la traite atlantique ( 1440-1640 ). Les Annales. Histoire, Scimces sociales 4: 739-7 68. Almeida Mendes, A. de. 2008b. The foundations of the system: A reassessment of the slave trade to the Spanish Americas in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. In Extending the Frontiers: Essays on the New Transatlantic Slave 'frade Data Base, D. Eltis & D. Richardson (eds), 63-95. New Haven CT: Yale University Press. Ameka, E 2005. Multiverb constructions in areal typological perspective. TROSS 03 Proceedings. Trondheim: NTNU. Awoyale, Y. 1988. Complex predicates and verb serialization. MIT Lexicon Project, Paper 29. Cambridge MA: MIT Center for Cognitive Science. Baker, M. & Stewart, 0. T. 1999. Verb movement, objects, and serialization. Ms, Rutgers University. Baker, M. & Stewart, 0. T. 2002 A serial verb construction without constructions. Ms, Rutgers University. Bamgbose, A. 1982. Issues in the analysis of serial verb constructions. Journal of West African Languages 12(2): 3-21. Beermann, D., Hellan, L. & Ogie, 0. 2002 Extraction in Edo. Ms, NTNU. Caldeira, A. 2006. Uma ilha quase desconhedda. Notas para a hist6ria de Ano Born. Studia Africana - Revista bJteruniversitt:iria tfEstudis Africans 17: 99-109. Coelho, A. 1880-1886. Os dialectos romA.nicos ou neo-latinos na Africa, Asia e America. In Crioulos, J. Morais Barbosa (ed.) 1967. Lisboa: Academia International de Cultura Portuguesa. Elugbe, B. 1989. Comparative Edoid: Pho,wlogy and Lexicon [Delta Series 6]. Port Harcourt: University of Port Harcourt Press. Ferraz, L I. 1975. African influences on Principense creole. Otlprint of Misceldnea luso-africana, 153-164. Ferraz, L I. 1979. The creole of Siio Tome. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press. Fontes, C. 2007. Estudo do lexico do sao-tomense com didonario. MA thesis, Universidade de Coimbra. Grimshaw, J. & Mester, A. 1988. Light verbs and ®-marking. Linguistic Inquiry 19: 205-232. Giinther, W. 1973. Das Portugiesische Kreolisch der ilha do Principe. Mar burg an der Lahn: Marburger Studien zur Afrika und Asienkunde. Hagemeijer, T. 1999. As Ilhas de Babel: a crioulizac;:ao no Golfo da Guine. Revista Cam6es 6: 74-88. Hagemeijer, T. 2000. Serial verbs in sao-tomense. MA thesis, Universidade de Lisboa. Hagemeijer, T. 2001. Semi-lexicality and underspedfication in serial verb constructions. In Semi-lexical Heads, N. Corver & H. van Riernsdijk (eds ), 415-451. New York NY: Mouton de Gruyter. Hagemeijer, T. 2003. A negac;:ao nos crioulos do Golfo da Guine: aspectos sincr6nicos e diacr6nicos. Revista Internacional de Lingiiistica Iberoamericana 2: 151-178. Hagemeijer, T. 2007. Clause Structure in Santome. PhD dissertation, Universidade de Lisboa. Ladhams, J. 2003. The Formation of the Portuguese Plantation Creoles. PhD dissertation, University of Westminster.
Sd6 influence on Santorne
Ladharns, J. Forthcoming. Article agglutination and the African contribution to the Portuguese-based Creoles. In Black through White, A. Bartens & P. Baker (eds). London: Battlebridge. Lord, C. 1993. Historical Change in Serial Verb Constructions ['I}rpologi.cal Studies in Language 26]. Amsterdam: John Be.ojamins. Lorenzino, G. 1998. The Angolar Creole Portuguese of Sao Tome: Its Grammar and Sociolinguistic History. PhD dissertation, City University of New York. Matos, R C. 1842 Corographia his~rica das ilhas deS. Thome, Principe, Anno Bom e Fernando P6. Porto: Typographia da Revista. Maurer, P. 1995. EAngolar: Un creole r.ifro-portugaise parle aSilo Tome. Hamburg: Helmut Buske. Maurer, P. 1999. El verbo locativo poner en santomense, principense y angolar. In Lmguas criollas de base lexical espatiola y portuguesa, K Zimmermann (ed.), 89-100. Frankfurt/Madrid: Vervuert/Iberoamericana. Maurer, P. 2005. La preposition for di du papiamento et le verbe f6 des creoles du Golfe de Guinee. La linguistique 41 (1): 57-66.
Maurer, P. 2008. A first step towards the analysis of tone in Santomense. In Roots of Creole Structures, S. Michaelis (ed.), 253-261. Amsterdam: John Be.ojamins. Maurer, P. 2009. Principense. Grammar, Text and Vocabulary of The Afro-Portuguese Creole of the Island ofPr£ncipe, Gulf of Guinea. London: Battle bridge. McWhorter, J. 1992. Substrata! influence in Saramaccan serial verb constrUL"ti.ons. Jourt'lal ofPidgin and Creole Languages7(1): 1-53.
Melzian, H. J. 1937. A CotiCise Dictiot'lary af the Bini Language af Southern Nigeria. London: Kegan Paul, Trench Trubner & Co. Melzian, H. J. 1942. Vergleichende Charakteristik des ~lrbums im Bini. Leipzig: Otto Harrassowitz. da Mota, A. T. 1976. Alguns aspectos da colonizafilo e do comercio mar(timo dos Portugueses na Africa Ocidental ,ws seculos XV e XVI. Lisboa: Junta de Investiga¢es Cientfficas do Ultramar. Muysken, P. & Smith, N. 1994. Reflexives. In Pidgins and Creoles: An Introduction, J. Arends, P. Muysken & N. Smith (eds), 271-288. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Negreiros, J. A. de. 1895. Historia eth,wgraphica da ilha deS. Tome. Lisbon: Antiga Casa Bertrand- Jose Bastos. Ogie, 0. 2002. NP focus and non-canonical arguments in Edo. 1n Papers in Linguistics from the University of Manchester: Proceedings of the 9th Postgraduate Conference in Linguistics, 25 March 2000, K. Hiietam & C. R Schubert (eds), 78-89. Manchester: Department of Linguistics, University of Manchester. Ogi.e, 0. 2004. About multi-verb constructions in Edo: Multi-verb construction, past tense suffixation and syntactic representation in Edo. TROSS 03 Proceedings. Trondheim: NTNU. Ogie, 0. 2008. Multi-verb constructions in Edo: A typology. In Proceedings of the Second PhD-conference in Linguistics and Philology in Bergen, M. D. Cardona et al. (eds), 359-388. Bergen: University of Bergen. Post, M. 1992. The serial verb construction in Fa d'AmblL In Aetas do Col6quio sobre Crioulos de Base Lexical Portuguesa, E. d~drade & A. Kihm (eds), 153-169. Lisboa: Colibri Rouge, J.-L. 2004. Dictionnaire etymologique des creoles portugais d:4.frique. Paris: Karthala. Ryder, A. 1977. BenbJ and the Europewu 1485-1897. London: Longman. Schaefer, R P. & Egbokhare, F. 2002 On Emai's causative motion parameter. Jourt'lal af African Languages and Linguistics 23(1): 63-76. Schang, E. 2000. Ilmergence des creoles portugais du Golfe de Guinee. PhD dissertation, Universite de Nancy 2. Schuchardt, H. 1882. Kreolische Studien I. Ober das Negerportugiesische von S. Thome ~Westafrika). In Sitzungsberichte der philosophisc.h-historisc.hen Classe der Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften Wien 101: 889917. Stewart, 0. T. 1997. Object agreement and the serial verb construction: Some minimalist considerations. In Object Positions in Benue-Kwa, R-M. Dechaine & V. Manfredi (eds), 153-168. Leiden: HIL. Stewart, 0. T. 1998. The Serial Verb Constructions Parameter. PhD dissertation, McGill University. Valkhofl; M. 1966. Studies in Portuguese and Creole. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press.
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Veenstra, T. & den Besten, H. 1994. Fronting. In Pidgins and Creoles: An Introduction [Creole Language Library 15), J. Arends, P. Muysken &N. Smith (eds), 303-315. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Watters, J. R. 2000. Syntax. In African Languages: An Introduction, B. Heine & D. Nurse (eds), 194-230. Cambridge: CUP. Wescott, R. W. 1962 A Bini Grammar. East Lansing Ml: African Language and Area Center, Michigan State University. Williamson, Kay. 1965. A Grammar of the Kolokuma Dialect of ljo. Cambridge: CUP.
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Portuguese Creole of Santiago Island (Cape Verde)* Ji.irgen Lang University of Erlangen-Ntirnberg
A few cases of simple relexification of elements from Wolof in Santiago Creole suggest that the Wolofs were the dominant linguistic group amongst the "creolisers" in Santiago. Two arguments taken from the history of the slave trade will be proposed to confirm this hypothesis. In a final section, we present a case of the survival, in a simplified form, of a verbal category ofWolof in Santiago Creole: The imperfective variety of the Wolof'situative' survives in a semantically simplified form in the progressive of Santiago Creole. Both categories are marked by a series of two verbal particles, the second of which is the marker of imperfectivity. However, the Santiago Creole progressive has retained only the progressive meaning of the imperfective variety of the Wolof'situative: abandoning its 'situative' meaning. Such cases suggest that, in the creolisation process, the language structures of the group dominant amongst the creolisers more often survive in a modified form (generally, simplified) than as simple calques. Arguably, these modifications/simplifications are intended to ease the joining of other groups. Keywords: Santiago Creole, Wolof, Manding, Mandinka, relexification, calque, 'situativl!, progressive, imperfectivity, simplification
By way of introduction, some background information will be given on the early history of Santiago (Section 1). It is followed by a brief survey of the literature that has focussed on the contribution of African languages to the formation of Santiago Creole (Section 2 ). A few cases of relexification ofWolof elements in Santiago Creole are mentioned here. Based on these examples, we propose the hypothesis, since confirmed (see Section 1.4 ), that the Wolofs must have constituted the dominant linguistic group amongst the slaves at the time of the creolisation of Portuguese in Santiago. In the final section ( 3), we present a case of the survival, in a simplified form, of a verbal category of Wolof (the imperfective variety of the Wolof 'situative') in a verbal category of Santiago Creole (the Santiago Creole progressive).
I would like to express my thanks to Claire Lefebvre, Lisa Lim and Alain Kihm for their valuable comments on the initial draft ofthis paper, to Sheila Regan for translating the text from French into English and to Zofia Laubltz for her final revision.
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1
Santiago in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries
1.1
Overview
The Cape Verde archipelago, situated approximately 500 km to the west of Dakar, is today an independent state. Although Portuguese (Pg) remains the official language of this state, the local inhabitants - almost half a million people - all speak, as their first language, a creole based on Portuguese, which varies from island to island. Santiago, the main island in the Leeward group (Sotavento ), where both the old capital ( Cidade Velha, previously known as Ribeira Grande) and the new capital (Praia) are located, is home to half of the inhabitants, followed by Sao Vicente which, including its town of Mindelo, is the predominant population centre among the Windward islands (Barlavento ). Only half of all Cape Verdeans reside on the islands themselves. The other half live in various countries bordering on the Atlantic. Those who have emigrated do not all have a camp lete command of the creole. The history of the Cape Verdean archipelago from the time of its discovery up until today can be subdivided into four periods: (1) from the discovery until the crisis at the end of the sixteenth century; (2) a period of abandonment by the mother country (seventeenth and eighteenth centuries); (3) a period in which Portugal again strengthened its ties with the archipelago (from around 1800 until independence, which occurred in 1975); and (4) the period of Cape Verde's independence. We will limit our historical overview to the first of the four periods, which witnessed the development of Santiago Creole (SC). The Cape Verde islands were discovered purely by chance, between 1456 and 1460, during the voyages of exploration along the West African coast coordinated by the Portuguese prince, Henry the Navigator (Albuquerque 1991). The discovery of these uninhabited islands provided the Portuguese with a port of call to protect them from possible attacks launched by African rulers whilst they followed maritime routes along the African coast and, a little later, towards the East Indies and Brazil. The settlement of the islands, which was greatly desired by the crown, proved difficult due to a lack of mineral deposits or conditions favourable to agriculture. In order to attract settlers (moradores), a privilege granted in 1466 gave future Santiago colonists the right to trade under extremely favourable conditions with countries along the west coast of Africa (Albuquerque & Madeira Santos 1988: 19-22). The wealth of the colonists thus grew to such an extent that, six years later, the king imposed a very restrictive interpretation of the freedoms granted in 1466 (Albuquerque & Madeira Santos 1988:22-28), as follows: The part of the coast along which the moradores from Santiago were given the right to trade was limited to what had already been discovered in 1466. The ships belonging to the moradores were obliged to leave from Santiago and return there directly after having landed on the coast. On the coast, the moradores were only allowed to exchange goods that had been produced on the island. In spite of these restrictions, which were frequently violated, the population of Santiago and the wealth of its moradores continued to increase spectacularly, thanks to this trade.
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
The moradores were generally merchants, ship owners, and landowners at the same time. On the coast, they exchanged cloth and horses for a range of goods, but mostly for slaves. Only a minority of these slaves remained on the island, as the majority were resold to Portuguese, Spanish and Italian merchants who dispatched them to the European markets and, from 1507, to American markets (in Santo Domingo, Cartagena, Veracruz and Brazil). The manufacture of cloth destined for export to Africa gave a large boost to the cotton industry (Albuquerque & Madeira Santos 1991 [henceforth HGCV I]: 183-186) and, by the same token, to the settlement of Santiago and the neighbouring island of Fogo, which was particularly suited to the cultivation of this crop (HGCV I 1991: 143-146).1 The other islands remained unpopulated for a long period, except for a few shepherds to tend the herds of goats that had been brought there (HGCV I 1991: 146-148). The re-exporting of goods and slaves acquired on the coast became the main source of wealth for the moradores, and thus a situation of complementarity emerged between the commercial port towns (Ribeira Grande, Praia) and the inland areas dedicated to the raising ofhorses and the production of merchandise (cotton, cloth) destined for Africa. The increase in the population of Santiago (see Section 1.3) and in the wealth of the moradares could only last as long as the Portuguese were able to protect their monopoly along the West African coast, which the treaties of Alc~ovas (1479) and ofTordesillas (1494) had granted them. From 1565 on, they became less and less successful at this. 2 An economic crisis thus ensued which became ever more pronounced. The loss of control over the seas left Ribeira Grande at the mercy of English, French and Dutch corsairs.3 Assisted by the lan(:ados, Portuguese and Cape Verdean traders who had established themselves on the continent in defiance of the Portuguese government ban, the African rulers increasingly dealt directly with the Dutch, the English and the French, who were able to supply them with any type of European goods they desired. The Portuguese crown was finally forced to lift this ban, which led to the rapid marginalisation of Santiago in respect of commercial routes: Even the Portuguese merchants were no longer obliged to land at Santiago be.tore setting off again for Europe or crossing the Atlantic. The loss of the island's role in the Atlantic trade had serious repercussions for Santiago society. Due to a lack of financial reserves, the effects of periodic droughts could no longer be offset by importing supplies. The landowners, less and less inclined to live on the island, freed a large proportion of their slaves in order to relieve themselves of the responsibility of feeding them. Some of these emancipated slaves left tor other islands (Brava, Santo Antao, Sao Nicolau) in search of land that could support them. A system of slavery was replaced with a system of tenancy, with small tenants working the lands of absentee landowners. On the islands, the social boundaries between the freed and the enslaved and between white, mixed race and black inhabitants became blurred. Around 1507, Valentirn Fernandes wrote on the subject of Santiago island, «Ern esta ilya nat;:e muyto algodorn" [On this island much cotton is grown] and on the subject of Fogo "Nat;:e aqui muyto algodom" [Here much cotton is grown] (Ed. 1997:157, 158-159). 1.
2.
See Boulegue (1989:37,footnote 1) and HGCV I (1991: 140).
3· Between 1583 and 1598, the island sustained at least five attacks by corsairs and Ribeira Grande was twice pillaged (see Madeira Santos 1995 [henceforth HGCV 11]: 153-162).
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Because of the isolation of the archipelago that took place at the end of this period, the ethnic composition of the population of Santiago has changed little since that time. During the second period, the number of Africans arriving and departing declined and only the number of departing Europeans rose. In the third and fourth periods, the influence of Portuguese on the creole spoken in Santiago increased considerably.
1.2
The population of Santiago
The sources available on the settlement of Santiago allow us to identify several main strands: The colonists arrived with very few servants, and those who were married, without their spouses.4 In these circumstances, close cohabitation between the white master and several people of African origin (temale partner(s) and servants of both sexes) must have been established immediately. From the second generation on, there were already more "mulattos" than whites, even amongst non-slaves, thanks to the freeing of children born of the union of a white master and an African slave. In Ribeira Grande, the population was composed of the following groups: the settlers (moradores); the Portuguese, Spanish and Italian visiting merchants and sailors (estantes) who provided the moradores with any goods they needed from Europe or America and took with them the slaves and goods that the mora.dores brought from Africa; some administrators and clerics; freed slaves; and, finally, the slaves who served their masters at home, in business, on the ships or as interpreters. In the inland areas there were some administrators of land and properties (generally, freed slaves); slaves who tended the goats, worked in the fields or wove cloth at home; one priest per parish. As regards the slave population, three groups can be identified: those who lived in close contact with their masters, those who worked inland on the island on properties lfazendas) far away from their masters and- probably living among the latter group - those who were soon to leave. Among the first group. the acquisition of Pg would have begun immediately, leading to an acrolectal creole and possibly resulting, in some cases, in perfect mastery of the language used by the masters.5 In the second group, the African languages would have been maintained for longer and the crystallisation of a new language would have taken more time. The result would have 4· According to the corregedor P~ro de Guimaraes, in 1513, there were four households (vizinhos) with white, unmarried women (mulheres branquas solteiras) in Ribeira Grande and 10 with black women (negras). Ant6nio Correia e Silva assumes that these were prostitutes (HGCV 11991:235). In 1588, Philip II called home the men of Santiago who had left their wives in Portugal- without the least success (HGCV11991:235). In 1620, the king ordered that exiled women be sent to Santiago to eradicate as far as possible the persons of mixed -race ("... a fun que se extinga, quanto possivel, a ra~ de mulatos·; HGCV 111995: 255-256). 5· Dulce Pereira (2006: 169) doubts whether at all creolisation of Portuguese took place in Ribeira Grande. We should notforget, however, that Portuguese creoles even developed in the Portuguese factories on the Indian coast. We will see a little later that the Africans soon formed the majority in Ribeira Grande: The colonists there did not prepare their meals themselves; did not plant or harvest their vegetables themselves; did not fetch water from the
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
been a more basilectal creole, an approximation of the language of the overseers, which, in turn, was an approximation of the language of the masters. Pereira (2006: 174-175) is undoubtedly correct in her assumption that the relative levelling of the differences between masters and slaves, and town and country, at the time of the crisis at the end of the sixteenth century must also have involved a similar levelling in linguistic terms. This levelling most likely favoured rural, basilectal varieties of the creole at the expense of urban, acrolectal varieties. The slaves who were en route would only have been able to acquire a more or less elaborated variety of pidgin Portuguese if their stay with the lanfados on the coast or on the fazendas in Santiago or Fogo was extended. These pidginised varieties of Portuguese may have left traces in Caribbean creoles.
1.3
Some statistics
The documents available do not allow us to follow in detail the growth in the population of Santiago during the first period. However, we are able to present some useful information. In 1513, the corregedor Pero de Guimaraes provided the king with some figures concerning Ribeira Grande. According to his account, Ribeira Grande possessed 58 "vizinhos homens honrados brancos" [honourable white neighbours], 16 "vizinhos negros" [black neighbours], 56 "estantes estrangeiros, naturais dos vossos Reinos" [overseas visitors, originating from your kingdoms] (these were legally not real vizinhos as they had no permanent residence), 4 "mulheres brancas solteiras" [white unmarried women], around 10 "negras" [black women], 12 "clerigos" [clerics] (including the priest) and 3 "moines" [monks] (HGCV I 1991: 137). The term vizinho [neighbour] denotes a 'free person, head of a household'. Together with other overseas visitors mentioned in the text, the heads of households could thus have numbered around 170 in 1513, according to the Cape Verdean historian Ant6nio Carreia e Silva (HGCV I 1991:233). As can be seen, there were already a considerable number of emancipated Africans. The total number of inhabitants of Ribeira Grande could then have been close to 500, if we estimate that there was an average of five slaves in the households of those colonists with a permanent residence (home1ts honrados brancos) but far fewer in the other households. Towards the middle of the sixteenth century an anonymous piloto estimated that there were "mais de quinhentos fogos" [more than 500 fires] at Ribeira Grande (HGCV I 1991:147, 233). If we assume that one fire represented one household, then the population must have increased almost five-fold in the space of under 40 years. In 1582, the report by sargento-mor Francisco de Andrade to the king provides, for the first time, a reliable estimate of the population of the whole of Santiago Island and the neighbouring island of Fogo. According to this remarkable piece of evidence, approximately 13,400 people were then living in Santiago and 2,300 on the neighbouring island, not including children, fugitive slaves or other marginalised persons. There were 508 vizinhos residing in Ribeira Grande, who had around 5,700 slaves working for them in their households and in the fields on the outskirts well themselves, etc. And there must necessarily have been many people who carne and went between the town and the inland area of the island.
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of the town. In Praia, there were approximately 200 vizinhos, with some 1,000 slaves. Taken as a whole, these two urban centres, therefore, accommodated more than half the entire population of the island (HGCV I 1991:230-236). As regards the inland areas of the island, Andrade documents circa "600 home[n]s branq[u]os e pardos [600 whites and free mulattos] e 400 pretos forros casados [400 emancipated Africans], os quaes terao em suas fazendas de serui<;:o de suas casas 5v [5,000) escravos, ..."[who may employ in their properties and houses some 5,000 slaves]. This scattered population of6,000 was distributed across eight parishes. Inland and in Praia, there were therefore around five slaves for every one free person; in Ribeira Grande, around ten. The fact that, again according to Andrade, in the capital all the slaves had been baptised, whereas in Praia one in five, and inland even two out of five were prepared for baptism, seems to confirm that the socialisation of the slaves who had recently arrived from the continent took place in the inland areas of Santiago and in Fogo. The estimates made by Francisco de Andrade provide us with an overall figure and most likely a true picture of the social composition of the population of Santiago at the beginning of the major crisis. Yet they tell us nothing about the ethnic composition of its African element 1.4
The role of the Wolofs in the populating of Santiago
The silence of Francisco de Andrade on the subject of the ethnic origin of the slaves is not exceptional. There are no documents that provide direct information on the origin of the slaves who were deported to Santiago during the first hundred years of its history.6 We believe, however, that we have demonstrated elsewhere, albeit indirectly, that speakers of Wolof formed the majority amongst the first groups of slaves who disembarked at Santiago (Lang 2006). Two arguments will be given to support this idea. 1.4.1
The Wolofo and the slave market at Valencia
The city of Valencia in Spain preserves all the documentation concerning the local market of slaves under the reign of the Catholic Kings (1479-1516). According to Vicenta Cortes Alonso (1964), who studied these documents in detail, 2,452 of the approximately 4,275 slaves who were sold there in the period in question declared themselves to be Jalofos (this is the name under which the Wolofs appear in writings from this period). Of these Wolofs, 2,258, that is 92%, arrived before 1500.1he ethnonyms Mandiga, Mantinga, Ma.ndenga and Mantenga. appear in only 43 of these documents. And among the slaves sold before the year 1500, only three used one of these terms to indicate their origin. The ethnonyms Beni, Benne and Bennich appear in 45 documents, all of these later than 1500. Unfortunately, similar documents are not available for the slave markets at Seville and Lisbon, which were larger than the Valencia market Alfonso Franco Silva nevertheless maintains in his work, La escla.vitud en Sevilla y su tierra. a finales de la. Edad Media. (1979), that there were
6. "... , praticamente nao h3. referancias sobre a identidade etnica da massa escrava entrada nas ilhas [caboverdianas] ate meados de Quinhentos" [There is hardly any information concerning the ethnic identity of the masses of slaves who entered the [Cape Verdean] islands before 1550] (Didio Cabral Baleno in HGCYI1991: 155).
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
many more Wolofs amongst the African slaves (los guineanos) than there were speakers of Manding languages (Franco Silva 1979: 69).
The evidence of descriptions of the African coast All Cape Verdean authors writing at around 1600- Francisco de Andrade (1582), Andre Alvares d'Almada (1594) and Andre Donelha (1625) -lamented the passing of the times when the Dutch, French and English had not yet replaced them as the privileged commercial partners of the Wolof kings (see quotations in Lang 2006: 56-58). Jean Boulegue describes more precisely the time of the loss of the Portuguese quasi-monopoly over this trade: "Portugal suffered a decisive fall in influence on the "Petite C6te" [the Wolof coast south of Cape Verde, J. L.] around the time 15651570, as Francisco de Andrade, a well-placed witness, wrote to the king in 1582~ 7 So, against their will the Cape Verdean merchants had relocated the centre of their activities to the south. For Valentim Fernandes (before 1507) and Pacheco Pereira (between 1505 and 1508) who, although not from Cape Verde, nonetheless had access to excellent information, the past that Andrade, d'Almada and Donelha yearned for was still present They only regretted that in the Wolof lands they no longer received 15 or 14 slaves for a horse, as had been usual at the beginning of the trading times, but at most six (cf. quotations in Lang 2006: 58-59). 1.4.2
Conclusions To conclude, we can state two irrefutable facts:
1.4.3
Among the slaves sold at the market at Valencia in the final two decades of the fifteenth century, those who declared themselves to be "Jalofos" were greatly in the majority. 2. In the same period, Portuguese and Cape Verdean merchants continued to maintain close commercial ties with the Wolof kings. According to sources, the whites mostly provided horses in exchange for slaves. 1.
Considering the privileged position for trade along the African coast which Santiago enjoyed at this time, it would appear highly probable that the majority of black slaves at the Valencia market would have passed through Santiago. This leads us to believe that most of the slaves who were kept in Santiago in the fifteenth century were also Wolof, as it is difficult to believe that the Cape Verdean merchants would have systematically re-exported Wolofs so as only to keep slaves of other ethnic groups on the island. Indeed, nothing would be more natural than for the momdores of Santiago to favour trade with the Wolofs for as long as was possible. The Royal Charter of 1466 granted them important privileges for trade between the Senegal River and Sierra Leone. And it was in tact the Wolofs who inhabited the section of this part of the coast that lay directly opposite the archipelago. Let us examine some possible objections to these conclusions.
7. J. L?s translation. In a footnote, Boulegue translates a passage from Francisco de Andrade into French: "Maintenant, depuis quinze ans [Le. since 1567], cette traite ne peut plus se faire dans cette region [on the Petite COte] acause des nombreux navires fran¢s qui se trouvent toute fanmle sur 1a cOte de ces quatre lieux de traite" [For fifteen years, this trade has been impossible in this region because of the many French ships that are found on the coast of these four trading areas all year long] (Boulegue 1989:37, footnote 1).
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First of all, rather than really declaring themselves "Jalofos': the slaves at Valencia could have been labelled "Jalofos" by the merchants involved. The label "Jalofo" could, therefore, have signified "bought and boarded in Wolof territory': without implying that the slave in question was a member of the Wolof linguistic community. Would it not be surprising if the Wolof kings had sold their own people? This is a valid argument The Wolof were able to sell to the Portuguese and Cape Verdeans numerous slaves who spoke Ndut, Noon, Saafen, Serer and Manding languages, slaves who had been taken prisoner during their last conquests.8 However, their contact with the Portuguese and the economic interest that these contacts brought to the coast immediately prompted the disintegration of the Grand Jolof. The slaves sold by the kings could, therefore, very soon be provided from the internal conflicts that accompanied this disintegration of the empire. Moreover, the inordinate thirst for goods offered by the Europeans soon encouraged the Wolof kings to find the pretexts necessary to condemn certain of their subjects to slavery and to declare war on their nearest Wolof neighbours. If we accept the account ofValentim Fernandes, often a pretext was not even sought: "Quando quer que as carauellas dos christaos vern e algliu senhor [gyloffo] quer cauallos comprar logo ho dito senhor salta em a primeyra aldea que acha tanto manta de amjgos como de emmjgos E apanha homens e molheres quanta lhe abasta pera aquella vez e quanta pode escapar" [When the caravels of the Christians arrive and some [Wolof] gentleman wants to buy horses, this gentleman heads for the first village he finds, regardless of whether it is friendly or hostile, and seizes the number of men and women sufficient to his needs at that time and as many as he is able to take] (Valentim Fernandes, ed. 1997: 66). Even if certain kings were more scrupulous with regard to their own subjects, the idea that ethnic solidarity would have prevented a Wolof king from selling another's subjects, who were also Wolot~ certainly does not correspond to the attitudes common at that time. This does not mean, however, that on interro galion at Valencia, there might not actually have been speakers of Serer, Ndut, Noon, Saafen or Mandinka (a Manding dialect) who were declared Wolof simply because they came from a region that was part of the "Grand Jolof". This is true. Yet one might suppose that belonging to the Grand ]olaf would necessarily imply some minimal knowledge ofWolot~ Alone or along with other languages, Wolofis thought to have functioned as a lingua franca across the lands dominated by the Wolof for a period (Boulegue 1989: 22). It even seems reasonable to assume that it was precisely the creation of the Grand Jolof that produced a certain linguistic levelling among speakers of different West Atlantic dialects, under the leadership of the Djolof proper. The limited knowledge ofWolof that speakers of Serer or of Ndut had would have been more useful for them than knowledge of their mother tongue, once they were transported to Santiago or to Valencia.
8. "Enclavees panni les Wolof ou sur les franges meridionales de leur domaine, il faut signaler de petites ethnies, les Ndut, les Noon and les Safen, qui ont ete probablement partiellement refoulees ou assimilees par leurs voisins et, al'epoque dont nous traitons, ont plus que les autres souffert de la traite esclava.giste" [In enclaves among the Wolof or on the southern fringes of their territory, we should note some small ethnic groups, the Ndut, Noon and Safen, who were probably partially suppressed or assimilated by their neighbours and who, at the time we are speaking of, suffered more than other peoples from the slave trade] (Boulegue 1989: 22).
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
Thus, history does not appear to refute the idea that there was an initial preponderance of Wolof speak.ers,9 as is suggested in the grammar ofSC (see below). This idea is also not refuted by the fact that the lexemes of Manding origin seem to be more numerous in SC than those ofWolof origin (see below): the Wolof slaves laid the structural foundations of SC to which those who arrived later had to conform, 10 but the merchants and the slaves who came from more southerly regions were able to continue to introduce African vocabulary following the end of the period of trade with the Wolofs.
2.
Research on the contribution of Mrican languages to the development of Santiago Creole
Research on traces of African languages in Portuguese creoles was undertaken earlier for the creole varieties of the West African coast (Guinea-Bissau and Casamance) than for the varieties of the Cape Verde islands. For research on the former, we refer the reader to the work of Kihm (1980, 1988, 1994) and Rouge (1985, 1988), which centers on the discovery of cases of conjlation (or of convergence, to use the term from Baptista 2006) of Portuguese and '~ican" lexemes and the identification of creole lexemes of African origin. The affinity between creole varieties on the continent and those found on the archipelago, particularly those of Santiago and Fogo, is undeniable. When studies on the traces of African languages were extended to SC (Baptista 2006; Bartens 2006; Couto & Souza 2006; Lang 2004, 2005; Quint 2000, 2006; Rouge 1994, 1999, 2006), it was naturally thought that the African languages involved in the development of this creole must have been the same as those involved in the development of the continental creoles, namely Mandinka, a Mande language spoken in Gambia, and, to a lesser extent, Wolof, a West Atlantic language spoken to the north of the Gambia River, and several other West Atlantic languages spoken to the south of the Gambia, including Temne, native to Sierra Leone but used in a wider area due to its historical role as a lingua franca (see Rouge 1994: 142, 145; claims that are repeated in Quint 2000: 25, 32 ). The results of research concerning the provenance of lexemes of "African" origin in SC, moreover, seemed to confirm the preponderance ofMandinka (see Rouge 1999, 2004; also Quint 2000). Given that the impact ofWolof (W) on the creole of Casamance was slight and its impact on tlle creole of Guinea- Bissau almost nonexistent, this interpretation has long led to an underestimation of the role of this language in the development of SC. As early as 2000, Nicolas Quint nevertheless drew attention to the parallels between tlle verbal pair ten - tene 'to have' of SC and theW pair am - ame, respectively used for essential possession and temporary possession (Quint 2000: 55). We have shown elsewhere that the SC pair mimics (semantically as well as morphologically) that in W to such an extent tllat an acknowledgement of a direct role ofW in the creolisation of Portuguese in Santiago becomes unavoidable (Lang
9· For more details, see Lang (2006).
We have just formulated a new "founder principle~ The founders that are envisaged here are not the founders of the colony, as in Mufwene (1996), but rather the founders of the creole.
10.
69
70
Jilrgen Lang
2005). The same can be seen in the case of the oppositions [±imperfective] and [±anterior] in the two languages: The SC marker of imperfectivity t(a) corresponds to theW di (variants d-and-y); the SC marker of anteriority -ba corresponds to theW -(w)oon (Lang 2004). 11 And it would be difficult to explain the reinterpretation of the Pg deictic adverbs ali [-e'li], la ['la] (both indicating distance) in the SC forms of li ['li] (proximity) and la ['11il] (distance), without taking into account the deictic value of the Wvowels [i], for proximity, and [-e), for distance (Lang 2005).IZ Furthermore, a comparison of the grammatical structures of our creoles with those of Mandinka led Jean-Louis Rouge to the conclusion that there was evidence at this level of some influence from Mandinka on the creoles of the coast, but that Mandinka influence was "quasi inexistante au Cap-Vert" [all but nonexistent in Cape Verde] (Rouge 2006: 73). The leading language amongst the ancestral languages of the creolisers in Santiago must, therefore, have been a Wolof dialect of that time or at the very least a West Atlantic language closely related to Wolof. This realisation prompted us to revisit the question of the settlement of the island - the results of which can be seen in 1.4. These results encourage us now to take a further step. The reader will recall that two central categories of the verbal system of SC bear a striking resemblance to those ofW; what about the third central verbal category of SC?
3·
The trace of the Wolof 'situative' in the progressive of the Santiago Creole
The African, West Atlantic and, most likely, Wolof character of the two central categories of the verbal system of SC would appear, therefore, to have been proven. In our opinion, it is possible to speak of a relexification of the W markers di (variations: d-, -y), for the imperfective, and -(w)oon, for the anterior, by t(a) and -ba, respectively in SC, in the sense given to this term by Claire Letebvre (1998, 2001) and John Lumsden (1999). However, the strict parallels between the two verbal systems end there. Many verbal categories in modern W do not exist in SC, while some categories that can be found in both languages are similar in certain respects but different in others. A less rigorous observer might claim that the similarities are simply those that one always finds when comparing two languages. And yet, is it really conceivable that the Wolof imprint, which is so evident in particular parts of SC grammar, could be completely absent from other parts? A careful comparison of the Wolof'situative' with the progressive in SC allows us to answer this very question. 3.1
Wolof
We will first reproduce a table diagramming the verbal system ofW (see Table 1), taken from the Dictionnaire Woloffran~is by Fal et al. (1990:25) and slightly modified in accordance with
11.
For the Wolof markers, we refer the reader to the table in Section 3.1.
12. See also the SC so 'only, alone~ of which certain very common uses correspond to theW rekk 'onlY, but not to the Pg so 'only, alone' (Lang 2008).
Table 1. The verbal system of modern Wolof according to Pal et a1. (1990: 25) ASSERTIF
Dependant
"t::
~
q
::a
terminatif
subjectif
objectif
processif
situatif
desider.
rna bey (dugub) nga bey mubey nubey ngeen bey iiu bey
beynaa beynga beyna beynanu beyngeen bey na.iiu
maabey yaa bey moo bey noo bey yeena bey iioo bey
dugub laa bey ... nga bey ... la bey lanubey ... ngeen bey ... laiiu bey
damabey danga bey dafa bey danubey dangeen bey daiiubey
maangi bey yaangi bey mungibey nungi bey yeena ngi bey iiungi bey
naa bey nanga bey na bey nanubey nangeen naiiu
beyoonnaa
maabeyoon
... laa beyoon
damabeyoon
maa ngi beyoon
may bey ngaybey muybey nuybey ngeen bey fiuybey
dinaa bey dinga bey dina bey dinanubey dingeen bey dinafiu bey
maaybey yaaybey mooybey nooybey yeenaybey flooy bey
... laaybey ... ngaybey lay bey ... lanuybey ... ngeen di bey ... laiiuybey
damaybey dangaybey dafaybey danuy bey dangeen di bey daiiuybey
maangiybey yangiybey mungiybey nungiybey yeena ngiy bey flungiy bey
doonnaa bey
maadoon bey
... laa do on bey
dam a doon bey maa ngiy doon bey
beyuma
maa beyul
... laa beyul
damabeyul
mabeyul
beyuma
maa beyul
damabeyul
WOOD
WOOD
WOOD
... laa beyul woon
duma bey
maadul bey
dumawoon bey
maadul woonbey
~ :!l Passe rna beyoon
~ ~
'Tj
~ "t::
~
q
' Tj
Passe rna doon bey
"t::
~
z
~ ~
'Tj
rna beyul
madul bey
~
"t::
~
Injonctif
madul woon bey
rna ban bey
madiban bey
laa dul bey laa dulwoon bey
WOOD
damadul bey dam a dul woon bey
imper. beyal
beyleen
naaybey nangaybey dilbey nay bey nanuybey nangeen di bey dileen nafiuy bey bey
> ~
a:
s!;: 5'
burna bey, buL .. , bwnu... , bumu. .. , buleen ... , bunu ... Perfectif: action envisagee dans sa globalite: je1al garab gii « Prends ce medicament ! • Imperfect.if. action envisagee dans son deroulement: dil je1 garab gii « Prends ce medicament (regulierement) ! »
..S" ~
0"
~
1 g,
g.
I "'"'
Q
"'~ ..... ...
72
Jilrgen Lang
other published works. The table shows the conjugation of the W bey (dugub ), in English, 'to grow (millet): accompanied byW subject pronouns. As there are no forms corresponding to the forms of theW 'situative' in English, French approximations are used in the translation ofW examples below. 3.1.1
The 'situative' in Wolof
Table 1 shows that the marker indicating the 'situative'- Sauvageot (1965), Robert (1991) and Diouf (2001) use the term 'presentative'- in W is formed by using a "presenter" ng-, followed by a variable deictic element. The deictic element shown in the table is the vowel [i], which indicates proximity. An alternative to this vowel would be the vowel [-e] to indicate distance; other deictic elements, such as -ii and -oogo, can also appear in this position. We therefore have, for the thirdperson singular of bey (dugu.b) (French: 'cultiver du mif): (1)
.Mu ngi bey dugub. 3sG presenter-near grow millet 'Voici qu'il cultive du mil.' Mu nga bey dugub. 3sG presenter-far grow millet 'Voila qu'il cultive du mil.'
WoLOF
(Fal et aL 1990: 25) WOLOF
In the first- and second-person singular, as well as in the second-person plural, we find the morpheme -a combined with the personal pronoun. In the Kajoor region, we also find the same phenomenon in the first- and third-person plural (Robert 1991: 168). In Dakar, however, we find: sa 1. Maa ngi ... , 2. Yaa ngi... , 3. Mu ngi... , PL 1. Nu ngi ... , 2. Yeena ttgi ... , 3. Nu ngi .... This -a resembles that which is found in the subjective for all persons (see Table 1; -u+a regularly appears as -oo in Wolof). It can also be found in the third person of the 'situative' following a lexical subject, where the personal pronoun mu may be used as an alternative. We, therefore, have either lexical subject+ mu + ngi ... , orlexical subject+ a+ ngi ... (Robert 1991:166, 168): (2)
(3)
Xaj bi mu ngi lekk yapp. dog CLF-near 3PS presenter-near eat meat 'Void que le chien mange de 1a viande: Pierre a 11gi ak Omar. Jar Peter a presenter-near take-sides with Omar 'Voici que Pierre prend parti pour 0 mar.'
WOLOF
(Robert 1991: 166) WoLOF
(Diouf & Yaguello 1991: 87)
It is not easy to formulate the rules that determine the choice between ngi and nga. It would appear that speakers should choose nga (which is in fact much less frequent than ngi), if they wished to indicate that the action is outside of the immediate or current field of vision of their interlocutor, that is to say, located firr away or in the recent past For more on this subject, see Robert (1991: 195-197) and the following example taken from Diouf & Yaguello (1991:63), where the 'far' meaning of ca and wale echoes that of nga:
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
(4)
Mu ngay
dem ca
wall wale.
WoLOF
3sG presenter-far-IPFV go at-far side DEM-far ·n vade l'autre c6te l.A-bas: (Literally: 'Voila qu'll vade l'autre cru:e la-bas.')
In stories, ngi seems to bring us spatially nearer to the action, in a manner similar to the effect, in temporal terms, of the historical present in English. 3.1.2
Use of the imperfective marker in the Wolof'situative'
Theoretically, it is only possible to point to something that is still there. Semantically, the 'situative' is therefore intrinsically imperfective. 13 As can be seen from the examples (1 )-(3) above, this intrinsic imperfectivity of the spatial deixis does not need to be marked explicitly in W by the imperfective marker di. This does not, however, prevent us from finding frequent examples in which the imperfective marker, in the form of -y, combines with the element ngi or nga indicating the 'situative~ The resultant forms are ngiy, which occurs frequently (this form appears in Table 1), and ngay, which is more rarely seen (see (4)). In this particular context, the marker allows the expression of a sub-type of the imperfective. Ngom (2003:76) explains: "When the NGI form is in the perfective aspect, the sentence is interpreted as present tense in English. When it is used in the imperfective aspect, the sentence is interpreted as present progressive:' Stephane Robert made the same assertion as early as 1991, without using a comparison with English. According to Robert, the forms of the 'situative' with the imperfective marker indicate that "at the moment of speaking TO' the process has begun, is continuing and is not yet completed" (Robert1991: 190; J. L:s translation). It therefore follows, among other things, that, "... whenever the verb takes a plural object which implies both duration and progression, the tendency is towards the use of the imperfective marker" (Robert 1991: 190). This phenomenon is confirmed by examples found in dictionaries and texts: (5)
Mu ngiy
bey
dugub.
3sG presentative-near-IFFY grow millet 'Le voici en train de cultiver du mil'
WoLOF
(Fal et al. 1990: 25)
Robert further explains that the form without the imperfective marker and with a present meaning, "is by no means incompatible with processes which suppose a certain duration" (Robert 1991: 190). None of this is surprising. It must be remembered that forms that are not marked morphologically are almost always also not marked semantically. That is to say, rather than indicating the opposite of the marked forms, they remain in principle indefinite (or semantically neutral) compared with the predse meaning the marker would give (Robert 1991: 191: "In sum, the simple form of the presentative would not seem to be really completed or incomplete:';]. L:s translation). If there is no reason to emphasise the progressive aspect or if it is clearly evident from the context, it is not necessary to use a specific marker.
13. Only in exceptional circumstances could a 'situative' produce a past tense meaning. The examples given in Robert (1991: 187-189)involve resultative verbs and indicate the results in question.
73
74
Jilrgen Lang
3.2
Santiago Creole
3.2.1
Ihe presentative construction in SC
Let us now turn our focus to SC, which has a clear presentative construction: (6)
Ale
-l
ADV-near
3PS
[-e'lel] ta IPFV
pi/a
midju.
pound
COrn
SANTIAGO CREOLE
'Le voici qui pile du ma:is.'
Ala
-l [-e'l-el] ta
ADV-far 3PS
IPFV
pila
midju.
pound
corn
SANTIAGO CREOLE
'Le voila qui pile du m.als? One would expect to findAli-1 ta ... ,in place of Aie-l ta ... , given that the two deictic adverbs in SC are (a)li [(-e)'li] 'here' and (a)la [(-e)'l-e] 'there~ Nicolas Quint may well be correct in his interpretation of this construction as containing verbal uses of ali and ala (pc). Essentially, the unstressed [-i] of SC verbs is changed to a stressed [e] in front of verb endings and enclitic pronouns. The opposition of'near' and 'far' in the presentative construction in SC does indeed call to mind the W 'situative: but the characteristics that make the SC construction similar to the presentative construction of Pg Ei-lo a pilar milho 'Le voici qui pile du m.a'is' are much more numerous: The order and the function of the elements (firstly a presenter, then a clitidsed object pronoun) are the same as in Pg; In both the SC and the Portuguese constructions, there is a localisation of the subject of the action and not a localisation of the process; Contrary to the case ofWolof, in the SC construction, the verb is automatically introduced by the imperfective marker ta, which corresponds to the preposition a in the Portuguese construction (see once again, Pg Ei-lo a pilar milho ); The 'situative' is found much more frequently in Wolof texts than SC and Portuguese presentative constructions in SC and Portuguese texts. All of these factors lead us to believe that the presentative construction in SC does not stem from the process of creolisation. Instead, it would seem to have developed later according to the Portuguese model and using available creole elements. On this occasion. the speakers would have substituted for the Pg ei, the creole forms ali!ala and - as in a number of verbal periphrases that SC has borrowed from Pg (Lang 2000: 470)- the creole ta for the Portuguese preposition a. Thus, the W 'situative' has not survived in SC in a relexified form. We hope, however, to demonstrate that it has nonetheless profoundly influenced the verbal system ofSC. 3.2.2
Ihe progressive aspect in Santiago Creole
Strangely, the aspectual system of SC is richer than that ofW: Only SC has a progressive aspect within the impertective aspect The aspectual system of SC thus has the forms as shown in Table 2. As can be seen, the marker of the progressive in SC is sa (variation: s'), invariably followed by the marker of the imperfective, ta. This is because the progressive presupposes imperfectivity.
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
Table 2. SC pila midju 'to pound corn' N
bu e nu nhos es Imperfective
Progressive
Imperfective
N
ta
bu e nu nhos es
ta ta ta
N
bu e nu nhos es
3·3
ta ta
sa sa sa sa sa sa
ta ta ta ta ta ta
pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju pila rnidju
Birth of the progressive in Santiago Creole under the influence of Wolof
SC forms beginning with sa ta or s'ta therefore have the same meaning as 'situative' forms in W in cases where they are accompanied by the marker of the imperfective - apart from the situative or presentative effect itself. It is as if, in functional terms, the speakers ofW had, in the process of creolising Pg in Santiago, abandoned their 'situative. but not relinquished the possibility that this forms provided to express the progressive aspect. This supposition would remain purely hypothetical if certain material clues were not available to support it. In the Portuguese progressive periphrasis, est a fazer 'he is (in the process of) doing: it is esta a that provides the expression of the progressive aspect Two ways of pronouncing esta a would have already been in competition at the time of creolisation: (Ele) esta a [s'ta-e] (comer) 'He is (in the process of) eating' 14 and (Ele) ta a ['ta-e] (comer). Nowadays, the variant with the elided [s] is very common in informal language. In search of a phonic sequence in the Portuguese utterances that they heard, which was likely to be the equivalent of their imperfective marker di (modern variants d-, -y, although these may not yet have existed at this time), they came across the popular and very common ['ta-e] in the progressive periphrasis in Pg. The reinterpretation of this Pg string as a verbal particle in SC brought with it the loss of its stressed character and the transformation of its open [a] into a closed [-e]. SC does not, in fact, have any open vowels [s], [a], [:JI in unstressed syllables. The resulting [-eI merged with the second [-e]. In this way, the marker of the imperfective aspect in SC was born:
a
14. The pronunciation [' fta-e] did not yet exist at that time. By contrast, the variant with the elided e- already appears after a vowel twice in a Portuguese document dating back to 1280 and reproduced in Maia (1986: 186-187, no. 97).
75
76
JilrgenLang
OldPg
*(Ele)
taa ['tall]
(comer.)
sc
(El)
ta [t"e]
(kume.)
OldW.
*(Mu)
di
(lekk.)
•
~
ModernW.
+
/
(lekk.)
Muly
Figure 1. Development of the imperfective marker in SC
(Cf. modern W Muy bey (dugub) in the third person of the imperfective of the 'dependant' in Table 1.) In this account, the phonic substance of the marker of the imperfective in SC originated from 'above' (from Pg), and its phonic form (a monosyllabic unstressed particle) came from 'below' (fromW). Searching for a phonic sequence in the Portuguese utterances that they heard that could be the equivalent of their complex marker *ngi di (nowadays, ngiy), the speakers ofW must ahnost inevitably have come across the same periphrasis. Yet this time they had good reason to favour the longer variant [stag]. In effect, this choice of the longer variant, subjected to the same phonic analysis as the one reconstructed for the transformation ['tag] > [tl:'!], and thus ['stag] > [stl:'!], allowed them to identify two parts: The first, [s), was not required to be the marker of the 'situative: but the distinctive sign of the progressive and the second, [tl:'!], was identified as the marker of the imperfective. Thus, the complex marker of the progressive aspect in SC was born: staa ['stall]
(comer.)
sl ta [ste]
(kume.)
OldPg
*(Ele)
sc
(El)
OldW.
*(Mu)
ngi I di
(lekk.)
ModernW.
Mu
ngil y
(lekk.)
• •• tt
Figure 2. Development of the progressive marker in SC
From s'ta [s I t1:'!], we would arrive at sa ta [81:'! I t1:'! ], which is closer to the canonical syllable structure ofSC (cf. Pg escuro [(e)s'kuru] 'dark'> SC sukuru [su'kuru]). Once again, the phonic substance of the markers of the progressive in SC originated from 'above' (from Pg), and their phonic form (a succession of two particles, s'ta transforming into sa ta) came from 'below' (from W). However, here we are no longer dealing with a simple case of relexi:fication: The signijie of ngiy (or *ngi di), that is to say, its semantic "form~ situative + imperfective, has not remained intact. It has been simplified into progressive(+ imperfective). Let us stress at this point that, provided that this analysis is correct, in this interpretation of the Portuguese phonic chain modelled on W *ngi di or ngiy we are dealing with a false
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
segmentation. As we know, such segmentation errors are often produced at the beginning of the unassisted acquisition of a second language. A creole generally retains a fairly large number of such errors. However, these segmentation errors are rarely completely arbitrary. In the present case, the make-up ofW *ngi di, ngiy suggested a segmentation of [srn], while the competition within Portuguese between the variants ['sta] and ['ta] suggested a break of the [sIte] type, rather than of the [st 1-e] type. After sa. tawas promoted to the rank of complex marker of the progressive, its use was extended to the optative in order to create optative forms with a progressive meaning. The modal content of an optative naturally implies imperfectivity. This inherent imperfectivity does not, therefore, require a specific marker. It is only when there is a need for a progressive meaning that the marker sa ta is added to the optative. One final observation seems to confirm the validity of our conclusions: If the progressive implies imperfectivity, why is it not ever possible, in accordance with the theory just expounded, to dispense with the marker ta after the progressive marker sa? Most likely because, in the relevant contexts of their masters' utterances, the slaves sometimes heard [sta] and sometimes [ta], but never [s] without [ta). Finally we arrive at the following verbal system (see Table 3). Table 3. SC pila 'to pound' Indicative
Optative
N bu e nu nhos es Ant
Imperfective
Ant
Progressive
Imperfective
Ant
pila
N
aJ.
pila pila pila pila
bu e nos nhos es
al al al al al
pila pila pila pila pila pila
pilaba
N
al
piJ.aba
pila
N N bu e nu nhos es
ta ta ta ta ta ta
pila
N
ta
pilaba
pila pila pila pila
pila
N bu e nu nhos es
sa sa sa sa sa sa
ta ta ta ta ta ta
pila
N
pila pila pila pila pila
bu e nos nhos es
al al al al al al
sata sata sata sata sata sata
pila pila pila pila pila pila
N
sa
ta
pilaba
N
al
sata
piJ.aba
77
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Jilrgen Lang
In order to gain an idea of the full extent of verbal forms that SC speakers have at their disposal, we need only add to all of these forms the corresponding passive forms. As can be seen, the SC system is much simpler than that of modem-day W, but at the same time much closer to it than to the Pg verbal system of any era.
Conclusions At the point of embarking on this research, the extensive presence ofWolof speakers in Santiago at the time of the birth of its creole and the existence of certain calques from Wolof in SC (evident from surviving forms in modem Wolof) was no longer in doubt. The question that remained to be addressed was whether it was possible, considering these circumstances, that we might find less visible traces of ancient Wolof in SC, in other domains. Given that these varieties had no written form, we had to base our comparisons on modem Wolof. We believe that we have shown that the SC progressive can be explained as resulting from a simplification of the imperfective version of the Wolof 'si tuative'. In semantic terms, the progressive meaning of these Wolof forms was preserved, yet their strictly situative meaning was lost. Morphologically, there would have been the usual replacement of Wolof material with Portuguese material, along with the retention of the Wolof morphological structure (in this case: two particles, the second of which identical with the imperfective marker). The semantic simplification would have occurred to ease the joining of other groups whose language may have had a progressive, but not a 'situative' with a progressive meaning in the imperfective. It is not possible, however, tor us to identify these groups at present. Our explanation of the SC progressive remains hypothetical. How could it be anything else at this stage? A new methodology will undoubtedly have to take shape gradually that will clarify which criteria need to be fulfilled by such a reconstruction if it is to be accepted by the academic community. We believe that there is no alternative. To reject any investigation of the impact on creoles of the ancestral languages of the creolisers would probably amount to a complete renunciation of historical explanation (Lang 2008). For the time being, we propose that research on the traces of the ancestral languages of the creolisers in a creole should begin with the identification of creole elements that are more or less pedtd matches with forms found in these languages, but that it should be extended to other domains if and when such calques are discovered.
List of abbreviations AJJV
CLP
Dl!M IPFV
Pg
adverb classifier demonstrative imperfective Portuguese
PS
SC
person Santiago Creole (Cape Verde)
SG
singular
W
Wolof (Senegal)
A Wolof trace in the verbal system of the Pol1:ugllese Creole
References de Albuquerque, L. 1991. 0 descobrimento das illias de Cabo Verde. In HGCV I: 23-39. de Albuquerque, L. & Madeira Santos, M. E. (eds). 1988. Hist6ria Geral de Cabo ~rde, Corpo documental, Vol. I. Lisbon & Praia: lnstituto de Investiga~o Cientlfica Tropical - Dire~o-Geral do Patrirn6nio Cuhural de Cabo Verde. de Albuquerque, L. & Madeira Santos, M. E. (eds). 1991. Hist6ria Geral de Cabo Verde, Vol. I [HGCVI]. Lisbon & Praia: Instituto de Investiga~ao Cientffica Tropical- Direq:ao-Geral do Patrirn6nio Cultural de Cabo Verde. Baptista, M. 2006. When substrates meet superstrate: The case of Cape Verdean Creole. In Cabo Verde. Origem da Sua Sociedade e do Seu Crioulo, J. Lang, J. Holm,J.-L. Rouge & M. J. Soares (eds), 91-116. Ttibingen: Narr. Bartens, A. 2006. A contribui~o do substrato africano para a genese dos crioulos caboverdianos: 0 caso dos ideofones. In Cabo V?.rde. Origens da Sua Sociedade e do Seu Crioulo, J. Lang, J. Holm, J.-L Rouge & M. J. Soares (eds), 117-131. Tiibingen: Narr. Boulegue, J. 1989. Les Luso-Africains de Senegambie: XVI-~ siedes. Lisbon: Ministerio da Educa~o, Instituto de Investiga~o Cientffica Tropical Cortes Alonso, V. 1964. La esclavitud en Valencia durante el reinado de los Reyes Cat6licos (1479-1516). Valencia: Ayuntamiento. do Couto, H. H. & de Souza, U. R. 2006. As consoantes pre-nasalizadas no crioulo caboverdiano: Por uma interpreta~o bifonematica. In Cabo Verde. Origens da Sua Sociedade e do Seu Crioulo, J. Lang, J. Holm, J.-L Rouge & M. J. Soares (eds), 133-146. Tiibingen: Narr. Diouf, J.-L 200 1. Grammaire du wolaf contemporain. Tokyo: University of Foreign Studies. The Institute for the Study ofLanguages and Cuhures (ILCAA). Diouf, J.-L. & Yaguello, M. 1991. fapprends le wolof, 1 vol. etune cassette. Paris: Karthala. Fal, A, Santos, R. & Doneux, J.- L 1990. Dictionnaire wolof-fratlfais, suivi d'un index franfais-wolof. Paris: Karthala. Fernandes, V. 1997. Codice Valentim Fernandes. Ofrecido Pelo Academico Titular Fundador Joaquim Bensaude (1859-1952), Leitura Paleogrdfica, Notas e lndice Pelo Academico de NUmero Jose Pereira da Costa. Lisbon: Academia Portuguesa da Hist6ria. Franco Silva, A. 1979. La esclavitud en Sevilla y su tierra a finales de la Edad Media. Seville: Diputact6n Provincial. Kihm, A. 1980. Aspects d'une syntaxe historlque: Etude sur le creole portugais de Guinee-Bissau. PhD dissertation, Universite Paris III. Kihm, A. 1988. Conflation as a directive process in creolization. In Beitrage zum 4. Essener KDlloquium Sprachkontakt, Sprachwandel, Sprachwechsel, Sprachtod 1987, N. Boretzky, W. Enniger & T. Stohz (eds), 111-137. Bochum: Brockmeyer. Kihm, A. 1994. Kriyol Syntax: The Portuguese-Based Creole Language of Guinea-Bissau. Amsterdam: Jolm Benjamins. Lang, J. 2000. Centre africain et peripherie portugaise dans le creole santiagais du Cap Vert. In Degrees of Restructuring in Creole Languages, I. Neumann-Holzschuh & E. W. Sclmeider (eds), 469-482 Amsterdam: Jolm Benjamins. Lang, J. 2004. Affinites grammaticales entre le creole portugais de l'lle de Santiago (Cap Vert) et le wolof (Senegal): Aspect et temps. In Los Criollos de Base Iberica. ACBLPE 2003, M. Fernandez et al. (eds), 137-147. Frankfurt/ Madrid: Iberoamericana/ Vervuert. Lang, J. 2005. Zwei Fiille, in denen das portugiesische Kreol von Santiago (Kapverde) mit dem Wolof iibereinstimmt. In Portugiesische Kreolsprachen: Entstehung. Entwicklung, Ausbau und Verwendung, A. Endruschat & A. Schonberger (eds), 45-56. Frankfurt: Domus Editoria Europea. Lang, J. 2006. I:influence des Wolof et du wolof sur la formation du creole santiagais. In Cabo Verde. OriguiS da Sua Sociedade e do Seu Crioulo, J. Lang, J. Holm, J.-L Rouge & M. J. Soares (eds), 53-62 Tiibingen: Narr.
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Lang, J. 2008. Explications universelles et explications historiques. Les emplois de so en creole santiagais. In Romanische Syntax im Wandel, E. Stark et a1 (eds), 487-497. 'llibingen: Narr. Lefebvre, C. 1998. Creole Genesis and the Acquisition of Grammar. The Case ofHaitian Creole. Cambridge: CUP. Lefebvre, C. 2001. Relexification in creole genesis and its effects on the development of the creole. In Creolization and Co,Jtact, N. Smith & T. Veenstra (eds), 9-42. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Lwnsden, J. S. 1999. Language acquisition and creolization. In Language Creation and Language Change. Creolization, Diachronyand Development, M. DeGraff(ed.),129-157. Cambridge MA: The MIT Press. Madeira Santos, M. E. (ed.). 1995. Hist6ria Geral de Cabo Verde, Vol II [HGCYII]. Lisbon & Praia: Instituto de Investiga~o Cientifica Tropical- Direq:ao-Geral do Patrim6nio Cultural de Cabo Verde. Maia, C. de A. 1986. Hist6ria do Galego-Portuglds. Estado Li1Jguistico da Galiza e do Noroeste de Portugal desde o Seculo XIII ao Seculo XVI (Com Refertncia a Situas:ao do Galego Modemo), reprint. Coimbra: Gulbenkian - JNICT. Mufwene, S. 1996. The founder prindple in creole genesis. Diachronica 13: 83-134. Ngom, R 2003. Wolof. Munich: Lincom. Pereira, D. 2006. Contributes da Hist6ria Geral de Cabo Verde para o estu.do da forma~o e da difusao do crioulo caboverdiano. In Cabo ~rde. Origms da Sua Sociedade e do Seu Crioulo, J. Lang, J. Holm, J.-L. Rouge & M. J. Soares (eds), 161-178. Tiibingen: Narr. Quint, N. 2000. Le cap-verdien: origines et devenir d'une langue metisse. Paris: I:Harmattan. Quint, N. 2006. Un bref aper~Tu des radnes africaines de la langue c:apverdienne. In Cabo Verde. Origens da Sua Sociedade e do Seu Crioulo, J. Lang, J. Holm, J.-L Rouge & M. J. Soares (eds), 75-90. Tiibingen: Narr. Robert, S. 1991. Approche enonciative du systhne verbal: Le cas du wolof. Paris: CNRS. Rouge, J.-L. 1985. Formation et evolution du creole de Guinee Bissao et de Casamance. PhD dissertation, Universite Lyon II. Rouge, J.-L 1988. Petit dictiommire etymologique du Kriol de Gumee-Bissau et Casamance. Bissau: Instituto Nadonal de Estu.dos e Pesquisa. Rouge, J.-L. 1994. A propos de 1a formation des creoles du Cap-Vert etde Guinee.PAPIA 3: 137-149. Rouge, J.-L. 1999. Apontamentos sobre o lexico de origem africana dos c.rioulos da Guine e de Cabo Verde (Santiago). In Lmguas Criollas de Base Lexical Espafiola y Portuguesa, K. Zimmermann (ed.), 49-65. Frankfurt/ Madrid: Vervuert/Iberoamericana. Rouge, J.-L. 2004. Dictionnaire etymologique des creoles portugais d'Afrique. Paris: Karthala. Rouge, J.-L. 2006. !:influence manding sur 1a formation des creoles du Cap-Vert et de Guinee-Bissau et Casamance. In Cabo Verde. Origens da Sua Sociedade e do Seu Crioulo, J. Lang, J. Holm, J.-L. Rouge & M. J. Soares (eds), 63-7 4. Tiibingen: Narr. Sauvageot, S. 1965. Description sychronique d'un dialecte wolof: Le parler du Dyolof. PhD dissertation, Universite de Dakar/IFAN.
Substrate influences in Kriyol Guinea-Bissau and Casamance Portuguese-related Creole AlainKihm CNRS, Paris
Kriyol is a Portuguese-related creole language spoken in Guinea-Bissau (former Portuguese Guinea) and Senegalese Casamance. Besides being the primary language of an important community, tt also serves as a lingua franca in a multilingual country where Portuguese, although being the official language, actually has little currency. Kriyol counts among the oldest Creoles in the world, having emerged probably during the sixteenth century from a pidginised variety of Portuguese used by the local intermediaries (grumetes) between the few Portuguese settlers and the local populations. Given this situation, one would expect a high degree of substrate influence. In fact, substrate influence, although readily visible, turns out to be limited as can be shown by comparing core grammatical phenomena between Kriyol and a selection oflocallanguages (Balanta, Diola, Manjaku, Mankanya). It is proposed that the main reasons for such a limitation are ( 1) that the creole-creating grumetes soon formed a tightly united group with its own culture; and (2) that they were perfectly bilingual in Kriyol and one or several local languages, therefore able to keep their grammars separate. Keywords: adstrate, Atlantic languages, Basic Varieties, Creoles, creolisation, grumetes, lanfados, Mande languages, pidgins, Portuguese-related Creoles, substrate, West-African history
1.
Introduction
According to the now conventional division of creole languages into plantation and fort ereales (Reinecke 1937), the Portuguese-related Creole of Guinea-Bissau and Casamance (West Africa), Kriyol by its vernacular name, clearly belongs to the latter category.1 Its present-day speakers live in the same place as did their forebears who initiated the language some four centuries ago. It therefore never lost contact with the languages these initiators spoke before the creole existed and which are still spoken today alongside the creole. Indeed, contact is not only spatial - the "local" languages and Kriyol sharing the same territory -, but it is mental insofar as every "native" Kriyol speaker is fully bilingual in at least one local language, and few local language speakers lack competence in Kriyol. In fact, as suggested by the inverted commas, the 1.
For detailed descriptions of the language, see Wilson (1962); Kihrn (1994).
82
Alain IGhm
notion "native speaker" is moot in an environment where extensive bilingualism almost from the cradle has always been the rule. In such a situation we expect pervasive sub stratal (or ad stratal) influences, such as are evident in all varieties of Melanesian Pidgin English (Keesing 1988) or, even more so, in Korlai, another Portuguese-related fort Creole (Clements 2007). One would even expect Kriyol to result from relexification of one (or more) of the local languages, in the sense that relexification of Gbe languages is claimed to have played a crucial role in the formation of Haitian Creole (Lefebvre 1998). If fifty to a hundred years of spatial and mental contact of the lexifier with the substrate languages are deemed sufficient in that case, how much more should four hundred years achieve? The extent to which such expectations are frustrated is actually surprising. It is not that Kriyol does not exhibit features taken from or betraying the influence of the surrounding languages, but how many of them really pertain to what can be considered core grammar, i.e. major constituents order, NP and VP structure, TMA marking, complementation, etc, is open to debate. As far as such phenomena are concerned, Kriyol indeed turns out to be a rather typical creole, not in McWhorter's (1998) technical sense of (proto )typicality, but in the simple, pre- theoretical sense that, in all these domains, it looks very much like the other Atlantic creoles with different substrates and other or the same lexifiers. Even lexical borrowings from local languages are few. Many features not analysable as "creole" are clearly identifiable as coming from the lexifier. Like most if not all known creole languages, however, Kriyol exhibits the noun-verb split that seems to characterize this pseudo-family. 2 In the nominal domain, NP morphosyntax does not diverge significantly from that of the lexifier and, where Kriyol and European Portuguese (EP) do differ, the substrate is at most indirectly responsible. In the verbal domain, in contrast, the morphosyntax of the verbal complex (VC) is just as clearly not inherited from the lexifier.3 In its main outlines the Kriyol VC looks very much like what is found in many other creoles, crucially including some of non-Indo-European provenance such as Arabic-based Nubi (Wellens 2005; Kihm 2008b ), so one would rather lean towards explanations in terms of internal developments specific to creole genesis. Nonetheless, the fact that in most surrounding languages the VC structure is at least partly (never fully) compatible with this "creole template" must certainly be taken into account The relative scarcity of morphosyntactic influences from the substrate does not mean, however, that Kriyol is not perfectly embedded in its sociolinguistic and cultural environment. Quite the opposite in fact: in terms oflexical semantics, discourse strategies, pragmatics, and language uses in general, Kriyol is just as "African" as the surrounding languages - scare quotes necessary since the epithet is not susceptible of a precise definition, but it is an impressionistic label for a very complex set of cultural attitudes and practices, shared beliefs, etc. Two questions must therefore be raised, if not answered, in the present study. First, we would like to know why not more of Kriyol morphosyntactic structure can be traced back to direct substrate influence in an environment seemingly so favourable to it. Is it a consequence of the
2. See Kihm (2008a) for a precise characterization of this split and its significance for any theory of creole formation.
3· By verbal complex (VC) I mean the VP minus its internal NP arguments and PP adjuncts, ie. the verb itself, auxiliaries, TMA markers, predicate adverbs, object ditics, and predicate negation.
Substrate influences in Kriyol
particular circumstances in which Kriyol was formed, or should it be taken as evidence that the substrate does not play such a crucial role in creole formation after all? Secondly, we must ask why the features that are due to substrate influence occur precisely where they do. Why these influences rather than others, in other words? With these goals in mind, the study will proceed as follows. First, I will describe the history and sociolinguistic situation of Kriyol from its inception to the present. Then, switching from an e-language to ani-language perspective, I will review the two main domains of Kriyol morphosyntax, the nominal and the verbal. For each domain, I will contrast those features that certainly or possibly reflect substrata! influence with those that come from the lexifier or from creolisation itself. This will enable me to at least partially answer the second question above. Finally, I will capitalise on the historical and the morp hosyntactic surveys in order to find an answer to the first question as well, which will lead me to a reassessment of the role and nature of the substrate, at least for creole languages having the same ecology as Kriyol.
2.
A historical and sociolinguistic sketch
2.1
Before the Europeans
In the first half of the fifteenth century, on the eve of the first direct contacts with Europeans, the populations of present-day Guinea- Bissau and Casamance seem to have been established roughly in their present locations (Silva 1959; PAIGC 1974). Then as now the principal divide was between the coast and the interior. The interior was theoretically a province of the Empire of Mali which had extended to the Rio Geba during the fourteenth century. This province, Gabu, was placed under the authority of governors lfa.rins) named by the emperor (ma.nsa). ru the Empire of Mali began to decline at the end of the fourteenth century, however, the governors shook off its authority and proclaimed themselves kings (mansa). The Manding kingdom of Gabu then continued as a highly hierarchised society based on extensive agriculture and cattle raising. It thrived until the end of the nineteenth century, when it was finally conquered by the Fula Muslim State of Futa Jalon in 1867, the Fula almami (imam) Umaru taking pretext of the Mandings' animism to launch an all-out jihad against them. The last mansa, Diank.e Walli, chose to die rather than surrender by blowing up his gunpowder reserve together with his last followers and himself. The coastal peoples may have come from the interior, pushed forward by the conquering Mandings under whose dominion part of them had stood tor a time. To name only the most numerous and most likely to have entertained regular contacts with the Europeans, these peoples are the Diolas (most of them across the present border with Senegal), the Manjakus, the Mankanyas, the Papels, and the Balantas. All of them live between the Casamance River and the Rio Geba. At the time we are concerned with, they constituted traditional societies with no state power, except for some hierarchy perhaps retained from the period when the Mandinkas ruled: they had kings, called regulos 'chieftains' by the Portuguese, with exclusively religious powers. We may also cite the Biafadas, more to the south, then a kingdom organised after the Mali imperial model. The
83
Bijag6s were isolated on their islands then as now and stood aloof from any contact before and after the coming of the Europeans. As far as Guinea-Bissau and Casamance (and Senegambia more generally) are concerned, nothing could therefore be farther from the truth than the popular image of helpless, traditional (read "primitive"!) Africans being raided over by superiorly organised Europeans. Actually, one cannot insist too much on the fact that the technological and socio-cultural gap between Europe and West Africa in the late Middle Ages and beginning of the Renaissance was anything but wide (Albuquerque 1991). The only obvious technical superiority the Europeans had were firearms, and they did not keep it very long. Politically, a still largely feudal Europe and the West African kingdoms were not worlds apart. As we saw, even the stateless peoples had regular exchanges with powerfully hierarchised states: the Empire of Mali, the Kingdom of Gabu, and also the Jolof Kingdom to the north (Boulegue 1987). Language diversity was and still is quite important. All the languages involved belong to the Niger-Congo phylum. Whereas the Mandings speak various dialects of Mandinka, a language cluster belonging to the Mande family, all other peoples speak languages of the Atlantic family. Diola (actually a language cluster), Manjaku, Mankanya, Papel, and Balanta are closely related within the Bak subgroup of the Northern branch (Wilson 1989). Manjaku, Mankanya, and Papel may even be considered dialects (or rather dialect clusters) of one language, with some degree of intercomprehension. Diola and Balanta, the latter also a dialect cluster, are overtly quite different, however. Biafada belongs to a different subgroup, the Eastern Senegal-Guinea languages, and Bijag6 is an isolate. Wolof and Serer, two languages of the Senegambian subgroup spoken north of the Casamance river, should probably be brought into the picture as well. Finally, Fula, also a Senegambian language, is now spoken in Guinea-Bissau, but that is probably fairly recent (see above). Despite such diversity, there is not the slightest doubt that, given their constant interchanges, the peoples of Guinea-Bissau and surrounding lands never had any problem communicating with each other (Rouge 1986). Extended bilingualism was probably the solution, plus possibly the use of Mandinka as a trade language. There is no question, therefore, of the European language coming in to fill a gap. Kriyol did not emerge because the local people needed it in order to talk to each other. Did it emerge because they needed to talk with the European newcomers? This is what we shall now examine.
2.2
The first European settlements
The coast of present-day Guinea-Bissau and Casamance was touched in 1446 by Portuguese ships under the command of Nuno Tristao or Alvaro Fernandes (Mota 1946; Boxer 1969; Pinto Bull 1989: 31). Conquest proceeded at a very slow pace. The first fortified settlement (praf!J), Cacheu, was not founded until1 588. It was the first capital (capitan ia) of the province. Bissau, also a fortified settlement, was founded in 1686, but it became the capital only in 1941. For a very long time, actually until the beginning of the twentieth century, Portuguese presence was scant, it did not reach into the interior, and there was no real attempt at effective colonisation. Until the end of the eighteenth century, slave trade was the main economic activity, although there also was some export of rice, leather, gold, and ivory. The slaves from inland were shipped to
Substrate influences in Kriyol
Portugal or to Brazil. During the whole period from the sixteenth to the late eighteenth centuries, the flux of slaves to Portugal was quite significant According to serious estimates, about 150 000 slaves coming from Guine, that is the whole West Mrican coast from Senegal to Angola, entered Portugal between 1441 and 1505 (Tinhorao 1988:Chapter 6). In 1551 their number in Lisbon alone was estimated at 9950, i.e. 10% of the city's total population of 100 000 (Saraiva 1991: 194; Tinhorao 1988: 112). Most of them probably came from the Guinea area, whereas slaves shipped to Brazil after 1500 came from further south. 'This is important because, among the tasks imposed on the slaves, there was that of serving as interpreters and/or crew aboard Portuguese ships on trading expeditions, which gave them the prospect of earning their freedom provided they helped in securing a certain number of new slaves (see Ca da Mosto's relation of his 1455 voyage as published in Academia Portuguesa da Hist6ria 1948/1988; Tinhorao 1988). These African interpreters (turcima.ni inCa da Mosto's terms), having stayed not more than a decade in Portugal, must have spoken, not "proper" ER but the Basic Variety of it that came to be known as Lfngua de Preto "language of the Black" (Kihm & Rouge 2009 ). Although Ca da Mosto's relation is unclear on this count, it is therefore very possible that successful interpreters were released on the spot, thus providing an entrance for pidgin EP on the West Mrican coast.4 All trade from Guinea was officially in the hands of companies authorized by the Royal Court and endowed with a theoretical monopoly. The Portuguese government, however, never had the means to enforce its own regulations, given the dearth of administrative personnel and regular troops that lasted until the end of the nineteenth century. Offical trade then had to compete with smugglers, the so-called lan~dos, meaning literally "men who cast themselves away (into the bush)" (Silva 1970). They were adventurers who landed clandestinely on the coast - an easy job at the time - and settled in villages where they began to trade in slaves and other goods with crews of any European nationality without paying taxes to the Portuguese Crown. Many of them were converted Jews (cristaos novos) who thus put safe distance between themselves and a growingly suspiscious Inquisition. They seem to have been easily accepted by the local people, who were not prone to feel any moral scruples in trading with slaves since slavery was part of the economy of all West Mrican societies at the time. The lan~dos went native in a few years, married local wives and begot children. It can hardly be doubted, therefore, that they constituted the other channel, besides manumitted interpreters (see above), through which pidgin EP penetrated Senegambia and Guinea, where it soon became a lingua franca. The mixed offspring of the lanfados are called filhos da terra "children of the land". They soon formed a mixed caste that actually constituted the bulk of the Portuguese presence in Guinea, as very few "true" Portuguese ever came from the homeland to this forlorn province, at least until the beginning of the twentieth century. (This shows they had inherited a good share of lusitanity from their lan~do fathers.)
4· I speak of Basic Variety for the form of EP acquired by slaves in Portugal, and of pidgin for what resulted from carrying this Basic Variety EP over to Africa. It should be clear that both terms cover very much the same reality. Notice moreover that Basic Variety research (Perdue 1993; Klein & Perdue 1997) leaves no room for Naro's (1978) unli.lrely asswnption that the Portuguese discoverers deliberately contrived the pidgin to serve as a 'reconnaissance language' (also see Clements 1992).
85
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Alain Kihm
In and around the prUfas a new society slowly took form. At its classical stage, say in the middle of the eighteenth century, it consisted of three social groups (see Rouge 1986). First there were the so-called Portuguese, many of whom, as just mentioned, were actually "assimilated" (assimi/ados) individuals with mixed or African phenotypes, more or less direct descendants of the filhos da terra. They were practicing Christians, lived in the European fashion (except for keeping local wives), and spoke EP. All the trade with the surrounding populations, whose independence was still intact, was in their hands despite the companies' official monopoly. Then there were the troops, apparently a rabble made up of the refuse of the Cape Verdean garrison. Finally there was the most interesting group from our point of view, namely the so-called grumetes meaning "ship's boys': They were Africans with fiunily ties in the local populations, who lived in the outskirts of the prUfas and worked for the Portuguese, either as sailors on the boats that plied the rivers (hence their name) or as go-betweens in trade relations. They were nominally Christian, submitted to a special legislation, and notoriously disorderly and riotous. Quite possibly, many of them were also "re-Mricanized" descendants from the lan~dos (Silva 1970). Given their in-between position, neither European (or "assimilated") nor fully African, since they did not live in the ancestral villages but kept to their own quarters next to the cities, the grumetes form the only community within which a creolised variety may have developed. Among them it served a double purpose. On the one hand it allowed them to communicate with the members of the Portuguese group who, precisely because of the grumetes' role as intermediaries, had no reason to learn the local languages. This emerging creole was rooted in the pidgin EP the la.n~ados must have used with the villagers among whom they had settled (although probably not with their own children, as suggested above). The other function of the creole among the grumetes has to do with group identity (Rouge 1986). Clearly, indeed, they would not have used it to communicate with the local peoples, Manjakus, Balantas, etc., since they always retained native or near native command of the latter's respective languages. On the other hand, one would not understand why they kept to it and never switched to "true" EP, to which they had ready access, if the creolised variety had not functioned as an in-group code with a double benefit: identifYing them with the economically powerful Portuguese community in the opinion of the local peoples; keeping the same Portuguese community at a profitable arm's length which allowed them to get their own returns from the businesses they transacted in its behalf. Besides, Kriyol is not so different from EP, at least in the outward form of the lexemes, that basic exchanges are out of the question between speakers of each language. Some understanding remains possible, but not too much. Because of that, the Portuguese never had any incentive to learn Kriyol since they believed they understood it sufficiently for what it was worth in their eyes. The grumetes, on their side, had no good reason to speak EP since they did not need it to make themselves understood as much as and no more than was useful Kriyol therefore developed at the same pace that the grumetes built up a distinct community, of whose identity it became the most conspicuous sign. Creolisation in the present instance is therefore certainly not a consequence of restricted access to the lexifier on the part of the creole initiators. For one thing, insofar as the immediate lexifi.er was not EP, but a pidgin variety thereof, the creole initiators had full access to it at this stage. Next, when both a Portuguese and a grumete community had come into existence and were living in close, if segregated, contact with each other, full access to non-pidgin EP could not have
Substrate influences in Kriyol
been barred. Creolisation was actually a matter of restricting access in order to construct and preserve a separate community. Within that community, Kriyol was obviously necessary also as a common language between people of diverse origins, who could have communicated without it given generalised bilingualism, but did it even better through a medium where the practical and the symbolic functions were fully reconciled. Given this situation, it seems dear that no particular substrate language could exercise a predominant influence on the emerging creole. What influences took place were either due to properties the substrate languages had in common or to the fact that they all expressed a common civilisation involving largely shared speech habits and cultural uses of language over and beyond language diversity.
2.3
Colonisation and after
Kriyol seems to have stabilised rather early. The first documents we have date back from the first half of the nineteenth century, and they show a language not significantly different from what is heard nowadays (Bocande 1849; Barros 1882; Schuchardt 1888). Between that period and the present, however, the sociolinguistic environment changed drastically. When the Portuguese settlements turned into a Portuguese colony at the beginning of the twentieth century, after a series of "pacification wars" had subdued the previously independent peoples of the territory, the gmmete community had probably already disappeared as such. The main divide then was and still is between city dwellers and farmers. The former, many of them but not all ex-grumetes, had Kriyol as a native or primary language, whereas the latter used it as a vehicular language. Another effect of colonisation was to cut the Kriyol-speaking domain asunder when, following the (in)famous 1886 Berlin conference, the French and Portuguese governments signed a treaty that devolved Casamance to the former. Henceforth, a European-style border, never tight but nevertheless effective, cut across what had always been one country so far. Casamance became part of the French Senegalese colony, with a resulting influx of Muslim Wolof-speakers from the north. The linguistic consequences were that Casamance Kriyol was isolated from Guinea-Bissau Kriyol and Portuguese, preserved archaisms that have disappeared from the more southern dialects, and became the distinctive native language of the Christian community (Chataignier 1963). In Portuguese Guinea, then Guinea-Bissau, in contrast, the number of first or primary speakers grew significantly during the twentieth century because of the expansion of the cities, especially Bissau, and the role of Kri yol as a lingua franca increased accordingly. The war of independence ( 1963-1975) contributed enormously to the diffusion of Kriyol, as the language was widely used in the PAIGC Liberation Army (as well as by the Portuguese military's propaganda to the Guinean population). 5 At the same time, EP influence made itself felt more strongly, especially and somewhat paradoxically after independence, due to the development of school education and the mass media. (EP remained the official language ofindependent Guinea-Bissau, Kriyol being granted the status of"nationallanguage" along with the other languages of the country- with few
5· PAIGC: Partido Africano da Independtncia da Guine e Cabo Verde.
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practical consequences.) Speech levels thus appeared, which can be described as mesolectal and which probably did not exist previously, as Kriyol never was - and still is not - in a continuum situation with respect to its lexifier.
3·
Kriyol compared to its lexifi.ers and its substrate
Having thus reviewed the origin and evolution ofKriyol as a sociolinguistic object (e-language), we shall now explore some of its inner grammatical mechanisms (i-language) from a contrastive perspective, setting them up against their counterparts in the contributors to their coming about, namely EP and its Basic Variety known as Lingua de Preto- hence the plural of'lexifiers' in the heading of this section - and the substrate languages. As for Lingua. de Preto (Ld P) we shall have to rely on the only relics of it we have at our disposal, namely the not insignificant traces it left in Portuguese literature, especially sixteenth and early seventeenth century theatre (Teyssier 1959; Tinhorao 1988; Kihm & Rouge 2009). As explained at length in the third reference, "literary" Ld.P can be taken as a faithful representation of what Mrican slaves in Portugal actually spoke, and consequently (see above) of sixteenth century Senegambian and Guinean pidgin EP. Finally, I will limit myself to five local languages, namely Balanta, Diola, Mandinka, Manjaku, and Wolof The main reason is opportunistic: those are languages for which good descriptions are available. On the other hand, those are also languages with many speakers, now and presumably six centuries ago already, so they are the most likely sources of influences. Also noteworthy is the fact that the four Atlantic languages (Balanta, Diola, Manjaku, and Wolof) are agglutinative languages characterised by great morphological complexity, inflectional as well as derivational, which sets them conspicuously apart from the languages usually invoked as substrates for the Atlantic Creoles, namely the largely isolating Kwa languages. Mandinka, albeit not so complex, is also quite well provided in derivational processes. As indicated above, we shall review the two main domains of the morphosyntactic set-up: the noun phrase and the verbal complex.
3.1
The noun phrase
The most striking property ofKriyol noun phrases is the frequency ofbare nouns potentially multiply ambiguous between a definite or indefinite, singular or plural interpretation (Kihm 2007). This is due to (1) the absence of a definite determiner; (2) the specific meaning of the indefinite determiner un "a certain"; (3) the dependency of number marking in count nouns on specificity of reference and position in the individualisation hierarchy. 6 In principle, then, a sentence such as (1) should be susceptible of seven translations:
6. By this I mean the degree to which viewing instances of a countable entity as individuals is psychologically mandatory. It is maximal with human beings, minimal with small things such as rice grains.
Substrate influences in Kriyol
(1) Minjer kumpra kabra. KRIYOL woman buy goat (a) The woman bought the goat I (b) The woman bought a goat I (c) The woman bought the goats I (d) The woman bought goats/ (e) A woman bought the goat I (f) A woman bought a goat I (g) A woman bought the goats I (h) A woman bought goats.
Notice however that (c) and (g) are highly unlikely because goats stand high in the individualisation hierarchy, so kabra would almost obligatorily be marked for plurality (kabras) if several specific individuals were being referred to. For similar reasons, no reading where mi njer instead of pluralised minjeris denotes several women, specific or not ("the women" or "women"), is acceptable. Add to this that, minjer being subject, indefinite interpretations as in (e)-(h) are strongly disfavoured. All together, actual ambiguity boils down to the equal possibility (out of context) of readings (a), (b), and (d), meaning that the object kabra "goat" may be understood as definite or indefinite ((a) vs. (b)), singular or plural ((a)-(b) vs. (d)). Both dimensions interact insofar as kabra's plurality implies indefiniteness ("goats", not "the goats"). And even so, plural indefinite kab ra could very well be overtly marked for Number. In fact, given the individualisation hierarchy, only entities on the lowest rungs, e.g. objects such as pratu "dish", are commonly abstracted from the Number contrast to be given a transnumeral, neither singular nor plural reading (Acquaviva 2008). Things are of course quite different in EP where there is a definite determiner o(s)la(s), plural marking of count nouns is automatic as soon as more than one token is involved, and there are no bare nouns (except in quite restricted syntactic environments), but only bare plurals. Three different sentences therefore correspond to (a), (b), and (d): A mulher comprou a cabra; A mulher comprou uma cabra; A mulhercomprou cabms. One will have noticed in passing that plural marking in Kriyol proceeds through the same morphological device as in EP, namely suffixation of -s after a vowel, -es/-is after a consonant The form thus did not change in comparison to the lexifier, although the semantics did quite significantly, along the lines pointed to above. Yet, this change has little to do with substrate influence. For one thing, linking overt plural marking with referent speci:fidty and the fact that count nouns denoting human beings or familiar animals are generally pluralised when more than one because collections of them are not felicitously viewed as undifferentiated aggregates, these phenomena are quite widespread in nearly all creole languages and many non-creole ones (Acquaviva 2008 ). Actually, it might well be languages like EP and its "arithmetic" pluralisation that are exceptional Interestingly, the putative substrate languages of Kriyol pertain to that typology. Before turning to them, though, let us have a look at LdP. Things there are extremely simple: nouns are not marked for Number ever; and there are no determiners at all. Definiteness and plurality were thus entirely left to the discourse context to ascertain, as is customary in Basic Varieties and pidgins. The continued absence of a definite determiner in Kriyol is therefore probably a legacy from the pidgin period. On the other hand, the complex morphosemantic pattern of Number marking and definiteness interpretation can only be seen as an inner development in the creolising language, which nothing in the pidgin allowed one to predict. Did the substrate contribute in some measure to this development? The four Atlantic languages Balanta, Diola, Manjaku, and Wolof are noun class languages, meaning that roots are realised as nouns via association with affixes, the cumulative exponents of
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two morphosemantic features: Class and Number. Count nouns therefore switch affixes depending on whether they refer to one or more than one token, irrespective of any other considerations. In such languages there can be no transnumeral bare nouns. So much seems to be true in the Mande language Mandinka, where count nouns (not divided into classes) referring to more than one token of the denoted entity seem to be obligatorily marked for plurality through a dedicated suffix (Rowlands 1969: 38). As far as definite determiners are concerned, Balanta and Manjaku pattern like Kriyol in having none. Diola and Wolof. in contrast, overtly distinguish definite from indefinite noun phrases. In Mandinka, there is what may be called a specific determiner -oo interpreted as definite or indefinite. Non-suffixed nouns (so-called "stem forms") are "rarely used" (Rowlands 1969: 38). Diola and Wolof are thus the only languages in Kriyofs surrounding with something resembling the EP definite article. Keeping to a strict definition of bare nouns as bare roots, morphologically unmarked for any feature beyond lexical meaning, we conclude that only Wolof and Mandinka offer the possibility. In both languages, bare nouns so defined appear to be limited to generic contexts, unlike what we see in Kriyol. In no language do we observe the effect of anything like an individualisation hierarchy. The definiteness ambiguity of Kriyol bare nouns is therefore similar to that of Balanta and Manjaku, except that, as we just saw, there are no strictly bare nouns in these languages. The Number ambiguity, on the other hand, finds no equivalent in the surrounding languages, even in Wolof where, given the genericity condition on bare nouns and the apparent absence of an individualisation hierarchy, all plural indefinites are overtly marked. The most we can say, then, is that the similarity with Balanta and Manjaku as tar as the absence of a definite article is concerned may have contributed in the maintenance of a state of affairs that dates back to the pidgin stage and is ultimately explained by it. Not only was the pidgin deprived of such an article, but the EP lexicon offered no item capable of replacing it, like the French postposed deictic Ia "there" reanalysed as a determiner did in all French-related Creoles. One item for which substrate influence seems to be more likely is the specific indefinite determiner. First, all relevant Atlantic languages, as we saw, show the contrast of bare truly indefinite or generic nouns ("any x") and noun phrases involving an item that conveys specific indefiniteness ("a certainx"). In Kriyol the item is un, from EP um(a), which fuses both kinds ofindefiniteness, so the semantic change proceeded definitely in the direction of the substrate. As other Creoles with quite different substrates and the same fusion in the lexifier (e.g. English and French) present the same configuration, however, the evidence might still be taken as unconvincing. More particular, hence stronger evidence comes from the fact that the meaning "a certain goat" may not only be expressed by un kabra, but also by utru kabra also meaning "another goat". Such an overlap of the meanings "other" and "a certain" is a property of Balanta and Manjaku as well: cf. Balanta -olo, Manjaku -lon "a/another': The parochiality of the phenomenon makes it therefore quite plausible that utru relexifies Balanta -olo and Manjaku -Ion. Can the complete absence of the Gender category and agreement processes in Kriyol be ascribed to substrate influence? One reason to doubt it is that all creole languages share this property with very few exceptions, so that loss of Gender contrasts (if present in the lexifier) appears as one of the most constant consequences of creole formation, however it is conceived.
Substrate influences in Kriyol
Furthermore, the only substrate language that also lacks Gender and agreement processes is Mandinka; all others, as we saw, are noun class languages with far-ranging Class-Number agreement processes inside and outside the noun phrase. Since noun class and Gender are kin categories, one would imagine that speakers of such languages should have no difficulty with EP gender marking and agreement- unless of course such phenomena were not part ofKriyol's immediate lexifier, which seems indeed to be the case judging by what we know of LdP. The absence of Gender distinctions in LdP, in turn, points to the apparently true fact that EP Gender-related endings were never recognized as such by the African slaves who acquired EP as a BV. Being competent, as most LdP speakers probably were, in noun class systems such as those of Atlantic languages may therefore have been no help in acquiring the binary gender contrast of EP. This would not be surprising since the basis for classifying entities is quite different in such noun class systems than it is in gender systems like that of EP. Gender loss in LdP and afterwards in Kriyol might then be substrate-influenced, if not exactly substrate-driven, after all. Other features ofthe noun phrase are identical with what is found in the lexifier. I am referring to the positions of adjectives, demonstratives, numerals and quantifiers with respect to the head noun, as exemplified below: (2) '&a amigus r!ku kwnpra kil des kabra branku. KRIYOL my friends rich buy that ten goat white My rich friends bought those ten white goats I Os meus amigos ricos compraram estas dez cabras
brancas. To sum up, four features separate the Kriyol from the EP noun phrase: (1) no across-the-board plural marking; (2) absence of a definite determiner; (3) obligatory specificity of the indefinite determiner; (4) lack of gender contrasts. Of these, the first one constitutes, I believe, a pure product of creolisation with no roots in the lexifier or the substrate languages. The second one is partly an accident and partly the consequence of substrate reinforcement. The third one, including the a-other overlap, can also be brought back to substrate influence, although the fact that many Creoles do not fuse specific and non-specific indefiniteness cannot be ignored. Finally (4) most certainly results from a conjunction of all causes together, namely accident, (passive) substrate influence, and creolisation itself. For the remainder, Kriyol noun phrase morphosyntax appears quite similar to that of its lexifier. 3.2
The verbal complex
The marking of aspect As already mentioned, the VC consists in the main verb and its functional cortege comprising auxiliaries, Tense-Mood-Aspect (TMA) markers, predicate adverbs, object clitics, and predicate negation. As tar as structure is concerned, Kriyol appears as a run-of-the-mill creole insofar as preverbal particles realise Aspect values and negation is conveyed by a negative head preceding the aspect particles. As in Kihm (1994), I take the Aspect values to result from the combinations of two features: [±Pertective] and [±Punctual] (henceforth abbreviated to [±PF] and [±PT] - also see Muysken 1981). Here too Kriyol is unexceptional in having the simple perfective ([ +PF, +PT] unmarked on dynamic verbs, then interpreted as referring to past, accomplished events, whereas
3.2.1
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bare stative verbs are understood as denoting presently obtaining states of affairs. This is shown below (Kihrn 1994:85): (3)
Jugude c!ga
elf.
KRIYOL
vulture arrive smoothly The vulture landed smoothly. (4) N sibi so kuma na pirkitu karu. I know only that my parrot be.expensive. All I know is that my parrot costs a lot.
KRIYOL
Under no circumstances can Kriyol bare dynamic verbs reter to nonpast events as is the case in, e.g., Haitian when the predicate involves a generic internal argument (DeGraff 2007). This is shown by (5), where ta, glossed Imperfective (IPF), is the exponent of the feature complex [-PF, -PT]: (5)
ta hindi kabra. s/he IPP sell goat S/he sells goats.
KRIYOL
In addition, Kriyol expesses the feature complex [-PF, +PT] with the particle na as in (6): (6)
na bindi kabra(s). s/he PROG sell goat-(PL) Slhe's selling I will sell (the) goats.
KRIYOL
The gloss PROG for "progressive" is for convenience. The point is that an event modified by na is seen as both non-accomplished ([-PF]) and punctual in the sense that it is either taking place entirely at speech time (E, R, S in Reichenbachian notation) or at some future time if the actual speech time context demonstrates it is not (yet) taking place? With stative predicates na assumes an inchoative meaning as in (7) (Kihm 1994:87): (7)
Gera na forti kada byas mas. war PROG be.strong each time more The war is becoming fiercer all the time.
KRIYOL
The ta vs. na contrast sets Kriyol apart from its closest relative, Sotavento Cape Verdean, where na has no counterpart, and ta's uses straddle those ofKriyol ta and na (see Baptista 2002:76ff.). Whereas ta obviously comes from the EP imperfective copula estar, na must be analysed as a further grammaticalization of the locative preposition na "in, on, at: itself from the EP cumulation na =*/em a! "in theFEM". The progressive form thus clearly originates in a locative, be-in/at-Ving-type construction which calls for several remarks. First, it is noticeably ubiquitous. Secondly, more to the point, it exists in EP: estarfazendo or estar a fazer 'to be (a-)doing: using the imperfective-locative copula estar. This form constitutes the direct source of a sta na V construction still encountered in the
7. See Reichenbach (1947). For a general application of Reichenbach's system to creole TMA, see Muysken (1981).
Substrate influences in Kriyol
CasamancevarietyofKriyoland in old Kriyol texts (Barros 1882), and of which the modem na V form probably represents a reduction. Thirdly, and just as much to the point, similar constructions occur in the substrate languages, as shown in the following examples: (8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
N ga a til-a. 1sG.s be in write-INP I am writing.
BALANTA (Intumbo 2007: 65)
Na-lako a-jaw. 3sG.s-stay 3sG.s-go Slhe/it was going.
DIOLA (Sapir 1969: 104)
Bu-ci ri u-kiy. 3PL.S-be in INP-dancing They are dancing. be maani-katoo le M la. 1sG.s be rice-cutting EMPHin I am cutting rice.
MANJAKU (Buis 1990:63)
MANDINKA (Rowlands 1959: 97)
In Balanta as in Kriyo~ the progressive construction may refer to a future event: (12)
A ga a to-a a odn de bluthn. 2sG.s be in go-INP in house 2sG tomorrow You'll go home tomorrow I Bu na bay na bu kasa amaiian. (KRIYoL)
BALANTA (Intumbo 2007: 67)
This does not seem to be the case in the other languages, nor in EP. Conceivably, therefore, the fact that many creole initiators were Balanta native speakers may have been crucial in steering the semantics of the Kriyol na V construction, whereas the other languages contributed to the entrenchment of the construction in the emerging creole. Note, however, that the construction is fully grammaticalised only in the latter, in the sense that it no longer looks like a locative predicate, and na has become a pure aspect particle, disjoint from the homophonous preposition. This, I surmise, represents the specific contribution of creolisation itselt~ Another way that Balanta is especially close to Kriyol is in having an imperfective nonpunctual aspect, realised as the preverbal marker ma(t), which does not seem to be liable to any interpretation but habitual/ iterative, as shown in ( 13): (13)
Bi-iian ma(t) to a sinema. cL-person IPF go to cinema People go to the cinema I ]inti ta bay sinema. (KRIYoL)
BALANTA (Intumbo 2007:71)
Mandinka looks very much like Balanta in this area, with its preverbal marker ka called "simple imperfective" by Row lands ( 1959: 80). In Manjaku, in contrast, the feature set [-PF, - PT] realized as preverbal kamay also refer to a future event (Buis 1990:62; Kihm & Gomes 1990), which the progressive construction cannot do, as I mentioned. Manjaku thus appears to be semantically closer to Cape Verdean than to Kriyol (Baptista 2002). To return to the bare verb form exemplified in (3)-(4), Balanta and Manjaku again present the most similar systems. To (3)-(4) we may compare (14)-(17):
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(14) N us ki-garte. 1sG.s buy cL-book I bought a book IN kumpra libru. (15)
(16)
U-kac a yits. CL-bird AGR fly-away The birds flew away I Pastru bua e bay. (KRIYoL)
ten ki-til 1sG.s have cL-pen I have a pen IN tene kaneta. (KRIYOL)
N
(17) A
wara.
be.good Thafs good I I bon. (KRIYoL)
BALANTA
(Intumbo 2007: 58) MANJAKU
(Klhm & Gomes 1990: 358) BALANTA
(Intumbo 2007: 58) MANJAKU
AGR
(Buis 1990: 61)
In Diola, on the other hand, "An utterance entirely unmarked for tense is assumed to indicate a recent past or a present" (Sapir 1969: 31). In Mandinka and in Wolof, there are no bare verb forms - meanings forms that bear no affix or do not stand in the scope of a TMA particle - at least in matrix sentences. Looking now at the lexifier, Kriyol verb stems come from EP infinitives having lost their final -r. LdP confirms it, as nearly all verbs appear in the infinitive (with -r), so we can be pretty sure it was a feature of the pidgin that anteceded the creole. Needless to say, LdP shows none of the creole TMA markers, except one to which I return below. The question then is why verb forms referring to perfected events or present states remained bare when Tense-Aspect values began to be overtly marked. The presence of Balanta and Manjaku in the linguistic landscape certainly played a role, but neither a necessary nor a sufficient one. This is so because the same allotment of bare form values is found in many other creoles with quite different substrates. Actually it could be that perfective or accomplished is the default- i.e. assumed unless there is evidence to the contrary- Tense-Aspect value for event-denoting items, while imperfective is the default value for state-denoting ones. In the creolisation process, these values would then be spontaneously alloted to unmodified stems having the adequate semantics. The fact that part of the Kriyol initiators were native speakers of languages that conform to the default setting in that area was of course a reinforcing factor, although not a triggering cause. To sum up, the substrate probably was a causal factor in the setting up of the Kriyol TMA system, but not at the level of the main distinction between bare perfective and marked imperfective. Where it did play a crucial role was in the further division, quite special to Kriyol, of the imperfective into a nonpunctual (habitual-iterative) form and a punctual (progressive-future) form. Only part of the substrate contributed to this, it seems, namely Manjaku, Mandinka, and Balanta, the latter two more than the former. That the ever-varying substrate should be responsible for what makes creole languages different from each other, not for what they have in common, seems indeed a reasonable assumption. 3.2.2
Tense marking: The anterior
Here too Kriyol appears as a typical creole language in having a tense form, the anterior to use a now well-entrenched term, that refers to entirely past events or states as distinct from perfected or accomplished events or states. "Entirely past" events or states are not only over and done with
Substrate influences in Kriyol
in the present equated to speech time, but they are separated from the latter by some intermediate, often implicit event or state that sets a reference time distinct from speech time and from the time at which the event took place or the state obtained. In Reichenbachian notation, anterior events or states are described by the formula E_ R_ S. Where Kriyol is less typical is in the formal marking of the anterior tense. Contrary to other Romance-based Creoles, the exponent is not a preverbal marker clearly related to the past form of the lexi.fier's copula, but it is a postverbal morpheme ba. Sotavento Cape Verdean has the same morpheme, with a crucial difference: Cape Verdean -ba is a bound form attached to the verb stem and it is adequately analysed as an inflectional suffix. Kriyol ba, in contrast, is a free form that can be separated from the verb, usually by a clitic object pronoun as in (18), but possibly as well by a noun phrase as in (19), a recorded utterance: (18) N oja-1 ba. 1SG.S see-3SG.O ANT I had seen her/him/it (19)
N tene bu toto tudu ba. 1SG.S have 2SG.POSS picture all ANT I had all your pictures.
KRIYOL
KRIYOL
Ba is not even limited to verb phrases: cf. na J..il tempu ba "in that time': This feature raises the issue of ba's origin (Rouge & Kihm 2008 ). At first blush the answer seems straightforward: ba's etymon is EP -1% i.e. the first or third person singular indicative imperfect ending of conjugation I verbs - compare EP Olhava-a/o KI looked at her/him" with (18)- generalised to all verb forms, probably due to its greater phonological saliency (cf. Kriyol N durmi ba "I had slept" vs. EP Dormia "I slept"). Perhaps nothing more need be said concerning Sotavento Cape Verdean. For Kriyol, however, two facts call for an explanation: (1) that ba became a free form of uncertain category; (2) that in so doing it did not change its location with respect to the verb. that is after it. This is where the substrate languages enter the stage. First, the TMA systems of nearly all of them include a tense form referentially similar to the Kriyol anterior, the exponent of which is a free form that can be separated from its verb in some, a bound morpheme in others. Thus in Wolof and Balanta we find (20) and (21) to be compared with (18) and (19): (20) Gis-u-ma ko woon. see-NI!G-1 SG 3SG.O ANT I hadn't seen her/him/it (21) N ten g-garte ge. 1sG.s have CL-book ANT I had a book.
WOLOF (Church 1981) BALANTA (Intumbo 2007: 64)
Notice that Gisuma.woon ko and N ten ge g-garte are equally grammatical alternatives to (20) and (21), just like Kriyol N tene ba libru is an acceptable and actually more usual variant of N tene libru ba. In Diola, in contrast, only (22) seems to be grammatical as the anterior marker -een is a first-position suffix that must immediately follow the verb stem:
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(22)
Sunksn ni-baj-ssn-baj b~ori. lastyear 1sG.s-have-ANT-have money Last year I had money.
DIOLA (Sapir 1969:33)
All three languages, however, share the property that the marker is ordered to the right of the verb stem. Mandink:a and Manjaku also share this property, but in addition the free-form markers they use happen to be phonetically similar to the Kriyol marker ba. More accurately, Mandink:a ban and Manjaku ba., to which one must add Diola ban, are verbs meaning "to finish" appearing in various sorts of constructions, but always following the main verb they modify. Their contribution to the meaning of the predicate is that the event referred to is indeed "finished': completed, no longer relevant for defining the situation at speech time: (23)
(24)
(25)
ke-ra ka ban wa? Dani reckoning do-PF INF finish Q Has the reckoning been done completely? Ku-tok ja ku-ban ... 3PL.s-bury c 3PL.S-finish When they finished burying... A-reala ba. 3so.s-eat finish S!he ate already.
BAMBARA (Bazln 1906/1965) DIOLA (Sapir 1969: 104) MANJAKU (Buis 1990:51)
Admittedly, the semantics of the forms is not entirely identical to that of Kriyol ba - nor probably is it entirely identical from one language to the next In particular, more emphasis seems to be laid on the "finished" character of the event, less on its being cut off from speech time. Formally, Manjaku stands closest to Kriyol insofar as ba in the construction exemplified in (25) has clearly been reanalysed as an adverbial particle, as shown by the fact that it does not take an agreement prefix contrary to its cognate ban in the Diola equivalent construction (see (24)). Adverbial particle seems indeed to be the best definition we can reach for Kriyol ba looking at examples (18) and (19). In Mandinka, ka ba.n is a nonfinite verb form. Morphosyntactically distinct as it is, this latter form gives us our best lead towards Kriyol ba's possible origin, however. The verb meaning "to finish" in Kriyol is kaba from EP acaba,.. Actually, kaba is more accurately translated as "to be finished': as transitive "to finish something" is rendered by the derived causative kabanta (Kihm 1994:251ff.). Besides being a main verb, kaba is also used in ways that make it look very much like its counterpart in the substrate languages illustrated above. Take for instance the following sentence: (26)
Bajudas fididu jinjirba tudu i kaba, e say. girls be.split gum all it be.finished they leave All the girls had their gums tattooed and then they left
KRIYOL (Kihm 1994: 245)
The first clause appears structurally very similar to (23) except that instead of being nonfinite as Bambara ban, Kriyol ka.ba is a finite (perfective) form with an expletive subject i 'it'. Given this, there are two (non-exclusive) routes leading from kaba to ba. First, the use of verb forms meaning "to be finished" in order to express past or completedness is a well-attested phenomenon of the transitory grammars that make up BVs. Sentence (26) could thus well
Substrate influences in Kriyol
represent the creolised end-result of a construction dating back to the pidgin stage. Clearly the fact that many pidgin users had constructions like (23) in their native competence and the striking similarity of Mandinka ka ban and pidgin kaba would have been crucial to ensure the stabilisation and retention of the form. In other words, kaba. was identified with ka. ban through lexical conflation (Kihm 1989). Secondly, stray past forms in -va must have occurred in pidgin utterances. One instance of sa.ba < esta.va 'was' is found in the LdP text analysed in Kihm & Rouge (2008 ). Frequency was probably higher in actual speech. Moreover, as we saw, the pidgin, then the creole were in constant contact with EP. One can therefore assume another, parallel conflation process between the EP and/or pidgin ending and Diola-Manjaku ba(n) shown in (24) and (25). Such a process, however, would have guaranteed the survival of the -ba ending where it occurred, it does not account for its generalisation or its change into a free form. These two developments, we assume, were triggered by the triple conflation ofDiola-Manjaku ba(n)- already or simultaneously conflated with EP -va - with Mandinka ka ban and pidgin I early Kriyol kaba. The overall process was therefore a complex one. At the same time that kaba. continued as a full verb or a completion auxiliary as in (26), it was also identified with the emerging ba morpheme resulting from the -va I ba(n) conflation. The latter, that inherited its anterior meaning mostly from the EP imperfect, could be retained precisely because of its phonetic similarity and semantic kinship with substrate verb-modifYing morphemes similarly ordered with respect to the verb head. The same phonetic similarity and semantic kinship, this time with kaba, explain why the morpheme not only was retained, but it was recategorised as a free form, probably best defined as a time adverbial. Notice that such a story does not force us to hypothesize an actual change from kaba to ba, even though such a change (e.g., kaba > *kba. > ba.) does not raise any practical difficulty. It is just unnecessary given the logic of conflation where the mere presence of a form may act as a catalyst for a reanalysis process that imp lies a minimum of formal rebuilding. Sub stratal contacts therefore played a crucial role in the emergence of the anterior category in Kriyol, the exponent of which, although basically lexi.fier-inherited in form and meaning, managed to win the day thanks to its accidental resemblance, in form as well as in meaning, with substrate items. As this similarity covers real semantic differences, however, the said exponent cannot be regarded as relexifyi.ng any of the substrate items. 3.2.3
Tense marking: The future
As mentioned above, futurity is a possible interpretation besides actual present for predicates involving the progressive particle na. The following example unambiguously shows both meanings in succession: (27) J.illu Sapu na kuda kuma ku na paila si jintis. Mr. Toad PROG think how that he PROG catch his people Mr. Toad is wondering how he will catch his men.
KRIYOL
(Kihm 1994: 86)
The usual interpretation of (27)'s second clause is that the catching event will take place once (if ever) at some point in time to come. Yet, this does not inhere in the meaning of na predicates, it is only an inference probably related to the lexical meaning ofpaiia "to catch~ but in no way obligatory. Predicates involving na. can equally well refer to events of which one may assume they will
97
occur repeatedly in the future. In other words, na with a future meaning is perfectly unassuming as to the possible definiteness of the denoted event. If the speaker wishes to make it known that she conceives of the future event as destined to occur once at some definite moment, she does so by using bin "to come" as an auxiliary in conjunction with na: (28)
Kin kunsi si nomi, el ku na bin kasa L Who know her name he that PROG come marry her Whoever guesses her name will marry her.
KRIYOL (Kihm 1994: 108)
This example shows event definiteness to be relative: the marrying event is predicted to take place at a definite juncture in future time, the location of which is determined relative to the performance of the name guessing task. The certainty overtone often sensed in such futures is an effect of their definiteness. Kriyol grammar also allows the speaker to suggest that the future event she's talking about will occur an indefinite number of times in the open-ended future, that it is indefinite in other words. This she does by putting the main verb in the scope of the habitual particle ta, preceded by the auxiliary ba, a reduced form of bay "to go': itself in the scope of progressive na if the clause is finite, by itself if it is non-finite. The following two examples speak by themselves and illustrate both possibilities: (29) Kunformu no na ba ta skirbi 1, asin ku no na ba ta minjorya L KRIYOL according we PROG go HAB write it so that we PROG go HAB improve it According to how we shall write it (Kriyol), we shall improve it (Kihm 1994: 113) (30)
Bail.as gosi ta misti ba ta bibi manera ku omi ta blbi you-girls now HAB want go HAB drink manner that man HAB drink You girls now, you want to be drinking the way a man drinks.
KRIYOL (Kihm 1994: 114)
Neither of these constructions finds a direct equivalent in EP, which does not make a grammaticalised distinction between definite and indefinite futures in any event Although ir "to go" is regularly used as a future auxiliary preceding an infinitive main verb, the difference between the [ir VINF] construction and the inflectional future not only does not replicate that between Kriyol [na ba ta V] and [na V], but it is ordinarily hard to assess. Moreover, [ir VrnFl qua periphrastic construction never appears as the complement of a control verb as [ba ta V] does in (30). EP grammar thus cannot produce the direct equivalent of (30 ), unless ir is given its full meaning "to go": ... querem ir beber... "... want to go and drink ..." A connection between EP vai "s/he/itgoes" and Kriyol ba(y), both used as future auxiliaries, cannot be denied, nevertheless. What changed most was not so much the syntax as the tense-aspect system within which the respective constructions are embedded. EP vir "to come" (1'em "s/he/itcomes"), in contrast, does not enter any future periphrasis. The link with the future auxiliary use of Kriyol bin is more roundabout than in the preceding case. The ultimate source probably lies in the uses of vir with a consecutive meaning: cf. Veio a saber que ... "S/he came to know that. .." This meaning is preserved and fully grammaticalised in Kriyol as shown in (31):
Substrate influences in Kriyol
(31) Asin me ku Fulas bin kunsigi ciga Kansala So therefore that Fulas come manage reach Kansala It was therefore thus that the Fulas finally managed to reach Kansala
KRIYOL (Klhm 1994: 109)
In such sentences, bin expresses the notion that there is a final event that immediately follows and is the result of a certain chain of preceding events. From there it was but a short semantic jump to having it express the fact that a certain event will immediately follow a chain of future events including (or reduced to) the present moment It is therefore possible to account for the Kriyol future forms by viewing them as semantic modifications of lexifier resources. Such an account will remain partial, however, unless two other factors are considered. One is the surprising ubiquity within and outside the realm of creole languages of verbal constructions involving 'to go and/or 'to come' and conveying some kind of future meaning, which seems to point towards some universal spatia-temporal metaphor. The second factor that must be taken into account is the substrate, as it probably played a role, at least for the definite future [na bin V] construction. Most surrounding Atlantic languages as well as Mandinka indeed have the option of indicating successivity or futurity by means of periphrastic constructions involving the verb meaning "to come". Only the first meaning is attested in Mandinka. Balanta and Manjaku have both meanings. Moreover, the verbs "to come" - bin in both languages with some dialect variation in the timbre of the vowel - show a remarkable phonetic similarity with Kriyol bin: (32)
(33)
Bu ka bin pero wuL they IPF come do it They will do it Ngaa bin sifa. I be PROG come work I shall work.
MANJAKU (Buis 1990)
BALANTA (Intwnbo 2007:74)
Since it would be unreasonable to suppose that Kriyol borrowed its bin from Balanta and/or Manjaku, given the obvious EP etymology of the item, we are led to acknowledge the role of the substrate here to have been crucially reinforcing. I mean by that that the weakly grammaticalised successive vir a V of EP could give rise to the fully grammaticalised successivity and futurity auxiliary bin of Kriyol only because of the possible semantic and phonetic conflation with corresponding items in the substrate languages. On the other hand, it is not clear from the available descriptions that these languages make the definite-indefinite distinction that Kriyol does in the domain of futurity. "To come" in them implies no more than that the event so qualified will happen "later" relative to speech time. They show no counterpart to the use of "to go" as a distinct future auxiliary. If it is so, we must conclude that the ultimate force that drove the evolution was indeed the spontaneous reorganisation of the TMA system of emerging Kriyol following a default blueprint, not fully instantiated in the lexifier or the substrate. What the latter two did in their accidental collusion was to provide the material to express the meaning required by the creolisation process.
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3.2.4 Negation Here is another case where the reinforcing contribution of the substrate and the steering role of lexical conflation are especially clear. Kriyol predicates are negated by means of the negation ka which must occur at the very beginning of the VC, preceding all TMA markers. It thus seems to occupy the same position as its EP counterpart niio. The latter, however, is also the negative sentence word meaning "no': whereas ka is kept strictly separate from naw "no': This is illustrated in the example below:
(34) Naw, i ka na bin kasa L no s!he NEG PROG come marry him/her No, s/he won't marry him/her I Nio, nio val casa-la (EP)
KRIYOL
Such a separation may be considered a substrate effect, as it constitutes a constant feature of all surrounding languages. Beyond that, ka's syntax is sufficiently accounted for by analysing it as identical to that of its lexifier's counterpart and/or as realising the universal default or unmarked position for a negative head. No appeal to the substrate is necessary. There remains a question, however: where does ka come from? The only plausible EP etymology is nunca "never': It is quite probably right, and it is supported by a few passages in the LDP texts where nunca seems indeed to replace standard EP niio. There is a hitch, however: why did Kriyol inherit the second, unstressed syllable of nunca? And note that the EP item survived in full as the negative polarity adverb nunka "never". Lexical conflation is the answer: all the doubtless most influent substrate languages negate predicates by means of items that happen to include a /k.a/ syllable or something that sounds very much like it: cf. Mandinka buka "negative simple imperfective indicative': kana "negative subjunctive': kaka "negative imperfective imperative"; Manjaku dika. "negative imperfective': katsa. "no longer" ( Buis 1990: 41-42 ); Balanta ke NEG (Wilson 1961 ), keya "negative imperfective': kam "negative imperative" (Intumbo 2007: 90). Whether /kal is the negative morpheme in these items is irrelevant; it is enough there should be an association between the sound /k.a/ and the idea of negation for conflation to get triggered. One would therefore be wrong in claiming that ka comes from or relexifies substrate forms. Reality is more complex: ka. comes from EP nu.nca, but it does so via an unusual sound change (dropping the stressed rather than the unstressed syllable). In this deflection from expected evolution lies the substrate's contribution.
4·
Conclusion: Trying to answer one more question
Recall the remaining question we would like to be able to answer: why can so comparatively little of Kriyol morphosyntactic structure be traced back to direct substrate influence in an environment seemingly so favourable to it? Shall we take it as a consequence of the particular circumstances in which Kriyol emerged, or as evidence that the substrate does not or not always play a central role in creole formation? I think both conclusions are actually warranted. In defense of the first one, the most important factor, I believe, is precisely the fact that the linguistic environment of Kriyol at its inception was so rich and varied. This had the con-
Substrate influences in Kriyol
sequence that no particular language or tightly knit dialect cluster was in a position to exert a predominant influence like Gbe or Eastern Ijo did on emerging Haitian and Berbice Dutch respectively (Lefebvre 1998; Kouwenberg 1994). One should always beware of metonymies: languages do not influence each other, systems represented in the minds ofbilingual individuals do (Weinreich 1953). Given their origin and social role, the initiators of Kriyol, the filhos da te"a and the grumetes, had to be perfectly bilingual and even multilingual: they spoke the developing creole language and were fluent in one or more local languages, one of which may have been their mother tongue. Such a situation has been going on since the beginning of Kriyol and it is still going on. Now it seems to be a fact that (near) perfect bilinguals are more capable to keep their languages separate than are imperfect bilinguals. 8 Little leakage between internalised systems is therefore to be expected in such a situation, beyond conscious borrowings (actually rare as we saw) and influences made ahnost inevitable by the reinforcing effect of confl.ation. The second conclusion, on the other hand, follows from the status of the substrate as one factor among several, the importance of which is therefore expected to vary according to the sociolinguistic setting of each creole emergence. Given a mental view of the substrate (as collective bilingualism), the primary cause of the variation resides in the social role and the relative proficiency of the bilinguals embodying possible substrate influences. In Guinea-Bissau and Casamance, these individuals came to form a relatively self-contained group with a well-defined social function: that of serving as intermediaries between the local populations and the Europeans. They thus constituted the in-between group generally needed for a creole language to emerge. Three distinctive characteristics of this group then explain why substrate influences remained limited: it endured as a stable, endogenously reproducing group for a very long time; the creole language was its exclusive mark of identity also for a long time; its members were (near) perfectly bilingual in Kriyol and one or several of the numerous local languages. As each of these attributes (and also the number of languages composing the substrate) will vary in different situations, the extent and depth of the substrate's influence will be modified accordingly.
List of abbreviations AGR ANT BV CL
EMPH EP HAB
INF
IPF LdP
Agreement Anterior Basic Variety Noun class marker Emphatic European Portuguese Habitual Infinitive Imperfective Lingua de Preto
NEG
PF PROG PT Q
VC 3PLS 3SG.O 3SG.S
Negation Perfective Progressive Punctual Question Verbal complex 3rd person plural subject pronoun 3rd person singular object pronoun 3rd person singular subject pronoun
8. Which does not mean they cannot dedde to mix them, giving rise to intertwined languages or to code switching. See Bakker & Muysken (1995) for an argument to the effect that language intertwining requires profidency.
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References Academia Portuguesa da Hist6ria. 1948/1988. VwgulS de Luis de Cadamosto e de Pedro de Sintra. Lisboa. Acquaviva, P. 2008. Lexical Plurals: A Morphosemantic Approach. Oxford: OUP. de Albuquerque, L. (ed.). 1991. 0 con_fronto do olhar: 0 encontro dos povos na epoca das navegllf6es portuguesas. Lisboa: Edi<;i.o Caminho. Bakker, P. & Muysken, P. 1995. Mixed languages and language intertwining. In Pidgins and Creoles: An Introduction [Creole Language Library 15], J. Arends, P. Muysken & N. Smith (eds), 41-52. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Baptista, M. 2002. The Syntax of Cape Verdean Creole: The Sotavento Varieties (Linguistik AktueWLinguistics Today 54]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. de Barros, M. Marques. 1882. Guine portuguesa ou breve notkia sobre alguns dos seus usos, costumes, lfnguas e origem dos seus povos. Boletim da Sociedade de Geografta de Lisboa 12:707-731. Bazin, H. 1906. Dictionnaire bambara-.fra11fais, precede d'un ab:rege de grammaire bambara. Paris: Imprirnerie nationale (Reprint 1965, Farnborough, Gregg Press). Bocande, B. 1849. De la langue creole de la Guinee portugaise (notes sur la Guinee portugaise ou Senegambie meridionale). Bulletin de la Societe de Geographie 12: 73-77. Boulegue, J. 1987. Legrand Jolof (XHI"-XVP siecles). Paris: Karthala. Boxer, C. R. 1969. The Portuguese Seaborne Empire: 1415-1825. London: Hutchinson. Buis, P. 1990. Essai sur la langue manjako de Ia zone de Bassarel. Bissau: INEP. Chataignier, A 1963. Le creole portugais du Senegal: Observations et textes. Journal of African Languages 2: 4471. Church, F. 1981. Le systemeverbal du wolof. Dakar: Universite de Dakar. Clements, J. C. 1992. Foreigner talk and the origins of Pidgin Portuguese. Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages 7:75-92. Clements, J. C. 2007. Korlai (Creole Portuguese). In Comparative Creole Synta;~~:: Parallel Outlines of 18 Creole Grammars,J. Holm & P. L Patrick (eds),153-173. London: Battlebridge. DeGratt: M. 2007. Krey61 Ayisyen, or Haitian Creole (Creole French). In Comparative Creole Syntax: Parallel Outlines of18 Creole Grammars, J. Holm & P. L Patrick (eds), 101-126. London: Battlebridge. Intum bo, I. 2007. Estudo comparativo da morfossintaxe do crioulo guineense, do balanta e do portugub. Disserta<;:ao de Mestrado, Universidade de Coirnbra. Keesing, R. 1988. Melanesian Pidgin and the Oceanic Substrate. Palo Aho CA: Stanford University Press. Kihm, A 1989. Lexical conflation as a basis for relexifu:ation. The Canadian Journal of Linguistics I Revue canadienne de linguistique 36: 351-376. Kihm, A. 1994. Kriyol Syntax: The Portuguese-based Creole Language of Guinea-Bissau [Creole Language Library 14]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Kihm, A. 2007. On the interpretation of bare noun phrases in Guinea-Bissau Portuguese Creole (Kriyol). In Noun Phrases in Creole Languages: A Multi-faceted Approach [Creole Language Library 31], M. Baptista & J. Gueron (eds),145-169. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Kihm, A 2008a. The two faces of creole grammar and their implications for the origin of complex language. In Variaticm, Selectio,J, Development: ProbbJK the Evolutionary Model ofLa'JgUQge ChwJge, R. Eckardt, G. Jager & T. Veenstra (eds), 253-305. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Kihm, A 2008b. Nubi plural formation: How a creole may become more complex than its lexifier and what it irnplies for creolization theory. Paper presented at the Berkeley Linguistic Society Conference. Kihm, A & Gomes, A. 1990. The structure of INFL in Manjalru: A first study. Ms, UQAM. Kihm, A. & Rouge, J.-L. 2009. Lingua de Preto: The basic variety at the root of West African Portuguese Creoles. Ms. Klein, W. & Perdue, C. 1997. The basic variety. Second Language Research 13: 301-347. Kouwenberg, S. 1994. A Grammar ofBerbice Dutch Creole. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Lefebvre, C. 1998. Creole Genesis and the Acquisition of Grammar: The case ofHaitian Creole. Cam bridge: CUP.
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McWhorter, J. H. 1998. Identifying the creole prototype: Vindicating a typological class. Language 74: 788-818. da Mota, A. Teixeira. 1946. A descoberta da Guine, Boletim Cultural da Guine Portuguesa I, 1-3: 11-68,273-326, 457-509.
Muysken, P. 1981. Creole tense/mood/aspect systems: The unmarked case? In Generative Studies on Creole Languages, P. Muysken (ed.), 181-199. Dordrecht: Foris. Naro, A. 1978. A study of the origins of pidginization. Language 54: 314-347. PAIGC. 1974. HistOria da GuinC e Jlhas de Cabo Verde. Porto: Edi<;:<)es Afrontamento. Perdue, C. 1993. Adult Language Acquisition: Crosslinguistic Perspecth•es. Strasbourg: European Science Foundation. Pinto Bull, B. 1989. 0 crioulo da GuinC-Bissau: filosojia e sabedoria. Lisboa!Bissau: Instituto de Cultura e Lingua portuguesa (Portugal)/Instituto nacional de estudos e pesquisas (Guine-Bissau). Reichenbach, H. 1947. Elements af Symbolic Logic. New York NY: Macmillan. Reinecke, John E. 1937. Marginal Languages: A Sociological Survey of the Creole Languages and Trade Jargons. PhD dissertation, Yale University. Rouge, J.-L 1986. Uma hip6tese sobre a forma~o do crioulo da GuiDe-Bissau e da Casamansa. Soronda 2: 2849.
Rouge, J.-L. & Kilun, A. 2008. As origens de ba. Paper presented at the ACBLPE Conference, Lisbon, July 3-5. Rowlands, E. C. 1969. A Grammar of Gambian Mandinka. London: SOAS. Sapir, J. D. 1969. A Grammar ofDiola-Fogny: A Language Spoken in the Basse-Casamance Region ofSenegal. Cambridge: CUP. Saraiva, J. H. 1991. HistOria concisa de Portugal. Lisboa: Publica¢es Europa-America. Schuchardt, H. 1888. Beitrage zur Kenntnis des kreolischen Romanisch II: Zum Negerportugiesischen Senegambiens. Zeitschrift fUr romanische Philologie 12: 301-322. da Silva, A. A. 1959. Apontamentos sobre as popula¢es oeste-africanas segundo os aut:ores portugueses dos seculos XVI e XVII. Boletim Cultural da GuinC Portuguesa XIV: 373-406. da Silva, M. da Gra~ Garcia Nolasco. 1970. Subsl:dio para o estudo dos 'lan~dos' na Guine. Boletim Cultural da Guine Portuguesa XXV: 97-100: 25-40,217-232,397-420, 13-63. Teyssier, P. 1959. La langue de Gil Vicente. Paris: Klincksieck. Tinhorao, J. R 1988. Os Negros em Portugal: Uma prese11fa silenciosa. Lisboa.: Caminho. Weinreich, U. 1953. Languages in Contact. The Hague: Mouton. Wellens, I. 2005. The Nubi Language of Uganda: An Arabic Creole in Africa. Leiden: Bri11 Wilson, W. A. A. 1961. Outline of the Balanta language. African Language Studies 2. London: SOAS. Wilson, W. A. A. 1962 The Crioulo ofGuine. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press. Wilson, W. A. A. 1989. Atlantic. In The Niger-Congo Languages, J. Bandor-Samuel (ed.), 81-104. Lanham MA: University Press of America.
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One substrate, two creoles The development of segmental inventories in St. Lucian and Haitian* Anne-Marie Brousseau University of Toronto
In this paper, I compare the segmental inventories of Haitian and St. Lucian with those of their contributing languages, in order to evaluate the impact of the substrate languages on the development of these systems. I show that the segmental inventories of the creoles display many features that were inherited from the Gbe languages through transfe~ which suggests a massive impact of the substrate in the development of the segmental inventories of the creoles. In a nutshell, the phonological systems of Haitian and St. Lucian appear as a compromise between those of their contributing languages, Fongbe and other Gbe languages (the substrate), and French (the superstrate). Whlle both creoles have essentially the same vowel inventory as the substrate, their consonantal inventory is closer to the superstrate. This hybrid character of the creoles is s lmllar to what is found in an interlanguage. in the more canonical cases of second language acquisition. I propose scenarios where the differences between the two creoles and their superstrate result from phonological and phonetic processes that are typical of interlanguages - e.g., segmental substitution under phonological equivalence, transfer of L1 allophonic rules. The scenarios assume that the emergence of a creole is a particular case of second language acquisition (Andersen 1983). They also assume the Full Transfer/Full Access model of Second Language Acquisition (Schwartz & Sprouse 1996; White 2000), according to which second language learners assume the grammar ofL1 as a starting point - Full Transfer- and progressively restructure this initial grammar using principles and parameters of Universal Grammar- Full Access. It is shown that the features of the substrates have guided the acquisition (or non acquisition) of the segmental inventories of French, even in cases where Universal Grammar may have been at play. Keywords: Haitian Creole, St. Lucian Creole, French, Gbe, phonology, consonant inventory, vowel inventory, transfer, segmental substitution, parameter resetting, second language acquisition, universal grammar
A previous version of this paper was presented at the workshop The Genesis of Creole Languages, XVIIIth International Conference on Historical Linguistics {Montreal, August 2007). I wish to thank the audience at the workshop, as well as the reviewers of the paper for their useful comments and suggestions. Part of this research was funded by the Social Sciences and Hwnanities Research Council of Canada (#410990735).
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Anne-Marie Brousseau
1.
Introduction
Haitian and St Lucian, two Caribbean French-based creoles spoken in Haiti and St Lucia respectively, are very similar in many aspects of their respective grammars, including phonology. This should come as no surprise since both languages share the same main substrate languages (Gbe languages) and the same superstrate language (French). However, there are differences between the two phonological systems, which need to be accounted for if we are to seek a plausible explanation for the emergence of the properties of a given creole language. In this paper, I compare the segmental inventories of Haitian and St Lucian with those of their contributing languages, in order to evaluate the impact of the substrate languages on the development of these systems. While the contribution of Gbe languages has yet to be documented forSt Lucian, it has been shown to be central to the development of Haitian. & shown extensively in Lefebvre (1998) and the numerous references therein, a large number of substrata! features are found in the syntax, morphology and lexical semantics of Haitian. Substrata! features are also found in phonology (Brousseau 2003; Brousseau & Niltiema 2006; Steele & Brousseau 2006). In a nutshell, the phonological systems of Haitian and St. Lucian appear as a compromise between those of their contributing languages. This hybrid character of the creoles is similar to what is typically found in an interlanguage, in the more canonical cases of L2 acquisition (Archibald 1988; Broselow & Finer 1991; Devonish 1989 for phonology). The similarities between the creoles and their substrates are too striking to constitute a mere coincidence. Wode (1986) proposes that transfer occurs in all contact situations, since it is a major component oflanguage processing abilities. Different speakers who share a common language background- either L1 or substrate- use the same substitution patterns in different situations. Below, I propose scenarios where the differences between the two creoles and their superstrate result from phonological and phonetic processes that are typical of interlanguages emerging in more canonical cases of second language acquisition. The scenarios assume that the emergence of a creole is a particular case of second language acquisition (Andersen 1983) and that creolisation is the "crystallization and subsequent elaboration of an autonomous interlanguage system" (Valdman 1983:214). This assumption has proved enlightening in the field of creole studies, as attested by a number of publications that draw parallels between creolisation and L2 acquisition (Alber & Plag 2001; Mather 2000; Muysken 2001; Plag & Uffmann 2001; Uffmann 2003; Veronique 1994; and the various contributions in Lefebvre et al. 2006). The remainder of this article is structured as follows. Section 2 provides some background information regarding theoretical assumptions and data. Sections 3 and 4 present the segmental inventories of the languages under study, focusing on vowels (Section 3) and consonants (Section 4) in turn, and propose scenarios of second language acquisition that explain the differences between the inventories of the creoles and those of their contributing languages. 1 Section 5 assesses the role of transfer from the substrate in the development of the two creoles. It is shown
1. Given space limitations, prosodic properties will not be discussed here. See Brousseau (2003), Brousseau & Nikiema (2006), and Steele & Brousseau (2006) for comparisons of the accentual and syllabic systems of Haitian with those of its contributing languages.
One substrate, two creoles
that the features of the substrates have guided the acquisition (or non acquisition) of the segmental inventories of French, even in cases where Universal Grammar may have been at play.
2.
Some background
This section provides the theoretical background for the analyses presented in this chapter, as well as information on the languages under study and the source of the data.
2.1
Creole formation as 12 acquisition
If an emerging creole equates to an interlanguage in a contact situation, we need to determine what mechanisms set the grammar of the creole/interlanguage apart from both the substrate/first language and the superstrate/second language. These mechanisms may involve general properties determined by Universal Grammar and transfer from the substrate/L1.2 Therefore, assessing precisely the role of transfer in the genesis of creole languages is certainly not a trivial task. Recent developments in SLA theory acknowledge the role of both Universal Grammar and transfer. According to the Full Transfer/Full Access model (Schwartz & Sprouse 1996; White 2000), second language learners assume the grammar ofL1 as a starting point- Full Transferand progressively restructure this initial grammar using principles and parameters of Universal Grammar - Full Access. Learners maintain the parameter settings of L1 in the interlanguage unless they are exposed to evidence to the contrary: Positive evidence in the target language triggers the resetting of the parameters in the interlanguage. In this view, an interlanguage is the "combination of (incorrect) L1 parameter settings, and the effect of Universal Grammar manifested in parameters that have been reset to the (correct) L2 value" (Archibald 1998:283). Markedness conditions act as guiding principles in SLA. They determine the order in which structures are acquired and they constrain the transfer from L1. Hyltenstam ( 1987) shows that in the early stages of acquisition, the interlanguage is immune to L1 and L2 influences: Unmarked categories are preferred.3 This explains the similarities found in all Ll- L2 situations. In later stages, differences arise which reflect the various interactions between the markedness values of the two languages. Thus, Hyltenstam (1987) makes the following predictions for a given parameter or set of parameters: (1) When both L1 and L2 are unmarked, the acquisition is straightforward; (2) when L1 is unmarked and L2 is marked, the unmarked category is transterred and will often remain for a while as a feature of the interlanguage; (3) when L1 is marked and L2 is unmarked, transfer is not likely to occur and, if it does, the marked category will not remain; (4) when both
2. See Sprouse (2006) for a discussion of the convergent developments in creolistics and SLA, represented respectively by the Relexification hypothesis and the Full Transfer /Full Access model
3- While the terms "marked" and "unmarked" may give the impression that markedness is an absolute, binary property, it is in fact relative. Segments are more or less marked than others in a given hierarchy - e.g., place or articulation for consonants, nasality for vowels, etc. Hence, these terms are to be understood as Kmore marked" and iess marked" respectively (see de Lacy 2006, especially the first chapter, for an extensive discussion).
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L1 and L2 are marked, the unmarked value can occur, but will be abandoned rapidly in favour of the marked value. Markedness conditions also guide the process of parameter resetting, given the kind of evidence needed to reset the value of a parameter. It is easier for the learner to reset a value from the subset (unmarked value) to the superset (marked value) than vice versa, since only positive evidence is needed in this case (Dresher & Kaye 1990; White 1989). This leads to the following paradox. When L1 is unmarked and L2 is marked for a given parameter, the interlanguage can show one value or the other: Either the unmarked value transferred from L1 remains (Hyltenstam 1987) or the marked value ofL2 is adopted, following parameter resetting (Dresher & Kaye 1990).
2.2
The data
Haitian is by far the most widely spoken among the French-based creoles. It has almost 7 million speakers or 94% of the population of Haiti (2001 data) and is spoken worldwide by members of the diaspora. St Lucian, also a French-based creole, has roughly 159,000 speakers in St Lucia, or 44% of the population (2001 data) and has also 43,000 speakers in Dominica (1998 data). While the vehicular language in Haiti is the creole, it is English in St Lucia.4 The French colonies of Haiti and St. Lucia are both believed to have started in the mid-seventeenth century: 1659 for Haiti (Singler 1996), 1651 for St. Lucia (Breen 1844; Rogozinski 1992). Singler (1996) hypothesises that Haitian was created between 1680 and 1740. It is during this period - the beginnings of the sugar economy- that the social conditions required for the emergence of a creole were present: a high ratio of slaves/Europeans, multilingualism among the slave population leading to the need for a lingua franca and very limited exposure to the superstrate language. For St. Lucia, no date has been proposed in the literature for the emergence of the creole, but if the development of a sugar economy is assumed to provide the required social conditions, we can conjecture that the creole was formed between 1765 (establishment of the first sugar plantations in Vieux-Fort) and 1815 (permanent cession of the island to Britain by France). Singler (1996) shows that, despite the widespread multilingualism found in the slave population, the majority of slaves in Haiti during the crucial period of formation (1680-1740) were speakers of Gbe languages (among other Kwa languages and, in a lesser proportion, Bantu languages). The Gbe dialect cluster comprises five main varieties (Capo 1991): Fongbe, Vhegbe (also known as Ewe), Gengbe (or Mina), Ajagbe, and Phla-Phera. These dialects are hypothesised to have played a major sub stratal role in the formation of Haitian creole. Among those, special attention has been given to Fongbe in the comparison, because, among others reasons, of the impact the Fon people have had on the history and culture of Haiti (see Lefebvre 1998: Chapter 3, for a detailed discussion). In the absence of detailed information regarding St Luda tor the relevant period and given that demography was similar across French colonies in the Antilles (Singler 1995), I will assume that Gbe languages played a major role in the formation of St Lucian as well.
4· Source: Ethnologue database, SIL International.
One substrate, two creoles
Due to the scarcity of historical data and to the tact that early written texts provide no consistent or credible clues about the phonology of the languages, the systems of Haitian, St. Ludan and Gbe were established on the basis of contemporary data. As for French, historical data is abundant enough to provide information on the phonology of seventeenth and eighteen century French. But what varieties of French should be considered to represent the superstrate of the two creoles? In keeping with current views on the French spoken by the settlers in America, I assume that the French who emigrated to New France and to the Antilles shared common sodal and geographical origins. French settlers in America were mainly from the western and central regions of France (Brasseur 1997; Chaudenson 1994), Poitou-Charentes being the region that exported the highest numbers of settlers to New France. I assume further that these French emigrants constituted a fairly homogeneous speech community; they all spoke a mesolectal variety of French showing some regional peculiarities (mainly Ile-de-France and western France), a local variety of the Parisian norm, referred to as Regional Standard French (see the contributions by Chaudenson, Hul~ Morin and Poirier in Mougeon & Beniak 1994).5 Thus, the inventories for seventeenth and eighteenth century French have been reconstructed within this perspective. 6
3·
Comparison of the vowel systems
The vowel inventories of the four languages under study are presented in this section without further justification of the segments they comprise, unless these segments are directly relevant to the comparison.
3.1
Vowel inventories
The vowel systems of Haitian and St. Lucian are almost, if not completely, identical (see Table 1). They consist of seven oral vowels and five nasal vowels, with a possible eighth oral vowel, the low back Ia!? Carrington (1984: 19-20) argues tor the presence in St. Ludan of two low vowels, /a/ and I oJ, on the basis of minimal pairs such as those in ( 1) below, despite the tact that I oJ appears only in a few words. He notes that /a/ is lax and long, similar to the Ia/ of French. The few examples
5-
See Brousseau (2005) for language-internal arguments supporting this view.
6. The inventories for the three languages were devised based on my work with informants and on the available literature. See Brousseau (2005), Brousseau & Nikiema (2006), and Lefebvre (1998) for the references that were consuhed to devise the inventories.
7In Tables 1 through 6, the following coding has been used: (i) brackets - e.g., (a) - indicate marginally attested segments; (ii) vertical slashes- e.g., lhl- signal segments that are found in St Lucian but not in Haitian; (iii) angular brackets -e.g., - signal segments that are found in Haitian but not in St Lucian; (iv) square brackets - e.g., [j] - identify allophones.
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Table 1. Vowel inventory of Haitian and St. Lucian Oral Front
Nasal
Back
Central
Front
Back
Central
u
e
ii
0
5
:l
£
a
(a)
Table 2. Vowel inventory of seventeenth-eighteenth century French Oral
Nasal
Front rounded
Back
y
u
e
0
0
£
a/re a
a
Front
Front
Front rounded
£
re
a
Back
d
provided suggest that the distribution of Ia! is limited to forms where the postvocalic !HI of the French etymons has been deleted. (1)
[pa]
'not' [lam] 'blade'
[pa]
'through'
l.lam]
'tear'
(French [paH]) (French l.laJim])
(Carrington 1984:20)
However, the distinction between the two low vowels is hard to find in contemporary St. Lucian. None of the two available dictionaries of St Lucian make the distinction. In his introduction to Mondesir's dictionary, Carrington justifies his decision not to represent the distinction by the fact that it has become "tenuous~ an observation that is consistent with my own observations during fieldwork. Interestingly, Valdman (1978) proposes the existence in Haitian of a back I a/ which appears in the same restricted contexts as in St. Lucian, that is, where the French etymon has either /rur/ or /aH/. However, most of the literature on Haitian agrees that there is only one low vowel and the dictionaries - including Valdman et al. (2007) - do not recognise any distinction. Haitian and St. Lucian have phonetic nasal variants of the high vowels, resulting from either regressive or progressive nasalisation - e.g., St. Lucian [wasin-ni], Haitian [yasin-ni], 'his/her roof. For Haitian, most of the consulted sources also recognise the phonemic status of Iii and fill, attested in a small number of words, most of them of African origin e.g., /hilga/ 'voodoo priesf. For St. Lucian, Carrington (1984) excludes Iii and/il/ from the phonemic inventory, while recognising them as phonetically derived through nasalisation. The inventory of seventeenth and eighteenth century French contains twelve oral vowels and five nasal vowels (Table 2 ). The inventory clearly contains two "a" vowels: Back /a/ and central /a/. Back /a/ became part of the phonemic inventory of French during the sixteenth century (Fouche 1966) and was also found in the regional dialects spoken in the Centre and the West of France of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, including Poitou and Saintonge (Morin 1994).
One substrate, two creoles
Table 3. Vowel inventory of Gbe Oral Front
Central
Nasal
Back
Front
Central
u
e
ii.
0
e
:l
£
a
Back 0 5
a
The vowel system of Gbe consists of seven oral and seven nasal vowels, including two high nasal vowels (Table 3). Following Capo (1991), the inventory includes the two phonemic vowels, tel and /6/. However, these vowels are always realised phonetically as [il) and [3) respectively in Fongbe. In fact, only two Gbe dialects show a straighttorward phonetic realisation of these vowels as [e] and [6]. 3.2
Vowels: From Gbe to Haitian and St. Lucian
A comparison of Tables 1 and 3 shows that the vowel inventory of Gbe is strikingly similar to those of the two creoles. The differences are that the two creoles lack the nasal vowels lei and /6/ found in Gbe, while Gbe lacks the distinction between the two "a"' that is marginally found in the creoles. The first difference is linked to an empirical problem. The phonemes /e/ and /6/, in most Gbe dialects, are always realised as [e] and [3] respectively. Given that/et and 161 are not attested in French, neither phonemically nor phonetically, the creators of the creoles had two possible ways to interpret the [£] and [3] they encountered as part of the phonetic strings of French: either as transparent/Sf and /3/ or as the realisation of the underlying phonemic let and /6/. Of course, the allophony being categorical, there is no empirical way to determine which of the two analyses is correct In the first case, the phonemic vowels would most probably have disappeared, finding no role to play in the realisation of phonetic strings. In the second case, the phonemic vowels could correspond to the underlying representation of some, if not all, nasal mid-vowels. It is theoretically unlikely, however, that such abstract representations would have subsisted in the languages as they render the forms in which they appear unnecessarily opaque. It thus seems more reasonable to adopt the first option and to explain the absence of tel and /6/ in the creoles by the fact that French provided no data that could be interpreted as targets for the transfer of these phonemes. The second difference involves the interaction of segments with syllable structure. It is not a mere reflex of the equivalent distinction in French, as the vast majority of the French etymons including /a/ are realised in the creoles with /a/. In both creoles, the back /a/ appears only in some forms where the postvocalic !HI of the French etymons has been deleted. Given that Ia/ is the only low vowel that is phonemically long in French, the presence of I a/ in the creoles could a priori be explained by a process of compensatory lengthening: /a/ would spread to the syllable slot left empty by the deletion of the postvocalic !HI, hence being realised as I a/. This explanation is dubious for the following reasons. First, it seems that the distribution of Ia/ is scarce, even for the authors who report its existence. It appears only in a small subset of the torms that provide
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Brousseau
the appropriate context (etymons containing Irurl or /ax/) and this subset does not form a natural class that would allow a sound characterisation of the phonological environment of Ia!. If Ia! were to be analyzed as a reflex of compensatory lengthening, we would expect it to appear systematically in forms where a postvocalic !HI has been deleted, which is not the case. Second, in order to recognise I a/ as the only low vowel that is phonemically long, the creators of the creoles would have had to acquire the abstract relationships between length and place of articulation for the low vowels of French. A cluster of factors would have rendered this acquisition extremely difficult, including the low degree of exposition to French, the absence of any distinction for low vowels in the substrate and the fact that the distinction is both phonemic and phonetic in French. 'Third, even if the creators had been successful in acquiring the abstract properties of the two "a"s of French, we would expect the forms in the creoles to pattern more closely to those of French. As shown in (2), this is not the case: There is no correspondence neither for place of articulation nor for length between the French and the creole forms. (2)
a
HAITIAN
ST. LUCIAN
FRENCH
[lam]
[lam]
lame grave pas larme par
[gyav]
[gwav]
[pa] [lam] [pa]
[pa] [lam] [pa]
GLOSS
[lam] [gHa:v] [pa:] [lllB'm] [pa:B']
'blade' 'serious' 'not'
'tear' 'through'
This leads me to conclude that [a] is at best an idiosyncrasy, a phonetic variant that appears sporadically in some specific lexical forms. Summing up, the inventory of Haitian and St. Lucian does not include a back /a/ after all. Depending on the status of /e/ and /6/ in the creoles, this leaves a single possible difference (if any), which applies only at the phonemic level. Vowels: The French input to Haitian and St. Lucian
3·3
Comparing the creoles with French (Tables 1 and 2) reveals many differences, notably the lack in the creoles of the whole front rounded series. As illustrated in (3), the rounded vowels of French etymons are realised as front unrounded vowels, or, in a few cases, as back rounded vowels. (3)
i
HAITIAN
ST. LUCIAN
FRENCH
[lim&] [mi] [3is]/[Jus] [bule] [suse] [dife] [m(i)sje] [agjo]
[limS:] [mi]
allwner mO.r juste brftler sucer feu monsieur adieu aveugle peuple voleur
[Jis]
[bwile] [suse] [dife] [misje]
[avs.g]
[avs.g]
[pep] [v:lle]
[pep] [~Is.]
GLOSS
[alyme] [myr] [3ys(t)] [bB'yle] [syse] [f0]
'to light' 'ripe'
[m(~)sy0]
'mister'
'until'
'to bunt 'to suck' 'fire'
[ady0] 'farewell' [avceg(l)] 'blind' [pcep(l)] 'people' [~leer] 'thief
One substrate, two creoles
:>
< ce
s: < re
[dpl] [bit']
gueule brun
[gcel]
'mouth'
[brre]
'browrl
This constitutes a clear case of substitution, as is often observed in more canonical cases of SLA. Substitution is a process that consists in replacing a phoneme of the target language by a phoneme of the native inventory that is the closest to the target segment, in terms of perceptual similarity or classificatory equivalence in the phonological system. Since they are absent from the Gbe inventory and since they constitute a marked option cross-linguistically, the front-rounded vowels of French were substituted by vowels that are similar either in terms of place of articulation (frontunrounded vowels) or in terms of manner of articulation (back-rounded vowels). These two sets of vowels are both good candidates since in each case the native segment differs from the target segment by only one feature. The lack of schwa in their inventory also sets the creoles apart from French. As shown in (4), the schwa of French etymons is realised as /e/ or, less frequently, as /if in the corresponding creole torms. (4) i,e<::~
e<::~
HAITIAN
ST. LUCIAN
FRENCH
Uem€/fime] [five/feve] [demi] [menas] [leve]
[(ime] [(ive] [dimi] [menas] [leve]
chemin cheveu demie menace lever
GLOSS ij(::~)me] ij(::~)v0] [d(::~)mi] [m(::~)nas] [l(::~)ve]
'road' 'hair' 'half' 'threat' 'to raise'
The presence of two substitutes reflects the ambiguous behaviour of schwa in French. Schwa has two possible phonetic outputs: It may either be realised as [ce]/[0] 8 or be phonetically null (deleted). In many French torms, a given schwa may be realised or not, depending on factors such as properties of the neighbouring syllables, speech rate and register. If the input form to which the creators of the creoles were exposed contained a realised schwa- e.g., [sariz] 'cherry'-, the expected outcome would be [e], on a par with the other cases of substitution of front-rounded vowels. However, if the input was a form with deleted schwa- e.g., [sriz] 'cherry'-, there was no segment to substitute. The presence of [i] thus requires a different line of explanation, namely syllable structures. The syllable structures of Gbe languages are far simpler than those of French. Codas are prohibited while a limited set of syllable-initial clusters are allowed. Specifically, a cluster may consist of almost any consonant followed by a liquid or a small subset of consonants followed by yod. As noted in Steele and Brousseau (2006), L2 learners typically do not acquire all clusters of the target language with equal ease. Learners who are exposed to clusters that are not allowed in their native grammar and/or are marked resort to two strategies to adapt the target clusters: consonant deletion and vowel epenthesis. 9 This second strategy is precisely the one used in adapting loanwords from French in contemporary Gbe languages and the epenthetic vowels that shows up 8. The phonetically realised schwa is subject to variation across dialects and sodolects of French, being realised as [ce] and [0].
9- See Plag and Uffinann (200 1) and U.ffinann (2003) for discussion of these strategies in 12 acquisition and the development of phonology in creoles.
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in loanwords is precisely /if, the default vowel of the system- e.g., Fongbe [minisite] from French [mini~teH] .10 The third difference between the vowel inventories is that French lacks the nasal high vowels that are found in the two creoles and in Gbe. Again, this situation parallels more canonical cases ofSLA. According to Steele and Brousseau (2006), L2leamers may acquire target-language sounds in a native-like manner yet apply allophonic rules transferred from the Ll, resulting in non-target-like realisations. Transferred allophonic rules may be fossilised and hence exist even in the grammars of advanced learners. Regressive nasalisation is a rule that applies in the four languages under study and, in fuct, in a wide variety of languages. However, the rule typically applies to all vowels except high, as is the case in French. The fuct that high vowels are nasalised in the two creoles, a marked option, can only be the result of transfer from the substrate language. 11 In the case of Haitian, the presence of nasalised high vowels may have helped the preservation of high vowels that are phonemically nasal, in forms of African origin. The fourth difference is the absence of a back low vowel in the creoles. As discussed in 3.2, the few occurrences of I a/ found in the creoles do not correspond in any systematic fashion to the I a/ of French etymons. Again, this is a clear case of substitution, where a segment that is not part of the native grammar is replaced by its closest equivalent. in this case /a/, which is both perceptually and phonologically similar.
3·4
Vowels: Summary
As concerns vowels, Haitian and St. Lucian share the same inventory, with the possible exception of nasal high vowels, which may have a phonemic status in Haitian only. This inventory is identical to that of Gbe, with the possible following exception: the nasal mid-vowels /e/ and /5/. It~ indeed, these segments are not part of the phonemic inventory of the creole - a state of affairs that cannot be substantiated-, their absence results from the fuct that French provided no data that could be interpreted as targets for the transfer of these phonemes. In other words, there was nowhere to transfer to, a situation that prevents transfer to apply, following Andersen's Transfer to Somewhere Principle. According to this principle,
10. Of course, there is no way to tell what was the pronundation to which the creators of the creoles were exposed when they adapted a French lexical containing a schwa. We can reasonably hypothesise variation among the creators of the creoles as the result of the variation in the input, which would have lead to the variation we still see in modern creoles - e.g., demi vs. dimi. The fact that many lexical items of the creoles do not show variation can be either the result of an homogeneous input at the moment of the creation of the creoles or the result of a later process of dialect levelling.
11. In his investigation of the inventories of317languages, Maddieson (1984: 131) notes that/I/, /ft/ and /a/ are the most common nasalized vowels. If typological frequency were to be used as a diagnostic for markedness, this would entail that the high nasal vowels are unmarked. However, I assume with de Lacy (2006: 20-30) that the frequency of a given segment across inventories is influenced by many factors- e.g., conflicting constraints such as Preservation of the Marked, performance factors - and thus does not constitute a valid diagnostic of markedness.
One substrate, two creoles
A grammatical form will occur consistently and to a significant extent in the !nterlanguage as a result of transfer if and only if ( 1) natural acquisition principles are consistent with the L1 structure or (2) there already exists within the L2 input the potential for (mis- )generalisation from the input to produce the same form or structure. (Andersen 1983: 182)
The inventory of French is larger and more complex than those of the two creoles, and reveals more important differences. To adopt the phonetic strings of French in the process of creating the emerging creoles, the creators resorted to typical L2 acquisition strategies: substitution of new sounds by their closest native equivalents (front-unrounded vowels, realised schwas, back /a/), vowel epenthesis (unrealised schwas) and transfer of an allophonic rule (retention of nasal high vowels).
Comparison of the consonant systems
4·
The inventories of consonants presented below comprise phonemes and allophones. The inventories do not include phonetic variants in free variation or superficial phonetic variants, which may occur, for example, as a result of rapid speech.
Consonant inventories
4.1
The consonant inventories of Haitian and St. Lucian are almost identical (see Table 4). To the common set of 22 consonants (20 phonemes and two allophones), St Lucian adds the laryngeal/hi and the labialised velars /yw/ and /w/, while Haitian adds the fricative /y/ and the sonorant /y/. Most authors agree that the velar nasal [I)] does not have a phonemic status in Haitian, being the nasalised allomorph of /g! in word-final position - e.g., /repsg! > [rep'SIJ] 'pili Carrington (1984) analyses the St. Lucian velar nasal as phonemic, but notes that it has a limited occurrence. However, an examination of the forms involved reveals that it appears in the same contexts as the equivalent in Haitian. On the basis of the examples given, I contend that [IJ] is best analyzed as the result of the progressive nasalisation of I g! in St Lucian and Haitian alike. The two creoles also have in common a nasalised version of yod resulting from progressive nasalisation. which alternates with the nasal/]1/. In Haitian, /y/ behaves as the language's rhotic. As is the case in Gbe, French, and many other languages, the "r-like" rhotic may behave both as a fricative and as a sonorant (liquid or Table 4. Consonant inventory of Haitian and St. Lucian Bilabial
Labio-dental
p,b f,v
Alveo-dental Alveo-palatal
t,d s,z
Palatal
Velar
J1
[IJ]
j [J]
lwl
{.3
tf, d3 rn w
n
Laryngeal
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Table 5. Consonant inventory of Gbe Bilabial
Labio-dental
Alveo-dental
Alveo-palatal
Palatal
t,d
f, v
s,z
Velar
Labio-velar
k,g x,y
xw,yw
kp,gb
tf, d3
d. [n]
b[m]
)l
1 [r] j [j]
w
y
Table 6. Consonant inventory of seventeenth and eighteenth century French Bilabial
Labio-dental Alveo-dental Alveo-palatal
p,b
t,d
tv
s,z
J~3
[tf,d3]
n
w
r
Velar
Uvular
Laryngeal
1f
h
k.g
[ts,dz] m
Palatal
Jl
[IJ] 1f
semi-vowel). In St. Lucian, the rhotic has the same ambiguous status, but differs in its articulatory properties. According to Carrington (1984: 27), "labialization of this consonant is a prominent feature of St. Lucian Creole, to such an extent that more often than not/yw; resembles back semivowel/w/." The Gbe inventory includes 23 phonemes, plus four allophones (Table 5). In Gbe, /b/ and I d/ are best analysed as sonorants. First, they pattern with the other sonorants with respect to tone. Second, they are in complementary distribution with the nasals [m] and [n]: /b/ and /d/ appear before oral vowels, while the nasals appear elsewhere. The fact that /b/ is a sonorant explains that, even though all voiced stops have a voiceless counterpart, there is no /pi in the inventory. As for /y/, it exhibits the ambiguous behaviour of a rhotic, being both a fricative and a sonorant, whereas [r] is an allophone of IV in the context of a preceding coronal consonant. The inventory of seventeenth and eighteenth century French possesses 22 consonant phonemes, including the language's rhotic, which has two variants (the coronal/r/ and the dorsal velar /JJ/) (see Table 6). In contrast with contemporary French, it includes the laryngeal fricative /hi, the realisation of the so-called "h aspire in words of Germanic origin e.g., haut [ho] 'high: hacher [hafe] 'to chop' (Brousseau 2005). The inventory also includes two sets of allophones. The affricates [ts] and [dz] are allophones of It/ and /d/ in the context of a following Iii or lyl while the affricates [tf] and [d3] are palatalised variants of It/ and I dl, lkl and I gl.
One substrate, two creoles
4.2
Consonants: From Gbe to Haitian and St. Lucian
A comparison of the two consonant inventories (Tables 4 and 5) reveals several mismatches. First, whereas the creoles have the two bilabial stops /pi and /b/, Fongbe has no /pi but has a sonorant lbl. Second, while Haitian has the fricatives If/ and /3f, Fongbe does not. Third, many of the Gbe consonants are missing from the creole inventories: the sonorant /dj, the fricative /x/, and the whole series of labio-velars. This may come as a surprise, given the striking similarity between the vowel systems. Andersen's "Transfer to Somewhere Principle" provides an explanation for the absence oflabio-velars, /x/ and I d/ in the creoles. The French input did not include any sounds that resembled these consonants; hence the transfer had nowhere to apply. The emergence of the stops /p/ and /b/ in the creoles can be viewed as the result of a regularisation of the phonemic system of Gbe. While some Gbe dialects have it in their phonemic inventory- e.g., Gen dialects -, Fongbe and the other dialects that lack a phonemic /pi allow [p] in ideophones and loan words. Given this situation, it is possible that the seventeenth and eighteenth century Gbe speakers also manifested the variation we observe today. On the assumption that this was the case, these Gbe speakers were faced with French phonetic strings containing /pi and they obviously integrated /p/ in the system that they were creating. This is attested by the large number of words containing /pi in the modem creoles. The reason they integrated /p/ is either because they already had it in their phonemic inventory- e.g., Gen dialects - or in their phonetic inventory - e.g., Fongbe. A likely hypothesis, then, is that the presence of /pi in French phonetic strings only helped accelerating an incipient change which had already begun to take place in the grammar of substratum speakers at the time the creoles were formed. 12 The presence of an obstruent /pi in the creoles raises the question of the status of /b/ within the system. This question bears on the assumption that the default case will produce a system where gaps are avoided. According to Clements (2003 and previous work), this avoidance of gaps in inventories follows from the Principle of Feature Economy. "According to this principle, languages tend to maximise the combinatory possibilities of features across the inventory of speech sounds: Features used once in a system tend to be used again" (Clements 2003:287). In all three languages, stops all appear in voiced/voiceless pairs. We thus expect that, given that the creoles have /p/, they will also have its voiced counterpart, namely the stop /b/. This is exactly what we find. In contrast with Gbe, but on a par with French, /b/ does not behave like a sonorant in the creoles. It thus appears that the creators of the creoles modified the feature specification of /b/ from its L1 value to the L2 value. Presumably, the target provided an abundance of positive evidence showing that /b/ was not in complementary distribution with /m/ - French forms such as lbaJ ,/bf./, /b3/ -, hence allowing the acquisition of the values of French. The change from sonorant to stop had the effect of filling a gap in the new consonant system.
Maddieson ( 1984: 32) notes that 99.1% of the 317languages under study have at least one bilabial stop, which could suggest an unmarked value for /pl. On the other hand, de Lacy (2006: 2) provides the following hierarchy for major places of articulation (where> means "is more marked than"): !dorsal> labial> coronal> glottal!. This makes /p/ relatively marked. 12.
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As for the acquisition of the fricatives If/ and /3f, I propose to link it to the presence of the affricates /tf/ and /dy, as will be seen in the next section.
Consonants: The French input to Haitian and St. Lucian
4·3
The consonant inventories of the two creoles parallel French more closely than Gbe. The differences are as follows. First, the affricates [ts I and [dzl are missing in the creoles and the affricates [tf) and [d3] have phonemic status in the creoles. Second, whereas French has /H/ and /hi, Haitian has /y/ and St. Ludan has /w/ and /hi. The first difference is the result of straightforward transfer from the substratum. The French input to which the creators of creoles were exposed offered occurrences of [tn and [d3l, as well as [ts] and [dz], both pairs being allophones of It/ and I d! respectively. Of course, whether it is a phoneme or an allophone in the system, an affricate will be perceptually identical. Given that [tn and [d3] were part of the native inventory, the affricates were transferred into the system of the emerging creoles with their native values, i.e. as the phonemes /tf/ and/d3f. In contrast, since they were missing from the native inventory, [ts I and [dzI did not make their way into the creoles. The adoption of the fricatives If/ and /3f may be linked to the existence of the affricates in the system. Both pairs of consonants share the same place of articulation and, in part, the same manner of articulation: In terms of perception and articulation, an affricate is the fusion of a fricative and a homorganic stop. Given the fact that Gbe had the affricates !tf/ and /dy, it was only natural to expand the system so as to include the fricatives If/ and /y. Once more, as was the case for the introduction of /p/, this choice may have been quite straightforward as it had the effect of making better use of the available phonological features for consonants, following the Principle of Feature Economy. To explain the second difference that sets the creoles apart from French, I first provide an account of the Haitian system. I adopt the analysis of Steele and Brousseau (2006), which involves the substitution of postcoronal fricatives (/HI and /hi) under equivalence classification by the creators of Haitian. In contemporary French, the label Kh-aspire refers to a subset of these words which pattern like consonant-initial words in blocking liaison. In contrast, "h-muef' words behave phonologically like any other vowel-initial word. The initial/hi ofh-aspire items was historically realised in French, including in the seventeenth and eighteenth century varieties to which the Gbe-speaking creators of the creoles would have been exposed (Brousseau 2005). Such differences manifest themselves in the HC adaptation of French h-aspire and h-muet etymons. In adapting the h-aspire targets in (5), HC substituted the voiced velar fricative [y]. (5)
FRENCH
HAITIAN
rach ranch ranni rayi
[yaj] [yil.j] [yil.ni] [yaji]
hache hanche hennir hair
GLOSS
[haj] [hil.j] [henJH] [ha(j)ilr]
'axe'
'hip' 'to neigh' 'to hate'
In contrast, the adaptations ofh-muet etymons are phonetically vowel-initial- e.g., French habitude [abityd] 'habif, HC abitid [abitid]; French heureuse [0B'121Z] 'happY, HC erez [eysz].
One substrate, two creoles
Since laryngeals were not part of their native inventory, Gbe learners of seventeenth and eighteenth century French would have had to acquire /hi. In order to do so, they proceeded to adapt target lhl via equivalence classification, equating French /h/ with /y/, an L1 segment that shares the manner and has the closest place of articulation to that of the target segment. The equivalence classification hypothesis is further supported by the adaptation of targets involving/HI, which is substituted with /yl in HC, as illustrated in (6). Gbe languages have a velar but no uvular series. Accordingly, in an attempt to master target hr/, native speakers of both languages substitute the perceptually equivalent velar /y/. (6)
HAITIAN
rim trete erez ipokrit
[yim]
[tyete] [ey&z] [lpokyit]
FRENCH
GLOSS
[:sym] rhwne [tB'ete] traiter heureuse (0H0Z] hypocrite [ipokB'it:]
'cold (n.)' 'to treat' 'happy' 'hypocrite'
The fact that this substitution also occurs after a coronal- e.g., trete [tyete] -, that is, in the only context where Gbe allows the coronal/r/, confirms that the target !HI is substituted by a sound that is perceptually equivalent and not phonologically equivalent. In other words, the creators of Haitian have privileged the perceptual similarity of lyl and !HI over the phonological rho tic status of lrl and /HIP The allophonic variation of I y/ can also be understood as a case of the transfer and fossilisation of an Ll-based allophonic rule. As shown in (8) and (9), in both singleton and complex onsets, HC /yl is realised as [w] in front of a rounded vowel. In all other contexts, as in (7), it is realised as [y]. No such alternation exists in French. where [H] can occur before any vowel. (7)
HAITIAN
ra chire pouri debraye prete (8)
HAITIAN
nimero parol ronfie roulo trop (9)
FRENCH
[ya] [fiye] [puyi] [debyaje] [pyete]
p~ter
GLOSS
(HaJj'] [defiB'e] [pwrl] [debHaje] [pHete]
'rare
[nymeHo] [pu:>l] [K3fie] [Kulo] [tHo]
'number' 'words' 'to snore' 'roll' 'too (much)'
l.ho] l.h5t] l.hu]
'high' 'shame' 'hoe'
FRENCH
[nimewo] [paw:>l] [w5fie] [wulo] [tw:>p]
nwnero parole ronfier rouleau trop
[wo] [w3t]
haut honte houe
HAITIAN
ro ront rou
rare dechirer pourri debraille
GLOSS
FRENCH
[wu]
'to shred' 'rotten' 'sloppy' 'to lend'
GLOSS
13. Another property may have accentuated the phonetic similarity between /y/ and /Jr/. Ladefoged and Maddieson (1996) note that the velar fricative is often like an approximant and that uvular rhotics have a tendency to weaken, hence being realised as fricatives or approximants.
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The identical allophonic variation occurs in some Gbe dialects. In these varieties, the distribution is identical to that observed in Haitian: [w] occurs before back vowels, [y] is found elsewhere. As such, the HC variation in the realisation of /y/ is a dear case of the transfer of an L1 allophonic rule. This transfer might provide the key to explaining how St. Lucian differs from Haitian in the substitution of French /JJ/ and the adoption of French /hi. In St Lucian, /w/ (or /yw/) appears in place of the French /Jr/, regardless of the quality of the following vowel. Hence, the forms equivalent to those in (7) above are realised with /w/ where Haitian has /y/. However, as Carrington (1984:27) notes, /y/ is observed in the speech of older rural dwellers, particularly word-initially- e.g., [yi] 'to laugh: [diyi] 'rice, [yete] 'to remain: all contexts where the following vowel is not rounded. It thus seems reasonable to assume that historically St Lucian was similar to Haitian, exhibiting the very same allophonic variation between /y/ and /w/. While this variation is still robust in Haitian, it would have started to erode in St. Lucian at some point in time, possibly under the influence of English. The influence of English as a contributing factor is plausible for two reasons. The first one is language external. Besides French, St Lucians have been exposed to another colonising language quite early, namely English. The island changed hands between France and England many times between 1635 and 1815, when it definitely became a British possession. The censuses of 1911 and 1921 already indicate that approximately 40% of the population had the ability to speak English, a rate that steadily increased to almost 60% in 1946 (Carrington's data was gathered in 1964-1966). In fact, in the most densely populated area of the island (Castries), many speakers of the "patwa" acknowledge an influence of English in their creole speech. The second reason is language internal. If, as I have shown above, perceptual similarity is at play in determining the equivalencies between phonemes of different languages, then it is plausible that the rhotic of English, being perceptually similar to St. Lucian /w/ and I ywI, has influenced St. Lucian in promoting the allophone to the rank of phonemes in all contexts. The influence of English may also explain the presence of /hi in St Lucian. While St. Lucian patterns with Haitian in exhibiting an allophonic variation between [w] and the reflex of the French /hi, it departs from Haitian in generalising the [w] variant to contexts where there is no back vowel, that is, contexts where the only possible realisation should be /hi. In many forms, the two realisations are acceptable, as shown below: (10)
ST. LUCIAN
FRENCH
[hafl/[wafl [.hele]/[wele] [h5t]/[w3t] [.hu]/[wu]
hache heler honte houe
GLOSS
[.haJJ [.hele] [.h5t] [.hu]
'axe' 'to call' 'shame' 'hoe'
This suggests that the same phenomenon of erosion applied to the allophonic distribution that may have characterised an earlier state of the language where, exactly as in Haitian, /y/ would have alternated with [w]. If this is the case, the expected variation in forms such as those in (10) would be /y/and [w] rather than and /hi and [w]. Where does this /hi come from? The direct adoption of French /hi by the creators of St. Lucian is unlikely for the same reasons that explain the substitution of /hi by /y/ in Haitian. Given that the creators of the creole
One substrate, two creoles
had very limited exposure to French, it is doubtful that they could have managed to acquire this segment, missing from their native inventory. An influence from English offers a better line of explanation. As mentioned earlier, the British have been recurrently present in St. Lucian as early as 1635. The creators of St Lucian may thus have been exposed, at least minimally, to some variety of English at different points in time. The combining pressure of the two colonising languages would have expanded the exposure to the target segment /hi, especially since this consonant is widespread in the English vocabulary- which is not the case in French, where h-aspire is restricted to a small set of words. This combined pressure may have provided a more salient exposure to /hi, resulting in its introduction in the consonantal inventory. The consistent presence of English, starting in the mid-nineteenth century, would have helped preserve /hi, despite its alternation with /w/. In contrast. since neither French nor English provided data involving /y/, the alternation between /y/ and /w/ resulted in the gradual disappearance of the velar fricative.
4·4
Consonants: Summary
The consonant inventories of Haitian and St Lucian are more similar to that of French than to that of Gbe languages. They lack many of the consonants of their substrate, namely all those that do not have a French counterpart. This follows from the Transfer to Somewhere Principle. Again, the creators of the creoles resorted to typical L2 acquisition strategies when faced with sounds that were not part of their native grammar. The segments corresponding to the /JJ/ and /h/ of French are the result ofboth the substitution of new sounds by their closest native equivalents and the transfer of an allophonic rule. Other consonants of French were more directly adopted as part of a process of regularisation of the consonant system (!pi, If/ and /y), resulting in an inventory that is even closer to that of French.
5·
Conclusion
Transfers that are typical of L2 acquisition suffice to explain how the inventories of Haitian and St. Lucian acquired the features they have, given the features of their contributing languages. But is this the only plausible explanation? Could the role of Universal Grammar provide as good an explanation as transfer does? In order to answer these questions, I first recapitulate the relevant features. Table 7 lists the differences between the two creole and French inventories, with the L2 processes involved in the emergence of the creole features. The last column indicates the markedness of each given feature, relatively to French (where M indicates marked or more marked, U indicates unmarked or less marked). To measure the impact of the substrate in the development of the segmental inventories of the creoles, the question that really needs answering is the following: Of all the features of the creole inventories that depart from those of French, what features are the result of transfer from the Gbe languages? Assuming the Full Transfer/Full Access hypothesis, the answer to the latter question is straightforward: All the features of L1 ( Gbe) that were not later restructured - i.e. all
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Table 7. Differences in the inventories of the creoles and French French
Haitian
St Lucian
Front rounded V s
Front unrounded V s (back rounded Vs)
Back/a/
Front/a/
Realised schwa
/e/
Deleted schwa
!if
L2 acquisition process
M/U
Under equivalent classification, substitution of the target by its closest equivalent (each candidate departing from the target by one feature, roundedness or place).
u
Repair strategy to break consonant clusters and to accommodate Ll syllable.
u
[i, ii]
Transfer of Ll allophonic rule.
M
[ts, dz] [tf, d3]
!tf, d3/
Transfer with phonemic value of Ll.
M
!hi
/y/
Substitution of the target by its closest equivalent
u
!hi
(Haitian).
/JI/
/y/
/w/
Erosion of variation and influence of English (St. Lucian).
?
/JI/
[w]
[w]
Transfer of Ll allophonic rule.
M
the parameters that have not been reset. In other words, all the differences listed in Table 7 must be the result of transfer. Indeed, Table 7 shows that parameter resetting has been not overly successful. It did not happen with the following segments of French: (1) front rounded vowels; (2) back /a/; (3) realised schwa; (4) some consonants clusters (V epenthesis for deleted schwa); (5) the affricates [ts] and [dz]; (6) postvelar fricatives, including the rhotic. In the first three cases, as in the case of the substitution of /h/ and lKI in Haitian, acquiring the features of French would have involved resetting parameters from less marked (Gbe) to more marked (French), a paradoxical situation whose outcome can go both ways. & we have seen at the beginning of this chapter, when L1 is unmarked and L2 is marked for a given parameter, the interlanguage can show one value or the other: Either the unmarked value transferred from Ll remains, precisely because it is less or not marked (Eckman 1977; Kellerman 1987), or the marked value of L2 is adopted after parameter resetting is achieved on the basis of positive evidence (Archibald 1988). It thus seems that exposure was not sufficient to constitute positive evidence in all theses cases. However, the case of /hi in St. Lucian shows that parameter resetting towards a marked value has succeeded, contrary to Haitian. The fact that the creators of St. Lucian were exposed to a second European language, English, where /hi is considerably more frequent, could explain this difference: The higher exposure to the segment here could have constituted enough positive evidence to allow the resetting of the parameter. In Table 7, the cases involving transfer of allophonic rules (nasal high vowels and rounding of IKI) or phonemic value have reversed markedness values. Acquiring the features of French, rather than transferring the values of Gbe, would have involved resetting parameters from more marked (Gbe) to less marked (French), a situation unlikely to occur, according to Hyltenstam (1987), but that has indeed occurred here. However, parameter resetting was indeed involved in the development of the creole inventories, in all the cases where the creoles pattern with French but not with Gbe. This includes the
One substrate, two creoles
following segments: (1) the affricates [tf] and [d3] (marked as phonemes but probably not as allophones); (2) the fricatives If/ and /y (marked); (3) the obstruents /p/ and /b/ (unmarked). Unmarked as well as marked parameters have been successfully transferred. Since the success of parameter resetting - as the lack of success for the cases in Table 7 - cannot be attributed to markedness values, what can account for it? In each case, the success of parameter resetting seems to be linked to a common property: the presence of similar segments in Ll, if not phonemically, at least phonetically. Gbe languages have phonemic affricates [tf] and [d3] while French has the perceptually identical phonetic counterpart, which also facilitates the adoption of the homorganic fricatives If/ and /y. The majority of Gbe dialects have a phonetic /p/ and an approximant /b/. In sum, the vowel and consonant inventories of the creoles show features that were inherited from the Gbe languages through transfer, irrespective of the markedness value of these features. So, in the end, how significant was the impact of the substrate on the development of the segmental inventories of the creoles? The answer is quite clear: It was massive. The influence of the substrate is pervasive in the inventories of the two creoles, even for cases where we could convincingly argue for the role of Universal Grammar.
References Alber, B. & Plag, I. 2001. Epenthesis, deletion and the emergence of the optimal syllable in Creole: The case of Sranan. Lingua 111:811-840. Andersen, R. W. (ed.). 1983. Pidginization and Creolization as Language Acquisition. Rowley MA: Newbury House. Archibald, J. 1998. Seco,Jd Language Phonology [Language Acquisition and Language Disorders 17]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Brasseur, P. 1997. Creoles abase lexicale fran~se et fran~ marginaux d'Amerique du Nord: Quelques points de comparaison. In Contacts de langues, contacts de cultures, creolisation, M.-C. Hazael-Massieux & D. de Robillard (eds), 141-166. Paris: I:Harmattan. Breen, H. H. 1844. St. Lucia. Historical, Statistical and Descriptive. Frank Cass [1970]. Broselow, E. & Finer, D. 1991. Parameter setting in second language phonology and syntax. Second Language Research 7: 35-59. Brousseau, A.-M. 2003. The accentual system of Haitian creole: The role of transfers and markedness values. In Phonology and Morphology of Creole Languages, I. Plag (ed.), 123-147. Tlibingen: Niemeyer. Brousseau, A.-M. 2005. The sociolect of 17th-18th century French settlers: Phonological clues from French Creoles. In Selected Papers from NWAVB 32 [Penn Working Papers in Linguistics Volume 10(2)], K. Evans & G. Nguyen (eds), 45-60. Philadelphia PA: Penn Linguistics Club. Brousseau, A.-M. & Nikierna, E. 2006. From Gbe to Haitian: The multi-stage evolution of syllable structure. In L2 Acquisition wJd Creole Genesis: Dialogues [Language Acquisition and Language Disorders 42] C. Lefebvre, L. White & C. Jourdan (eds), 295-331. Amsterdam: Jolm Benjamins. Capo, H. B. C. 1991. A Comparative Phonology of Gbe. Dordrecht: Foris. Carrington, L D. 1984. St. Lucian Creole. A Descriptive Analysis of its Phonology and Morpho-Syntax. Hamburg: Helmut Buske. Chaudenson, R 1994. Fran~s d'Amerique du Nord et cn!oles fran~: Le fran~s parle par les immigrants du XVII" siede. In Les origines dufranfais quebecois, R Mougeon & R Bemak (eds), 167-180. Quebec: Presses de fUniversite Laval. Clements, G. N. 2003. Feature economy in sound systems. Phonology 20: 287-333.
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de Lacy, P. 2006. Markedness: Reduction and Preservation in Phonology. Cambridge: CUP. Devonish, H. 1989. Talking in Tones: A Study of Tone in Afro-Europea,J Languages. London: Karia Press. Dresher, E. & Kaye, J. 1990. A computational learning model for metrical phonology. Cognition 34: 137-195. Eckman, F. R.1977. Markedness and the contrastive analysis hypothesis. Language Learning 27:315-330. Ethnologue database, SIL International . Hull, A 1994. Des origines du franr;ais dans le Nouveau Monde. In Les origines du fr&mfais quebecois, R. Mougeon & E. Beniak (eds ), 183-198. Quebec: Presses de l'Universite Laval. Hyltenstam, K. 1987. Markedness, language universals, language typology, and second language acquisition. In First and Second Language Acquisition Processes, C. Pfaff (ed.), 55-81. Cambridge MA: Newbury House. Kellerman, E. 1987. Aspects of Transferability in Seco,Jd Language Acquisition. Nijmegen: Katholieke Universiteit te Nijmegen. Ladefoged, P. & Maddieson, I. 1996. The Sounds of the World~ Languages. Oxford: Blackwell Lefebvre, C. 1998. Creole Genesis a,Jd the Acquisition of Grammar: The Case of Haitian Creole. Cambridge: CUP. Lefebvre, C., White, L. & Jourdan, C. (eds). 2006. L2 Acquisition and Creole Genesis: Dialogues [Language Acquisition and Language Disorders 34]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Maddieson,l. 1984. Patterns of SowJds. Cambridge: CUP. Mather, P.-A. 2000. Cross-linguistic Influence in Second Language Acquisition and in Creole Genesis. PhD dissertation, University of Pittsburgh. Mondesir, J. E. 1992 Dictionary of St. Lucian Creole. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Morin, Y.-C. 1994. Les sources historiques de 1a prononciation du franr;ais du Quebec. In Les origines du franrais quebecois, R. Mougeon & E. Beniak (eds), 199-236. Quebec: Presses de l'Universite Laval. Mougeon, R. & Beniak, E. 1994. Les origines du fr&mfais quebecois. Quebec: Presses de l'Universite Laval Muysken, P. 2001. The origin of Creole languages: The perspective of second language learning. In Creolization and Contact, N. Smith &T. Veenstra (eds),157-173. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. P1ag, I. & Uffmann, C. 2001. Phonological restructuring in Creole: The development of paragoge in Sranan. In Degrees of Restructuring in Creole Languages, I. Neumann-Holzschuh & E. W. Schneider (eds), 309-337. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Rogozinski, J. 1992 A BriefHistory of the Caribbean. New York: Facts on File. Schwartz, B. & Sprouse, R. 1996. L2 cognitive states and the full transfer/full access mode. Second Language Research 12: 40-72 Singler, J. V. 1995. The demographics of Creole genesis in the Caribbean: A comparison of Martinique and Haiti In The Early Stages ofCreolisation [Creole Language Library 13], J. Arends (ed.), 203-232 Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Singler, J. V. 1996. Theories of Creole genesis, sociohistorical considerations, and the evaluation of evidence: The case of Haitian creole and the relexification hypothesis. Journal of Pidgin and Creole La''lgullges 11: 185-231. Sprouse, R. A 2006. Full transfer andrelexification: Second language acquisition and Creole genesis. In L2 Acquisition and Creole Genesis: Dialogues [Language Acquisition and Language Disorders 34], C. Lefebvre, L. White & C. Jourdan (eds), 169-183. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Steele, J. & Brousseau. A.-M. 2006. Parallels in process: Comparing Haitian Creole and French learner phonologies. In L2 Acquisition and Creole Genesis: Dialogues [Language Acquisition and Language Disorders 34], C. Lefebvre, L. White & C. Jourdan (eds), 331-355. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. U.ffmann, C. 2003. Markedness, faithfulness, and creolization: The retention of the unmarked. In The Phonology and Morphology of Creole Languages, I. Plag (ed.), 3-23. Tiibingen: Niemeyer. Valdman, A. 1978. Le creole: statut et origine. Paris: Klincksieck. Valdman, A. 1983. Creolization and second language acquisition. In Pidginization and Creolization as Language Acquisition, R. Andersen (ed.), 212-234. Rowley MA: Newbury House. Valdman, A, Iskrova, I., Pierre, J. & Andre, N. 2007. Haitian Creole-English Bilingual Dictionary. Bloomington IN: Creole Institute, Indiana University.
One substrate, two creoles
Veronique, D. 1994. Naturalistic adult acquisition of French as L2 and French-based Creole genesis compared: Insights into creolization and language change. In Creolization and Language Change, D. Adone & I. P1ag (eds), 297-311. Tiibingen: Niemeyer. White, L. 1989. Universal Grammar and Second Language Acquisition [Language Acquisition and Language Disorders 1]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. White, L 2000. Second language acquisition: From initial to final state. In Second Language Acquisition and Linguistic Theory, J. Archibald (ed.), 130-155. Oxford: Blackwell. Wode, H. 1986. Language transfer: A cognitive, functional and developmental view. In Crosslinguistic Influence in Second Language Acquisition, E. Kellerman & M. Sharwood Smith (eds), 173-186. New York NY: Pergamon Insti lute of English.
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Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles Haitian Creole, Saramaccan and Papiamentu* Claire Lefebvre UQAM and MPI-EVA
The aim of this paper is to investigate a subset of the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles, Haitian Creole, Saramaccan and Papiamentu - all three created around the same time and sharing the same core substrate languages, but having different lexifier/superstrate languages - and to compare these properties with those of verbs in their contrlbutinglanguages, that is, their substrate languages, on one hand. and their superstrate languages, on the other. The three-way comparison undertaken in this paper shows in a dear way that first, the properties of verbs in the three creoles often contrast with those of the corresponding verbs in their respective superstrate languages; second, these properties parallel those of the corresponding verbs in their substrate languages; and third. in spite of the fact that the three creoles under investigation have different lexifier languages, the properties of the substrate verbs manifest themselves in the three creoles. Keywords: properties of verbs, Haitian Creole, Saramaccan, Papiamentu. Fongbe and other West African languages, French, English, Spanish
1.
Introduction
The three creole languages under investigation are Haitian Creole (Haiti), Sararnaccan (Surinam and French Guiana) and Papiamentu (Aruba, Bonaire and Cura~o). These three creoles are also spoken in countries that have welcomed creole speakers of the diaspora, mainly Canada, France,
The research reported on in this paper was financed by SSHRCC. I thank all the participants in this research, who are cited in the paper, for their contribution to the research. I express my gratitude to the munerous informants of all the languages involved for their most important contribution. Thanks to Bettina Migge for discussing the Saramaccan data with me, and to Marta Dijkhott; Silvia Kouwenberg, Philip Maurer and Mirto Lade for fruitful exchanges on the Papiamentu data. Preliminary versions of this paper were presented at the Leipzig Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in May 2008, and at the Koln SPCL conference in August 2009. I thank the participants for most useful comments and questions on my presentations. More particularly, I want to thank Martin Haspelmath, Sylvia Kouwenberg and Mirto Lade. Thanks to four reviewers for their comments on a prefinal draft to this paper, to Andree Belanger for formatting the manuscript and to Lucie Kearns for copy-editing it.
128
Claire Lefebvre
the Netherlands and the United States. According to Grimes (2000), Haitian has 7,800,000 speakers, Saramaccan 26,000 and Papiamentu 329,000. All three Atlantic creoles studied in this paper were created during the second half of the seventeenth century. They all share a core pool of substrate languages: West African language families with a significant input from Kwa and more particularly from Gbe languages (for Haitian Creole, see Singler 1996; for Saramaccan, see Arends 1995; Migge 1998; Smith 1987; for Papiamentu, see Parkvall2000; Postma 1990). However, these three creoles have different superstrate languages. Haitian Creole has French, Saramaccan has English (50% of basic vocabulary), Portuguese (35% of basic vocabulary) and Dutch (10% of basic vocabulary) (Smith 1987), and Papiamentu has Portuguese and Spanish (60%) and Dutch (30%) (Maurer 1986). The fact that these three creoles share a common core of substrate languages while having different superstrate languages constitutes an advantage in trying to identify the contribution of the substrate languages (and eventually of the superstrate languages) to these three creoles. Furthermore, the three creoles display varying degrees of radicalness, as defined by Bickerton (1981), with Saramaccan being closest to the substrate, followed by Haitian (Muysken 1994), followed by Papiamentu (Maurer 1986). This paper shows that. regardless of the superstrate language and regardless of the degree of radicalness of the creole, the substrate features manifest themselves in the same way in the properties of verbs in the three creoles. The West Mrican languages spoken by the creators of the Atlantic creoles were numerous. They include several language families such as Kwa, West Atlantic, Kru, Mande and Gur languages (Singler 1993, 1996). In tum, each of these language families involves several clusters of languages. For example, the Kwa family alone comprises the following language clusters: Lagoon (including Abbey); Akan, which includes three dialect clusters, Twi-Fante, Anyi-Baule and Guang; the Gan-Adangme dialect cluster; the Yoruba or Ede cluster; the Ewe or Gbe cluster; the Nupe languages, which divide up into several dialect clusters; the Bini languages; and the Igbo dialect cluster. In spite of the fact that the large majority of these languages are not mutually intelligible, they share a significant number of typological features (Westerman & Bryan 1970, among others). In fact. these languages have semantic and syntactic properties that are so similar as to lead Koopman (1986: 233) to treat them as a coherent linguistic group which she refers to as West Mrican. Considering the properties of verbs in a sample of Kru and Kwa languages, as well as a Mande and a Gur language, Koopman writes:"( ... ) these languages share a number of characteristics, which are also characteristic of many other West African languages, such as Yoruba for instance. The presence of a number of common properties will allow us to refer to general West African properties." Considering a number of features such as the availability of logop boric pronouns, labial-velar consonants (/gb/), ATR vowel harmony, labial flap consonants and specific word orders, Gtildemann (2007) also concludes that West Mrican languages constitute a significant typological area. Thus, in spite of the fact that the substrate languages of the three creoles under study in this paper were not mutually intelligible, they were typologically quite similar. As for the superstrate languages which were spoken by the colonisers of the Atlantic islands, French and Portuguese/Spanish are Romance, and English and Dutch are Germanic. Romance and Germanic languages are typologically distinct. Regardless, from a typological point of view, neither have much in common with West African languages (for further discussion of this issue, see Lefebvre 1998: 58-65).
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
So, during the formation period of the three Atlantic creoles, speakers of numerous but typologically similar West African languages were faced with colonial languages that were typologically different from their own. It is worth mentioning here that, in contexts where creoles are formed, substrate speakers have reduced access to superstrate languages. Without doubt, this situation creates conditions that favour the manifestation of substrate properties in the creoles. The methodology required by the topic of this paper calls for a three-way comparison between the properties of the creoles' verbs and those of their contributing languages. Due to constraints of space, this paper presents the following limitations. First, the paper will consider only a subset of verbs: BODY-state expressions, WEATHER verbs, object to subject raising verbs, the selectional properties of verbs meaning 'to wanf, the selectional properties of verbs meaning 'to promise~ the selectional properties of verbs meaning 'to ask' or 'to requesf. double object verbs and serial verbs. The properties of verbs in this subset all have syntactic incidences. Furthermore, data were available on these topics for all the languages involved. A comparison of other verbal properties, such as argument structures, case assigning properties, etc. will have to await future research. Second, only the main superstrate languages of all three creoles are being considered: hence, French for Haitian, English for Saramaccan and Spanish for Papiamentu. Third, only one substrate language is being taken into account: Fongbe, a Gbe language of the Kwa family, taken as representative of the substrate languages. This is compatible with Koopman's view above. Furthermore, as per the above cited authors, Fongbe is one of the Gbe languages identified as having had an important input into all three creoles. Finally, Fongbe has been extensively documented (Lefebvre & Brousseau 2002 and references therein) making data on its verbs' properties readily available (for further discussion of this general methodological choice based on Haitian and its source languages, see Lefebvre 1998: 65-70). A fourth limitation consists in the fact that not all the variation in the data can be reported on in this paper. The languages under discussion have a number of native speakers that is large enough so as to manifest the linguistic variation expected of complex linguistic communities ( Labov 1972 ). I will limit the discussion of the properties of verbs to data that are "typical" of each of the languages involved. For example, there is more than one way to express 'It rains' in Papiamentu: Awaseru ta kayendo/kai 'Rain is falling' and Ta yo be 'It is raining'. I retain the first expression because it is the typical weather expression in this language. Likewise, while it is possible to say 'The rain is falling' in English, the expression is not a typical weather expression. 'It is raining' rather is. A second aspect of variation has to do with variation between speakers. Whenever available, variation between speakers will be pointed out in notes. The data presented in this paper come from various sources. Some come from the literature and they are identify as such in the text. Original data have also been collected by myself and members of my research team. In addition to extensive fieldwork on Haitian Creole and Fongbe over the past thirty years, I collected original data on Saramaccan in California with a native speaker from Surinam and in French Guiana in the Saramacca village; I refer to this corpus as Lefebvre (2005). Bally collected original data in the Saramacca village in French Guiana. This corpus is cited as part of Bally, Dionne and Olguin (2006). Olguin (2006) has gathered original data on Papiamentu. Finally, over the year 2008, Kearns collected data in the Saramacca village in French Guiana, a corpus referred to as Kearns (2008a), and on Cura~aoan Papiamentu, a corpus referred to as Kearns (2008b ). The source of each piece of data presented in the paper is identified.
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Claire Lefebvre
The findings presented here add to other published work involving a detailed comparison of the three creoles in question with their contributing languages: for Haitian Creole, see Koopman (1986) and Lefebvre (1998, 2004 and references therein); for Saramaccan, see Aboh (2006a, b), Lefebvre and Loranger (2006, 2008) and Migge (1998, 2003 and references therein); for Papiamentu, see Lefebvre and Therrien (2007a, b and references therein).
BODY-state expressions
2.
In Haitian, BODY-state expressions typically involve the following structure: a body part occurring in subject position, an active verb and an experiencer occurring in object position, as shown in (1). (1)
Dan ap manje m. tooth IMP eat 1so 'I have a toothache.' [Lit.: 'tooth is eating me']
HAITIAN
(= (4c) in Lefebvre 1998:250)
This contrasts with French where BODY-state expressions typically involve an experiencer occurring in subject position, a stative predicate a.voir ma.l (lil 'have pain) and a body parl (2)
ai mal a la tete. I have pain at DEF head 'I have a headache:
J'
FRENCH
In Saramaccan, BODY-state expressions are typically built on the same model as in Haitian, as shown in (3). (3)
Hedi ta n}dn mf. head IMP eat 1SG 'I have a headache.' [Lit.: 'head is eating me']
SARAMACCAN
(Kearns 2008a)
This contrasts with English where BODY-state expressions involve an experiencer occurring in subject position, the verb have followed by a body-part+ ache, as illustrated in (4). (4)
I have a headache.
ENGLISH
In Papiamentu, BODY-state expressions are typically built on the same model as in Haitian and Saramaccan, as shown in (5). (5)
a
Cabes ta
morde mi. 1
PAPIAMENTU
head IMP eat 1SG 'I have a headache: [Lit: 'head is eating me1 b.
Mi cabes ta
1sg head IMP eat 'I have a headache: [Lit: 'my head is eating']
1.
(Mamerpc)
morde.
PAPIAMENTU
Ouliana 1970, cited in Maurer 1988: 354)
Not all speakers consulted accept (Sa). Mirto Lade (pc) has mi tin dolor di cabes.
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
This partially differs from Spanish where the corresponding expression typically involves a bodypart occurring in subject position, the stative verb doTer 'to hurt, and an experiencer, as shown in (6). Note, however, the contrast between the Papiamentu structure involving an active verb and the Spanish structure involving a stative verb. (6)
Me duele la cabeza. 1SG hwt DEP head 'I have a headache: [Lit: 'the head hwts me']
SPANISH
The above data show that in each creole, the structure of typical BODY-state expressions contrasts with that found in their respective superstate languages. They also show that the same structure is used in the three creoles to encode BODY- state expressions. Interestingly enough, this structure is typical of West Mrican languages, as exemplified in (7) based on Fongbe. (7)
Aqu c(o
qucfu
mi
we.
tooth be.at eating 1SG PART 'I have a toothache? [Lit.: 'tooth is eating me']
FoNGBB (= (6) in Lefebvre 1998:251)
WEATHER verbs
3·
Haitian Creole does not have WEATHER verbs. 2 Typically, Haitian expresses various atmospheric phenomena by means of a construction involving a natural element occurring in the subject position of a non WEATHER verb. This is illustrated in (8). (8)
Lapli ap
tonbe.
rain IMP fall 'It is raining.'
HAITIAN
(= (3) in Dumais 1988)
Both Koopman (1986) and Dumais (1988) point out that the above Haitian data contrast with French, where the same concepts are rendered by means of WEATHER verbs that select an expletive subject, as shown in (9). (9)
Il pleut. 3 'It is raining.'
FRENCH
Saramaccan does not have WEATHER verbs either. Typically it expresses atmospheric phenomena in the same way Haitian does, as shown in (10). (10)
2.
'ISuba ttl kai.
SARAMACCAN
rain IMP fall 'It is raining.'
(= (9b) in Byrne 1987:74)
Fe fret [Lit: 'do cold'] 'It is cold' is an exception to the general pattern.
3· Ahhough the expressions La pluie tombe 'Rain is fallin!(. or La chaleur m'accable 'Heat is killing me' are grammatical in French, they are not typically used as a statement about the weather. The same holds for the corresponding English expressions.
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Claire Lefebvre
This contrasts with English where atmospheric phenomena are rendered by WEATHER verbs that select an expletive subject, as shown in (11 ). (11)
It rains. /It is raining.
ENGLISH
In Papiamentu, there are no WEATHER verbs either and atmospheric phenomena are typically rendered as in Haitian, as shown in (12) (see also Henriquez 1954, cited in Maurer 1988: 394). (12)
Awaseru ta kai. rain IMP fall 'It is raining:
PAPIAMI!NTU
(Kearns 2008b)
This contrasts with Spanish where atmospheric phenomena are rendered by WEATHER verbs, that select an expletive subject realised as a suffix on the tensed verb, as shown in (13). (13)
Estd
llaviendo.
SPANISH
AUX.3SG raining
'It is raining:
What about expressions conveying atmospheric phenomena in the substrate languages? Koopman (1986:245) points out that WEATHER verbs selecting an expletive subject do not exist in West African languages. On the basis of examples from Vata and Abe, she shows that West African languages generally express the various atmospheric phenomena in a construction involving a natural element in subject position and a non WEATHER verb. The Fongbe data in (14) illustrate this pattern. (14)
/{ qo jija rain be.at falling 'It is raining:
wt.
FoNGBl!
POC
(Segurola & Rassinoux 2000: 278)
In contrast to their respective superstrate languages, Haitian, Saramaccan and Papiamentu do not have a paradigm of WEATHER verbs. Like their substrate languages, these three creoles typically express atmospheric phenomena by means of a construction involving a natural element occurring in the subject position of a non WEATHER verb.
4·
Object to subject raising verbs
A subset of verbs in a subset of languages allow raising of their object to the subject position, as in An apple remains in the basket(< There remains an apple in the basket). In this section, object to subject raising is discussed for verbs meaning 'to remain/to be left' and for verbs meaning 'to be missing/to lack' in all the languages under comparison in this chapter.
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
4.1
Object to subject raising for verbs meaning 'to remain/to be left'
In Haitian, the argument of the verb rete 'to remain/to be left' (Valdman et al 2007: 636) may appear in two surface positions, as shown in (15). In the (a) sentence, the argument follows the verb and the subject position is optionally filled with the expletive subject li. In the (b) sentence, the argument of the verb rete appears in subject position, and the postverbal position is empty. (15)
a
(LI) rete yon sepan nan pannye an. it remain a snake in basket DEF 'There remains a snake in the basket:
b.
Yon sepa11 rete
11an pannye an.
a
snake be-left-over in basket ~ snake remains in the basket:
HAITIAN
(= (14) in Dumais 1988) HAITIAN
DEF
(= (15) in Dumais 1988)
In French, the argument of the verb rester 'to remain/to be left' (Correard & Grundy (eds) 1994: 71) appears in the position following the verb and the subject position is obligatorily filled by the expletive subject il, as in (16a), which parallels (lSa). The ungrarnmaticality of (16b) shows that, unlike in Haitian, the argument of the verb rester cannot be raised to subject position. (16)
a
11 reste
un serpent dans le panier. snake in DEF basket 'There remains a snake in the basket: *Un serpent reste dans le panier a snake remain in DEF basket
FRENCH
it remain a
b.
(= (30a) in Lefebvre 1998: 263) FRENCH
(= (30b) in Lefebvre 1998: 263)
In Sararnaccan, the argument of the verb fika 'to remain/to be left ovei (Rountree et al. 2000: 36) may appear in two surface positions, as shown in (17). In the (a) sentence, the argument follows the verb and the subject position is obligatorily filled with the expletive subject pronoun a. In sentence (b), the argument appears in the subject position and the postverbal position is empty. (17)
a
A
jika
wan sindeki a
di
manda dandu.
remain a snake LOC DEF basket inside 'There remains a snake in the basket:
SARAMACCAN
3SG
b.
Wan sindeki jika
a
di
manda dandu.
snake remain Loc DEF basket inside ~ snake remains in the basket:
(Kearns 2008a; Lefebvre 2005) SARAMACCAN
a
(Kearns 2008a; Lefebvre 2005)
In English, the argument of remain 'to remain/to be left' (Flexner & Hauck (eds) 1987: 1629) may also occur either after the verb, or in subject position. (18)
a b.
There remains a snake i11 the basket. A snake remains 111 the basket.
ENGLISH ENGLISH
In Papiarnentu, the argument of the verb keda. 'to remain/to be left' (Websteis online Dictionary 2008) may appear in two surface positions, as shown in ( 19 ). In (a), the argument follows the verb and the subject position is phonologically null In (b), the argument appears in the subject position and the postverbal position is empty.
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Claire Lefebvre
(19)
a
- a
keda
ocho alumno de11 klas.
PAPIAMENTU
ASP remain eight student in dass 'There remained eight students in the class? b.
Ocho alumno a
keda
( = (52a) in Olguin 2006: 25; Kearns 2008b)
de11 klas.
PAPIAMENTU
eight student ASP remain in dass 'Eight students were left in the dass:
( = (52b) in Olguin 2006: 25; Kearns 2008b)
Olguin (2006: 28) remarks that the Papiamentu data contrast with the Spanish data involving the verb qu.edar 'to remain/to be left' (Alvarez Garcia et al. 1998: 418). As is shown in (20), the argument of quedar has to remain in the position following the verb. (20)
a
Quedaron ocho alumnos en la
dase.
SPANISH
remain.3PL eight student in DEF class 'There remained eight students in the class?
b.
*Ocho alumnos quedaron
en Ia
(= (53a) in Olguin 2006:25)
dase'
SPANISH (= (53b) in Olguin 2006:25)
eight student remain.3PL in DEF class
All three creoles display the same pattern of argument raising to subject position. While the Saramaccan and English data match in this case. both the Haitian and the Papiamentu data differ from those of their respective superstrate languages. What about the corresponding substrate data? For example, in Fongbe, the verb kpo means 'to remain/to be left' (Segurola 1963: 339). As is the case in the three creoles, the argument of this verb may surface in two positions. In (21a), it occurs after the verb and the subject position is filled with the expletive subject In (21b), it occurs in the subject position of the verb kpO and the post-verbal position is empty.
e.
(21)
a
E kpo
dtbl
q6kp6
qo
xasun :5
mt.
it remain snake one be.at basket DEF in 'There remains a snake in the basket?
b.
Da11 q6kp6 kpo
qo
xa5Un :5
FoNGBE
(= (14) in Dumais 1988)
me.
snake one remain be.at basket DEF in 1\. snake remains in the basket:
FoNGBE
(= (15) in Dumais 1988)
It thus appears that the object to subject raising property of the creole verbs meaning 'to remain/ to be left' follows that of the corresponding verbs in the substrate languages.
Object to subject raising for verbs meaning 'to be missing/to lack'
4.2
The verbs meaning 'to be missing/to lack' in the languages under consideration present a similar pattern. In Haitian, manke 'to be missing/ to lack' (Valdman et al. 2007: 460) takes two arguments:
4· Olguin (2006: 28) remarks that in specific contexts and with a particular emphatic intonation, the sentence in (i) could be grammatical (i)
en la clase
SPANISH
only eight student rernain.3PL in the class 'Only eight students remained in the clasS:
Solamente ocho alumnos quedaron
(= (53c) in Olguin 2006)
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
one referring to the object that is missing and one referring to the object which is deprived of the missing object. Both arguments may follow the verb, in which case the subject position is optionally filled by the expletive li, as shown in (22a). The verb manke also allows for either of its two arguments to appear in subject position. In (22b ), the argument referring to the missing object occupies the subject position and, in (22c), the argument referring to the object which is deprived of the missing object fills this position. (22) a
Li manke set 11an soup la. it lack salt in soup DBP 'There lacks salt in the soup:
b.
Set manke nan soup la. salt lack in soup DBF 'Salt is lacking from the soup: Soup la manke sel. soup DBP lack salt 'The soup lacks salt:
c.
HAITIAN (= (16) in Dumais 1988)
HAITIAN (= (17) in Dumais 1988)
HAITIAN (= (18) in Dumais 1988)
As is the case in Haitian, the French verb manque,- 'to be missing/to lack' (Atkins et al. 1987: 426) also takes two arguments. Both arguments may follow the verb, in which case the subject position is obligatorily filled by the expletive subject il. This is shown in (23a), which parallels Haitian (22a). Unlike the Haitian verb ma.nke, however, French manque,- does not allow the argument referring to the missing object to occur in subject position. The ungrammaticality of (23b) thus contrasts with the grammaticality of Haitian (22b). Finally, French manquerallows the argument referring to the deprived object to occur in subject position, as shown in (23c).This corresponds to Haitian (22c). (23) a
n maJ~que
de sel dansla soupe. of salt in DBP soup 'There lacks salt in the soup: *Du sel manque da,IS la soupe DBP salt lack in the soup La soupe manque de sel. DBP soup lack PART salt 'The soup lacks salt:
FRENCH
it lack
b. c.
(= (16) in Dumais 1988)
FRENCH (= (17) in Dumais 1988)
FRENCH (= (18) in Dumais 1988)
The data in (22) and (23) thus show that the syntactic properties of the Haitian verb manke do not correspond entirely to those of the French verb manquer. As we will see below, however, the syntactic properties of the Haitian verb manquer are like those of the corresponding verb in Fongbe. As is the case in Haitian, Saramaccan offers the three possibilities in (24). (24) a.
b.
A ta makeI satu a di baafu. 3SG ASP lack salt LOC DBP SOUp 'There lacks salt in the soup: Satu ta makeI a di baafu. salt ASP lack LOC DBF SOUp 'Salt is missing from the soup:
SARAMACCAN (Kearns 2008a) SARAMACCAN (Kearns 2008a)
135
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Claire Lefebvre
c.
Di baafu ta makei satu. DEF SOUp ASP lack salt 'The soup lacks salt:
SARAMACCAN
(Kearns 2008a)
These parallel the English data in (25). (25)
a b. c.
There lacks salt In the soup. Salt Is lacking from the soup. The soup lacks salt.
ENGLISH ENGLISH ENGLISH
In Papiamentu, the verb falta 'to be missing/to lack' (Webster's online dictionary 2008) takes two arguments. In (26a), the two arguments occur after the verb and the subject position is empty. This verb also allows for either one of the two arguments to appear in subject position, as is shown in (26b) and (26c). Note that not all speakers accept (26b). (26)
a
b.
c.
folta salu den e si'Jpi. lack salt in DEF soup 'There lacks salt in the soup: Salu folta 11a/de11 slJpi. salt lack in soup 'Salt ls lacking from the soup: E slJpi (ta) folta salu. DEF SOUp IMP lack salt 'The soup lacks salt:
PAPIAMENTU
(Kearns 2008b) PAPIAMENTU
(= (56) in Olguin 2006: 26; Kearns 2008b) PAPIAMENTU
(= (55c) in Olguin 2006: 26; Kearns 2008b)
In Spanish,faltar 'to be missing/to lack' (Jarman et al. (eds) 1998:333) also takes two arguments. In (27a), the two arguments follow the verb and the expletive subject is expressed as a suffix onto the verb. None of the two arguments can occur in subject position, as can be seen from the ungrammaticality of (27b) and (27c). (27) a
b. c.
(Le) falta sal a la sopa. lack.3sG salt to DEF soup 'There lacks salt in the soup:
*sal folta a la sopa salt lack to DEF soup *Ia sopa falta sal DEF soup lack salt
SPANISH
(= (54a) in Olguin 2006:26) SPANISH
(= (54b) in Olguin 2006:26) SPANISH
(= (54c) in Olguin 2006:26)
The ungrarnmaticality of (27b) and c in Spanish contrasts with the grarnmaticality of (26b) and (26c) in Papiarnentu. The following data show that the properties of the creoles' verbs parallel those of the corresponding verbs in the substrate languages. For example, Fongbe has a verb hwe meaning 'to be missing/to lack' (Hoftmann 2003:231). This verb may take two arguments. Both arguments may be realised after the verb, in which case the subject position is filled by the expletive as in (28a). As is the case in the creoles, but not in their superstrate languages (except for English), the verb hwe allows for either of its two arguments to appear in subject position. In (28b ), the argument referring to the missing object occupies the subject position and, in (28c ), the argument referring to the argument deprived of the missing object fills this position.
e,
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
(28)
a
E hwt
zt cfo
11usUm~
it be-missing salt be.at soup 'There lacks salt in the soup:
b.
c.
5
mf..
DBF
in
Zl hwt cfO 11asUnu mf.. salt be-missing be.at soup In 'Salt is lacking from the soup: Nusunu :S hwE. zt. soup DBF be-missing salt 'The soup lacks salt:
FoNGBB
(= (16) In Dumais 1988) FoNGBB
(= (17) In Dumais 1988) FoNGBB
(= (18) in Dumais 1988)
The Haitian, Saramaccan, and Papiamentu data in (22), (24) and (26), respectively, parallel the Fongbe data in (28), regardless of the possibilities offered by their superstrate languages. 5
The selectional properties of verbs meaning 'to want'
5·
The verbs meaning 'to want' display variable properties among the languages of the world. This section discusses the properties of the verbs meaning 'to want' in the languages under comparison. Since these are linked to the selectional properties of these verbs, the section is structured around these. Verbs meaning 'to want' selecting an infinitival CP complement
5.1
Typically, verbs meaning 'to want' select a [-tense] CP complement. In this context, the verbs meaning 'to want' function as control verbs. Control verbs allow a matrix verb argument to be coindexed with the non-expressed subject of the infinitival complement clause of the matrix verb. The non-expressed subject is represented as PRO, a label that stands for an abstract pronoun. For example. in the English sentence ]ohni wants PROi to leave, John controls the phonologically empty subject of the embedded clause represented as PRO. The controller and the controlee are coindexed. In all the languages under comparison, verbs meaning 'to want' may take an infinitival complement whose subject is controlled by the matrix verb subject This is illustrated in (29) to (35), where the control relationship between the two elements is represented by indices. (29) Jan 1 vle PRO; kraze manchln nan. John want destroy car DBF 'John wants to destroy the car: (30)
]ean 1 veut
PRo 1
detruire l'
auto.
HAITIAN
(= (50a) in Lefebvre 1998: 272) FRENCH
John want destroy DBF car 'John wants to destroy the
car:
5· Due to the complexity of the data and to the space required to analyse them, the facts involving subject to subject raising will be discussed in a separate paper. For a preliminary discussion, see Lefebvre (1998: 266-269) and the references therein.
137
138
Claire Lefebvre
(31)
MaUtd; ke PRO; njan df de. Malita want eat DEF DEM 'Malita wants to eat that one:
(32)
John 1 wants PRo1 to leave.
(33)
E;
(34)
ke PRO; bini. 3sG want come 'He wants to come:
(= (74) in Bally, Dionne & Olguin 2006:21) ENGLISH PAPIAMENTU (= (68) in Bally, Dionne & Olguin 2006:21)
El1 quiere PRo1 comer. 3sG want 'He wants to
(35)
SARAMACCAN
SPANISH
eat
eat:
K3ku1 jl6 PRo1 nd gba
m5tO 5. Koku want MO destroy car DEF 'Koku wants to destroy the cal:'
FoNGBE (=(SOc) in Lefebvre 1998:272)
Verbs of the want-class in all seven languages may thus select an infinitival complement whose subject is controlled by the matrix verb subject The above facts are not exceptional. Verbs meaning 'to wan~ however, have other properties that are not shared by all the languages under scrutiny in this paper.
5.2
Verbs meaning 'to want' selecting a tensed CP complement
The Haitian verb vle 'to want' may select a tensed complement introduced by the tensed complementiser pou (Koopman & Letebvre 1982). The embedded subject may be either coreferential with the matrix subject or disjoint in reference from it (Koopman 1986; Sterlin 1988, 1989), as shown in (36). (36)
111 vle
pou
l11J vlni.
he want coMP he come 'He1 wants PRo 1to come: 'He1 wants~ to come:
HAITIAN
(= (18b) in Koopman 1986)
The two interpretations available for Haitian vie are not available for the corresponding French verb vouloir 'to want' (Koopman 1986: 240). The French verb vouloir 'to want' only allows for disjoint reference of the subjects, as shown in (37). (37)
Il1
veut qu'
ilJ
vienne.
3rd want coMP 3rd come # 'He1 wants PRO 1to come: 'He1 wants himj to come:
FRENCH
(= (1Sb) in Koopman 1986)
In Saramaccan, the verb ke 'to want' may select a tensed complement introduced by the tensed complementiserfu (Lefebvre & Loranger 2006 and references therein). The embedded subject may be either coreferential with the matrix subject or disjoint in reference from it, as shown in (38).
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
(38)
fu au1 bi sa baja. 3sg want COMP 3SG TNS MOD dance 'She; wanted PRO; to be able to dance.' 'She; wanted~ to be able to dance.'
SARAMACCAN
A 1 ke
(= (49) in Wijnen&Alleyne 1987:48) (Lefebvre 2005)
In contrast, in English, the verb want typically takes an infinitival complement- e.g., Maty wants to come. It does not take a tensed complement, as is shown in (39). Note, however, the difference in grammaticality judgements between sentences (39a and b). While (a) is clearly ungrammatical, (b) is questionable. As pointed out in Chomsky (1981: 19), such sentences are not idiomatic English "but we may assume this to be an accidental gap reflecting properties that are not part of core grammar:' (39)
a b.
*Ma1)'t wanted that she1 come. ?Mary1 wanted that John1come.
ENGLISH ENGLISH
In Papiamentu, the verb ke 'to want' may select a tensed complement introduced by the tensed complementiser pa (Lefebvre & Therrien 2007b ). For some speakers, the embedded subject may be either coreferential with the matrix subject or disjoint in reference from it, as shown in (40). ( 40)
ke pa e111 bini. 6 3SG Want COMP 3SG come 'He1wants PRo1to come.' 'He1wants heri to come.'
E,
PA PIAMl!NTU
(Kouwenberg pc) (Kearns 2008b)
In Spanish, however, the subject of the tensed complement of the verb querer 'to want' is obligatorily disjoint from that of the matrix clause, as shown in (41). (41)
Bl1 desea que
el1 venga. 3SG Want COMP 3SG come # 'He1wants PRO 1to come.' 'He1 wants himi to come.'
SPANISH
(= (68) in Olguin 2006: 33)
All three creoles allow for the subject of the tensed complement clause of verbs of the ·want-class to be either coreferential with or disjoint in reference from the subject of the main clause. This contrasts with the corresponding verbs in the respective superstrate languages of the creoles, which only allow for a disjoint reference of the two subjects. As shown below, however, the referential properties of subjects of verbs of the want-class in the three creoles parallel those of the corresponding verbs in the substrate languages. For example, in Fongbe, the verb jl6 'to want' may select a tensed complement introduced by the tensed complementiser (Lefebvre & Brousseau 2002: 116-118). As is the case in the three creoles, the embedded subject can either be coreterential with or disjoint in reference from the matrix subject. Koopman (1986:241) provides similar examples from Vata and Akan.
nu
6. The speakers in Kearns (2008b) accept only the second interpretation.
139
140
Claire Lefebvre
(42)
nu
jl6 ei/1 n£ yl. 3rd want coMP 3rd suB leave 'He1 wants PRo 1to leave: 'He1 wants him i to leave:
E;
FoNGBB
(= (49) in Lefebvre 1998:272)
Verbs meaning 'to want' selecting a IP complemenf
5·3
Both Haitian and Fongbe may select an IP complement containing an overt subject This embedded overt subject in (43a) must be referentially disjoint from the matrix subject. As can be seen by the ungrammaticality of (43b ), French does not offer this option. In contrast, Fongbe, like Haitian, does, as shown in (43c). (43)
a
Ll1 vle 11 vini.
b.
'He wants him to come: *II veut lui venir [Lit.: 'He wants him to come.1
c.
E; ba e1 wa. 'He wants him to come:
HAITIAN
(= (5la) in Lefebvre 1998:273)
FRENCH (= (51b) in Lefebvre 1998:273) FONGBB (= (5lc) in Lefebvre 1998:273)
Sterlin (1988, 1989) shows that, in Haitian, complements of verbs of the want-class may, in some cases, appear without the complementiser pou, as in (44b). She points out the difference in the referential properties of the embedded subjects between (44a) and (44b). In (44a), the subject of the embedded clause may be either coreferential with or disjoint in reference from the matrix subject. In (44b ), however, the subject of the embedded complement must be referentially disjoint from the matrix subject (44)
a.
Li1 vle
pou
1111 vini.
HAITIAN
he want coMP he come 'He wants for him to come: b.
Li1 vle
11 vini.
he want he come 'He wants him to come:
HAITIAN
(= (8) inSterlin 1988)
Sterlin argues that, while the embedded clause in (44a) is tensed, the embedded clause in (44b) is tenseless. First, (44a) allows for the expression of the anterior marker te, as shown in (45a). This marker is disallowed in a tenseless clause (Lefebvre 1998: 116). Second, the extraction site of the embedded subject of (44a) requires the resumptive form ki, as is shown in (45b ). Since resumptive ki is inherently [+nominative] and since nominative is the case assigned to the subject of tensed clauses, ki is only allowed in tensed clauses (Lefebvre 1998:193-208 and references therein). (45)
7.
a
Li1 vie pou 1111 te vini. he want coMP he ANT come 'He wants him to have come:
For a discussion on verbs selecting an IP complement, see Wiirmbrand (2001).
HAITIAN
(= (22a) inSterlin 1988)
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
b.
(Se) ki moun1 li vle pou ki; vini? (it-is) which man he want coMP RBS come 'Who does he want to come?'
HAITIAN
(= (19c) inSterlin 1988)
By contrast. the embedded clause in (44)b is not tensed because it does not allow for the expression of the anterior marker te, as shown by the ungrammaticality of (46a), nor for ki in the extraction site of the embedded subject, as shown by the ungrammaticality of (46b ). (46)
a b.
*Li vle 1 te vini [Lit.: 'He wants him to have come.'] *(Se) ki moun Jan vle ki vini? [Lit.: 'Who does John want to come?']
HAITIAN
(= (21a) inSterlin 1988) HAITIAN
(= (19d) inSterlin 1988)
Sterlin (1988) shows that the difference in the referential properties of the embedded subjects in the sentences in (44) follows directly from the difference in finiteness between (44a) and (44b ). In (44a), the embedded clause is introduced by the [+tense] complementiser pou.This complementiser creates, for the embedded clause, a binding domain which is distinct from that of the main clause. Hence, the subject of the embedded clause may be interpreted as being either coreferential with, or referentially disjoint from, the subject of the main clause. By contrast, in (44b), the embedded clause is not introduced by any complementiser, such that the subject of the embedded clause is in the same binding domain as the subject of the main clause. Consequently, it must be referentially disjoint from the matrix subject The difference in the finiteness of the two sentences in (44) raises the question of what case is assigned to the overt subject of the infinitival complement clause in (44b). Sterlin proposes that, because there is no complementiser in this sentence, the embedded subject of the non-finite clause is in the case-assigning domain of the matrix verb. She proposes that the embedded subject in (44b) is assigned accusative case by the matrix verb, just like him is in the English sentence John ·wants him to come under Exceptional Case Marking. This analysis, though theoretically motivated (e.g., Chomsky 1981 ), is not reflected in the morphology of the Haitian pronominal forms, as pronominal forms are not morphologically distinguished on the basis of case in this language. Thus, the two pronominal forms occurring in the subject position of the embedded clause in (44a and b) are phonologically identical. Nevertheless, a look at the substrate data provides support for the above proposal. As is the case of Haitian vle, Fongbe jl6 may select either a tensed complement, as in (47a), or a tenseless complement as in (47b). The Fongbe embedded clause in (47a) has the same properties as the Haitian embedded clause in (44a). First, itis introduced by the tensed complementiser nf (or nu) which corresponds to Haitian pou (Lefebvre 1998: 118-119). Second, the embedded subject pronoun may be either coreterential with or referentially disjoint from the main clause subject. The Fongbe embedded clause in (47b) has the same properties as the Haitian embedded clause in (44b ). It is not introduced by a complementiser. Its subject is thus in the domain of the main verb and, therefore, it must be disjoint in reference from the matrix subject. (47)
a
E1
j/6
nflnu
e11J
nf
yi.
3rd want coMP 3rd sUB leave 'He1 wants that he11i leave:
FONGBR
(= (55a) in Lefebvre 1998: 275)
141
142
Claire Lefebvre
b.
Ei jl6
eJ yi. 3rd want 3rd leave 'He1 wants~ to leave.'
FoNGBB (= (55b) in Lefebvre 1998:275)
Strikingly enough, the embedded subject pronouns in (47a) and b are distinguished for Case. In Fongbe, the third person pronoun bears a low tone when it occurs in a [+objective] context and a high tone elsewhere. In (47b ), the embedded subject pronoun bears a low tone, showing that it is in the objective case. In (47a), however, the pronoun bears a high tone, as does a pronoun in the subject position of any tensed clause. The Fongbe facts can be accounted for straightforwardly along the lines of the analysis proposed by Sterlin for Haitian. In (47a), the embedded subject is assigned nominative case within the tensed embedded clause, whereas in (47b) it is assigned accusative case by the matrix verb. There are several striking facts about the data discussed in this section. First, while French verbs of the wa.n t-class select only one type of infinitival complement (without an overt subject as in (30)), both Haitian and Fongbe select two types of such complements. In the first type, there is no overt subject in the embedded clause, but the embedded clause subject is understood as coreferential with that of the matrix clause (see (29) and (35), respectively). In the second type, in both languages, an overt subject must be referentially disjoint from the matrix subject (see (43a and c), respectively). The selectional properties of the Haitian verb thus follow the properties of the substrate verb. Furthermore, the availability of an overt subject is attributable to the fact that the Haitian and Fongbe verbs can assign accusative case to the subject of the embedded clause, a property that the French verb vou.loir does not have. What about Saramaccan? For some speakers, Saramaccan is like Haitian and Fongbe, as they accept ke with an infinitival complement manifesting an overt subject, as shown in (48). (48) A1 ke henJ go 3SG want 3SG go 'He1 wanted hlmi to go:
SARAMACCAN (Kearns 2008a)
I assume that, as is the case in Haitian and Fongbe, the subject pronoun of the embedded clause is assigned accusative case by the matrix verb. In this respect, Saramaccan is like English, its superstrate language, as shown in (49 ). (49) He1 wanted him 1 to go.
ENGLISH
As for Papiamentu, it appears to be like Haitian, Fongbe and Saramaccan. In this language as well, the verb meaning 'to want' takes an infinitival complement with an overt subject that must be disjoint in reference from the matrix subject This is shown in (50). (50) E ke e bini. 3sG want 3sG come 'He1 wants himj to come.'
PAPIAMBNTU (Kearns 2008b)
This option is not available in Spanish, as shown by the ungrammaticality of (51). (51) *Qulere1 e/1/leJ venir want.3sG 3sG come
SPANISH
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
So, again, all three creoles display the same pattern, which replicates that of their substrate languages, regardless of what their superstrate languages allow.
6.
The selectional properties of verbs meaning 'to promise'
A three-way comparison of the selectional properties of verbs meaning 'to promise' shows that the properties of the creoles verbs differ from those of their superstrate languages, but match those of their substrate languages. In Haitian, the verb pwomet 'to promise' does not select an infinitival complement, as is shown by the ungrammaticality of (52a). However, it does select a tensed complement introduced by the tensed complementiser pou. In this case, the embedded subject is referentially free, as shown in ( 52b) and ( 52c), respectively. (52) a.
*M; pmmet Ja11 PRO; vini
HAITIAN
promise John come [lit.: 'I promised John to come:] M 1 pmmet Ja11 pou m1 vini. I promise John coMP I come 'I promised John that I will come: M pwc}met Jan 1 pou liuJ vini. I promise John coMP 3so come 'I promised John that he will come: I
b.
c.
(= (56a) in Lefebvre 1998:276)
HAITIAN (= (56b) in Lefebvre 1998:276)
HAITIAN (Lefebvre's field notes)
In contrast to the Haitian verb pwomet, the French verb promettre 'to promise' may take an infinitival complement, as shown by the grammaticality of (53a). It may also take a tensed complement and, in this case as well, the embedded subject is referentially free, as shown in (53b) and (53c), respectively. (53) a
/'1 al
promis
a
Jean de
PRo 1 venlr. come
I AUX promise CASE John COMP 'I promised John to come:
b.
C.
/'! al promis a
Jean que jei viendrai. I AUX promise CASE John COMP I come.PUT 'I promised John that I will come: J' ai promis a fean 1 qu' ilVj viendra. 1SG AUX promise CASE John COMP 3SG come.PUT 'I promised John that he will come:
FRENCH (= (57a) in Lefebvre 1998: 276) FRENCH (= (57b) in Lefebvre 1998:276)
FRENCH
So, although the French (see (53)) and Haitian (see (52)) data are similar for (b) and (c), they differ for (a). The Fongbe data in (54) present the same pattern as the Haitian in (52). As shown in (54), the notion 'to promise' in Fongbe is rendered by the verb q3 which basically means 'to say'. This verb does not select an infinitival complement, but rather a tensed complement Here also, the embedded subject is reterentially free, as shown in (54b and c).
143
144
Claire Lefebvre
(54) a
b.
c.
*N1 q:J m4 K:Jku PRo1 nd wd 1sG say to Koku MO come [lit.: 'I promised Koku to come.1 N1 q:J 11u K:Jku q:J n1 11d wd. 1sG say to Koku coMP 1sG MO come 'I promised Koku that I will come? N q:J 11u K:Jku 1 q:J eui 11d wd. 1SG say to Koku COMP 3SG MO come 'I promised Koku that he will come?
FoNGBB (=
(58a) in Lefebvre 1998: 277) FoNGBB
(=
(58b) in Lefebvre 1998: 277) FoNGBB (Lefebvre's field notes)
Thus, while the subcategorisation properties of the Haitian verb meaning 'to promise' in (52) do not entirely match those of the corresponding French verb in (53), they correspond exactly to those of the corresponding Fongbe verb in (54). The Saramaccan data present a pattern that is similar to that of the Haitian and Fongbe data. Afl shown in (SSa), the verb paamisi 'to promise' does not select an infinitival complement. It selects a tensed complement whose subject is referentially free, as shown in (SSb) and (SSe). (55) a
*Mi 1 paamisi di
mii PR0 1 baja 1sG promise DBP child dance [lit.: 'I promised the child to dance.1
b.
Mi 1 paamisi di
c.
1SG promise DBP child COMP 1SG come help 3SG 'I promised the child to help him: (= (4c) in Wijnen&Alleyne 1987:47; Kearns 2008a) Mi paamisi di mii1 tda au1 6 baja. SARAMACCAN 1SG promise DBP child COMP 3SG PUT dance (Kearns 2008a; Lefebvre 2005) 'I promised the child that he will dance:
mii fu
mi1 ko
SARAMACCAN
heepi hen.
(Lefebvre 2005) SARAMACCAN
This contrasts with the selectional properties of the English verb 'to promise' which selects either an infinitival complement, as in (56a), or a tensed complement, as in (56b and c). (56) a b. c.
I 1 promised John PRo 1 to come.
ENGLISH ENGLISH ENGLISH
I1 promised John that I; would come. I promised John 1 that hev1 would come.
In Papiamentu, the verb priminti 'to promise' does not select an infinitival complement, as shown by the ungrammaticality of(S7a). It selects a tensed complement introduced by the tensed complementiser ku (Lefebvre & Therrien 2007a). In this case, the embedded subject is referentially free, as shown in (57b) and (57 c), respectively. (57) a
*Nan 1 a 3PL
b.
Nan 1 a
primlntf Juan PRo1 bini
ASP promise Juan
primlntf Juan ku
PAPIAMI!NTU (= (79a) in Olguin 2006: 36)
come
bini. 8
PAPIAMI!NTU
3PL ASP promise Juan COMP PUT 3PL ASP come 'They promised Juan that they will come?
lo
nan 1 a
(= (79b) in Olguin 2006: 37)
8. Marta Dijkhoffnotes that (57b) is rather marked in Papiamentu.
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
c.
Nan a
prlml11ff Juan1 ku
lo
el11i a
bl11i.
3PL ASP promise Juan COMP FUT 3SG ASP come 'They promised Juan that he will come?
PAPIAMENTU
(= (79c) In Olguin 2006: 37)
In contrast to the Papiamentu verb priminti, the Spanish verb prometer 'to promise' may take an infinitival complement, as shown by the grammaticality of (58a). As in Papiamentu, the Spanish verb may also take a tensed complement whose subject is referentially free, as shown in (58b) and (58c), respectively. (58)
a
(Ellos) 1 Le
prometleron PRo 1 venlr a Juan.
SPANISH
they 3sG promise.3PL come to Juan 'They promised Juan to come:
(= (7Sa) In Olguin 2006: 36)
b.
(Ellos) 1 Le
c.
they 3sG promise.3PL to Juan coMP they come.3PL 'They promised Juan that they would come: (Ellos) Le prometleron a Juan 1 que (el) 11J vendrfa. they 3SG promise.3PL to Juan COMP 3SG come.3SG 'They promised Juan that he would come:
prometleron a Juan que
(ellos) 1 vendrfan.
SPANISH
(= (78b) In Olguin 2006: 36) SPANISH
(= (78c) In Olguin 2006: 36)
So, although the Spanish (see (58)) and the Papiamentu (see (57)) data are similar for (b) and (c), they differ for (a). The Papiamentu data in (57), however, match the Fongbe data in (54). Summarising: while the three creoles' verbs select only a tensed complement, the superstrate corresponding verbs also select an infinitival complement. Once again, the creole verbs manifest the properties of their substrate languages.
7·
The selectional properties of verbs meaning 'to ask' or 'to request'
Let us first consider Haitian, French and Fongbe. While the French verb selects an infinitival complement, the Haitian and Fongbe verbs do not, as shown in (59). (59) a
~Yo
mande Marl1 PRo 1 patl
3PL request Mary b.
c.
1/s
ont demandf
HAITIAN
(= (20b) In Koopman 1986)
leave
a
Marie1 de
3PL AUX request to Mary COMP 'They asked Mary to leave: ~Ye by:S Marl1 PRo 1 yl 3PL request Mary leave
PR01 partir.
FRENCH
leave FONGBE (= (59c) in Lefebvre 1998: 277)
On the other hand, while the French verb does not select a tensed complement with the coreferential properties in (60b ), the Haitian and Fongbe verbs do. (60) a
b.
mande Marl1 pou 11 paN. 3PL request Mary coMP 3sG leave 'They asked Mary to leave: Yo
*fls ont demande
a
3PL
to Mary
AUX
request
Marle1 qu'
HAITIAN
(= (20a) in Koopman 1986) elle 1 parte
COMP 3SG leave
FRENCH
145
146
Claire Lefebvre
c.
Ye by:S Mari 1 cf3 e; 11! yl. 3PL request Mary coMP 3sG MO leave 'They asked Mary to leave.'
FoNGBB (= (60c) in Lefebvre 1998:33)
Thus, the properties ofboth the Haitian and Fongbe verbs differ from those of the French verb in the same way. The Saramaccan, English and Fongbe data manifest the same pattern. While the English verb selects an infinitival complement, the Saramaccan and Fongbe verbs do not, as shown in (61). (61)
a
b. c.
*De takl da Mary1 PRo 1 ~ they ask to Mary leave [Lit.: 'They asked Mary to leave:] They asked Mary1 PROt to leave *Ye by.J Mari1 PRo 1 yl 3PL request Mary leave
SARAMACCAN
(=
(Lefebvre 2005) ENGLISH FONGBB (59c) in Lefebvre 1998: 277)
On the other hand, while the English verb does not select a tensed complement with the coreferential properties in (62b ), the Saramaccan and Fongbe verbs do. (62)
a
Ml taki da hen 1gbee a1 bi go. 9 1SG tell give blm COMP 3SG PA go 'I told him to go:
b. c.
*They asked Mary that she leave Ye by:S Mari 1 cf3 e1 11! yi. 3PL request Mary coMP 3sG MO leave 'They asked Mary to leave.'
SARAMACCAN (= (3j) in Wijnen & Alleyne 1987:46) ENGLISH FoNGBB (= (60c) in Lefebvre 1998:33)
Finally, let us consider the data from Papiamentu, Spanish and Fongbe. While the Spanish verb selects an infinitival complement, as in (63b), the Papiamentu and the Fongbe verbs do not, as shown in (63a) and (63c), respectively. (63)
a
b.
c.
*nan a
suplika nan mama1 pa PROt bini 10
3PL ASP ask 3PL mother for PRO come [Lit.: 'They asked their mother to come.'] Le suplicaron PRo1 venir a su mama1 3sG ask.3PL come to their mother 'They asked their mother to come.' *Ye by.JMari1 PRo 1yi [Lit.: 'They asked Mary to leave.']
PAPIAMI!NTU (= (77a) in Olguin 2006: 35)
SPANISH
(=
(Olgufnpc) FONGBB (59c) in Lefebvre 1998: 277)
Thus again, the properties ofboth the Papiamentu and Fongbe verbs differ from those of the Spanish in the same way. As for the coreferential properties in (64), all three languages are similar.
9· Note that the informants in Kearns (2008a) have a question mark on or reject (62a). 10.
Marta Dijkhoffnotes that this sentence is grammatical for her.
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
(64)
a
Nan pidi Ana1 pa
e1
bini.
PAPIAMENTU
3PL ask Anna COMP 3SG come 'They asked Anna to come:
b.
Ellos le
pide11
a A11a; que
(adapted from (76) In Olguin 2006: 34)
venga1•
they 3SG ask3PL to Anna COMP come. SUB.3SG 'They ask Anna to come: c.
Ye by:S Marii
q:3
el
n{ yi.
3PL ask Mary COMP 3SG MO leave 'They asked Mary to leave:
SPANISH
(= (75a) In Olguin 2006: 34) FoNGBB
(= (60c) in Lefebvre 1998:278)
The selectional properties of the verbs meaning 'to ask/to request' in the three creoles under study are not always the same as those of the corresponding verbs in their respective su perstrate. They are, however, systematically parallel to those of the corresponding verbs in their substrate languages.
Double object verbs
8.
There are two manifestations of the double object verbs. John sent Mary a letter is an example of the Recipient-Theme construction (NP NP), whereas John sent a letter to Mary is an example of the Theme-Locative/Goal construction (NP PP). These two constructions are semantically and syntactically distinct as is extensively argued for in Lefebvre (1994 and references therein).n This section focuses on the Recipient-Theme construction. It is shown that, although all three ereales under study have the Recipient-Theme construction, only one of the su perstrate languages, namely English, displays this construction. The construction is however available in the substrate languages of all three creoles. The sentence in (65) illustrates the Recipient-Theme construction for Haitian. (65)
Mwen bay Pol liv
la.
give Paul book Dl!P 'I gave Paul the book:
HAITIAN
I
(= (19) in Lumsden 1994)
French does not have the Recipient-Theme construction (Kayne 1984; Tremblay 1991), as is shown by the ungrammaticality of the sentence in (66).12
For example, it is argued that the semantics of the NP NP construction may be represented as ~ent CAUSE Recipient BECOME in possession of Theme' as opposed to that of the NP PP constrUL""tion which may be represented as ~ent CAUSE Theme undergo change of location/possession to Goal: Further, it is argued that this semantic difference is reflected in several ways in the syntax, such that the two constructions have different syntactic representations which are not derivable from one another.
11.
12. One of the reviewers remarks that French seems to have the NP NP constrUL""tion when the two objects of the verb appear as clitics as in (i):
(i)
Je le lui ai envoye 1st 3rd 3rd AUX send 'I sent it to him:
FRENCH
147
148
Claire Lefebvre
(66)
*J' ai
donne Paul le
livre
I
give
book
AUX
Paul
DEF
FRENCH
French only has a Theme-Goal construction where the Goal is either assigned Dative Case by or marked for dative case a, depending on one's analysis of a. This is illustrated in (67). (67) J' ai dom11? le livre a Paul. I AUX give DEF book to Paul 'I gave the book to Paul.'
a.,
FRENCH
In Sararnaccan, the Recipient-Theme construction is available, as exarnplified in (68). (68) Mi da Carlo wan fisi. 1sG give Carlo a fish 'I gave Carlo a fish:
SARAMACCAN
(= (188) in Bally, Dionne & Olguin 2006:48)
The Recipient-Theme construction is also available in English, as shown in (69). (69)
I gave John a book.
ENGLISH
In Papiamentu, the Recipient-Theme construction is available, as shown in (70). (70)
B~
duna Michiel un doshi di lusaft. Michael a box of matches 'You gave Michel a box of matches:
PAPIAMENTU
2sG.ASP give
(Maurer 1988: 378)
However, it is not available in Spanish, as shown by the ungrammaticality of (71 ). (71) *Marfa le dio Juan el libro Maria 3so give.3so Juan DEF book
SPANISH
(Olguin 2006:43)
Spanish is like French in having only a Theme-Goal construction, as illustrated in (72 ). (72)
Marfa le
dio
e1
libro a Juan
SPANISH
Maria 3so give.3so DEF book to Juan 'Maria gave the book to Juan:
(Olguin 2006:40)
Where do all three creoles draw the Recipient-Theme construction from? Even though one could claim that Saramaccan draws this property from English, it could not be claimed that Haitian and Papiamentu draw it from their respective superstrate languages, for neither of them have the Recipient-Theme construction. As pointed out in Koopman (1986:235), with the exception of Mande languages, West African languages all display the Recipient-Theme construction, illustrated in (73), based on Fongbe (Lefebvre 1992, 1993, 1994).
In my view, an analysis of (i) as an instantiation of the NP NP construction would be erroneous. Typically, in the NP NP construction, the two NPs both bear accusative case. This is visible in languages with overt case such as Quechua (Lefebvre & Muysken 1988). In French, pronominal ditics are marked for case. Thus, in (i), leis accusative (and refers to the Theme), whereas lui is dative (and refers to the Goal). The sentence in (i) is thus an instantiation of the NP PP construction, illustrated in (67).
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
(73)
K3ku ml Asl'bd :~.we :5. Koku give Asiba house DEF 'Koku gave Asiba the house:
FoNGBE
(= (la, b) in Lefebvre 1994)
I thus conclude that the availability of the Recipient-Theme construction in all three Atlantic creoles has been inherited from their West African substrate languages (Lefebvre 1998: 287-302, 357-360). This is in line with the conclusion in Michaelis and Haspelmath (2003), based on a sample of250 languages, according to which the Recipient-Theme construction is found only in those creoles whose substrate languages have the construction, regardless of whether superstrate languages have it (contra Bruyn et al. 1999 ). 13
9·
Serial verbs
While serial verbs are not available in French, English nor Spanish, they are available in all three creoles under analysis in this paper and in West African languages. I thus assume the availability of this construction to have been inherited from the West Mrican substrate languages of the creoles (Lefebvre 1998: 355-357). Due to space limitations, the details concerning the verbs participating in this construction will have to be discussed elsewhere. For further discussion on the relationship between the serial verb construction in creoles and their substrate languages, see Donohue (this volume), Jacob and Grimes (this volume), Lefebvre (this volume a).
10.
Conclusion
This paper has investigated the properties of a subset of verbs in three Atlantic creoles: Haitian Creole, Saramaccan and Papiamentu, which share a basic core of substrate languages (among which the Gbe languages), but have different superstrate languages: French, English and Spanish, respectively. It was shown that for each class of verbs, the creoles' verbs have the same properties as those of corresponding verbs in the substrate languages, and among themselves, regardless of the properties of the corresponding verbs in the superstrate languages. These findings are summarised in Table 1. Furthermore, it was shown that, in most cases, the properties of the creoles' verbs are different from those of the superstrate verbs from which they draw their label Therefore, my conclusion is that the properties of the West African substrate languages verbs have been carried over into the Atlantic creoles. This conclusion may not be surprising for Haitian Creole and Saramaccan, generally considered as "radical creoles" in the literature, but it is more surprising for Papiamentu, which is not considered a "radical" a creole. The data show that, even in this case, have the substrate properties of verbs made their way into the creole.
13. The question of the range of the double object verbs in the languages under study is addressed in Lefebvre (2009).
149
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Claire Lefebvre
Table 1. Swnmary of the properties of verbs in three creoles and in their source languages H
BODY-state expressions • body part + active verb + experiencer • experiencer + stative verb + body part
Fr
+
Sa +
+
Object to subject raising verbs • verbs meaning 'to remain/to be left' • verbs meaning 'to be missing/to lack' • raising of the argument referring to the missing object • raising of the argwnent deprived of the missing object Verbs meaning 'to want' • selecting a [-T] CP complement • selecting a [+T] CP complement free reference of embedded subject • selecting a IP complement: ECM
+
+
+
+ +
+
+
+
+
+ +
+ +
+ +
+
+
+
+
+
+
+ +
+
+
+
+ +
+
Verbs meaning 'to ask' or 'to request' • selecting a [-T] complement • selecting a [+T] complement and matrix object and embedded subject are coreferential
+
+
Availability of the NP N P construction Availability of serial verbs
+ +
+ +
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+ +
Fongbe
+
+ +
+
Sp
+
+
+
+ +
Verbs meaning 'to promise' • selecting a [-T] complement • selecting a [+T] complement
Pa
+
+
WEATHER verbs/expressions • Wl!ATHER verbs • natural element + non Wl!ATHER verb
E
+ + + +
+
+ +
+
+
+
+
+
+ + +
List of abbreviations ANT ASP AUX
CASI! COMP DI!F DEM FOC FUT
IMP
we MO
marker of anteriority aspect auxiliary case complementiser definite determiner demonstrative determiner focus future imperfective aspect locative mood
MOD OP PA PART PL PRO 3rd RES SG
SUB TNS
modal operator past partitive plural pronominal without a phonemic representation third person resumptive pronoun singular subjunctive marker tense
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
References Aboh, R 0. 2006a. Complementation in Saramaccan and Gungbe: The case of C-type modal particles. Natural languages and Linguistic Theory 24(1): 1-55. Aboh, R 0. 2006b. The role of the syntax-semantic interface in language transfer. In L2 Acquisition and Creole Genesis: Dialogues [Language Acquisition and Language Disorders 34], C. Lefebvre, L White & C. Jourdan (eds), 221-253. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Alvarez Garcia, T. et al 1998. Collins Spanish-English, English-Spanish Dictionary. New York NY: Harper Collins. Arends, J. 1995. Demographic factors in the formation ofSranan. In The EarlyStage.s ofCreolisation [Creole Language Library 13], J. Arends (ed.), 233-277. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Atkins, B. et al1987. Collins-Robert French-English, English-French Dictionary. New York NY: Harper Collins. Bally, A-S., Dionne, C. & Olguin, M. 2006. Les constructions verb ales dans q uatre langues creoles de fAtlantique et leurs langues contributrices. Research report, Universite du Quebec a Montreal Bickerton, D. 1981. Roots of Language. Ann Arbor MI: Karoma. Bruyn, A., Muysken P. & Verrips, M. 1999. Double-object constructions in the creole languages: Development and acquisition. In Language Creation and Language Change, M. A. F. DeGraff (ed.), 329-337. Cambridge MA: The MIT Press. Byrne, F. 1987. Grammatical Relations in a Radical Creole. Verb Complementation in Sarwnaccan [Creole Language Library 3]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Chomsky, N. 1981. Lectures on Gavernment and Binding. Dordrecht: Foris. Correard, M.-H. & Grundy, V. (eds). 1994. The Oxford-Hachette Dictionary: French-English, English-French. New York/Paris: OUP/Hachette. Dumais, D. 1988. INFL en creole hailien. In Etudes syntaxiques, morphologiques et phonologiques, Research report prepared for SSHRCC, FCAR and PAFAC on the project Haiti-Fan, C. Lefebvre (ed.), 242-265. Montreal: Universite du Quebec aMontreal Flexner, S. B. & Hauck, L. C. (eds). 1987. The Random House Dictionary of the English Language. New York NY: Random House. Grimes, B. F. 2000. Ethnologue: Languages of the World. 14th edn. Dallas TX: SIL. Giildemann, T. 2007. The Macro-Sudan belt: Towards identifying a linguistic area in northern sub-Saharan Africa. In A Linguistic Geography ofAfrica, B. Heine & D. Nurse (eds), 151-185. Cambridge: CUP. Henriquez, M. 1954. Laiza porko sushi. Un fantasia basa riba e komedia 'Pygmalioti di G. B. Shaw. Korsou. Hoftmann, H. 2003. Dictionnaire Fon - FratJfais avec esquisse grwnmaticale. Koln: RUdiger Koppe. Jarman, B. G., Russell, R., Styles Carvajal, C. & Horwood, J. (eds). 1998. The Oxford Spanish Dictionary: SpanishEnglish, English-Spanish. Oxford: OUP. Juliana, R 1970. Echa cutmta. Amsterdam. Kayne, R S. 1984. Comrectedness atJd Binary Branching. Dordrecht: Foris. Kearns, L 2008a. Corpus Saramaka. Universite du Quebec a Montreal. Kearns, L 2008b. Corpus Papiamentu. Universite du Quebec a Montreal Koopman, H. 1986. The genesis of Haitian: Implications of a comparison of some features of the syntax of Haitian, French and West Mrican languages. In Substrata Versus Universals in Creole Genesis [Creole Language Library 1], P. Muysk.en & N. Smith (eds), 231-258. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Koopman, H. & Lefebvre, C. 1982. PU: Marqueur de mode, preposition et complementeur. In Syntaxe de l'hailien, C. Lefebvre, H. Magloire-Holly & N. Piou (eds), 64-91. Ann Arbor MI: Karoma. Labov, W. 1972. Sociolinguistic Patterns. Philadelphia PA: The University of Pennsylvania Press. Lefebvre, C. 1992. The double object construction and the DP hypothesis. McGill Working Papers in Linguistics 7: 113-131. Lefebvre, C. 1993. Dominance versus precedence in the double object construction: New facts from Fongbe. Revue canadienne de linguistique 38: 395-425. Lefebvre, C. 1994. New facts from Fongbe on the double object constructions. Lingua 94: 69-163.
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Lefebvre, C. 1998. Creole Genesis and the Acquisition of Grammar: The Case ofHaitian Creole. Cambridge: CUP. Lefebvre, C. 2004. Issues in the Study of Pidgin and Creole Languages. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Lefebvre, C. 2005. Corpus Sararnaka. Universite du Quebec a Montreal Lefebvre, C. 2009. On the prindpled nature of the respective contribution of substrate and superstrate languages to a creole's lexicon. In Roots of Creole Structures: Weighing the Contributions of Substrates and Superstrates [Creole Language Library 33], S. Michaelis (ed.), 197-223. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Lefebvre, C. & Brousseau, A-M. 2002. A GrammarofFongbe [Mouton Grammar Library 25]. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Lefebvre, C. & Loranger, V. 2006. On the properties of Saramaccan .fu: Synchronic and diachronic perspectives. Joumal of Pidgin and Creole Languages 21(2): 275-337. Lefebvre, C. & Loranger, V. 2008. A diachronic and synchronic account of the muhifu.nctionality of Saramaccan tda. Linguistics 46(6): 1167-1228. Lefebvre, C. & Muyslren, P. C. 1988. Mixed Categories: Nominalisations in Quechua [Studies in Natural Language and Linguistic Theory]. Dordrecht: Kluwer. Lefebvre, C. & Therrien, I. 2007a. The various dimensions of Paplamentu ku. Creolica. Lefebvre, C. & Therrien, I. 2007b. On the properties of Papiamentu pa: Synchronic and diachronic perspectives. In Synchronic and Diachronic Perspective on Contact Languages [Creole Language Library 32], M. Huber & V. Velupillai (eds), 215-256. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Lumsden, J. S. 1994. Possession: Substratum semantics in Haitian Creole. Jounud of Pidgin a,ul Creole Languages 9:25-51. Maurer, P. 1986. Le paplamento de Cura.;:ao: Un cas de creolisation atypique? Etudes moles 9(1): 97-113. Maurer, P. 1988. Les modifications temporelles et modales du verbe dans le papiamento de Curafao (Antilles Neerlmulaises). Hamburg: Buske. Michaelis, S. & Haspelmath, M. 2003. Ditransitive constructions: Creole languages in a cross-linguistic perspective. Creolica. Migge, B. M. 1998. Substrate Influence in the Formation of the Surinamese Plantation Creole: A Consideration of Sodohistorical Data and Linguistic Data from Ndyuka and Gbe. PhD dissertation, Ohio State University. Migge, B. M. 2003. Creole Formation as Language Contact: The Case o_fSuriname Creoles [Creole Language Library 25]. Amsterdam: John Benjarnins. Muyslren, P. C. 1994. Sararnaccan and Haitian: A comparison. JounJal of Pidgin and Creole La''lgullges 9: 305-314. Olguin, M. 2006. Analyse comparative des proprietes lexicales de dix classes de verbes en papiamentu et en espagnol MA thesis, Universite du Quebec a Montreal Parkvall, M. 2000. Out ofAfrica: African Influences in Atlantic Creoles. London: Battle bridge. Pinalie, P. 1992. Dictionnaire elementaire franfais-creole. Paris: L'Harmattan. Postma, J. 1990. The Dutch in the AtlmJtic Slave Trade, 1600-1815. Cambridge: CUP. Rountree, C., Asodanoe, J. & Glock. N. 2000. Saramaccan-English Word list (with idioms). Paramaribo: SIL Segurola, R P. B. 1963. Dictionnaire fon-franfais. Cotonou: Procure de fArchidiocese. Segurola, B. & Rassinoux, J. 2000. Dictionnaire Fon-Franfais. Madrid: Sodete des Missions africaines. Singler, J. V. 1993. The African presence in Caribbean French colonies in the seventeenth century: Documentary evidence. Travaux de recherche sur le creole haftien 16-17: 1-236 [UQAM]. Singler, J. V. 1996. Theories of creole genesis, sodohistorical considerations, and the evaluation of evidence: The case of Haitian creole and the relexification hypothesis. Joumal ofPidgin and Creole languages 11: 185-231. Smith, N. 1987. The Genesis of the Creole Languages of Surinam. PhD dissertation, University of Amsterdam. Sterlin, M.-D. 1988. Les di.fferentes caracteristiques de pou en creole hailien. Travaux de recherche sur le creole haftien 3: 1-34 [UQAM]. Sterlin, M.-D. 1989. Les caracteristiques de pou: Un modal en position de complementeur. Le creole haftien. Spedal issue of Ret'l.le quebecoise de linguistique 18(2): 131-147. 'fremblay, M. 1991. Possession and Datives: Binary Branching from Lexicon to Syntax. PhD dissertation, McGill University.
Substrate features in the properties of verbs in three Atlantic creoles
Valdman, A et a1 2007. Haitian Creole-English Bilingual Dictionary. Bloomington IN: Indiana University Creole Institute. Webster~ online Dictionary with Multilingual Thesaurus Translation. 2008. . Westerman, D. & Bryan, M. A 1970. The Languages of West Africa. Folkestone: Dawsons, The Gresham Press (new edn). Wijnen, B. & Alle}'Ile. M. C. 1987. A note on fu in Saramaccan. In Studies in Saramaccan Language Structure [Caribbean Culture Studies 2], M. C. Alleyne (ed.), 41-49. Amsterdam: Universiteit van Amsterdam. Wilrmbrand, S. 200 1. Infinitives: Restructuring and Clause Structure. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
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Assessing the nature and role of substrate influence in the formation and development of the creoles of Suriname* Bettina Migge University College Dublin
Over the last 30 years or so, a significant amount of research has been carried out on the genesis and development of creoles. This research has shown that the creators of creoles' first languages made an important contribution to creole grammars, but that their overall role in any specific case was largely dependent on the social circumstances in which the creole emerged. This suggests that substrate influence always interacted with other sources. However, to date, relatively little research has been done on the various ways in which the creators' first languages influenced specific creole features and how this interaction was determined or constrained by other processes and sources. The aim of this paper is to investigate these issues in more detail in the light of ongoing research on the formation and development of the Tense, Mood and Aspect system of the creoles of Suriname. Keywords: language contact, substrate influence, creoles of Suriname (Ndyuka, Pamaka, Saamaka, Sranan Tongo), Gbe (Ajagbe, Pongbe, Gengbe, Maxigbe, Wacigbe, Xwelagbe, Xwlagbe), Tense, Mood and Aspect system
1.
Introduction
A significant amount of research on substrate influence in creole genesis has been carried out over the past 30 years. This research has mainly focused on the morphosyntactic system and, to a much lesser extent, on the lexicosemantic or even phonological subsystems of grammar. In addition to demonstrating the importance of substrate influence in creole genesis, this research has led to a continuous elaboration of the methodology for establishing substrate influence and to a better understanding of its role. While there exists by now widespread agreement that the This research was carried out within the framework of a 200 1-2004 research grant from the NSF entitled «The influence of West African Languages on the tense/mood/aspect (TMA) systems of two Surinamese creoles" (PI Donald Winford). I would like to hereby gratefully acknowledge the funding of the National Science Foundation (NSF Grant #BCS-0 113826). I would also like to thank informants in Benin, Suriname and French Guiana for generously giving their time.
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creators of creoles' first languages played an important role in the emergence and development of creoles, there is still a fair amount of disagreement about several issues: a. b. c.
the nature of substrate features, the procedures to establish substrate influence and its interaction with other sources and processes.
In this paper, I address these three issues but particularly issues (a) and (c) in light of recent research I have been conducting with Donald Winford and Laurence Goury on the origin and development of the Tense, Mood and Aspect system (TMA) in the creoles of Suriname. The paper argues that substrate influence is not a uniform process, but affected creole grammars in a range of different ways, to different degrees and at different stages in a creole's development. While some creole features appear to be complete or near-complete calques of corresponding substrate features, in the case of others, only the structures from which a particular creole feature must have derived are based on substrate patterns. The differential role and effects of substrate influence are directly linked to its interaction with other factors and processes, namely influence from the superstrate(s) and processes of language-internal change. The paper assumes that substrate influence emerged in creoles because the creators of creoles structurally reinterpreted the kinds of superstrate structures that they encountered on the plantations according to the grammatical patterns and strategies of their Lls (Migge 2003a). The creoles of Suriname is a cover term for seven related languages, all ofwhich descend from the varieties that emerged on the plantations of Suriname between roughly 1680 and 1720 (Migge 2003a). Sranan Tango is associated with the descendants of slaves that remained on the plantations and are currently settled on the coastal strip and in the capital of Suriname, Paramaribo. In modern day Suriname, Sranan Tonga also functions as the national language and lingua franca of its multilingual population. The other six languages- Aluku, Ndyuka, Pamaka, Kwinti, Matawai and Saamaka- are each associated with a Maroon group of the same name. The Maroon societies emerged roughly between the late seventeenth century and the middle of the eighteenth century when slaves defected from the plantations and set up their own societies in the rainforest, out of the reach of the plantation society. The first three languages are highly mutually intelligible and are best characterised as dialects of a common language called Nenge( e) by its speakers and Eastern Maroon Creole (EMC) or Ndyuka by linguists (Goury & Migge 2003; Leglise & Migge 2006). The traditional villages of Eastern Maroons are located in the eastern part of Suriname and the western part of French Guiana along the Maroni River and its tributaries, the Lawa and the Tapanahoni Rivers, in the interior of the rainforest. Today, the majority of Maroon populations live in and around the urban centres of Suriname and French Guiana. However, the traditional villages retain great sociocultural value. Matawai and Saamaka are equally highly mutually intelligible, but there are important lexical differences between the former and the latter group- about 30% of the latter group's lexicon derives from Portuguese - which inhibits full mutual intelligibility with the other four creoles. The main Saamaka villages are located on the banks of the Suriname River and the Matawai villages are on the banks of the Saamaka River in the centre of Suriname. Kwinti shares features with both groups. The traditional villages are on the Coppename River and the Saramaka River in western Suriname. Mutual intelligibility between Sranan Tango and the
Assessing the nature and role of substrate influence in the creoles of Suriname
Maroon creoles is only partial, though the similarities are greater between the EMC and Sranan Tongo than between Saamak.a/Matawai and Sranan Tongo. The creoles of Suriname are generally classified as English-lexified creoles since the majority of their lexical items derive from English. The other two European languages that played a role in their formation, though to a lesser extent, are Portuguese and Dutch. In terms of non-European languages, varieties of Gbe and Kikongo and, to a lesser extent, Akan varieties were the main L1 s spoken by the creators of these creoles (Arends 1995). Local Amerindian languages also contributed vocabulary items related to flora, fauna and food-production processes (Goury 2003). The creoles of Suriname have figured prominently in the research on substrate influence (Migge & Smith 2007 and references therein). The main reason for this is that they are widely considered to be very conservative. They are quite distinct from their European input languages and arose and developed under extreme social conditions. This has greatly promoted the survival of African language patterns. Moreover, unlike many other creoles in the region, they have had very little or no contact with their main lexical source language - English - throughout their history because Suriname changed from an English to a Dutch colony in 1667, only 17 years after its foundation, which led to the slow exodus of English planters. Equally important is the fact that throughout most of the period of their emergence and early development, the ratio of Europeans to African slaves was quite low, effectively leading to the Africans' lack of exposure to the language( s) of the Europeans. The overwhelming majority of the slaves would have only had access to reduced second language and pidgin varieties of the European languages (Migge 2003a). The Maroon populations in particular have until recently lived in relative isolation in the interior of the rainforest and have had relatively little extensive contact with the other population groups and urban mainstream cultures in the region. Being the language of the coastal and urban population, urban varieties of Sranan Tongo have however undergone a significant amount of change due to contact with Suriname's official language, Dutch. Migge and Winford (2009), for instance, show that the difference between the Maroon creoles and Sranan Tongo in the expression of notions of possibility are related to influence from Dutch. A few other examples are discussed in de Kleine (2002).1 Most of the research on substrate influence on the creoles of Suriname has tocused on the Eastern Maroon Creoles (EMC), Saamaka and Sranan Tango and on morphosyntactic properties. There are studies on the role of substrate influence in the emergence of copula elements (McWhorter 1995, 1997; Migge 2002, 2003a), property items (Migge 2000), serial verb constructions (McWhorter 1992; Migge 1998a, b, 2003a), the Tense, Mood and Aspect system (Migge 2006; Migge & Goury 2008; Migge & Winford 2009; Winford & Migge 2007), focus constructions (Smith 1996), question words (Smith 2001), noun derivation (Migge 2003a), predicate reduplication (Migge 2003b), locational phrases (Bruyn 1995, 1996; Migge 1999). There is also some work on lexical similarities between creoles and West African languages (Huttar 1981, 1985, 1986). To date, few studies have systematically explored the structure and origin of the phonological system (but see Smith & Haboo 2007; Uffmann 2008), and particularly semantic (but see Essegbey 2005; Essegbey & Ameka 2007; Huttar, Essegbey & Ameka 2007) and
The differences between the Bakra and Nengre varieties of Sranan posited by Schwnann (1778 in Schuchardt 1914) and Riemer (1779 in Arends & Perl1995) may be largely due to differential Dutch influence.
1.
1S7
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pragmatic notions in creoles. Overall these studies demonstrate that substrate influence played a vital role in the emergence of a great number of grammatical features in the creoles of Suriname. The first languages of the slaves appear to have influenced Maroon creoles most strongly. This research also points to the importance of other sources though. Superstrate influences and language-internal change, for instance. also contributed in many ways to the emergence and development of the properties of modem creoles. This paper is organised as follows: Section 2 briefly presents the research methodology for the project; Section 3 assesses the overall impact of substrate influence in the TMA system; Section 4 discusses the different ways in which the main substrate sources influenced the emergence of different TMA categories in the creoles of Suriname; Section 5 assesses the relationship between substrate influence and other inputs and processes; and Section 6 summarises the findings and discusses their implications for creole genesis theories.
2.
Methodology and data for the study
The research on the origin of the TMA system in the creoles of Suriname used the methodology for investigating contact-induced language change presented in Thomason (199 3: 2871f. ). She suggests that any credible claim for substrate influence has to be based on the following evidence: 1.
2.
Evidence that the source language( s) for the feature was present and played a significant role in the setting at the time of its proposed emergence, based on a careful analysis of the contact setting. Evidence that the feature emerged due to influence from the proposed source language, based on a detailed comparison of the feature in the creole, the proposed source language and possibly other languages that played a role in the setting.
In terms of the research process, this meant that we first constructed a scenario of creole formation in Suriname based on the available sociohistorical evidence (Migge 1998a, b, 2002, 2003a). We focused on demographic and ethnolinguistic data on West Africa and Suriname (Arends 1995) and on various sources dealing with the social context in Suriname- e.g., interactional patterns, codes of interaction, work distribution). These data suggest that the plantation varieties emerged roughly between 1680 and 1720. During this period, speakers of varieties of Gbe and, to a lesser extent, speakers of Kikongo made up the overwhelming majority of the slaves in Suriname. In the pre-1680 period, the Europeans were mainly speakers of English and a subgroup were also speakers of Portuguese. In the later period, they were speakers of various languages. Dutch hardly played an important role in seventeenth and eighteenth century Suriname (de Kleine 2002). It was only in the eighteenth century that Dutch started to be more widely diffused in the colony. The main agents in this process were descendants of mixed Afro-Surinamese-European unions who were quite wealthy, welleducated and occupied important sodal positions. They adopted Dutch as their main language to distinguish themselves from the slave population (de Kleine 2002:211). Dutch was rapidly gaining in importance during the nineteenth century. According to de Kleine (2002), well-situated families increasingly sent their children to Holland tor their education and a growing number of
Assessing the nature and role of substrate influence in the creoles of Suriname
non-white intellectuals and members of the middle class adopted Dutch as their main means of expression, teaching it as a first language to their children. The vast majority of Afro-Surinamese, however, had little opportunity to learn Dutch until1876 when it was made the obligatory medium of instruction in Surinamese schools. The Maroons and Amerindian populations residing in the interior of Suriname have generally had little or no access to Dutch. L2 and pidgin varieties of English were most likely used by both early planters and the slaves who had arrived prior to 1680. With regards to the social matrix, the data suggest that the overwhelming majority of the slaves came directly from Africa. Due to their numerical strength and patterns of segregation, these newcomers had little substantial contact with the small number of Europeans and existing slaves. While the early slaves and the Europeans shared common social and linguistic conventions established during the previous period, the new slaves had to newly forge such conventions. The inputs were their native social and linguistic conventions and those they encountered on the plantations. Access to the latter was quite restricted though, due to absence of dose contact with the other two social groups, i.e. Europeans and existing slaves (Migge 2003a). According to Thomason ( 199 3), the linguistic data should ideally come from the time period when the contact occurred. Since there are no historical documents available, this study is based on modern data and, to a lesser extent, on historical data from the periods immediately following. The modern data come from recordings of natural interactions, formal elicitations using an adapted version of Dahl's (1985) questionnaire for comparative research on TMA (Migge 2006) and from discussions of constructions with informants and native Gbe linguists. This paper focuses on data from the Maroon creoles, Ndyuka (ND) and Pamaka (PM), but also considers relevant data from Saamaka (SM) and Sranan Tango (SN). With respect to the varieties of Gbe, the study investigated data from representatives of the five main subclusters (Capo 1988). The varieties were Ajagbe, Fongbe, Gengbe, Gungbe, Wacigbe, Xwelagbe, Xwlagbe, Maxigbe. The analytical framework is modelled after typological studies ofTMA systems such as Dahl (1985) and Bybee et al. (1994). The analysis focuses on establishing the semantic domains- e.g., Necessity- and the various strategies- e.g., grammatical markers, modal verbs, adverbs, etc.that are employed to express the meanings that are part of such a domain. In relation to each strategy, the study aimed to determine its dominant or prototypical uses and the contextually determined interpretations that arise from more peripheral uses.
3·
Impact of substrate influence on TMA in the creoles of Suriname
Substrate influence in the context of creole formation is defined here as a process whereby the creators of a creole fully or partially functionally reinterpreted constructions they encountered from (Ll, L2, pidgin, etc.) varieties of the European superstrate language(s) in the setting- and the elements that make them up- according to the principles and patterns of their first language(s) (Migge 2003a). In historical linguistic and typological/descriptive approaches to language contact, it is commonly believed that a claim for substrate influence has to necessarily involve showing that a given contact phenomenon cannot have come about due to language-internal change or derive from a
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secondary feature or a less widely distributed feature associated with regional varieties. In relation to the first claim, this essentially means that, in these traditional approaches, valid instances of contact-induced language change are only those changes that contradict so-called cross-linguistically regular changes and tendencies. However, Thomason & Kaufman argue that
though adopting this criterion is useful as a methodological strategy for convincing sceptics, it is not promising as a general theoretical approach to the analysis of linguistic change, because [... ] there is every reason to suppose that external causation is responsible for common and natural changes as well as for uncommon changes. (Thomason & Kaufman 1988: 59-60) With regard to the second claim, it has long been shown in the literature on L2 acquisition and in research on creole genesis (e.g., Valdman 1977) that the retention of substrate features is much dependent on or enhanced by the existence of semantically somewhat similar structures in the superstrate with which the substrate constructions can be identified. Such constructions maximally lend themselves for reinterpretation according to substrate patterns and principles. This then suggests that substrate features are generally not out of the ordinary linguistic features and, in a good number of cases, emerged due to multiple causes. The findings from current research on the TMA system in the creoles of Suriname (Migge 2006; Migge & Goury 2008; Migge & Winford 2009; Winford & Migge 2007) show that the overall structure of the system closely resembles that of Gbe varieties. However, this does not mean that the Surinamese system is a direct copy of the Gbe system. In fact, there are interesting differences that appear to be due to the interaction of substrate influence with other sources and processes, such as superstrate influence and language-internal change. I discuss this in more detail in Section 5.
Table 1. Tense and Aspect in the creoles of Suriname (Winford & Mlgge 2007: 78) Forms
Category
Meanings
hi
Relative Past
0
0
Future
Past events 'distanced' from Speaker background past or 'framepast' especially in narratives. Past in relation to another reference point in the past. Later time reference; Intention or prediction. Predictability.
e
e
e
e
e
ta
Perfective Imperfective
kaba
kaa
Completive2
ND
SM..
Tense ben be
be
0
0
e e
SN
PM
Aspect
k(a)ba kaba
States or events seen as unanalysed wholes. Situations (both states and occurrences) seen as 'unbounded' and ongoing at reference time, which encompasses situations that are repeated, habitual, in progress or continuous. Situations seen as completed. Conveys the meaning 'already: Expresses the sense of a 'perlect of result' with non-stati ves, and the sense of a state beginning in the past and continuing to the reference point with statives.
*Note: SN: Sranan Tongo, PM: Pamak:a, ND: Ndyuka. SM: Saamak:a.
2.
This category might also be labelled "Perfect': It is a subtype of the category PERFECT (Dahl1985).
Assessing the nature and role of substrate influence in the creoles of Suriname
Tables 1 to 4 show that there are important similarities between Gbe and the Surinamese creoles in the area of Aspect and Modality. The similarities are less strong in the case of Tense. With respect to Perfective Aspect, we see that both the Gbe languages and the Surinamese creoles employ the unmarked verb to express states or events seen as unanalysed wholes. They also express Completive Aspect; the postverbal strategy for expressing Completive Aspect used in the Surinamese creoles appears to closely resemble the strategy used in western Gbe varieties, Pattern 2. In relation to Progressive Aspect, both the Gbe languages and the Surinamese creoles employ the verb to be-at also found in existential contexts. Differences are found with respect to Table 2. Tense and Aspect categories in Gbe languages (Winford & Migge 2007: 80) Category
Form
Meanings/uses
dV ldV ndV
Later time reference.
fJ
States or events seen as unanalysed wholes. Simple past with non-statives, present with statives (when reference point is Speaker).
Tense
Future
Aspect
Perfective
Completive Pattern (1)
Pattern (2)
kO V (Maxi-, Fongbe) m3 V (Xwelagbe) n:5 V (Xwlagbe) VP + v3 (Aja-, Gen-, Wacigbe)
Progressive Pattern (1)
Pattern (2)
(ll) VV (.ld) (Ajagbe) (/a) VV!) {Wacigbe) (le) VV nu (Xwlagbe) (Mt)) vv we (Maxigbe) le XP V (.ld) (Ajagbe) laXPV!) (Wacigbe) le XP V nu (Xwlagbe) VV wtl (Maxigbe) n:5 V (Xwelagbe) lee (Gengbe)
Situations seen as completed. Conveys the meaning 'already'. Expresses the sense of a 'perfect of resuh' with non-statives, and the sense of a state beginning in the past and continuing to reference point with statives. Events in progress. In cases where the Progressive element immediately precedes the verb, e.g., intransitive verbs or transitive verbs taking a Pronominal object (SVO order).
In other transitive sentences.
o Pattern (3)
Habitual Pattern (1) Pattern (2) Pattern (3)
Customary or habitual situations. V nd (Gen-, Wacigbe) V n::i (Ajagbe) n:5 V (Maxi-,Xwlagbe) High tone on V (Xwelagbe)
Prospective Pattern (1) Pattern (2) Pattern (3)
With intransitive and transitive verbs.
Events about to occur.
o(XP) na V (Maxi-, Fongbe) le (XP) v ge/gbe (Ewe. Gengbe) Ia (XP) jd V (Wacigbe)
161
162
Bettina Migge
Table 3. Modality in the creoles of Suriname (based on Migge 2006: 341f. and Winford 2000: 70ff.) Forms SN
PM
ND
LEARNED
sabifu
Sabi
Category
Meanings
SM
ABILITY sabi sd
Ability or skills acquired through learning or training.
POTENTIAL sa sa man poy
sa sa
Positive Negative
Physical ability (Deontic) ability subject to physical or natural law.
sa man
sa poy
sa sa
Positive Negative
sa man
sa poy
sa sa
Positive Negative
Deontic (root) possibility ability/possibility subject to moral or social law, involving situations under the agent's control Permission Deontic possibility imposed by authority (social, legal, etc.).
sa sa kande
Positive Negative
manlkan
kan
mag!kan
kande
sa sa man/sa poy/sa kande kande
NECI!SSITY musu/sa mtt mu musu musu musu rmtsu fu mustt fit sa musu musu
wani
DI!SIRI! wani wani
musu musu musu tt musu
ke
(stronger)
(strong)
Epistemic possibility Possible situations or situations to the certainty of which the speaker is not committed. Deontic necessity or obligation "Existence of external, social conditions compelling an agent to complete the predicate action" Bybee et a1 (1994: 177). Epistemic necessity Inference based on sound evidence (prior knowledge, experience, etc.). Expresses a high degree of certainty on the speaker's part about some situation. Expresses speaker's desire and need.
Nl!l!D a(bi) fanoudtt (fit}*
Expresses speaker's need.
fmwttdu * Note: This construction is found in all the creoles in question.
Habitual Aspect and Prospective Aspect They are separate categories in Gbe languages while they are subsumed in part under the Imperfective category in the creoles. There are also close similarities between the two language groups in the area of Modality. In relation to Potential Modality, we find the following similarities. First, an ability or a skill acquired through specific training is expressed using a verb meaning 'to know'. Second, with the possible exception of Sranan Tonga (but see Migge & Winford 2009), the notions of physical ability, root possibility, permission and epistemic possibility are expressed by the same element( s) in the two language groups. Moreover, the different notions subsumed under Necessity- such as obligations, admonition, unfulfilled obligation, inferred certainty, probability- are all expressed by the same element in both the Gbe languages and in the Surinamese creoles. Finally, Desire and Need are also conveyed by different elements with similar meanings in the two language groups. The
Assessing the nature and role of substrate influence in the creoles of Suriname
Table 4. Modality in varieties of Gbe (Migge 2006: 35) Forms
A*
G
w
Category
Meanings
physical ability
Xwl
M
ny:J
np
ten
sixu3
Pos
kpeji
sixu
Neg
hen fe1)(U)
ten
sixu
Pos
kpego
kpeji
sixu
Neg
ten
si.xu
Pos
kpeji
sixu
Neg
ten
sixu
Xwe
LEARNED ABILITY
nya
nya
nya
ttr}tt
teT)
WJ
Sen1)tt
te1)
ti1)
np POTENTIAL
hen te'}(tt) kpego S1t
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