Imperfective constructions: Progressive and prospective in Ewe and Dangme
Year: 2008
Type: book-chapter
Abstract: This paper investigates an important feature common to Ewe and Dangme, but not shared with such Kwa languages as Akan or Ga, namely a periphrastic construction commonly having “progressive” and/or “prospective” meaning, in which the finite verb is selected from a very small set and takes a complement consisting of the event-naming verb that is preceded by its Object and followed either by a construction-specific suffix (Dangme) or one of two characteristic morphemes (Ewe). The finite verb, the post-event-verb morpheme, or both, generally have spatial features. The paper begins with a basic comparative description of the simple verb in the two languages, before proceeding to a detailed description of the progressive and prospective constructions in Ewe, followed by a comparably detailed description of the imperfective construction in Dangme. It is concluded that in both languages we have to do with an elaboration of the construction type V + nominalized NP Complement, which exists throughout the lower Volta Basin in many forms, if not always this one. Despite surface similarities the two languages exhibit important differences in both the semantic range of the construction and its syntax, such that it is likely that in this respect each language has developed independently of the other.
Authors: Felix K. Ameka, Mary Esther Kropp Dakubu
Institution: Leiden University
Language: English
Subfield: Language and Linguistics
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W834677534