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N. STOYNOVA COMPETITION OF NON-SPECIALIZED INDICATORS IN THE PROSPECTIVE AREA: DATA OF THE NANAY LANGUAGE // Tomsk Journal of Linguistics and Anthropology. 2019. Issue 2 (24). P. 74-84

The paper deals with uses of different productive verbal derivational markers (desiderative, inchoative, debitive, associated motion) in the prospective function (such meanings as ‘be going’, ‘be about’). Field data of Nanai (Tungusic) is used. The research is intended to illustrate some more general mechanisms while some semantic domain which belongs to the periphery of grammar (a prospec tive one here) is covered by a range of secondary uses of competing markers from other semantic domains (modal / aspectual derivational markers here). Such a situation presuppose a high degree of detalization of the semantic domain which is less typical for dedicated markers. E.g. in Nanai language such distinctions within the prospective domain as avertive / proximative / neutral prospective and intentional / providential prospective are attested.

Keywords: Tungusic languages, Nanai, verbal derivation, grammaticalization, prospective, desiderative, debitive, inchoative, associated motion

Ablatives in Nanaic Languages // Tomsk Journal of Linguistics and Anthropology. 2023. Issue 3 (41). P. 71-89

The article deals with the markers expressing ablative semantics in Nanaic varieties, including several Nanai dialects (Naikhin, Dzhuen, Gorin, and Bikin), Ulcha, Uilta, and Kili (Kur-Urmi). The study compiled a list of contexts with ablative and closely related semantics and analyzed which grammatical element is used in each context in each language variety. The study draws on textual data from a variety of sources, including our own field recordings, archival texts, and published texts. The final dataset shows several clusters of language varieties, meanings, and ablative markers. There are three clusters of Nanaic varieties based on the attested ablative cases: Naikhin and Dzhuen Nanai, Gorin Nanai and Uilta, and a random cluster of Bikin Nanai and Ulcha. The Kili variant stands out from these. The observed ablative markers cluster according to the meaning groups they cover: proper ablative markers, the ablative/instrumental marker -ǯi, prolative case markers -ki and -kki, which cover a near-prolative subset of the ablative domain, and a broader locative/prolative marker -la, which combines nearprolative meanings and sources of information or transmission. The Nanaic varieties show three stable polysemy patterns: ablative core meanings, near-prolative meanings, and physical and metaphorical transfer. Finally, there are two clusters based on the distribution of markers within the ablative domain: The first cluster includes Naikhin Nanai, Dzhuen Nanai, Kili, and possibly Bikin Nanai, while the second cluster includes Uilta and Ulcha. Gorin Nanai stands apart.

Keywords: Tungusic languages, Nanaic languages, Nanai, Ulcha, Uilta, Kili, ablative