Re: "Abilitative" aspect?

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On Thursday 24 October 2002 15:59, Jan van Steenbergen wrote:
>  --- Ian Maxwell wrote:
> > Specicifically, I'm conceiving of an aspect that marks having the
> > ability to do something. So, it would turn "to run" into "to be able to
> > run". There could also be a seperate aspect for being allowed to do
> > something, so that it would become "to be allowed to run". And, while
> > we're at it, there could be one for willingness ("to be willing to run").
> >
> > Does anyone know of an existing language (conlangs included) that marks
> > any of these? If not, I nominate the terms abilitative, permissive,
> > and... um, I don't know. Any suggestions for the third?
>
> Well, first of all, I think you should call it "mood" instead of "aspect",
> since the latter term is already in use for something with a completely
> different meaning.
>
George van Driem, in his Grammar of Dumi, calls concepts that are very
close to this 'aspectivizers' He defines this ('A Grammar of Dumi, p. 197)
as follows:

   Aspectivizers are verbs which express an _Aktionsart_ and, as suc, can
   add a semantic dimension (.e.g colligative, allative, pnent, dimittive,
   etc.) to the meaning of the verb they modify. [...] Aspectivizers form
   compounds with the stem of the verb they mdify.

There is in Dumi, for instance, a frolicsome aspectivizer, glossed as HOP:

   Tsem-si-li-k-t-a
   play-REF-HOP-1p-NPT-e
   We'll prance about playing.

(p. 209)

- --
Boudewijn Rempt | http://www.valdyas.org
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