Re: New Language!
| From: | Doug Dee <amateurlinguist@...> |
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| Date: | Tuesday, September 14, 2004, 22:47 |
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In a message dated 9/14/2004 5:45:51 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
chris.maths_student@NTLWORLD.COM writes:
>The main messiness is the lack of marking of proper nouns, which are
>sandwiched between accusative systems (so the lack of marking doesn't
>occur where the divide does) and also the fact that some 3rd person
>pronouns are ergative even though things further down the scale from
>them are accusative.
Deviations from the hierarchy are not unheard of. RMW Dixon's book
_Australian Languages_ mentions the system in Diyari:
(A) An abs/erg system for male personal names and singular common nouns
(B) A nom/acc system for nonsingular 1st & 2nd person pronouns
(C) A tripartite system for female proper names, nonsingular common nouns,
and other pronouns.
Doug