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Re: OT: Punctuation

From:Nik Taylor <fortytwo@...>
Date:Monday, December 6, 1999, 3:15
Barry Garcia wrote:
> Both the Saalangal and Daga Bundogs have question particles that can be > used to mark questions, but, nothing for exclamation. Context would sho=
w
> commands, and excitement, but it's not shown through punctuation.
Similar to Watakass=ED. Yes/no questions are indicated by the clitic _bu_, usually attached to the verb, but it can be attached to any other word to "emphasize" it, for instance (using verbatim translations) "Lives-QUEST house-LOC green-LOC" would be the neutral "Does he live in the green house?" while "Lives house-LOC green-LOC-QUEST" would mean "Does he live in the GREEN house?" (i.e., as opposed to another color) And wh-questions are, of course, indicated by the appropriate word (all charactarized by the precense of the ending -baa). So, there's no need for a question mark. --=20 "Old linguists never die - they just come to voiceless stops." - anonymous http://members.tripod.com/~Nik_Taylor/X-Files http://members.tripod.com/~Nik_Taylor/Books.html ICQ: 18656696 AIM Screen-Name: NikTailor