From: "Andreas Johansson" <andjo@...>
Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2004 10:31 PM
Subject: Re: Cases, again
Quoting Robert "Trebor" Jung (17th March 2004, 09:19pm)
> Trebor's example of a one-adposition language nonewithstanding, a
language
> simply has to be able to distinguish between things like "he sat in
the house"
> and "he sat outside the house". If not by adpositions and/or case,
you'll have
> to come up with something pretty clever.
>
> Possible solution for a one-adposition language:
>
> he.NOM sat ADP interior.ACC house.GEN
>
> he.NOM sat ADP area-immediately-outside.ACC house.GEN
>
> The risk that the whole ADP-NOUN.ACC sequence will collapse into a
single
> specific adposition hardly needs pointing out.
>
> Let's be a bit more creative:
>
> he.NOM in-sat ADP house.ACC
>
> he.NOM outside-sat ADP house.ACC
>
> That is, verbal prefixes clarify. You wouldn't need any more prefixes
than
> English has prepositions - indeed, you could probably get away with
> considerably fewer if some ambiguity is tolerated. You can also
combine this
> with German-style indication of directionality by choice of case for
the noun
> of the prepositional phrase, allowing you to get by without sep'rate
prefixes
> for "in", "into" and "out of".
But nevertheless, how does Tagalog manages to do with only one
prepositional something, "sa" that is (IIUnderstoodThatC)? It's still
not clear to me after reading www.seasite.niu.edu/Tagalog/Grammar
Activities/Grammar 1/Markers/Sa&Kay.htm. Seemingly, "sa" can mean any
preposition. Or depends it on the case as well? Well, Andreas' solution
is at least cool!
-- Carsten
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