The serial verb construction: Comparative concept and cross-linguistic generalizations (original) (raw)
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Serial verb constructions in Amazonian languages
Serial verb constructions are a sequence of verbs which act together as a single predicate without any over marker of coordination, subordination or syntactic dependency of any sort. Serial verb constructions can be symmetrical, consisting of two or more verbs each chosen from a semantically and grammatically unrestricted class. Or they may be asymmetrical, and include a verb from a grammatically or semantically restricted class. Serial verbs can form one or more than one grammatical word. We focus on the distribution of asymmetrical and symmetrical serial verb constructions of single-word and of multi-word types in the languages of Lowland Amazonia, and discuss their functions, meanings, and origins.
2007
This paper describes verb root serialization as a highly productive component of the verbal semantics and morphology of Kotiria (Wanano) and Waikhana (Piratapuyo), * two closely related languages in the Eastern Tukanoan (ET) family spoken in the Vaupes river basin. It begins with a brief overview of the previous analyses of serial verb constructions (SVCs) in ET languages and their defining syntactic and phonological features. It then describes the semantics of the most common serialization patterns occurring in these two languages and proposes a general typology that includes 'causeeffect' serializations ( §2); serializations that function to express adverbial ( §3), aspectual ( §4), and modal ( §5) information in SVCs with activity verbs as heads; and serializations coding intensification and change of state in SVCs with stative verbs as heads ( §6). §7 demonstrates how SVCs contrast with other types of multiple-verb constructions, such as verb sequences and constructions involving subordination.
The rise and fall of Serial Verb Constructions: Preamble
Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics https://spilplus.journals.ac.za/pub, 2022
This is a brief introduction to the special issue of Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics Plus. We present the concept of serial verb constructions (SVCs) conventionally understood as monoclausal sequences of verbs without any overt marker of coordination, subordination, or syntactic dependency. We then focus on the mechanisms at work in the evolution of serial verb constructions, and the investigations of their origin and demise. We introduce the prototype approach to the category of SVCs as the basis of the study of verb serialization throughout the volume and discuss the research strategies applicable to the development of serial verbs in individual languages. The concluding section offers an overview of the volume.
Serial Verb Constructions Revisited: A Case Study from Koro
In this dissertation a methodology for identifying and analyzing serial verb constructions (SVCs) is developed, and its application is exemplified through an analysis of SVCs in Koro, an Oceanic language of Papua New Guinea. SVCs involve two main verbs that form a single predicate and share at least one of their arguments. In addition, they have shared values for tense, aspect, and mood, and they denote a single event. The unique syntactic and semantic properties of SVCs present a number of theoretical challenges, and thus they have invited great interest from syntacticians and typologists alike. But characterizing the nature of SVCs and making generalizations about the typology of serializing languages has proven difficult. There is still debate about both the surface properties of SVCs and their underlying syntactic structure. The current work addresses some of these issues by approaching serialization from two angles: the typological and the language-specific. On the typological front, it refines the definition of `SVC' and develops a principled set of cross-linguistically applicable diagnostics. From the existing set of surface properties, four core characteristics are distilled: main verbhood, monoclausality, single eventhood, and argument sharing. A construction must have all of these properties in order to qualify as an SVC. Once these underlying semantic and syntactic properties of SVCs are identified, a detailed and explicit set of criteria is developed that allows these underlying properties to be tested in any language. The latter part of the dissertation offers a case study in the use of these diagnostic criteria by applying them to multi-verb constructions in Koro. Testing these constructions against the definition of SVCs developed in the dissertation reveals that although there are numerous multi-verb constructions in Koro that appear to fulfill the surface criteria for SVCs, only one of these can be considered a true SVC. This construction has a VP-shell structure, in which V1 is a path or locative verb that takes V2 as its complement. The shared argument is the subject of V2, providing a counter-example to Baker's (1989) claim that SVCs obligatorily share an internal argument. Constructions that instead involve adjunction of V2 to V1 are shown through detailed semantic investigation to be disqualified as SVCs, because they do not exhibit the expected entailments. This is surprising because they superficially resemble proto-typical SVCs. The syntactic and semantic analysis of these constructions leads to the hypothesis that true SVCs must have a relation of complementation between the verbs, while adjoined or coordinated constructions cannot be considered SVCs.
"Serial Verb Constructions" In Tshiluba
Toronto Working Papers in Linguistics, 2023
Serial verb constructions (SVCs), that is sequences of several consecutive verbs sharing certain features, form a well-established concept in descriptive and comparative syntax. However, there is no consensus concerning a systematic and universal definition of these constructions, leading authors like Bisang (2009) and Haspelmath (2016) to propose explicit criteria for their identification. Although Bantu languages are rarely described as containing SVCs, Tshiluba exhibits constructions that look suspiciously similar to them. This work therefore addresses two questions: (a) are these constructions SVCs in either Bisang's (2009) or Haspelmath's (2016) sense?; and (b) what are their key properties? Using various elicitation methods, I collected data indicating that these Tshiluba constructions conform to those definitions, and exhibit many properties which are usually associated with SVCs. Despite this evidence, further complications mean that these constructions remain ambiguous between serialization and asyndetic coordination, suggesting that we may be dealing with an ongoing shift between the two (Andrason 2018), although further empirical confirmation is needed.
1990
Papers from the conference on the occurrence of verbal constituents in series in certain languages, particularly pidgins and creoles, include the following: "What Are We Talking About When We Talk About Serial Verbs?" (Arnold M. Zwicky); "Serial Verb Constructions" (Pieter Seuren); 10n the Definition and Distribution of Serial Verb ConstructiLns" (Eric Schiller); "Parataxis in White Hmong" (Elizabeth Riddle); "On Arguing for Serial Verbs (with Special Reference to Modern Greek)" (Brian D. Joseph); "Serialization and Subordination in Gullah: Toward a Definition of Serialization" (Salikoko Mufwene); "Serial Verb Constructions and Motion Events in Caribbean English Creoles" (Don Winford); "Tense Marking in Serial Structures" (Francis Byrne); "Serial Verb Construction in Marathi" (Rajeshwari Pandharipande); "Tamil Serial Verbs" (Sabita Nagarajan); "Constraints on Intransitive Quasi-Serial Verb Constructions in Modern Colloquial English" (Geoffiey K. Pullum); 3Serial vs. Consecutive Verbs in Walapai" (James E. Redden); "Suffixal Concatenation in the Classical Japanese Predicate: Erstwhile Serial Verbs?" (Charles Quinn); "Multi-Verb Constructions in Korean" (In-Hee Jo); "On Serial Verbs in Mandarin Chinese: VV Compounds and CoVe ,bial Phrases" (Claire Hsun-huei Chang); "Syntactic Constructions in Serial Verb Expressions in Chinese" (John Xiang-ling Dai); "Serial Verbs in Colloquial Arabic" (Lutfi Hussein); and "Serial Verb Constructions in Categorial Grammar" (Katherine Welker). (MSE)-9 VW is tensed: for instance, the idiom hear tell, as in I've heard tell that a pound of lead is as heavy as a pound of gold.) Mc Cawley (1988: 282) provides an Swedish example of distributed serialization, as in Ilan gkk)ch badade 'He went swimming' (literally, 'He went and swam'); 'both conjuncts must bear the same inflection but the verb of the first conjunct behaves like the main verb of the whole sentence even with regard to inversion and Negative placement.' 7.5. Syntactic, but not morphological, words Many languages have V + V sequences that are intimately combined from the point of view of syntax-they make syntactic Ws-but not from the point of view of morphology, since the sequerwes do not seem to be Instances of any sort of lexeme, Such sequences are like compounds in one way but not in another. Under this heading fall the causative 'clause union' (as they are termed in Relational Grammar) constructions of several of the Romance languages, for instance Spanish (Aissen & Perlmutter 1983), as in Los hice caminar (them 1-made to-walk) 'I made them walk', Under this heading also fall non-causative clause unions, for instance the English contracted infinitivals wamia, gonna, hafta, etc. on the analysis due to Frantz (1979) and suggested also by Postal & Pullum (1982) and Pullum & Zwicky (1988). 7,6. Morphological, but not syntactic, words Some languages have V + V sequences that are intimately combined from the point of view of morphology such sequences are occurrences of lexemes but not from the point of view of syntax, since the sequences do not seem to make syntactic Ws. Again, we have sequences that are like compounds in one way but not in another. This is the sort of analysis I would suggest (and have, in Zwicky 1990a, 1990b) for the English go V construction, as in Go see who's at the door. The syntax of this construction is that of subordination, with a head VW chosen from a small subcategory of lexemes (comprising only go and cotne for some speakers) and an argument VP that is em irely open, subject only to the semantic requirements of the construction (that the VP describe an activRy). However, from a morphological point of view the verbs in sequence behave like compounds, as is evidenced by their complete resistance to having syntactic constituents intervene between their participants *Go away see who's at the door and Go quickly see who's at the door (Perlmutter 1971: 95-7) and by the requirement (for some speakers; see Panes dIscussim in this volume) that all the participants appear In their base, or unmarked-Infinitive, form: Ron conw see Jerusalem!, *I ran came saw Jerusalem, even *I've run come seen Jerusalem. A requirement that all the lexemes participating in sonw construction must be in some specific form, especially the base form, is commonplace in compounding. 7,7. Idioms parasitic on serial constructions Some serialization examples are idioms rather than construction.s, This is clearly the case for the 1.:nglish dismissive serializations go jump in the lake arid go fly a kite, which are parasitic on the go V construction.
Serial Verbs in the Creole Languages
1978
(3) im faaldong an brok im fut 'he/she fell and broke his/her leg' Similarly, (b) is not a serial construction since it contains the complemen tizer fi_ 'for ... t o 1: (b) im waan fi go 'he/she wants to go' By criteria (c) and (d) we want to exclude modal and true auxiliaries from the discussion, as in sentence (5): (5) Jan wuda hafi ron 'John would have to run' These criteria are a little harder to apply, but a useful distinction may be made as follows: (f) the configuration V KP V NP is indicative of serialization; (g) in the configuration V V ... V Vn , only can be the "lexical" verb in serial constructions, ancTonly V in infinitival complements or constructions with modal auxiliaries. More examples of serial constructions will be presented in the next section. An important question to answer is: when is there any basis to assume that we are dealing with a verb at all? Here the simple criterion has been applied of lexical origin, since Creole languages do not distinguish verbs morphologically. If the item is a verb in the European, lexifier language, we may assume that it is in the Creole language as well.