RESOLVING VERBAL REDUPLICATION PARADOXES IN MALAWIAN TONGA

Winfred Mkochi

doi:10.5842/52-0-726

Abstract

The paper describes three verbal reduplication paradoxes in Malawian Tonga, a southern Bantu language spoken in the northern part of Malawi. RED exhibits characteristics of being either total or partial and being prefixed or suffixed to the Base. The problem of whether the relevant level of prosodic (reduplicative) stem analysis is the syllable or the mora and, thus, whether the minimal size of RED should be two syllables or two moras, is considered. The paper argues that this language offers three possibilities for reduplication namely, partial prefixal reduplication, total suffixal reduplication, and partial suffixal reduplication. Thus, the language takes optionality between prefixal and suffixal reduplication, although the latter appears to be the default one. The paper also argues that the relevant unit of Prosodic Stem analysis is, typically, the syllable and that reduplicative Prosodic Stems, like the Base stem, are therefore required to be minimally bisyllabic, like in many other Bantu languages.

Highlights

The small number of available works (Mkochi 2009, 2014; Mtenje 2006) on verbal reduplication in this language have been characterised by three paradoxes: firstly, ciTonga behaves like many other Bantu languages in the sense that it copies the whole of an inflected verb stem (Mtenje 2006)
Meaning of reduplicated verb ‘make to dance repeatedly’ ‘go for repeatedly’ ‘cause to reveal often’. Another fact presented by Mtenje (2006), one that is not disputed here, is that, as in many other Bantu languages, reduplication in ciTonga does not copy material dominated by the INFL and object marker (OM) nodes
The aim of this paper was to further understanding of the process of verbal reduplication in Malawian Tonga

Summary

Introduction

This paper seeks to further understanding of the process of verbal reduplication in Malawian Tonga (popularly known as “ciTonga” by its speakers), an understudied southern Bantu language spoken in the northern part of Malawi. The small number of available works (Mkochi 2009, 2014; Mtenje 2006) on verbal reduplication (to denote ‘doing something repeatedly’) in this language have been characterised by three paradoxes: firstly, ciTonga behaves like many other Bantu languages in the sense that it copies the whole of an inflected verb stem (the base stem) (e.g. βeleβet-a=βeleβeet-a ‘speak repeatedly’) (Mtenje 2006). Both Mtenje (2006) and I (Mkochi 2014) agree that RED has a stem status in this language and that reduplication involves the compounding of two stems (the RED stem and the base stem) We both argue that ciTonga requires the phonological reduplicative stem to be minimally bimoraic (e.g. koo ‘catch’). Reduplication in the language is optionally prefixal or suffixal, the latter appears to be the default Another crucial claim I make is that the relevant unit of prosodic stem analysis in this language is, strictly speaking, the syllable and not the mora, and that reduplicative prosodic stems are required to be minimally bisyllabic. The deletion of the liquid and the onsetless final vowel results in subminimal (monosyllabic) prosodic stems (e.g. /kol-a/ ~ [koo] ‘catch’)

The reduplicative verb complex as a compound stem

The minimal size of RED

Tonal non-transfer

Stem-final LV deletion

A note on vowel lengthening

Conclusion