Zero Arguments in Jiwarli, Western Australia

Abstract

Jiwarli is an Australian Aboriginal language that was formerly spoken in the north-west of Western Australia. It shows a high degree of (suffixing) morphological complexity, has a split-ergative case-marking system, and a switch-reference system in dependent clause linkage. Verbs are also strictly subcategorized for transitivity and there are interactions between clause type and case marking. A prevalent feature of Jiwarli discourse is the non-occurrence of overt arguments in both main and dependent clauses. In narratives, 65–75% of transitive clauses have at least one missing argument (depending on genre), with 20% consisting of just a verb alone. Also, 25% of intransitive clauses lack their single (intransitive subject) argument. Zero arguments in Jiwarli can have either unspecified reference or else be anaphoric. This paper discusses the occurrence of zero arguments and outlines the means by which anaphoric relations are expressed. I will show that there is an interaction between verb transitivity, clause type, switch-reference, and the case-marking system which assists with reference determination in narrative discourse.