Abstract Omotic-Mao pronouns have been deeply problematic for reconstruction, leading some scholars to suggest the forms are the result of borrowing or interference. This paper explores new evidence from the participant-reference systems in the four Mao languages (Mawes Aas’e, Ganza, Seezo, and Hoozo) to show that the Mawes Aas’e pronouns, which are the most divergent of the group, are likely the result of complex internal developments. Developments include the innovation of a dual opposition from an inclusive/exclusive distinction, fusion of reduced subject-marking enclitics with their most frequent host (an affirmative marker), the formation of new free pronouns on the basis of these host + enclitic fusions with additional, augmenting morphology to mark number, and the grammaticalization of new 3rd person pronouns from a demonstrative base with number suffixes. Evidence is both internal and comparative and supports an Omotic classification for these languages.

Abstract While the history of the Bamum language has been well documented, the particulars of its phonology and orthography have received fragmentary treatment. Our contribution to the literature is an attempt to synthesize from the works that have gone before, to pull together disparate threads that have arisen from the influences of German, French, and English traditions. We discuss in turn phonology (noting in particular discrepancies in the accounting for the vowel inventory between sources), analysis of the writing system, and frequency distribution of characters and words. Discussion on historical phonology might shed some light on the development of orthographic principles while the preliminary exploration of the observed statistical patterns of the latest phase of the script, known as A ka u ku mfɛmfɛ , would be useful for future reference. We also offer indications for directions for future research on a wider scale, that would incorporate corpus studies of both the Bamum language and the invented Shümom language that also uses the Bamum script.

Abstract This paper describes the loss of -yi- in Zulu reduplication and suggests a possible connection between the loss of -yi- and the potential for obsolescence of reduplication. The data presented are collected from 79 speakers, and clearly demonstrate the loss of -yi- is stratified along sociolinguistic lines. The absence of -yi- in reduplication is categorical among urban speakers, while it is beginning to be lost among younger rural speakers. Furthermore, some urban speakers are wholly unfamiliar with reduplication, exhibiting no knowledge of the process as a morphophonological phenomenon, nor with the semantic change it effects on the verb. While Zulu is far from being an endangered language, it is unsurprising that urban and rural varieties should show structural differences, and the phenomenon discussed here constitutes one such example.

Abstract This paper discusses ideophonicity in Gizey (Chadic), viz ., the ability of a word to depict sensory experiences. The term “ideophone” is frequently attested in the Gizey literature. While ideophones are classified as a separate word class (part-of-speech), the questions of what they are (phono-semantic characterisation) and how they function (morphosyntactic characterisation) are absent from that literature. Both concerns are addressed in this paper. I first describe the morphophonological, semantic, and syntactic properties of the words classified as “ideophones”. Then, I show that, indeed, Gizey contains several ideophonic words which distribute across different word classes. Thus, ideophones do not form a separate word class in Gizey as previous literature suggests.

Abstract This paper discusses the different syntactic status of the prenominal marker a in three languages spoken in Burkina Faso and neighbouring countries (Dagara, Mooré and Koromfe) and its respective relation to the determiner system. We argue that the marker is a head-initial determiner in Dagara, a proprial article in Mooré and a nominal expletive in Koromfe and tentatively suggest a possible common pronominal origin. The paper also addresses further points of variation in the higher nominal structure of the three languages concerning DP directionality and the co-occurrence of determiners, demonstratives and possessors, providing a basis for future wider investigations across the Mabia/Gur family.

Abstract Bilin (ISO 639-3:byn), a Central Cushitic (Agaw) language of Eritrea, exhibits complex patterns of derivational and inflectional verbal morphology. In this article, three verb forms of Bilin, their semantics, morphosyntax, and history, are analysed in detail on grounds of both previous scholarly efforts, especially Reinisch (1881, Die Bilīn-Sprache in Nordost-Afrika. Wien: Carl Gerold’s Sohn), Palmer (1957. The verb in Bilin. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 19(1). 131–159), and Appleyard (2007. Bilin morphology. In Alan S. Kaye (ed.), Morphologies of Asia and Africa, 481–504. Penn State University Press), as well as data elicited through fieldwork. These three forms are the imperfective marker -sɨk, the habitualis suffix -tuk, and the converb -ɛk. It is shown that the Bilin verb paradigm is even richer than assumed, expressing not only tense, aspect, mood, person, and number, but possibly additional grammatical notions such as volitionality.

Abstract This article constitutes a pioneering comparative study of the use of epistemic possibility adverbs (EPAs) – i.e., sentence or clausal adverbs expressing neutral epistemic support (reminiscent of English ‘perhaps’) – in the Bantu languages of East Africa. In a sample of a total of 77 languages, the semantic and syntactic inter- and intra-clausal distribution of EPAs and the way they interact with other modal markers is investigated. Next, the semasiological background of the East African Bantu EPAs and the range of additional functions they may serve to co-express is explored. Based on the semantic characteristics of the EPAs, their etymons and the linguistic categories they additionally convey, it is proposed that the common conceptualization underlying these patterns of polysemy is the notion of scalarity, and more precisely that of an in-between position between a positive and a negative pole, thus conveying a neutral, indeterminate or interchangeable stance. Through these endeavors, this study offers the first thorough, comparative-based investigation of the development and distribution of epistemic adverbs in Bantu languages, broadening our understanding of expressions of modality and the use of adverbs more generally, both within Bantu languages and beyond.

Abstract Studies on diminutives have primarily focused on European languages and a few African languages. However, the forms and functions of diminutives in the Igbo language remain critically unexplored. This article examines the forms and functions of diminutives in Igbo, as well as accounts for the role of tone in the formation of diminutives in Igbo, using corpus-assisted data. The descriptive analysis reveals that the form of Igbo diminutives can be categorised into synthetic, analytic, and category incorporated. The results show that the suffix -tụ́ is the most productive diminutive marker in Igbo and is used when referring to the contact between entities, temporal shortness (short duration), spatial smallness, small featural differentiation, and politeness. I argue that tone generally does not govern Igbo diminutive constructions. The study contributes to the literature by identifying a third type of diminutives ‘category incorporated’, which refers to verbal constructions that do not prototypically have explicit diminutive forms or markers but have diminutive meanings. This research provides a distinct perspective on the important role of verbs in the formation of diminutives in the Igbo language.