Classes nominales et deixis : cas des suffixes de pluriel -sι et nyὶ du dadjriwale

Abstract

In the present paper, on the one hand, an analysis of agreement and number markers allows us to understand the disintegrated nature of the nominal classification system in the Dadjiriwale language. It turnes out that these markers show a rather phonological than grammatical agreement: While the singular is marked by a zero morpheme, it is difficult to identify "binary gender markers" or "ordered pairs". Rather, the notions of gender and noun classification become intertwined in the language. On the other hand, -sι and -ny ὶ are the plural suffixes of the noun class [+human], while the suffixes -jé and -bhó are those of the class [–human]; but furthermore, they denote divisible, and indivisible things respectively. Additionally, and analogous to the suffix-bhó, the markers -pέlώ and -kl ё́ divide objects into the group of round objects and the group of elongated objects. Finally, it is shown that the relationship established between the notion of noun classes and the notion of deixis is far from being synonymous or opposing, and that it uncovers the semantic values of the modal suffixes -sι and -nyὶ in the context of utterance: In speech, they evoke exophoric and homophoric deictic values and recall instances of interlocution and delocution.