14.3.3.1 Animacy

The clearest factor determining the proximate or obviative status of a noun phrase
in Japhug is animacy. Whenever one of the core arguments (whether a noun
phrase or a clause) is inanimate and the other animate, the former will almost
always be obviative, and the latter proximate.

When the subject is animate and the object inanimate (with the exception of generic subjects §14.3.2.5 and pseudo-passive constructions §14.3.3.4), the verb must be in direct form. Thus, indirective verbs of speech (§14.4.1) such as *ti* ‘say’, or transitive modal verbs such as *spa* ‘be able’ (§24.5.3.4), whose object is always a complement clause (or an abstract noun for some of these verbs),<fnref n="20" /> and whose subject is necessarily human or higher animal, will always have a proximate subject and an obviative object (3→3’), and thus never appear in (non-generic) inverse configurations.

Conversely, in nearly all the cases when the subject is an inanimate entity
(including plants) and the object an animate one (including humans and non-
human animals), the verb appears in inverse form, as illustrated by examples
(67), (69) and (68).

Inanimate agents are usually natural forces, such as *tu-ci* ‘water’ (subject of *cʰý-wy-yut* ‘it brings her downstream’ in 67) or *tu-mu* ‘the rain’ (subject of the verb *pjú-wy-χtci-mu* ‘(they) wash them away’ in 69).

(67) **twnyt** tʰiwn-ye      nwn w-rca      nwtcu
landslide AOR:DOWNSTREAM-come[II] DEM 3SG.POSS-following DEM:LOC
tce, nwna pw-kw-nwru      nwl tyrca
LOC COW PST.IPFV-SBJ:PCP-eat.grass DEM together
cʰý-wy-yut,      tw-rdoi. tce nwnw
IFR:DOWNSTREAM-INV-bring one-piece, LNK DEM
cʰý-wy-yut      tcendre icqʰa nwl, nyki
IFR:DOWNSTREAM-INV-bring LNK      FILLER DEM FILLER
tw-ci      kw cʰý-wy-yut      qʰe
INDEF.POSS-water ERG IFR:DOWNSTREAM-INV-bring LNK
‘When the landslide occurred, it took away a cow that was grazing
[there], the water took it away.’ (160715 nWNa) {0006067#S3}

Plants can also be agents of verbs with animate patients, as in (§68). In this
example, note the inversion between the subject and object of the first verb (tu-

<footnote n="20">²⁰Complement clauses, being inanimate arguments, are always obviative when used as objects of complement-taking verbs.</footnote>
14 Person indexation and argument structure

ndze, whose subject is the dog and object the plant) and those of the second verb
(lú-wỳ-su-qiob, whose subject (causer) is the plant and object the dog).

(68) *pỳгхсај нъki, къhума ки ти-ндze тce лú-wy-su-qiob*
plant.sp. FILLER dog ERG IPFV-eat[III] LNK IPFV-INV-CAUS-vomit
пш-ηу.
SENS-be
'[The plant called] pыгхсај, when a dog it eats, it makes it vomit.'
(140505 panaxCAj) {0003915#S3}

There are also cases when inert substances (such as soot in 69) can be agents.
Indeed, in (69), soot is the non-overt subject of the verb пъ-wy-suγ-раκ-ну 'it
caused them to become black'. In such cases the inanimate argument is always
obviative, and inverse marking on the verb is required.

(69) <yancong> ш-ηgw лш-рак rcanw, tce kumpytcw ra
chimney 3SG-inside IPFV-be.black UNEXP:DEG LNK sparrow PL
пъ-wy-suγ-раκ-ну zo, нш-кш-γkʰra ra
IFR-INV-CAUS-be.black-PL EMPH 3PL.POSS-NMLZ:S/A-be.colourful PL
мш-пγ-χγsl zo tcendyre zwrwzγri qale tu-βze,
NEG-IFR-be.clear EMPH LNK progressively wind IPFV-make[III]
twmw кш pjú-wy-χtci-nw tce пш-me пш-ηu
INDEF.POSS-weather ERG IPFV-INV-wash-PL LNK IPFV-not.exist SENS-be
'As it is black inside the chimney, the sparrows were completely
blackened by it, the patterns and colours [on their feathers] were not
visible any more, but progressively, the wind and the rain wash them
away and [the soot on their feathers] disappears.' (22-kumpGatCW)
{0003925#S52}

Natural forces appear to be intermediate between inanimates and animates, as counterexamples without inverse marking do exist. In (70) for instance, the verb *tʰa-nu-tsum* ‘it took them downstream’ has *tw-ci* ‘water’ as subject and the animalate noun *βzw ra* ‘the mice’ as object, but a direct configuration 3→3’ is selected. However, only a handful of examples of this type are found in the corpus, and inverse marking would normally be expected.

(70) cwrmbh ш-тaк nш nш-z-rγzi пγ-me ma
stone heap 3SG.POSS-on DEM 3PL.POSS-NMLZ:OBL-stay IFR-not.exist LNK
tw-ci to-yi qʰe, tcendyre nyki βzw ra kγswfse
INDEF.POSS-water IFR:UP-come LNK LNK FILLER mouse PL all
tʰa-nu-tswm.

qʰe pw-si-nu.

AOR:DOWNSTREAM:3→3'-AUTO-take.away LNK AOR-die-PL

'The place where they_j stayed on the stone heap disappeared as the water_j came up, and it_j took the mice_j downstream. And they_j died. (150831 BZW kAnArRaR) {0006378#S82}

When both core arguments have third person animate referents, both direct (71) and inverse (72) configurations are possible, even when the subject is non-human and the object human.

(71) ndżi-sytch’a nwnw yu jw| nwnw rcany kʰu kw lonba
3DU.POSS-place TOP GEN villager DEM UNEXP:DEG tiger ERG all
zo tʰa-ckwt p|w-ŋu
EMPH AOR:3→3’-eat SEN-be
‘All the villagers in their land had been eaten by a tiger.’ (khu2005)

(72) “mtsʰo|kang ni a-kʰykwm, nyki, a-kʰuna zo water.monster DU 1SG.POSS-doorstep FILLER 1SG.POSS-dog EMPH a-pw-fse-ndži ra” to-ti p|w-ŋu tce mtsʰo|kang IRR-IPFV-be lik DU be needed:FACT IFR-say SENS-be LNK water.monster ni kw pjý-wy-ny|livli|t zo cti DU ERG IFR-INV-greet lik a.dog EMPH be.AFF:FACT
‘He said ‘May the water monsters be like dogs on my doorstep’ and the water monsters greeted him like dogs.’ (2012 Norbzang) {0003768#S175}

When both core arguments are inanimate, the verb is generally in direct form, including in the case of inanimate objects acting on body parts of animate beings, as in (73) or (74).<fnref n="21" />

(73) w-mpʰwz nwnw tyjp|yom kw pjy-ndo qʰendvre,
3SG.POSS-buttocks DEM ice ERG IFR-take LNK
‘(The leopard’s) buttocks had been caught in the ice.’ (140427 qala cho
kWrtsAG) {0003852#S34}

(74) rj|ylpu n|u kw [w-mp|ak ŋy-z-nymbju] zo pjy-mto tce,
king DEM ERG 3SG.POSS-eye IFR-CAUS-be.bright EMPH IFR-see LNK
‘The king_j saw it [the thread]|_ as it_j dazzled his_j eyes.’ (2012 Norbzang)
{0003768#S130}

<footnote n="21">²¹Example (74) is a particularly convoluted type of unmarked embedded clause (§25.1.4), as the ergative phrase *rj|ylpu n|u kw* ‘the king’ is not subject of the immediately following transitive verb *ŋy-z-nymbju*.</footnote>
14 Person indexation and argument structure

Inverse forms can occur when the object is the most salient of the two inan-
imate arguments (§14.3.3.3), as in (75), where both the subject and the object of
the verb *njú-wy-z-maqʰu* ‘it makes it late’ are plants.

(75) w̥-rkw̥ n̥w̥tcu, si kw̥-wxti a-pw̥-tu tce
3DU.POSS-side DEM:LOC tree SBJ:PCP-be.big IRR-IPFV-exist LNK

ɲú-ʷy̥-z-maqʰu ṁhe wṣo tu-mbro múj-cʰa.

IPFV-INV-CAUS-be-after LNK 3SG IPFV-be.big NEG:SENS-can

'If there is a big tree<sub>j</sub> next to it<sub>i</sub>, it<sub>j</sub> delays its<sub>i</sub> growth and it<sub>i</sub> cannot grow
very big.' (14-sWNgWJu) {0003506#S235}

14.3.3.2 Possession and obviation

In Algonquian languages, there are two main constraints governing the use of
obviation on nouns: on the other hand, third persons possessed by another third
person are automatically obviative (Wolfart 1973: 25, Valentine 2001: 625), and
on the other hand, at most one argument can be proximate in any given clause
(Valentine 2001: 627). A consequence of these constraints is that whenever a tran-
sitive verb takes as subject a possessed noun, and as object a (proximate) noun
coreferent with the possessor of the subject,<fnref n="22" /> the verb will necessarily have an
inverse form, as in the Cree example in (76). Conversely, if the subject is a prox-
imate noun and the object a possessed noun whose possessor is coreferent with
the subject, the verb will necessarily be direct.

(76) cān o-tēm-a kī-mākwam-ik
ANTHR 3SG.POSS-dog-OBV PST-bit-INV

'John<sub>prox</sub>'s dog<sub>obv</sub> bit him<sub>prox</sub>.' (Wolfart 1973: 25)

Though similar phenomena have been reported outside of Algonquian (Aissen
1997), not all languages with direct-inverse indexation display such relationship
between possession and obviation (Haude & Zúñiga 2016).

Japhug lacks obviation marking on nouns (§5.1.1.3), but the presence of direct
or inverse morphology can nevertheless be used to test whether possession has
an effect on the obviation status of nominal arguments.

There is a very clear tendency for inverse marking to occur when the subject is
a possessed noun and the object its possessor (henceforth SPO ‘subject possessed
by third person object’), as shown by examples such as (77), (78) and (79).

<footnote n="22">²²If the object noun is not co-referent with the possessor of the subject, it will be obviative too due to the second constrain.</footnote>
(77) a-wa w-yi ra n̥u-cki kó-wỳ-ndz̥u, [...]
1SG.POSS-father 3SG.POSS-relative PL 3PL.POSS-DAT IFR-INV-accuse
tcendyre a-wa w-yi ra kw tó-wỳ-nymqe
LNK 1SG.POSS-father 3SG.POSS-relative PL ERG IFR-INV-scold
'[The old monk] complained about my fatherᵢ to hisᵢ parents, and my
fatherᵢ's parents scolded himᵢ.' (08-kWqhi) {0003454#S20}

(78) tce w-pi w̥nuz n̥wi k̥nỳ m̥-pjý-wỳ-suχsyl
LNK 3SG.POSS-elder.sibling two DEM:DU also NEG-IFR-recognize
'Even herᵢ two elder sisters did not recognize herᵢ.' (140504
huiguniang-zh) {0003909#S115}

(79) tcendyre rfylpu yw w-rzaβ ny-k-yβzu-ci tce, tce
LNK king GEN 3SG.POSS-wife IFR-PEG-become-PEG LNK LNK
w-pi ni kw wuma zo, nykinw, pjý-wỳ-nyzgmyn
3SG.POSS-elder.sibling DU ERG really EMPH FILLER IFR.IPFV-INV-envy
'Sheᵢ became the queen, and herᵢ sisters were envious of herᵢ.' (140514
huishuohua de niao-zh) {0003992#S15}

However, the fact that a correlation between inverse marking and SPO config-
urations exists does not necessarily imply that the inverse is actually triggered
by SPO.

First, there are also many examples of SPO with direct marking. For instance,
in (80), the verbs p̥u-z-nya-ndʒi and m̥u-ta-su-ye-ndʒi with SPO lack inverse pre-
fixes and have direct morphology (subject number indexation §14.3.2.2 and the
C-type orientation preverb ta-, §14.3.1). In addition, the examples (8) and (9) in
§5.1.1.3 provide a minimal of SPO configuration with direct vs. inverse configu-
ration in exactly the same context.

(80) tcʰeme wuma zo kw-pe ci pw-ŋu qʰe,
girl really EMPH SBJ:PCP-be.good INDEF PST.IPFV-be LNK
w-mu w-wa ni kw p̥u-z-nya-ndʒi
3SG.POSS-mother 3SG.POSS-father DU ERG SENS-CAUS-be.regrettable-DU
qʰe m̥u-ta-su-ye-ndʒi,
LNK NEG-AOR:3→3'-CAUS-come[II]-DU
'[His wife]ᵢ was a very nice girl, herᵢ parents were unwilling to part with
herᵢ and did not let herᵢ come.' (14-siblings) {0003508#S274}

Second, the presence of inverse marking in examples (77), (78) and (79) above
(and in most cases of SPO with inverse) can be accounted for by factors other
than possession, in particular the relative saliency of the subject and the object
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(§14.3.3.3): in all three examples, the object corresponds to the main character of the story; notice in particular in (77) the presence of inverse marking on the previous verb *kó-wy-ndzu* ‘he complained about him’, which does not have SPO.

In stories, non-salient characters tend to be described on the basis of their relationship with a salient character (rather than by a different name), and are therefore expressed by nouns with third person possessor. Many, if not most SPO configurations in the corpus involve non-salient referents acting upon salient referents related to them; the apparent correlation between SPO and inverse marking in texts may therefore be a side-effect of argument saliency rather than a specific morphosyntactic phenomenon.

14.3.3.3 Saliency

When both core arguments are third person animate, both are potentially proximate or obviative, and the verb can thus be either in direct of inverse form, and the choice between one or the other is determined, as we will discuss in this section, by pragmatics. In this section, I mainly focus on human or anthropomorphized non-human referents; animals are briefly treated at the end of the section.

Transitive verb forms where such a choice between inverse and direct forms exist are however a minority. For instance, in (81), the verbs *to-ti* ‘she said’, *to-nu-ŋga* ‘she wore it’ and *ko-rqoɛ* ‘he hugged (her neck)’ are in the direct form due to animacy constraints (since the subjects of all three verbs are animates and their object inanimates, see §14.3.3.1). Note that a subject shift takes place between *to-nu-ŋga* ‘she wore it’ and *ko-rqoɛ* ‘he hugged (her neck)’ without inverse marking.

The only verb in this passage taking two animate referents is *tó-wy-tsum* ‘she took him up’, whose subject is *stu ku-xtci nu* ‘the smallest (of the daughters of heaven)’ and whose object is a human boy.<fnref n="23" />

(81) *stu ku-xtci nuw ku ‘...’ to-ti tcendre qro numu*
most SBJ:PCP-be.small DEM ERG IFR-say LNK pigeon DEM
u-ŋga nuw to-nu-ŋga qʰe, tce nuw u-mke
3SG.POSS-clothes TOP IFR-AUTO-wear LNK LNK DEM 3SG.POSS-neck
ko-rqoɛ qʰe tcendre tó-wy-tsum to-nuwqambwmbjom qʰe
IFR-hug LNK LNK IFR-INV-take-away IFR:UP-fly LNK
‘The smallest [daughter]i said ‘...’, shei wore the pigeon skin, hej hugged
heri neck, and shei took himj and flew away [with him].’ (07-deluge)
{0003426#S68}

<footnote n="23">²³Compare example (81), where this referent is in 3SG, with (126) in §7.5.2 and (105) in §9.1.5.3, where it appears in 1SG.</footnote>
The presence of inverse marking on *tó-wy-tsum* ‘she took him up’ in (81) is neither due to semantic nor syntactic factors. Rather, animate (in particular, human/sentient) referents in a particular passage (the subsection of a story, or a complete) are classified along a scale of obviativity. The main character(s) is/are ascribed proximate status, while characters which the narrator considers to be more secondary receive obviative status.

Example (81) is taken from a flood story whose main character is a human boy (the only survivor of the flood). This character remains proximate in the whole story, and thus by comparison, the daughter of heaven (the other character found in the passage in 81) is obviative. The proximate/obviative contrast on these animate referents is not visible when they occur as subjects with inanimate objects: the inanimate referents are necessarily always more obviative that any animate referent, and therefore direct forms are found. This contrast is only revealed when a verb takes two animate referents, namely the verb *tó-wy-tsum*. The apparent shift between direct and inverse forms found in (81) is not an effect of the animate referent changing their obviation status across sentences, but is rather a consequence of the fact that Gyalrong languages lack a special conjugation class used with inanimate objects, such as the VTI (transitive inanimate) verbs in Algonquian.

The scale of obviation (82) accounts for the distribution of direct and inverse marking in (81) (and in the rest of the story): direct marking is found when the subject is higher than the object on the scale, and inverse marking when it is lower.

(82) human boy > daughter of heavenᵢ > inanimate referents (*qro u-ŋga* ‘pigeon clothes’ ; *u-mke* ‘herᵢ neck’)

The degree of obviativity of each referent, while generally stable within a particular passage, can be fluid in longer narratives. For instance, in the story ‘Nor-bzang and Padma ’Od’bar’, the analysis of direct vs. inverse forms reveals several scales.

In (83), the subject is the king and the object the character Padma ’Od’bar, and inverse marking indicates that the latter is proximate.

(83) *kwcnw-sŋi kwcnγ-rzaŋ nú-wy-z-nykaŋ*      *jw-ŋu.*
seven-day seven-night IPFV-INV-CAUS-have.a.good.time SENS-be
'[The king] let [Padma 'Od'bar] have a good time for seven days and
seven nights.' (2005 Norbzang)

Examples (84) and (85) have the secundative verbs *pa-suxɛvɛt* ‘he taught (it) to them’ (§14.4.2) and *nú-wy-ɛu-rŋo-nw* ‘he lent it to them’ (§14.4.3) in direct
14 Person indexation and argument structure

and inverse forms, respectively. From these examples, one could further propose
the scale (86) showing the relative obviativity of the three groups of characters
(Padma 'Od'bar, the three girls, and the king).

(84) **ty-tcw** **n̥u** **kw**, [...] **n̥u**n̥u **tcʰeme** χswm **n̥u** lonba
**INDEF POSS-BOY** DEM ERG DEM girl three dem all
**pa-swxcyt** **pn̥-ŋu**.
**AOR**:3→3'-teach **SENS-BE**
'The boy (Padma 'Od'bar) taught the whole [mantra] to the three girls.'
(2005 Norbzang, 380; Padma 'Od'bar > girls)

(85) **tcendyre** “jγy” **ti** **ny** χsyrzaŋ núw-wy-cw-rŋo-nuw
**LNK** be.possible:FACT say:FACT LNK artefact AOR=INV=CAUS=borrow
**pn̥-ŋu**.
**SENS-BE**
'[The king] said 'yes' and lent the Gserbzang to [the three girls.'(2005
Norbzang, 406; girls > king)

(86) Padma 'Od'bar > girls > King

However, while (86) is indeed valid in some sections of the story, we also find
examples such as (87) and (88) with a verb in direct form, despite the fact that
the subject (the king) is lower on the scale (86) than the object (Padma 'Od'bar):
an inverse configuration would be expected.

(87) **tcendyre** rpu kw na-nusnom pn̥-n̥u.
**LNK** king ERG AOR:3→3'-envy **SENS-BE**
'The king envied [Padma 'Od'bar].'(2005 Norbzang)

(88) tcendre tcetu ndre, pъnmawombъr ka-tcyб-nw pn-ny.

LNK up.there LNK ANTHR AOR:3→3'-burn-PL SENS-BE

'[The king and his servants] burned Padma 'Od'bar up there.' (2005
Norbzang)

In (87) and (88), a different scale (89) has to be posited.

(89) King > Padma 'Od'bar

Thus, a particular character of this story (the king), which has obviative sta-
tus in (83) and (85), becomes proximate in (87) and (88), in a passage where he
temporarily becomes the ‘main character’.
Within each of the scenes of a narrative, the obviativity status of each referent generally remains stable. Thus, in chains of verbs sharing coreferent pairs of subject and object, all of the verbs are either in direct or in inverse form. In (90) for instance, we find four verbs in inverse form in a row; each of them takes *ts̥-wuš* ‘grandfather, old man’ as obviative subject and the main character of the story Nyima ’Odzer as proximate object.

(90) tcendyre ts̥-wuš
nʷ kʷ  ʾry-wy-ngxjtsʰi
LNK INDEF.POSS-grandfather DEM ERG IFR-INV-give.to.eat.and.drink
tce, nyki, tʷmgo ʾry-wy-mbi, tʷ-ci
ra ʾry-wy-j-tsʰi
LNK FILLER food IFR-INV-give INDEF.POSS-water PL IFR-INV-CAUS-drink
tɔ́-wy-cu̱-fka tce tce
IFR-INV-CAUS-be.full LNK LNK

‘The old man gave him food and drinks, gave him food to eat, water to drink, gave him enough for him to eat his fill.’ (2011-05-nyima)

However, alternations between direct and inverse can also be found across
adjacent clauses with constant subjects and objects within a single passage. In
(91), the noun *lulu* ‘cat’<sup>24</sup> is the proximate referent of the verbs *ko-mʾa* and *lɔ̱-
mʾa*, since they are in direct form, but then a shift to inverse occurs and its preys
(in the dual, the mouse and the sparrow) become proximate instead. The switch
between direct and inverse marking gives native speakers flexibility to change
the perspective of the narration.

(91) tce nʷ jamar tce ci numi kʷ “lulu kʷ yúr-ndza-tci” ra
LNK DEM about LNK INDEF DEM:DU ERG cat ERG INV-eat:FACT-1DU PL
mʷ-ŋy-swso-ndzi kʷ, “azo γγŋgi-a nγ azo γγŋgi-a”
NEG-IFR-think-DU ERG 1SG be.right:FACT-1SG ADD 1SG be.right:FACT-1SG
ŋy-swso-ndzi, tcendyre lulu nʷ kʷ ci ko-mʾa, ci
IFR-think-DU LNK cat DEM ERG one IFR:EAST-grab one
lɔ̱-mʾa tce, ndyre ʿnpawna zo cʰý-wy-ndza-ndzi tce,
IFR:WEST-grab LNK LNK both EMPH IFR-INV-eat-DU LNK

‘The other two were not thinking ‘The cat will eat us’, but rather ‘I am right, I am right’, and the cat grabbed one on his left and one on his right, and both ended up eaten by him.’ (IWlu 2002) {0003361#S76}

In other cases, alternations between direct and inverse forms without change
in subjects and objects appear to be due to hesitations on the part of the speaker.

<footnote n="24"><sup>24</sup>This story is about humanized animals depicted as able to think and speak, and can be consid-
ered to be similar to human referents.</footnote>
14 Person indexation and argument structure

For instance, in (92) the speaker first chooses a direct 3PL→3' verb form *yɛ́rɛ́t-nu*, with *rɛ́ylpu yu* *u-čjoš nura* ‘the king’s servants’ being the proximate referent, but then switches to the inverse 3'→3SG form *yu-tsum*, with the character Nyima 'Odzer as proximate referent instead.

(92) *rfylpu yu* *u-čjoš nura kwo pimawozr, numu*
king GEN 3SG.POSS-servants DEM:PL ERG ANTHR DEM
*yrɛ́t-nu pjy-ŋu, yu-tsum* pjy-ŋu tceri,
throw:FACT-PL IFR.IPFV-be INV-take-away:FACT IFR.IPFV-be LNK
‘As the king’s servants were about to throw him [into the lake], as they
were about to take him away.’ (Nyima wodzer2002)

14.3.3.4 Pseudo-passive

In some texts translated from Chinese, inverse verb forms are used in configura-
tions with an inanimate object and an animate subject, an exception to the ani-
macy constraints described in §14.3.3.1, according to which a direct form would
be expected. This usage is similar to the generic subject construction (§14.3.2.5)
where the inverse also occurs with animate subjects and inanimate objects, but
semantically differs in that the subject is not generic, but rather an unknown
referent.

Example (93) illustrates this construction with the verbs *jó-wy-kio* and *tó-wy-cu*, whose object is the jar’s cover and subject the girl inside the jar (whose presence was unknown to the observer from whose point of view this passage is narrated).

(93) *u-tcʰira [...] yu u-fkaβ numu jó-wy-kio. tce nu*
3SG.POSS-jar GEN 3SG.POSS-cover DEM IFR-INV-slide LNK DEM
*tó-wy-cu* tce nučtu tce tce li, nučimuma tce li,
IFR-INV-open LNK DEM:LOC LNK LNK again immediately LNK again
*u-ŋga* ra kwh-mpcw~mpcyr ci,
3SG.POSS-clothes PL SBJ:PCP-EMPH~be.beautiful INDEF
*u-čzwɣ* ra kwh-βdwh~βdi ci, tcʰemɣpwh ci,
3SG.POSS-appearance PL SBJ:PCP-EMPH~be.nice INDEF girl INDEF
icqʰa tcʰira yu u-ŋgw nučtu
the.aforementioned jar GEN 3SG.POSS-in DEM:LOC
*to-nu-čoš*.
IFR:UP-AUTO-come.out
‘The jar’s cover slid over and opened, and a girl with beautiful clothes
and a very nice appearance came immediately out of it.’ (150827
tianluo-zh) {0006250#S98}
The first two clauses translate Chinese ‘发现水缸盖被推开了’<fāxiàn shuǐgāng-gài bèi tuīkāi le> ‘He realized that the jar’s cover had been pushed open’. The inverse forms correspond here to a ‘被 bèi ‘passive’ construction, and nearly all of the examples of inverse expressing unknown (rather than generic) animate subjects have been found in the translation of sentences containing this construction in Chinese. This pseudo-passive construction appears to be an effect of calque from the original, although Tshendzin, when asked about these examples, did not consider them to be ungrammatical.

In addition, there are a few cases in translated texts like (94) with inverse marking and unknown human subject (on the verb *pjý-wy-lwoš* ‘someone spilled it’) where no 被 bèi construction is found in the original: this example translates 他发现水罐空了<tal fāxiàn shuǐguàn kōng le> ‘He realized that his water jar was empty’. The fact that the translation in this example is somewhat removed from the original would support the idea that the pseudo-passive inverse is a native grammatical construction.

(94) tcendvre ri, ku-rtoš tce w-tur-ci nurra
LNK LNK IPFV-look LNK 3SG.POSS-INDEF.POSS-water DEM:PL
pjý-wy-lwoš tce ku-tu pjy-me qʰe,
IFR-INV-spill LNK SBJ:PCP-exist IFR.IPFV-not.exist LNK

‘Heᵢ realized that someone had spilled the water [in hisᵢ gourd], and none was left.’ (140505 liuhaohan zoubian tianxia-zh) {0003913#S188}

Thus, it is unclear at present whether the extension of the generic subject construction to express unknown subjects (the ‘pseudo-passive’), is the result of translatese, or whether it reflects a genuine but rare native construction.

### 14.3.4 Transitive irregular verbs

Unlike in Zbu (Gong 2014), there are no transitive verbs in Japhug with irregular 1SG forms. The only irregularities related to person indexation are either found in generic forms or defective conjugations.

The verb *ti* ‘say’ takes the prefix *ku-* to express generic human subject as in (95) as if it were an intransitive verb (§14.2.1.2) instead of the inverse *yw-* found on regular transitive verbs (§14.3.2.5); a form such as ḫtú-wy-ti would be incorrect. It is not the only irregularity of *ti* ‘say’: this is also the only underived transitive verb with a separate stem II in Japhug (§12.2.1.1).

(95) tce ckrz yw w-mat nw tʰye tu-ku-ti yu
LNK oak GEN 3SG.POSS-fruit DEM acorn IPFV-GENR-say be:FACT
‘The fruit of the oak is called an acorn.’ (08-CkrAz) {0003444#S39}
Although the prefix ku- expresses generic object on other transitive verbs (§14.3.2.5), in the case of ti 'say' there is no ambiguity: the object of this verb is necessarily a complement clause or a noun, and can never have a first, second or generic person referent. The use of ku- to mark the transitive subject is reminiscent of Tshobdun, where both transitive and intransitive verbs mark generic subject by the same prefix (Sun 2014b).

The defective verb *m-xsi* ‘one does not know’ only occurs in Factual Non-Past negative with a generic subject. This transitive verb takes nouns or complement clauses as object, usually with either an interrogative pronoun or a polar opposition as in (95), sometimes with the dubitative (§21.4.4). It cannot take any additional affix (including nominalization prefixes, §16.7 and orientation preverbs, §15.1.1.5), except for the autive *nuu-* in the form *mact-nuu-xsi*, as in (97).

(96) tu-ndze ŋu maاغ mɔ̃-xsi.
IPFV-eat[III] be:FACT not.be:FACT NEG-GENR:know
‘I don’t know whether [bears] eat [humans] or not.’ (21-pri)
{0003580#S112}

(97) a-pa, aki nɔ̃w sta Klupa kɔ̃-βde
1SG.POSS-father down DEM born.the.year.of.the.tiger OBJ:PCP-throw
nɔ̃w-spa nɔ̃w mɔ̃-nɔ̃w-xsi ri,
3SG.POSS-material DEM NEG-AUTO-GENR:know LNK

‘Father, I don’t know whether the [boy] down there is someone born in the year of the tiger, [who must] to be thrown [into the lake as a sacrifice to the lake monster], but...’ (2011-05-nyima)

The stem -xsi contains the same root as *suz* ‘know’ but without -z suffix and with a *x-* prefix which represents a fossilized allomorph of the regular generic *kuu-*. The verb *suz* ‘know’ is attested in generic form, as in (98). Although such examples are very rare, they show that *mact-xsi* cannot be considered to be a suppletive form in the paradigm of *suz* ‘know’.

(98) nɔ̃w ma kũ-pe tci pú̃-wy-ṣuẓ me,
DEM apart.from SBJ:PCP-be.good also AOR-INV-know not.exist:FACT
mɔ̃-kũ-pe tci pú̃-wy-ṣuẓ me.
NEG-SBJ:PCP-be.good also AOR-INV-know not.exist:FACT
‘Apart from that, I don’t know about the good or the bad things [that the butterfly does].’ (26-qambalWla) {0003680#S51}

The verb *kactupa* ‘tell’, which presents a unique case of incorporation (§16.1.2.7, §20.13.1), only occurs in non-prefixed forms. Its paradigm is thus restricted to the
Factual Non-Past (the only tense without orientation preverb, §21.3.1.1), excluding second person forms (which always take a prefix, whether in the mixed or local domain), all inverse forms (which take the wy- inverse prefix) and non-finite forms (§16.7). Table 14.15 (from Jacques 2012d) presents the defective paradigm of *kъtupa* ‘tell’, with the regular stem III *kъtupe* in 1SG→3 and 3SG→3' forms, alongside that of *ndza* ‘eat’.

<table><caption>Table 14.15: Paradigm of the verb *kъtupa* ‘tell’</caption><thead><tr><th>Person</th><th>'to eat'</th><th>'to tell'</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1SG→3</td><td>ndze-a</td><td>kъtupe-a</td></tr><tr><td>1DU→3</td><td>ndza-tçi</td><td>kъtupa-tçi</td></tr><tr><td>1PL→3</td><td>ndza-j</td><td>kъtupa-j</td></tr><tr><td>2SG→3</td><td>tuu-ndze</td><td>XX</td></tr><tr><td>2DU→3</td><td>tuu-ndza-ndzi</td><td>XX</td></tr><tr><td>2PL→3</td><td>tuu-ndza-nuw</td><td>XX</td></tr><tr><td>3SG→3'</td><td>ndze</td><td>kъtupe</td></tr><tr><td>3DU→3'</td><td>ndza-ndzi</td><td>kъtupa-ndzi</td></tr><tr><td>3PL→3'</td><td>ndza-nuw</td><td>kъtupa-nuw</td></tr></tbody></table>

### 14.3.5 Transitive verbs with dummy subjects

A handful of transitive light verbs (*βzu* ‘make’ §22.4.2.1, *lъt* ‘release’ §22.4.2.2, *tъъt* ‘take out’ §22.4.2.3, *ndo* ‘take’ §22.4.2.4, *ta* ‘put’ §22.4.2.6 and *tsъой* ‘attach’) occur in the dummy subject construction, expressing natural phenomena, in particular meteorological ones.<fnref n="25" />

In this construction, the verb only has one overt (always singular) absolutive nominal argument. The only form of the paradigm is the direct 3SG→3' (§14.3.2.2), with Stem III alternation in non-past tenses as in (100), and C-type preverbs in Aorist as in (99), showing that the verb, despite its lack of ergatively-marked subject, is unambiguously transitive (§14.3.1).

(99) *tъne na-βzu*      *qъe pъu-me*      *cti.*

sun AOR:3→3'-make LNK IPFV-not.exist be.AFF:FACT

'It disappears when the sun appears.' (25-RmArYWG) {0003652#S35}

<footnote n="25">²⁵These dummy subjects, which cannot be realized, correspond to expletive pronouns in languages which require overt subjects.</footnote>
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(100) *u-taɣ ri kuɣ-wyrum ku-te, ku-kuɣ-ta ci
3SG.POSS-ON LOC SBJ:PCP-be.white IPFV-put[III] IPFV-SBJ:PCP-put INDEF
tu qʰe, numu li kʰuwum ŋu
exist:FACT LNK DEM again mold be:FACT
'A white thing grows on [meat that has been left to rot], there is
something that grows on it, this is also mold.' (20-sWrna) {0003564#S54}

The unique absolutive argument of this construction superficially resembles an object. However, in (100), note that the subject participle *ku-kuɣ-ta* ('(the thing) that grows (on it)' (§16.1.1.4) is used to relativize this argument instead of an object participle (§23.5.3.4) as would have been expected (see also §16.1.1.5).

Moreover, despite the unambiguous morphological transitivity of the verb, the ergative is strictly impossible on the noun, even in the case of personified natural forces. For instance, in the retellings of Aesop's story 'The North Wind and the Sun', although *akucʰole* 'east wind'<fnref n="26" /> occurs with the ergative with other verbs, and although here the North Wind is anthropomorphized and is described as blowing on purpose (to compete with the sun), the ergative is not accepted when the main verb is *βzu* 'make' as in (101).

(101) *akucʰoosle nʷ to-βzu tce rcanu,
east.wind DEM IFR-make LNK UNEXP:DEG
'The East (North) Wind blew.' (aesop feng he taiyang-zh)

In addition, the light verbs in this construction lack one of the seven morphological properties of transitive verbs (§14.3.1): they select dental infinitives instead of bare infinitives (§16.2.3). Compare for instance (102) where *βzu* 'make' occurs in the bare infinitive *tu-βzu* with (103), where the bare infinitive *u-βzu* is found instead, as *βzu* 'make' is in a plain transitive construction.

(102) *tyrtsa ku-ʷxti tsa tu-βzu to-za.
wave SBJ:PCP-be.big a.little INF:II-make IFR-start
'There started to be big waves [on the sea].' (140430 yufu he tade qizi-zh)
{0003900#S96}

(103) *tcendyre cʰa u-skýt u-βzu lo-za.
LNK alcohol 3SG.POSS-speech 3SG.POSS-BARE.INF:make IFR-start
'He started drunk-talking.' (150906 qingfeng-zh) {0006366#S60}

<footnote n="26">²⁶This term was chosen to translate ‘Northern Wind’.</footnote>
The list of the verbs which allow the dummy transitive subject construction is not closed. For instance the causative of *amym* ‘be homogeneous’, ‘be even’ occurs with the noun *tw-mw* ‘sky, weather’ in (104).

(104) *jisni tw-mw nwa kw-fse tʰa-su-ympym*
 today INDEF.POSS-sky DEM SBJ:PCP-be like AOR:3→3'-be.homogeneous
 *zo, tŋŋe tci mw-na-βzu, tw-mw tci*
 EMPH sun also NEG-AOR:3→3'-make INDEF.POSS-weather also
 *mw-ka-l*
 NEG-AOR:3→3'-release
 ‘Today the weather was uniform, there was neither sun nor rain.’
 (elicited)

## 14.4 Ditransitive verbs

Ditransitive verbs are trivalent verbs which follow the transitive conjugation (unlike trivalent semi-transitive verbs, §14.2.5). Both indirective and secundative transitive verbs are attested (Malchukov et al. 2010), and causative verbs deriving from monotransitive verbs also belong to this category.

### 14.4.1 Indirective

Most non-derived ditransitive verbs in Japhug are indirective. The theme is in the absolutive and is indexed as an object. The recipient either takes dative (§8.3.1) or genitive (§8.2.3.2) flagging, as in (105), or is encoded as a possessive prefix on the object.

(105) *kw-rɛrma ra nɔ-cki nɔtcu, nyki, kuxtco ci*
 SBJ:PCP-WORK PL 3PL.POSS-DAT DEM:LOC FILLER basket INDEF
 *z-jny-rŋo,*
 TRAL-IFR-borrow
 ‘[The leopard] borrowed a basket from the workers.’ (2002 qalakWcraq)

The indirective category can be divided into four semantic subgroups.

First, it comprises verbs of speech, such as *ti* ‘say’, *tʰu* ‘ask’, *ndzu* ‘accuse’ and *fɔɛt* ‘tell’, which mark the addressee with the dative.

Second, it includes verbs expressing gift or temporary transfer of objects such as *kʰo* ‘give’, ‘pass over’ (§12.2.2.3) and *pʰul* ‘offer’ and *rŋo* ‘borrow’ and *nyŋwu* ‘borrow’. The first two encode the source as their subject while their recipients
takes the dative case, whereas the latter encode the recipient as their subject,
and their source appear in the dative.

The two verbs translated as ‘borrow’ differ in that the former (*rŋo*) expresses
the lending of an object which can be returned in its original shape to the ori-
ginal owner, while the latter (*nɔŋgu*) is used with grain or money, for which an
equivalent amount is given back instead of the original object (which has pre-
sumably already been consumed).<sup>27</sup> In addition, verbs of manipulation such as
γut ‘bring’ and tsum ‘take away’ can optionally take a dative beneficiary and
convey a meaning similar to verbs of giving, as in example (106).

(106) tcendɛ̃re rpul u-pʰe la-tsum jui-ŋu,
LNK king 3SG.POSS-DAT AOR:3→3:UPSTREAM-take-away SENS-be
‘He brought[the shoe] to the king.’ (tWxtsa 2003)

Third, verbs expressing hitting or throwing can also be indirective, for instance
βde ‘throw’, and also lɛt ‘release’, which occurs in many light verb constructions
(§22.4).

Fourth, some verbs of manipulation have an obligatory indirect argument ex-
pressing the goal, in particular the verb rku ‘put in’ which selects the relator
noun u-ŋgu ‘inside’ (§8.3.4.4). For most verbs of manipulation the goal is op-
tional (§14.5.4).

The object of indirective verbs is nearly always third person, and local and in-
verse configurations are almost never attested (except for inverse generic forms,
§14.3.2.5). For instance in (§107), the recipient is 1SG (‘ask me’), but the verb tʰu
‘ask’ has the imperative 2SG→3 form (§21.4.2.1) because the non-overt theme cor-
responds to the questions that the adressee is about to ask, and using a 2→1
configuration here would be non-sensical.

(107) tɔ-tʰe jɔy
IMP-ask[III] be.allowed:FACT
‘Ask [me your questions]!’ (conversation, several attestations)

Local or inverse configurations are attested with indirective verbs of giving in
the corpus to refer to asking or giving a girl in marriage, as in (108), as this is the
most common situation when a human can occur as theme of a verb of this type.

<footnote n="27"><sup>27</sup>The meaning ‘lend’ is expressed with the corresponding causatives, see §14.4.3.</footnote>
(108) a-wa kw, turme yu u-rzaβ nú-wy-kʰo-a
1SG.POSS-father ERG person GEN 3SG.POSS-wife AOR-INV-give-1SG
cti ny
be.AFF:FACT SFP

'My father has offered me in marriage to someone.' (150828 liangshanbo
zhuyingtai-zh) {0006244#S157}

The only indirective verb of speech which is commonly used with a human theme is *ndʒu* ‘accuse’: the object and the dative argument correspond to the persons about whom and to whom one complains, respectively. For instance in (§109), the object is 2SG, and the dative argument a third person referrent.

(109) azo <laoshi> u-cki ta-ndʒu
1SG professor 3SG.POSS-DAT 1→2-accuse:FACT

'I will issue a complain against you to the professor.' (150826
liangshanbo zhuyingtai-zh) {0006244#S81}

Indirective verbs of manipulation can be used with animate or even human
objects, and do occur in local configurations, as in (§110).

(110) azo a-xtu u-ŋgw cʰu-ta-rku
1SG 1SG.POSS-belly 3SG.POSS-in IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-1→2-put.in
'I will put you in my belly.' (140505 xiaohaitu-zh) {0003921#S80}

14.4.2 Secundative

Secundative verbs have two absolutive arguments, one of which (the recipient) is indexed on the verb, and the other one (the theme) is not. The theme is a semi-object, and presents some objectal properties (§16.1.2.4, §23.5.4.2).

14.4.2.1 Inventory of secundative verbs

Most secundative verbs express temporary or permanent giving: mbi ‘give’ and
ctṣu ‘entrust with’. Since these verbs index the recipient, they commonly occur
in local configurations (§14.3.2.3), as in (§111).

(111) sumat k-kw-ctṣu-a
fruit AOR-2→1-entrust.with-1SG
‘You had left me [a jar of] fruit.’ (140516 yiguan ganlan-zh) {0004014#S73}
14 Person indexation and argument structure

The verb *mbi* ‘give’ can in addition take an essive adjunct (give as X, §8.1.7), as *nɛ́r-zoab* ‘your wife’ in (112); in this sentence the object (theme) is *a-me nu* ‘my daughter’.

(112) *a-me* *nw* *nɔ́-rzaβ* *pwo-ta-mbi* *ny*
1SG.POSS-daughter DEM 2SG.POSS-wife IPFV-1→2-give be:FACT

‘I will give you my daughter in marriage.’ (‘I will give her to you as your wife’) (140428 yonggan de xiaocaifeng-zh) {0003886#S164}

Most verbs of speech are indirecitive, but *suxɛ́t* ‘teach’ has secundative align-
ment (see example 146, §18.6.4). This verb is perhaps historically a causative
(§17.2.1.4), but it is not analyzable as such synchronically.

The similative verb *stu* ‘do like’ can also be considered to be secundative. It takes a semi-object designating the manner (generally a demonstrative), and its object refers to the entity (human, animal or inanimate) subjected to the action (with infinitival complement clauses however, there is no raising of the object from the complement, see §24.5.7) . In (113), this verb occurs in a 3DU→1SG con- figuration (§14.3.2.6), and takes as semi-object the demonstrative *nura* ‘these (things)’. In serial verb constructions, it occurs with transitive verbs, sharing the subject and the object of its counterpart, but taking an additional (generally de- monstrative) manner semi-object (§25.4.1.2).

(113) *a-pi* *ni kw nura t́-wy-stu-a-ndzi ndza*
1SG.POSS-elder.sibling DU ERG DEM:PL AOR-INV-do lik e-1SG-DU reason

cti ma,
be.AFF:FACT LNK

‘[This is because] my two brothers treated me like that.’ (2003 qachGa)
{0003372#S177}

14.4.2.2 The theme of secundative verbs

The theme of secundative verbs cannot be indexed, unlike that of indirecitive
verbs, and first or second person themes are not appropriate with the verb mbi
‘give’. To express meanings such as ‘X gave me/you to Y’, either an indirecitive
verb has to be used (see 108 above), or alternatively the antipassive form rymbi
‘give to someone’. This antipassive form is the only verb form in Japhug lacking
morphological transitivity (§14.3.1, §18.6.4) that can be used with inverse and
local person indexation, as shown by (114a) and (114b).
(114) a. a-wa kw aẓo nú-wy-r-y-mbi-a
1SG.POSS-father ERG 1SG AOR-INV-APASS-give-1SG
‘My father gave me away.’ (elicited)

b. n kw aẓo pny-kw-r-y-mbi-a
2SG ERG 1SG IFR-2→1-APASS-give-1SG
‘You gave me away (without me knowing).’ (elicited)

14.4.3 Causative of transitive verbs

The sigmatic causative is the only valency-increasing derivation in Japhug which
can be applied to transitive (unlike applicative §17.4 and tropative §17.5) verbs.
When the base verb is transitive, its causative form is ditransitive. I use the no-
tation *C*→*C*′→*P* to describe causative configurations with three participants: *C*
represents the causer (corresponding to the initiator of the causation, the argu-
ment that is added by the causative derivation), *C*′ the causee (corresponding to
the subject of the base verb) and *P* the patientive (corresponding to the object of
the base verb); for instance, if the base verb is ‘help’, a 1SG→3PL→2SG configura-
tion can be interpreted as ‘I made them help you.’

Lexicalized causatives are like underived secundative verbs, and index the re-
cipient as the object. This category includes *jtsʰi* ‘give to drink’, which derives
from the monotransitive verb *tsʰi* ‘drink’, and *curŋo* ‘lend’, which comes from the
indirective verb *rŋo* ‘borrow’ (see 120 below for a more detailed discussion on
this derivation).

Examples (115) and (120) illustrate the 2→1→3 configuration with the verbs *jtsʰi* ‘give to drink’ and *curŋo* ‘lend’, expressed in the same way as the local 2→1 configurations of a monotransitive verb (§14.3.2.3).

(115) a-ww
tu-ci
pwn-ku-j-tsʰi-tci
1SG.POSS-grandfather INDEF.POSS-water IPFV-2→1-CAUS-drink-1DU
ú-juŋ?
QU-be.allowed:FACT
‘Grandfather, could you give us water to drink?’ (nyima wodzer 2002)

In the case of non-lexicalized sigmatic causatives, the status of the causee is
more complex, since it can optionally receive ergative flagging (§8.2.2.6), and
cannot be relativized like an object (see §23.5.6). The direct object of such verbs
can also be relativized using constructions unavailable for the direct object of
monotransitive verbs (§23.5.3.3).
14 Person indexation and argument structure

In addition, unlike secundative verbs, triactantial causatives can either index
the causee or the argument corresponding to the object of the base verb, depend-
ing on their person: if the causee or object is first or second person, and the other
argument is third person, the first or second person will be indexed regardless of
its syntactic function.

For instance, all three examples (116), (117) and (118) show 2→1 indexation, but the first two has a 2→3→1 configuration, and index the patientive argument as the object, while the last one is an instance of a 2→1→3 configuration, and it indexes the causee as object (see also §17.2.4 and 25, §8.1.7 for additional examples of the same type). The prevalence of first and second persons over third persons in this context might support the person hierarchy (66a) postulated in (§14.3.2.8).

(116) azo tw-mw kw pw-kw-sw-χtci-a, tyndzo nw!
1SG INDEF.POSS-weather ERG AOR-2→1-CAUS-wash-1SG cold SFP
‘You caused me to be drenched by the rain, it is so cold!’ (2014-kW1AG)

(117) nzyzo ty-ndze ma alo ma-ly-tw-tswm ma
2SG IMP-eat[III] LNK upstream NEG-IMP:UPSTREAM-2-take-away LNK
tʰa li kw-sw-ьndw-a
later again 2→1-CAUS-hit-1SG
‘Eat it, don’t take it up there, you would cause me to be beaten again.’
(2003-kWBRa)

(118) azo cyrw pw-kw-z-nuntsʰo-a
1SG meat IPFV-2→1-CAUS-eat-1SG
‘You make me eat the bones.’ (2014-kW1AG)

While indexation is ambiguous in such cases, ergative flagging helps distin-
guish between 2→3→1 and 2→1→3 configurations: the ergative is present on the
causee in (116), and absent on the patientive argument in (118) (see also §8.2.2.6).

Configurations with both causee and patientive argument being first or second person (3→2→1 and 3→1→2) are not attested in the corpus,<fnref n="28" /> and are not easy to elicit. The elicited examples (119a) and (119b) show that 3→1→2 and 3→2→1 configurations are expressed using mixed 3→1 and 3→2 forms, respectively. In other words, the causee is indexed as object, and the patientive argument is not indexed.

<footnote n="28">²⁸See however (121) below, quadrivalent configuration with a second person beneficiary in the dative and 3SG→1SG verb indexation.</footnote>
(119) a. wżo kw nżo pú-wy-su-mto-a
3SG ERG 2SG IPFV-INV-CAUS-see-1SG
‘He made me see you.’ (3SG→1SG→2SG, elicited)

b. wżo kw ażo pw-tú-wy-su-mto
3SG ERG 1SG AOR-2-INV-CAUS-see
‘He made you see me.’ (3SG→2SG→1SG elicited)

The causative derivation of indirective verbs has several different effects on argument structure. In the case of the lexicalized causative *ɛwriŋo* ‘lend’, the relationship between its three arguments and those of the base verb *rïŋo* ‘borrow’ can be summarized as follows (compare 120 with 105 in §14.4.1).

• The subject of *rïŋo* ‘borrow’, the receiving person, corresponds to the object of *ɛwriŋo* ‘lend’.

• The object of *rïŋo*, the thing that is borrowed, corresponds to the semi-object of *ɛwriŋo* ‘lend’.

• The dative oblique argument of *rïŋo*, the giving person, corresponds to the subject of *ɛwriŋo* ‘lend’, which is semantically both causer and source.

(120) wortci hi zo, ny-χsrzaŋ pwr-ku-cu-rno-j
please EMPH 2SG.POSS-magicalobject IPFV-2→1-CAUS-borrow-1PL
‘Please, lend us you magical object.’ (2005 Kunbzang)

This ‘invasive’ causative derivation reverses the direction of the borrowing action and modifies the argument structure and the alignment (indirective to secundative) without adding any new referent, by merging the source and causer roles, interpreting *ɛwriŋo* as ‘Xᵢ causes Y to borrow Z from himselfᵢ’. Other cases of this type of ‘invasive’ causative are presented in §17.2.5.7.

For most indirective verbs however, recipients and beneficiaries are marked with the dative and/or with a coreferent possessive prefix. Thus, the causative derivation does turn them into absolutive patientive arguments. For instance, the beneficiary of the verb *suyut* ‘send, cause to bring’ is in the dative as that of its base verb *yut* ‘bring’, as shown by (121), where dative marking on the 2SG is obligatory.
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(121) az̥o a-βdaɣpu nʷ kʷ pjγ-nʷmto tce tcendγre nγ-cki
1SG 1SG.POSS-master DEM ERG IFR-find LNK LNK 2SG.POSS-DAT
j-wγ-sʷ-yʷt-a nγ̥ tce,
AOR-INV-CAUS-bring-1SG be:FACT LNK

'My master found it and sent me to bring it to you.' (140513 qianshang he
xiaotou-zh) {0003979#S65}

14.4.4 Causative of semi-transitive verbs

Causative verbs derived from semi-transitive ones (§14.2.3) show secundative alignment: the causee is treated as object, and the semi-object of the base verb as an absolutive oblique, not indexed on the verb. For instance, the causative *sɣrmi* 'give a name' (§17.2.2.7) of the verb *rmi* 'be called' selects the entity to which a name is given as direct object, the 1PL in example (122).

(122) sɣrndzu cʰo tatsʰi ra kʷ sɣŋu-pʷ tu-nʷ-ti-nʷ tce,
TOPO COMIT TOPO PL ERG pl.p-person.from IPFV-AUTO-say-PL LNK
kʷdурγγt ra sɣŋu-pʷ tú-wγ-sγrmi-j nγ.
TOPO PL TOPO-person.from IPFV-INV-give.name-1PL be:FACT

'Those from Gsar-rdzong and Da-tshang say 'Sangu people', they name
us, [those] of Gdong-brgyad, 'Sangu people'." (23-tCAphW) {0003614#S1}

14.5 Labile verbs

Most Japhug verbs strictly follow either the intransitive, or the transitive conjugations, and voice alternations such as causative (§17.2, §17.3), applicative (§17.4) and antipassive (§18.6) are needed to change their valency. A limited number of labile verbs are compatible with both conjugations; three groups can be distinguished: plain labile, labile with oblique arguments and labile with semi-object.

14.5.1 Transitive-intransitive labile verbs

14.5.1.1 Morphosyntactic properties

Plain labile verbs are compatible with both the intransitive and the transitive conjugations. When conjugated intransitively, they only have one argument (no semi-object or oblique argument). When conjugated transitively (following the features in §14.3.1), their subject corresponds to the intransitive subject, and the added argument is the object, except for a handful of examples (§14.5.1.4).
Compare for instance the intransitive and transitive use of the verb *ßlu* ‘burn’ in (123). In the (123a), the verb has 1SG indexation, and since it lacks the 12SG→3 past -t suffix (§14.3.2.1), cannot be a transitive verb form (§14.3.1). This intransitive verb form cannot take an object, and means ‘make a fire’. In (123b), the verb has the -t suffix and is therefore a 1SG→3 transitive configuration (§14.3.2.1), and can take an overt object (here *smi* ‘fire’, but it can also occur with a noun referring to the object being burned).

(123) a. *ty-ßlu-a*
AOR-burn-1SG
‘I made a fire’. (elicited; 1SG:INTR)

b. *smi ty-ßlu-t-a*
fire AOR-burn-PST:TR-1SG
‘I made a fire’. (elicited; 1SG→3)

Table 14.16 gives additional examples of labile verbs with open syllable stems in transitive and intransitive conjugations.

<table><caption>Table 14.16: Aorist 1SG(→3) of labile verbs</caption><thead><tr><th>Verb</th><th>Intransitive form</th><th>Transitive form</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>ßlu 'burn'</td><td>ty-ßlu-a</td><td>ty-ßlu-t-a</td></tr><tr><td>ßlu 'plough'</td><td>ty-ßlu-a</td><td>ty-ßlu-t-a</td></tr><tr><td>fci 'forge'</td><td>t<sup>h</sup>u-f<sup>ci</sup>-a</td><td>t<sup>h</sup>u-f<sup>ci</sup>-t-a</td></tr><tr><td>murku 'steal'</td><td>ty-murku-a</td><td>ty-murku-t-a</td></tr><tr><td>numbr<sup>ypu</sup> 'ride'</td><td>ty-numbr<sup>ypu</sup>-a</td><td>ty-numbr<sup>ypu</sup>-t-a</td></tr><tr><td>n<sup>ym</sup>no 'watch'</td><td>k<sup>ry</sup>-n<sup>ym</sup>no-a</td><td>k<sup>ry</sup>-n<sup>ym</sup>no-t-a</td></tr></tbody></table>

All criteria listed in §14.3.1 (when applicable) are congruent to distinguish between the transitive and intransitive forms of labile verbs; Table 14.17 presents the application of the seven tests to the verb *ßlu* ‘burn’.
14 Person indexation and argument structure

<table><caption>Table 14.17: Transitivity tests</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th>Intransitive form</th><th>Transitive form (with smi 'fire' as object)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>C-type preverb, AOR:3SG(→3')</td><td>tx-βlu</td><td>ta-βlu</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>Stem III, IPFV:3SG(→3')</td><td>tu-βlu</td><td>tu-βli</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>Dental/bare INF</td><td>tu-βlu (to-%a)</td><td>u-βlu (to-%a)</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>Subject participle</td><td>ku-βlu</td><td>u-ku-βlu</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>-t suffix, AOR:1SG(→3)</td><td>tx-βlu-a</td><td>tx-βlu-t-a</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>Progressive</td><td>nu-βlu</td><td>nu-γsu-βlu</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>Generic</td><td>tu-ku-βlu</td><td>tú-wy-βlu</td></tr></tbody></table>

Tests 2 and 5 are not operational with verbs whose stem ends in close syllable, but at least test 1 (in the case of *taʿ* ‘weave’ in 124) is always applicable. Some la- bile verbs can even be used with the non-periphrastic Past Imperfective (§21.5.3), as in (124a). The presence or absence of the ergative on third person overt sub- jects is also a useful confirmation of the valency of the verb; for instance, in (124a) the subject *tcʿheme* ‘girl’ lacks ergative marking, confirming the fact that *taʿ* ‘weave’ is used here intransitively.

(124) a. *tcʿheme ci pwr-taʿ* *pwr-ηu*,
    girl INDEF PST.IPFV-weave SENS-be
    ‘A girl was weaving.’ (tWxsta2003)

b. *numu muntoʿ nui tʰa-taʿ* *tce*,
    DEM flower DEM AOR:3→3’-weave LNK
    ‘[When] he wove this pattern, ...’ (150825 huluwa) {0006346#S95}

For verbs whose objects cannot be human for semantic reasons, test 7 (as in 125) can also be used to distinguish between intransitive and transitive uses;<fnref n="29" /> if the object can be human, then testing for local configurations (§14.3.2.3) is possible.

(125) a. *cui* *pú-wy-pʰui*, *tu-ku-elu*,
    stone IPFV-INV-take.out IPFV-INV-plough
    ‘One has to take out the stones, to plough,’ (2010-10)

<footnote n="29">²⁹Otherwise, a generic *ku*-* could be generic object, see §14.3.2.5.</footnote>
b. *tw-ji* *nú* *lú-wy-clu* *tce*
INDEF.Poss-field DEM IPFV-INV-plough LNK
'One ploughs the fields, and...' (2002-tWsqar)

14.5.1.2 Classification of labile verbs

In addition to those in Table 14.16, the following verbs are labile: *yndzur* ‘grind’,
*lɣ* ‘graze’, *nbraš* ‘loosen the earth’, *ntšu* ‘weed with a hoe’, *nvre* ‘laugh’, *nuyɣja*
‘talk back, oppose’, *nukʰɣja* ‘talk back, oppose’, *nuprobma* ‘imitate’, *rŋu* ‘parch’,
*sulašrdγβ* ‘kick (kick with forelegs)’, *suqartsu* ‘kick’, *suso* ‘think’, *taš* ‘weave’, *tɣβ*
‘thresh’.

The majority of plain labile verbs denote actions modifying the substance or
shape of a material (*yndzur* ‘grind’, *clu* ‘plough’ etc), in particular activities related
to agriculture and traditional trades. When used intransitively, these verbs do not
specify any object, and generally express atelic actions. For instance in (124a), *pu-
taš* means ‘do weaving’, without intrinsic endpoint and without reference to a
particular piece of cloth.

Another category of labile verbs express action negatively affecting people (such as *nuyɣja* ‘talk back, oppose’ etc), some with animal subjects (*sulašrdγβ* ‘kick (kick with forelegs)’ etc). These verbs take humans as objects in the transitive conjugation;<fnref n="30" /> when used intransitively, they express a general propensity of the subject to do these negative actions.

The perception verb *mto* ‘see’ also has an intransitive stative use, meaning ‘have sharp eyesight’, taking the noun *tw-mpaš* ‘eye’ as subject, and expressing the experiencer as subject possessor). Example (126) shows that the verb *mto* is conjugated intransitively (without stem III alternation, otherwise *pua*-**mtm** ‘he sees it’ would be expected). Some verbs derived from the root *mto*, such as the velar causative **γmto** ‘cause to recover eyesight’ (§17.3.3.2), come from this stative intransitive use rather than the more common transitive one.

(126) *u-mpaš* *nú* *wuma* *pua*-mto *pua-ša* *pua*-ŋu nšma,
3SG.Poss-eye DEM really SENS-be.sharp SENS-be.strong SENS-be SFP
‘The [eagle] has a sharp eyesight.’ 140522 Kamnyu zgo, 226
{0004059#S216}

<footnote n="30">³⁰The verb *murku* ‘steal’, though adversely affecting the persons whose possession are stolen, does not belong to this category since it takes the possession as object, not the victim of the theft.</footnote>
14.5.1.3 Accusative lability

Most labile verbs in intransitive use have a meaning and syntactic function remi-
niscent of antipassive (§18.6) derivations, and share with them the ability to take
the non-periphrastic Past Imperfective *pu*-(§18.6.6). Nevertheless, it is unclear
whether the transitive use of labile verbs is primary; one could also consider
the intransitive use to be the basic function, and compare their transitive use
to the Applicative derivation (§17.4) instead. Since the alignment of the subjects
between the transitive and intransitive uses of these verbs follows nominative-
accusative, it is referred to as ‘accusative lability’ in this work.<fnref n="31" />

Two plain labile verbs, *nɛrɛ* ‘laugh’ and *suso* ‘think’, have an antipassive form.<fnref n="32" />
These two verbs also differ from other labile verbs in having idiosyncratic seman-
tic differences in their intransitive and transitive uses.

The verb *nɛrɛ* ‘laugh’ is a denominal verb deriving from the inalienable noun *tɛr-ɛr* ‘laugh (n)’. In its transitive use ‘laugh at, mock’, it encodes the stimulus as direct object. Both the intransitive meaning and the transitive one are well-attested functions of the *nu-/nɛr-* denominal prefix: parallel examples include *nɛvɑv* ‘have a good time’ (from *tɛr-va>v* ‘good time’, §20.7.1) for the intransitive use of *nɛr-* and *nɛvmbruu* ‘get angry with’ (from *tɛr-mbruu* ‘anger’, §20.7.2) for it transitive use. Therefore, the most likely way to account for the lability of *nɛrɛ* is to posit that it represents the conflation of two denominal derivations from the same base noun.

The antipassive form *sɛnɛrɛ* ‘laugh at people’ is semantically connected with
the meaning of the transitive use, and semantically quite different from the in-
transitive use of *nɛrɛ* ‘laugh’.

The intransitive use of *suso* ‘think’ is restricted to the meaning ‘in X’s opinion’,
as in (127),<fnref n="33" /> and has no semantic overlap with the antipassive *rususo* ‘think’,
‘ponder’ (128).<fnref n="34" />

(127) tce nɔaj pjʊ-sʊso-a tce nɔnɔ tɔ-tu>pʰu pʊ-ŋu-ndʒi tce
L NK D EM 1SG IPFV-think-1SG L NK D EM one-species SENS-be-DU L NK
‘In my opinion, these two [animals belong to] the same species.’
(20-ldWGi) {0003558#S43}

<footnote n="31">³¹The term ‘agent-preserving lability’ is less felicitous, since the subjects of labile verbs are not always agents.</footnote>

<footnote n="32">³²This feature is shared with the semi-transitive labile verb *sɛrŋo* ‘listen’ see §14.5.3. On the other hand, no labile verb is compatible with applicative derivation.</footnote>

<footnote n="33">³³The intransitivity of *suso* ‘think’ in (127) is shown by the absence of Stem III, which would be expected in the Imperfective 1SG→3 (§21.2.1). Note that the orientation *DOWNWARDS* is selected, instead of *WESTWARDS* in the transitive use (§15.1.5.2).</footnote>

<footnote n="34">³⁴Note that this antipassive form is irregular, §18.6.1.</footnote>
(128) pjw-rw-suso ny pjw-rw-suso tce,
IPFV-APASS-think ADD IPFV-APASS-think LNK
'He thought about it over and over.' (02-deluge2012) {0003376#S60}

In the case of *suso* 'think', it appears that the very restricted intransitive use
is derived from the transitive one.

14.5.1.4 Ergative lability

A handful of labile verbs have ergative (or passive-like) lability: the subject of the verb when used intransitively corresponds to its object when used transitively.

The clearest example is provided by the denominal verb *нішьJOB* from *нішьJOB* ‘servant’, which means ‘give orders to’ in transitive use (from ‘treat as a servant’, §20.7.2), and ‘work as a servant’ in intransitive use. In (129), the transitive *нішьJOB* shares its subject and object with causativized verbs, while in (130) the intransitive subject of *нішьJOB* has the same referent as the subject of *z-ηω-nyme*, as shown by the presence of a translocative echo (§15.2.8.2) on both verbs (which cannot target the direct object, §15.2.2).

(129) tcʰeme nɔ̃ tce tce ω-kʰa nɔ̃tcu ko-z-r tce,
girl DEM LNK LNK 3SG.POSS-house DEM:LOC IFR-CAUS-stay LNK
pɔ̃-nɔ̃шьJOB tu-z-ryme pjɣ-ŋu.
IPFV-give.orders IPFV-CAUS-work[III] IFR.IPFV-be
'The witch kept the girl in the house, and gave her orders and put her to
work.' (140507 tangguowu-zh) {0003933#S107}

(130) sŋi qʰe z-ŋu-nɔ̃шьJOB tce kwa ra nɔ̃-ma
day LNK TRAL-IPFV-work.as.servant LNK noble PL 3PL.POSS-work
z-ŋu-nyme
TRAL-IPFV-do.work[III]

'In the day, he would work as a servant, and do work for the nobles.'
(150828 donglang) {0006312#S10}

Since the *nɔ̃-/nɣ-* denominal prefixes occur with similar meanings ('treat as X' and 'become/serve as X') on other base nouns (see §20.7.1 and §20.7.2), the lability of *nɔ̃шьJOB* can be accounted for by assuming a conflation of two homophonous denominal derivations from the same base noun, as in the case *nɣre* 'laugh' discussed above (§14.5.1.3). The fact that double denominal derivation yields acusative lability in one case and ergative lability in the other is a consequence
14 Person indexation and argument structure

of the high diversity of meanings associated with the hyper-productive *nuu-/nux-* prefix (§20.7).

The other examples of ergative lability are highly lexicalized, and the transitive vs. intransitive functions have to be treated as different lexical entries synchronically.

The intransitive *ri* ‘remain’ ‘be left’ (131) (see also 87, §7.3.3.3) is related to the transitive homophonous verb root *ri*, which is exclusively found in collocation with *tuu-sroov* ‘life’ (§22.4.3.2) in the meaning ‘save X’s live’ (132). The entity whose life is spared is encoded as subject of the intransitive *ri*, and as possessor of the object *tuu-sroov* of transitive *ri* (see also 7, §9.1.1.1).

(131) *uu-tew* **wnwz nuu pjy-si**, *tuu-rdoov nuu jny-ri* qʰe
3SG.POSS-SON TWO DEM IFR-die one-piece DEM IFR-remain LNK
‘Two of her sons died, and one remained [alive].’ (Gesar 2003)

(132) *a-sroov kyy-tuu-ri-t*
1SG.POSS-life AOR-2-save-PST:TR
‘You saved my life.’ (150906 qingfeng-zh) {0006366#S109}

Given the more specific meaning of transitive *ri*, it is more likely that it derives from intransitive *ri* rather than the other way round. A further piece of evidence in favour of this hypothesis is the irregular causative *bri* ‘protect’, which also appears to derive from the intransitive *ri* ‘remain’ (§17.3.1). The relationship between intransitive *ri*, transitive *ri* and causative *bri* is purely historical. These three verbs are synchronically completely distinct, and select different orientation preverbs (WESTWARDS, EASTWARDS and UPWARDS, respectively).

The verb *pa* ‘do’ is one of the most common verbs in Japhug, with a wide range of meanings including ‘close (door)’, ‘become (friend, spouses)’ and ‘discuss’ (§22.4.2.5). It selects not only nouns, but also infinitive complements as objects (§24.5.2).

Two intransitive verbs with the same root form *pa*, but only attested in 3SG, also exist: the verb *pa* ‘pass X years’, which selects as subject a numeral referring to a number of years (see example 118, §22.4.1.4 and the discussion in §7.3.1.7), and the light verb *pa* used as light verb with ideophones (§10.1.7.1). Both of these functions are derivable from the meaning ‘do’ of the transitive verb (§7.3.4.3, §22.4.2.5). The conversion to the intransitive conjugation may have occurred through third person ambiguous forms in a dummy subject construction (§14.3.5).
The discussion above shows that in the cases of ergative lability, either the intransitive verb (*ri* ‘remain’) or the transitive one (*pa* ‘do’) can potentially be the primary form, with transitivization or intransitivization by zero-derivation due to reanalysis in ambiguous contexts (on this topic, see also §12.2.2.3).

14.5.2 Transitive-intransitive labile verbs with oblique arguments

The verb *rpu* ‘bump into’ is also labile, but unlike the previous verbs, it selects an argument with the relator noun *u-taъ* ‘on, above’ (§8.3.4.3), corresponding to the person or object that the subject knocks/bumps into, as in (133).

(133) *u-zmbru* n<u>u</u>n<u>u</u> [...] r<u>y</u>mts<u>h</u>u y<u>u</u> u-ŋgw r<u>ŋ</u>gw
3SG.POSS-boat DEM sea GEN 3SG.POSS-in boulder
<u>tu-ku</u>-n<u>u</u>-t<u>o</u>к n<u>u</u> u-taъ ko-rpu.
IPFV-SBJ:PCP-AUTO-come.out DEM 3SG.POSS-on IFR-bump
‘His boat ran on a reef (a boulder coming out of the sea).’ (150830 baihe
jieme-zh) {0006368#S234}

When used transitively, *rpu* ‘bump into’ takes an object corresponding to the body parts suffering the impact (134, with the 12SG→3 past -t suffix), while in its intransitive use as in (135) no body part is specified.

(134) *a-ku* kw<u>m</u> u-taъ k<u>y</u>-n<u>u</u>-rpu-t-a
1SG;POSS-head door 3SG.POSS-on AOR-AUTO-bump.into-PST:TR-1SG
‘I bumped my head against the [top frame of the] door.’ (elicited)

(135) maka zo m<u>u</u>-k<u>y</u>-rpu-a tce m<u>u</u>-t<u>y</u>-n<u>w</u>yma<u>z</u>-a
AT ALL EMPH NEG-AOR-bump. into-1SG LNK NEG-AOR-be.wounded-1SG
‘I did not hit [the bottom] and was not injured.’ (150824 kelaosi-zh)
{0006276#S179}

When transitively conjugated, *rpu* ‘bump into’ does not have a causative mean-
ing ‘cause X to bump into Y’ (the causative *su*-*rpu* is used for this meaning). Al-
though one could be tempted to translate *rpu* ‘bump into’ in this way in examples
like (136) (‘I caused my bracelet to knock on the tripod’), here the bracelet, which
is worn on the body, is construed as an extended part of the body (note the autive,
which conveys both the meaning of non-volitionality and of action affecting the
subject, §19.1.3, §19.1.4).
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(136) az̥o a-zgrov sqʰi w-taɣ ku-nu-rpe-a
1SG 1SG.POSS-bracelet tripod 3SG.POSS-on IPFV-AUTO-bump[III]-1SG
ndza cti
reason be.AFF:FACT

‘This is because [I accidentally made] my bracelet slang against the tripod.’ (tWxtsa 2003)

14.5.3 Semi-transitive labile verbs

The verb *sɣŋo* ‘listen’ can be conjugated transitively or intransitively, but selects a semi-object in the second case. In addition, its meaning and the orientation preverbs it selects are different depending on its valency.

In the intransitive conjugation, *sɣŋo* means ‘listen’ and selects the orientation ‘towards west’, as in (137) (without Stem III alternation). In (138), it occurs with the semi-object *u-sk*.

(137) nu-svŋo je
IMP-listen SFP
‘Listen!’ (140516 guowang halifa-zh) {0004008#S71}

(138) pyγvnaɣ nuwu u-skvt pwo-ku-svŋo tce
pheasant DEM 3SG.POSS-voice IPFV-GENR:S/O-listen LNK
saχsvl ma kx-mto rkun
be.obvious:FACT a.part.from OBJ:PCP-see be.rare:FACT

‘The pheasant, one can recognize its presence by listening to its voice, but it is rarely seen.’ (23-pGAYaR) {0003606#S32}

This verb can also take a complement clause as semi-object, and can refer to perceptions other than hearing, as in (139) (see also §15.1.5.9).

(139) ny-ŋga pu-rtaɣ ci muij-rtaɣ ku nu-svŋo
2SG.POSS-clothes SENS-be.enough QU NEG:SENS-be.enough SFP IMP-listen
‘Make sure (literally ‘feel whether’) you have enough clothes.’ (elicited)

With transitive valency, *sɣŋo* selects the orientation ‘towards east’, and means ‘obey, listen to’, as in (140).<fnref n="35" />

<footnote n="35">³⁵In example (140), the C-type orientation preverb shows that the verb is transitive (§14.3.1).</footnote>
(140) tce a-mu a-wa ra ka-syŋo tce
LNK 1SG.POSS-mother 1SG.POSS-father PL AOR:3→3'-obey LNK
ly-ari tce,
AOR:UPSTREAM-go[II] LNK

'He listened to my parents and went there.' (14-siblings) {0003508#S196}

The transitive *syŋo* has an antipassive form *sysoŋo* 'listen to advice' as in (141), which is not labile, unlike its base verb.

(141) <xiaoqian> nchwuma zo tcʰeme pchw-pe,
ANTHR DEM really EMPH girl SENS-be.good
chw-sy-syŋo,
SENS-APASS:HUM-listen

'Xiaoqian is a very nice girl, she is obedient.' (150907 niexiaoqian-zh)
{0006262#S156}

Another type of labile semi-transitive verb is *rga*, which can either be semi-
transitive or intransitive stative (without semi-object). It means ‘like’ when semi-
transitive as in (142), with a meaning close to its own applicative derivation
(§17.4.1), and ‘be happy’ when stative intransitive, as in (143).

(142) icqʰa twmpa nchw cʰa pjy-rga qʰe
the.aforementioned arrow DEM alcohol IFR.IPFV-like LNK
'[Gesar's] arrows like [to drink] alcohol.' (Gesar)

(143) kzymi ni wuma zo pjy-rga-ndzi.
husband.and.wife DU really EMPH IFR.IPFV-be.happy-DU
'The husband and his wife were very happy.' (140506 woju guniang-zh)
{0003929#S10}

**14.5.4 Ditransitive-monotransitive lability**

There are two subtypes of ditransitive-monotransitive lability in Japhug: secundative-monotransitive and indirective-monotransitive.

Monotransitive-secundative lability is illustrated by verbs such as *cyzyz* 'give back', *fsuy* 'repay (gratitude)' and *syja* 'give back': they index as object either the recipient or the theme, as shown by examples (144a) and (144b).<fnref n="36" />

<footnote n="36">³⁶The autive is optional in (144b).</footnote>
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(144) a. *ny-tṣwnln̥* *p̥u-ta-fswy ra
2SG.POSS-gratitude IPFV-1→2-repay be.needed:FACT
'I have to return the favour.' (150827 tianluo-zh) {0006250#S138}

b. *ny-tṣwnln̥* *p̥u-nw-fswy-a*
2SG.POSS-gratitude IPFV-AUTO-repay-1SG
'I will return the favour.' (elicited, adapted from example 144a)

Indirective-monotransitive lability is more common: this phenomenon refers to verbs which optionally take an oblique goal argument similar to that of intransitive verbs (§14.2.4). Typical examples include allative verbs of manipulation (§15.1.2.2) such as *yut* 'bring' or *tsum* 'take away', which are often found with absolutive or locative postpositional phrases expressing the goal of the motion as in (145), but also commonly occur without any locative argument (146).

(145) *r[.]xlp̥u n̥u ku̥ t̥uwrca kʰa w̥-ŋgw jó-wy-tṣu̥m-ndzi*
king DEM ERG together house 3SG.POSS-in IFR-INV-take-away-DU
'The king brought them together into a house.' (140505 liuhaohan
zoubian tianxia-zh) {0003913#S140}

(146) *ju[.]ymu̥r ndyre ny-rca tu-kw-tṣu̥m-a*
this.evening LNK 2SG.POSS-following IPFV:UP-2→1-take-away-1SG
ra
be.needed:FACT
'This evening, take me with you [to heaven].' (07-deluge) {0003426#S47}

14.6 Additional questions on the generic and number
indexation

The previous sections focused on person and number indexation in relation to verb argument structure. This section discusses some properties of number and generic indexation that are observed on both intransitive and transitive verbs.

14.6.1 Agreement mismatch

This section investigates various types of mismatch between person indexation
on the verb and nominal and pronominal elements in the clause: optional num-
ber indexation, honorific plural, partitive indexation and the interaction between
first person and generic person. There are two additional types of indexation mis-
match not discussed here: hybrid indirect speech (§24.2.5.2), and affixal chains
in bipartite verbs (§11.6.3).
14.6.1.1 Optional number indexation

The default situation in Japhug is for the third person core arguments to be in-
dexed in number on the verb in intransitive or non-local configurations (the num-
ber of the subject in direct configurations, and that of the object in inverse con-
figurations, §14.3.2.2). This is the case in particular in series of verbs sharing the
same subject, as in example (147) with dual (3DU→3' or 3DU intransitive) indexa-
tion on five verbs in a row, referring to the same pair of persons.

(147) tcendsre <yinliao> to-nw-ndo-ndzi, kxndza ra to-nw-ndo-ndzi qʰe,
LNK drink IFR-AUTO-take-DU food PL IFR-AUTO-take-DU LNK
qrγŋgγy w-tʰycu tce, to-nwna-ndzi qhe,
TOPO 3SG.POSS-downstream LOC IFR-rest-DU LNK
pγ-nγmpole-ndzi qʰe, tce ko-nw-yi-ndzi
IFR-do.sightseeing-DU LNK LNK IFR:EAST-VERT-come-DU
'The two of them took with them drinks and food, and rested and did
sightseeing further down from Qrangak, and then came back.'
(conversation 140510)

However, non-singular third person core arguments do not necessarily trigger number indexation in all cases. Several syntactic, semantic and discourse factors interfere with number indexation.

With existential verbs, number indexation of the subject is nearly always ob-
served in the case of human referents in the existential construction, even in the
case of collective nouns without number markers, such as the counted noun tu-
tupu 'one household' in (148). Dual or plural indexation is generally observed
when the subject has a numeral modifier, as in (149).

(148) umumutcu tu-tupu pjγ-tu-nw
DEM:LOC ONE-household IFR.IPFV-exist-PL
‘there was one household there.’ (140512 yufu yu mogui-zh) {0003973#S3}

(149) kγndzi-xtγy χswm pjγ-tu-nw
COLL-brother three IFR.IPFV-exist-PL
‘There were three brothers.’ (31-deluge) {0004077#S7}

On the other hand, with inanimate referents, number indexation is rarely ob-
served. In (150) for instance, no dual indexation is found on the verb despite the
numeral bnuw 'two'.
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(150) *numweri tsʰyko*   *bncwz tu.*
DEM:LOC stone.mount two exist:FACT
‘There are two stone mounts there.’ (140522 Kamnyu zgo)
{0004059#S133}

In the possessive construction (§8.2.3.1, §22.5.2), however, the subject of existential verbs (the possessum) rarely triggers number indexation, even in the case of human referents: compare for instance in (151) the first verb form *pjγ-tu-ndzi* (existential construction with dual indexation) vs. the second one *pjγ-tu* (possessive construction with plural possessum, no indexation).

(151) *kwcwngw tce, bzymi*   *ci pjγ-tu-ndzi tce,*
long.ago LOC husband.and.wife INDEF IFR.IPFV-exist-DU LNK
*ndzi-tcw χswm pjγ-tu.*
3DU.P POSS-son three IPFV.IPFV-exist
‘Long ago, there was a husband and his wife, and they had three sons.’
(140430 jin e-zh) {0003893#S2}

With dynamic verbs, as in the existential construction, core arguments generally triggers number indexation when they have animate referents. This is in particular the case with the adverb *tuturca* ‘together’ (§8.3.2), even to describe group actions where all individuals act exactly in the same way as in (152).

(152) *tce ly-zo-nw*   *kuny tuturca lu-zo-nw,*
LNK AOR:UPSTREAM-land-PL also together IPFV:UPSTREAM-land-PL
*tʰu-nuwqambwmbjom-nw kuny tuturca cʰu-nuwqambwmbjom-nw,*
AOR:DOWNSTREAM-fly-PL also together IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-fly-PL
‘When they land they all land together, when they fly they all fly
together.’ (24-qro) {0003626#S9}

Number indexation is optional with *tuturca* ‘together’ in the case of inanimate referents (including plants). Examples (153a) and (153b) from the same text shows verb forms with and without plural indexation in the same context (referring to a species of mushroom).

(153) a. *tuturca ku-dw-dn*   *tu-łow-nw*   *ŋu.*
together SBJ:PCP-EMPH~be.many IPFV-come.out-PL be:FACT
‘They grow together in great numbers.’ (21-jmAGni) {0003572#S78}
14.6 Additional questions on the generic and number indexation

b. ku-du~dn zo tuta~ca tu-to~ nu.

SBJ:PCP-EMPH~be.many EMPH together IPFV-come.out be:FACT

‘They grow together in great numbers.’ (21-jmAGni) {0003572#S80}

Optional number indexation is however also attested, though uncommon, with
dynamic verbs in reference to humans, as in (154), where verb ‘die’ occurs with-
out plural indexation in its first occurrence (just after a possessive construction,
where indexation on the existential verb tx-tu is not found either), and with the
plural suffix -nw in the second occurrence.

(154) ur-rjit kungut ty-tu ri, ku~t~y n~u-si. ku~t~y
3SG.POSS-child nine AOR-exist LNK six AOR-die six
n~u-si-n~u qhe
AOR-die-PL LNK

'She had nine children, but six [of them] died. Six died, and...'
(14-siblings) {0003508#S16}

The conditions for optional number indexation of human referents with dy-
namic verbs are not completely clear. Absence of number indexation is rare in
intransitive and direct forms, and may be due in part to speech errors (§14.6.1.5).

With generic human subjects, the indexation of the number of the object,
though attested (§14.3.2.5), is not common. For instance in (155), despite an overt
dual object, the verb lacks number indexation.

(155) kxndzi-bi ni s-cʰúr-wy-qru nu
COLL-sibling DU TRAL-IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-INV-welcome be:FACT
‘Let’s invite the two brothers down here.’ (Nyima wodzer2003-2)

14.6.1.2 Plural as honorific

Plural marking on nouns (§9.1.1.3) and pronouns (§6.1.1) can be used to express singular honorific in Japhug. Similarly, honorific plural indexation is found with second (156) or third (157) person referents, with or without plural *ra* marking on the noun. Honorific plural is mainly attested in traditional stories, but it is still used to address lamas.

(156) a-txeme ra, ci n̥u-ywtsʰydwy tce, kx-nu̥-r̥ŋgwu-nu̥
1SG.POSS-lady PL a.little SENS-be.hot LNK IMP-AUTO-lie.down-PL
‘My lady, it is a bit hot, lie down [to sleep].’ (2014-kWLAG)
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(157) tceri t-yu
nw ku rjy\lpu ra m-y-y\i-nw
tce,
LNK INDEF.POSS-mother DEM ERG king PL NEG-stay:FACT-PL LNK
pyytcw nw pjy-su-sat.
bird DEM IFR-CAUS-kill

'The woman had the bird killed while the king was away.' (2014-kWLAG)

Honorific plural indexation on the noun does not always correlate with plural indexation on the verb, as in (158), where the verb has a singular form.

(158) wo a-zi
ra tcʰindza p-w-tw-nyre ny
INTERJ 1SG.POSS-young.lady PL why IPFV-2-laugh be:FACT
'My lady, why are you laughing?' (2005 Kunbzang)

14.6.1.3 Partitive indexation

Number indexation with a with first person core argument, unlike that of second and third person, is compulsory.

Apparent examples of mismatch however do exist, but are confined to a very specific partitive use of dual of plural number (Bickel 2000). With the interrogative pronoun ɛu 'who' (§6.5.2), in particular, indexation on the verb can be non-singular with the specific partitive meaning 'who among X', in particular in comparative constructions as in (159), with 1DU indexation on the verb although this sentence implies that only one of the two sisters is the most beautiful (see §26.2.1 on this comparative construction, and Jacques (2016b) and §8.2.2.7 on the use of the ergative here).

(159) a-ki, nyki tcetʰi tce, tw-ci
1SG.POSS-younger.sibling FILLER downstream LOC INDEF.POSS-water
u-ŋgw c-pw-ru tce, cw kw
3SG.POSS-inside TRAL-IMP:DOWN-look LNK who ERG
p-w-mpcɛr-tei kw?
SENS-be.beautiful-1DU SFP

'Sister, go and look down there in the water, who is the most beautiful of us?' (2014-kWLAG)

Similarly, non-singular indexation on the verb with a counted noun core argument can have a partitive meaning, for instance *tw-rdoɛ* 'one piece' (§7.3.2.1) with plural *-nw* on the verb in (160) can only be interpreted as meaning 'one of them should take it'.
14.6 Additional questions on the generic and number indexation

(160) “tw-rdoɔ kʷ a-sci a-tʰʷ-ndo-nʷ ntsʰi”
one-piece ERG 1SG.POSS-instead IRR-PFV-take-PL be.better:FACT
pʷ-swəsym pjγ-ŋu
IPFV-think[III] IFR.IPFV-be
‘[The king] was thinking: ‘One of [my sons] should inherit the throne.”
(140510 sanpian yumao-zh) {0003947#S7}

Another type of partitive indexation is the use of 1PL pronouns with third person indexation, as in (161), with two verbs in 3PL→3 form and the 1PL pronoun in topicalized position meaning ‘some among us’.

(161) izɔra tce ᶜkʰyɣ tu-ti-nʷ tsuku kʷ ᶜkχjwɑk tu-ti-nʷ
1PL LNK wild.chives IPFV-say-PL some ERG wild.chives IPFV-say-PL
ŋu ma
be:FACT LNK
‘Among us, some call it ᶜkchpʰyr, some ᶜkχjwɑk.’ (07-Cku) {0003424#S63}

14.6.1.4 First person and generic person

Another type of agreement mismatch observed with first person concerns 1PL and generic person. Before examining the examples of mismatch between pronouns and verb indexation in Japhug, it is important to note that generic person often occurs in gnomic statements applying to the speaker himself (§14.6.2), and can be used as an indirect way to express a first person, as has been described in some Kiranti languages (Bickel & Gaenszle 2015). It is even found in contexts where it unambiguously refers to the first person *singular*, as in (162).

(162) mɣ-xsi ko, nʷa pɣ-nʷ-jmʷt-a
NEG-GENR:know SFP DEM:PL IFR-AUTO-forget-1SG
‘I don’t know, I forgot about these things.’ (phone conversation,
2013-12-24)

Generic inverse Imperfective verb forms with modal verb such as ntsʰi ‘have better’ or ra ‘be needed’ (example 163) or even without auxiliary (164) is a common way to express 1PL hortative (§21.2.4, §21.2.5), and in such contexts 1PL pronouns or possessive prefixes can be found.

In (163), generic inverse marking on the verb corresponds to the 1PL possessive
on the object nʷaŋa ‘cow’. The presence of the autive nʷ- (§19.1) is a further clue
to the equivalence of the generic subject and the 1PL in this example.
14 Person indexation and argument structure

(163) skalpa ndzwy
nwc pw-ηu tce, ji-nwηa
world be destroyed: FACT DEM SENS-be LNK 1PL POSS-COW
pjw-wy-nw-ntcʰa pw-ntsʰi
IPFV-INV-AUTO-butcher SENS-be.better
‘The world is about to be destroyed, let us kill our cow.’ (07-deluge)
{0003426#S7}

In (164), the 1PL pronoun *izo* directly co-occurs with a verb in transitive subject generic form (§14.3.2.5).

(164) izo kw-muku pjkh²u, w-cya ku-mtcoW nwc ci
1PL SBJ:PCP-be.first still 3SG.Poss-tooth SBJ:PCP-be.sharp DEM a.little
pw-wy-pʰut
IPFV-INV-take.out
‘Let us first take out its sharp teeth.’ (150908 menglang-zh) {0006320#S71}

Co-occurrence of generic indexation with a 1PL pronoun is also found in pro-
cedural texts; in such contexts the 1PL pronouns occur in apposition with place
names (§5.2.1), ethnic groups or classes of people, for instance *izo kuru* ra ‘we
Tibetans’ in (165).

(165) izo kuru ra, nykinu, qajyi lú-wy-nu-βzu tce
1PL Tibetan PL FILLER bread IPFV-INV-AUTO-make LNK
‘We Tibetans, when we make bread,’ (160706 thotsi) {0006133#S1}

The opposite situation, a generic pronoun in combination with 1PL indexation,
is much rarer, but also attested. For instance, in (166), the adjectival stative verb
xtci ‘be small’ bears 1PL -j suffix, but the corresponding overt pronoun in the
sentence is the generic person *tuzra* ‘one’ (§6.2.1). The generic form *pu-ku-xtci*,
as in (167) would be possible in the exactly the same context, clearly including
the first person.

(166) tuzra pw-xtci-j tce,
GENR PST.IPFV-be.small-1PL LNK
‘When we were young.’ (17-ndZWnW) {0003524#S50}

(167) tce jinde aj pw-mto-t-a me ri,
LNK NOW 1SG AOR-SEE-PST:TR-1SG notuezFACT LNK
pw-ku-xtci tce pw-wy-mto
PST.IPFV-GENR:S/O-be.small LNK AOR-INV-SEE
‘I have not seen any [wild crane] recently, but when we were young, we
did see (some).’ (22-qomndroN) {0003598#S31}
14.6 Additional questions on the generic and number indexation

Dual or plural indexation can occur with generic transitive subject indexation
marking a first person, as in example (55) in §14.3.2.5.

In addition to the generic person, the proprietive derivation is another possible
strategy to indirectly refer to the first person (§18.8.2).

14.6.1.5 Indexation mismatch and speech errors

Speech errors are inevitable in any corpus, and are a factor to take into consider-
ation to explain inconsistencies in person indexation.

The clearest examples of erroneous indexation are self-corrections. In (168)
for instance, the speaker first chooses a plural 3PL→3' with -nw suffix and then
corrects herself to the appropriate form 3SG→3' po-ta. The error here is due with-
out doubt to the presence of the overt object w̥zunw tɛ̮h̥emvli ra bearing a plural
marker: plural objects in non-local configuration are only indexed in the case of
inverse forms (§14.3.2.2), but examples of this type show that speakers may nev-
ertheless be tempted to index them in direct configurations too (as if the verb
were intransitive).

(168) w̥zunw tc̥h̥emvli ra, po-ta-nw tce, po-ta tce,
young.man young.woman PL IFR-put-PL LNK IFR-put LNK
‘She left [there] the young men and women.’ (2003kandzWsqhaj)

In (169) from a text translated from Chinese, Tshendzin realised that the num-
ber of daughters was different from what she had remembered, and hesitated
between the dual and the plural on the indexation of the intransitive verb nṣrura
‘look around’.

(169) oma, kwβde pjy-sw-γe nγ! kwβde pjy-sw-γe
INTERJ four IFR:DOWN-CAUS-come SFP four IFR:DOWN-CAUS-come
qʰe, nwnura γn-nyrura-ndzi ri, γn-nyrura-nw ri,
LNK DEM:PL IFR-look.around-DU LNK IFR-look.around-PL LNK
‘He sent four (of his daughters, not three), he sent four of them, and they
looked around.’ (150826 baoliandeng-zh) {0006370#S214}

Without self correction, indexation errors are less obvious and have to be
rechecked with a native speaker. In (170), the first verb l'C-wy-caβ-ndzi has inverse
marking (§14.3.3.2) and indexes the non-overt object (the youngest daughter and
her husband). The second (intransitive) verb has dual indexation, but its subject
is coreferent with that of the previous verb (u-pi ra ‘her elder sisters etc’) and
14 Person indexation and argument structure

plural indexation would therefore be expected here, and Tshendzin indeed proposes to correct the verb form to *k-u-nu* AOR-call-PL. The confusion between dual and plural here is a combination of two factors: the presence of a verb with dual indexation just before (indexation attraction), and the ambiguity of the subject: the youngest sister has two eldest daughters (the plural here refer to her husbands and servants), and one could construe the subject of *kas-aqu-u-ndzi* as referring only to the two elder sisters, without the additional people, hence the dual indexation.

(170) ndyre u-pi ra ku lý-wý-caβ-ndzi ny
LNK 3SG.POSS-elder.sibling PL ERG AOR:UPSTREAM-INV-catch.up-DU LNK
kы-akhu-ndzi py-ny.
AOR-call-DU SENS-be

'Her elder sisters and the others caught up with them and called.' (2005
Kunbzang)

Some apparent cases of optional number indexation (§14.6.1.1) should also be analyzed as speech errors, as in (§14.6.1.1), where the first verb *jy-ye-ndzi* bears correct dual indexation, but the second one lacks it, presumably due to hesitation on the part of the speaker.

(171) numu ku-fse bnwz jy-ye-ndzi tce, ji-ka'a zw
DEM SBJ:PCP-be.like two AOR-come[II]-DU LNK 1PL.POSS-house LOC
jy-ye tce
AOR-come[II] LNK

'Two [ghosts] like that came, came to our house.' (150902 qixian-zh)
{0006258#S136}

14.6.2 Generic person vs. 3PL indexation

In Japhug, both generic marking (§14.3.2.5) and third person plural indexation can be used to express generic referents. In particular, both can agree with the generic/indefinite noun *turme* ‘person’ (§6.2.2), as illustrated by examples (172)<fnref n="37" /> and (173).

<footnote n="37">³⁷The generic transitive subject marker is the inverse prefix (§14.3.2.5). In this section, it is how-
ever glossed as GENR:A for clarity.</footnote>
14.6 Additional questions on the generic and number indexation

(172) nwha ra tci kx-ndza rga-nw, turme kw tú-wy-ndza
cow PL ERG INF-eat like:FACT-PL people ERG IPFV-GENR:A-eat
mχ-sna.
NEG-be.good:FACT
'Cows like to eat it, but it is not good for people.' (11-paRzwamWntoR)
{0003476#S37}

(173) tce lwlu nw wuma zo pe tce, numw, turme ra kw nw
LNK cat DEM really EMPH be.good:FACT LNK DEM people PL ERG DEM
nw-rga-nw tce
APPL-like:FACT-PL LNK
'The cat is a very nice [animal], people like it.' (21-IWLU) {0003576#S39}

The aim of this section is to examine the semantic difference between generic person vs. 3PL in contexts like those illustrated by the examples above.

Generic indexation (§14.3.2.5) is most commonly used to express general or gnomic statements applying to most humans, including the speaker. No more than one argument in a particular sentence can be generic: In particular, it is not possible to have both generic subject and object on the same verb form (§5.1.3 and §6.2.1), except in reflexive constructions (example 15, §6.2.1).

There is obligatory agreement between all generic person markers, whether in-
dexation on the verb, pronouns or possessive prefixes inside a clause, and across
contiguous clauses. In (174) for instance, the generic intransitive subject of the
verb mw~mχ-pw-kw-tso is coreferent with the transitive subject of mý-wy-mto.

(174) tce wuma zo mw~mχ-pw-kw-tso nγ
LNK really EMPH COND~NEG-PST.IPFV-GENR:S/O-know LNK
mý-wy-mto
NEG-GENR:A-see:FACT
'If you do not know it well, you won't see it.' (07-Cku) {0003424#S57}

In (175), the generic possessor prefix on *tw-laχtćha* is also coreferent with the
object of *n̥w-ku-ṇusukho* ‘they rob people of X’. Note however in this example
that the generic person on *tu-ku-nỳkhe* is not exactly identical to the referent of
the previous verb, referring to a subset of it (only women).

(175) turme pjw-sat-nw, tw-laχtćha pω-ku-nwswkho, tcʰeme tce
people IPFV-kill-PL GENR.POSS-thing IPFV-GENR:S/O-rob woman LNK
14 Person indexation and argument structure

tu-ku-nxkʰe kw-fse p̥u-ŋu

IPFV-GENR:S/O-bully SBJ:PCP-be.like SENS-be

‘They did things like killing people, robbing people’s things, raping women.’ (17-lhazgron)

Example (176) show the agreement between the generic pronoun *tuzo* ‘one’ and generic marking on the verb.

(176) *tuzo* tu-ku-rwcmi nwa u-pú-tso?

GENR IPFV-GENR:S/O-speak DEM:PL QU-SENS-understand

‘Does [you son] understand when people speak?’ (phone conversation 15-01-13)

Generic human marking can sometimes be used as a substitute for first person, both as indexation prefix (§14.6.1.4) or as possessive prefix (§5.1.3.1). Example (177) illustrates this function.

(177) tceri t-vstso pw-ku-ŋu tce, nw kɔ-ndza wuma

LNK INDEF.Poss-child PST.IPFV-GENR:S/O-be LNK DEM INF-eat really

zo pw-ku-rga.

EMPH PST.IPFV-GENR:S/O-like

‘When we were children, we used to like eating it a lot.’ (12-ndZiNgri)

{0003488#S126}

The commonality between all the uses of generic person marking is that it always refers to a group including the speaker.<fnref n="38" /> It is particularly clear in (175), where the generic prefix *ku-* on *tu-ku-nxkʰe* is coreferent with the overt object *tɛʰeme* ‘girl’; this verb form is appropriate in this particular instance because the speaker is a woman, and *tɛʰeme* ‘girl’ is used here as a generic noun.

Example (178) further illustrates the same phenomenon. The speaker, also a woman, includes herself among the potential Jews’ harp players (though she has never played the instrument) and thus employs generic subject marking on the first verb (note also the presence of the 1PL pronoun, §14.6.1.4). Conversely, she excludes herself from potential flute players (traditionally, only men) and selects 3PL marking on the second verb.

<footnote n="38">³⁸Example (176) above could seem to be a counterexample, but the question here is about the ability to understand speech in general, not restricted to the people in contact with my son at the moment this question was uttered.</footnote>
14.6 Additional questions on the generic and number indexation

(178) kẉcwṇgw tce, iẓora tcʰeme kẉ zNGro púw-wy-lyt,
long.ago LNK 1PL girl ERG Jews’.harp IPFV-GENR:A-release
ty-tcw ra kẉ juli cʰụr-lyt-nuw.
INDEF.POSS-boy PL ERG flute IPFV-release-PL
‘Long ago, among us women used to play the Jews’ harp, while men
used to play the flute.’ (150907 ZNGro) {0006252#S13}

This example is typical of procedural texts: the generic is consistently used by
women speakers to refer to activities typically performed by women, and the 3PL
for men’s duties (and vice-versa with men speakers).

This contrast is also found when discussing differences between Tibetan and
Chinese people, in particular the names given to animals and plants. In (179),
Chinese are referred to collectively in the 3SG (the plural would also be possi-
ble in the same context), while Tibetans (the ethnic group to which the speaker
associates herself) are indexed on the verb by the generic kw- prefix (§14.3.4).

(179) nwmw kupa kw <gouweicao> tu-ti ŋu tce, kwrw ra kw
DEM Chinese ERG setaria.viridis IPFV-say be:FACT LNK Tibetan PL ERG
nw li kʰunajme tu-kw-ti ŋu tce,
DEM again setaria.viridis IPFV-GENR-say be:FACTbe:FACT LNK
‘The Chinese call it ‘gouweicao’, Tibetans call it khunajme.’
(16-RlWmsWsi) {0003520#S51}

The contrast between *kw-/-wy-* generic person and 3PL indexation can thus be
described as *speaker-inclusive* vs. *speaker-exclusive* generic marking.

Another crucial difference between speaker-inclusive generic and 3PL, is that
unlike the former, the latter can refer to several different referents in the same
sentence. In example (180) for instance, the 3PL on the verbs a-mx-tx-ndo-nw ‘let
them not take it’ and yw-z-nxndy-y-nw ‘it will poison them’<fnref n="39" /> agrees with the noun
phrase turme ra, which is to be interpreted as meaning ‘other people’ (§6.8) rather
than generic person (§6.2.2). Its referent is different from that of the generic 3PL
in the rest of the passage, such as the matrix verb p̣u-suso-nu ‘they think that ...’
or the preceding verb p̣u-rytc̣umtcạk-nu ‘they stamp on it’.

(180) tce sỳndyɣ tu-ti-nu ŋgrvl. tce
LNK bepoisonous:FACT IPFV-say-PL be.usually.the.case:FACT LNK
a-pwu-swχsyl-nu во tce maka mx-pʰụt-nu,
IRR-PFV-recognize-PL ADVERS LNK at.all NEG-take.out:FACT-PL

<footnote n="39">³⁹The inverse on this verb does mark generic subject (§14.3.2.5), since the subject of this verb is the poisonous mushroom. Rather, it occurs here to indicate a transitive configuration with inanimate subject and animate object (§14.3.3).</footnote>
14 Person indexation and argument structure

na-pʰu-t-nu kuŋy cʰu-βde-nu cti. tce
AOR:3→3'-take.out-PL even IPFV-throw-away-PL be.AFF:FACT LNK
pju-rγtcuŋmtcaŋ-nu ma 'twrme ra ku a-mγ-tγ-ndo-nu ma
AOR-tread-PL LNK people PL ERG IRR-NEG-PFV-take-PL LNK
ɣu-z-nγndγy-nu' pju-swso-nu.
INV-CAUS-be.poisoned:FACT-PL SENS-think-PL

'People say that [this species of mushroom] is poisonous. If they
recognize it, they don't pick it up, even if they pick it up they throw it
away and stamp on it, thinking '[This way] other people won't take it
and it will not poison them." (23-grWBgrWBftsa) {0004040#S162}

14.7 Person indexation on non-finite predicative words

Despite being a highly verb-prominent language, Japhug has some non-verbal predicates (§22.3). There is evidence that a few nominals occurring as predicates, including nominalized verb forms and nouns, have acquired person indexation markers.

Phenomena of this type are uncommon, but clear examples do exist in Indo-European (Pott 1859: 414). For instance, in Greek, the adverbs δεῦρο 'hither' and τῆ 'here, take it' have developed the plural forms δεῦτε and τῆτε, with the plural present imperative suffix -τε (and unexplainable loss of the syllable -ρο in δεῦτε), by contamination with imperative verb forms (φέρε, φέρετε), which occur in the same contexts (Viti 2015: 113–114). A similar case is found in Gothic, where the adverb hiri 'hither' (which incidentally translates Greek δεῦρο) has dual hirjats and plural hirjib, modelled on imperatives (Braune 1953: 104).

Inflectionalization of nominals is attested in the case of a few phatic (§14.7.1)
and exclamative (§14.7.2) expressions in Japhug.

14.7.1 Phatic expressions

The expression *syrma* ‘good night’, used to address someone leaving one’s house
in the evening, transparently derives from the oblique participle *syr-rma* ‘place
where/time when one stays overnight’ (§16.1.3) from the verb *rma* ‘stay the night,
live’, as illustrated by example (181).
(181) tce ᵃ-sɣ-rma numu, prak, prakpa tce
LNK 3SG.POSS-OBL:PCP-stay.the.night DEM cliff cavern LNK
c-ku-rma jn-ŋu
TRAL-IPFV-stay.the.night SENS-be

‘The place where its spends the night is the cliffs, it goes to spend the
night in caverns under the cliffs.’ (20-xsar) {0003568#S36}

This expression is probably the abbreviation of a phrase such as ‘go back to
your resting place’ (which would be *nɣ-sɣrma jɣ-nuče*).

Yet, when addressing more than one person, the dual form *sɣrma-ndʒi* and the plural *sɣrma-nu* are used, with the 2/3 dual *-ndʒi* and plural *-nu* suffixes found in verb paradigms (§14.2.1.2). These suffixes normally only appear on finite verbs. The forms *sɣrma*, *sɣrma-ndʒi* and *sɣrma-nu* could in principle be analyzed as a Factual Non-Past form (§21.3.1.1), but there are three problems with this hypothesis.

First, the meaning of the expression (‘have a good night’) is hardly compatible with the Factual Non-Past; an Imperative or Irrealis form would be expected instead, and a second person prefix *tu-* would in any case be required. Second, while there are several *sɣ-* verbal derivational prefix, none of them (proprietive §18.8.1, antipassive §18.6.2 and causative §17.2.1.3) has a function which could account for a derivation such as ‘spend the night’ ⇒ ‘(have a) good night’. Third, no other verb forms (including first or third person), finite or non-finite, are attested for *sɣrma*.

A more promising approach to account for these verb forms is analogy with other phatic expressions involving finite verb forms. The most probable one is the verb *astu* ‘be straight’, whose Imperative is used to mean ‘goodbye’ (literally ‘(walk) straight’) as in (182). These verb forms optionally occur with the sentence final particle *je* (§10.4.1), another commonality with *sɣrma* ‘good night’.

(182) a. tɣ-ystu (je)
IMP-be.straight SFP
‘Goodbye’ = ‘(walk) straight’ (singular)

b. tɣ-ystu-ndʒi (je)
IMP-be.straight-DU SFP
‘Goodbye’ (dual)

The dual and plural forms of *sɣrma* ‘good night’ can thus be explained as trivial four-part analogy as in Table 14.18.

The expression *kynyβdi* ‘take care’, used when leaving from someone’s place, and which also has a dual *kynyβdi-ndʒi* and a plural *kynyβdi-nu*, might also be a
14 Person indexation and argument structure

<table><caption>Table 14.18: The dual/plural forms of *syrma* ‘good night’ as result of four-part analogy</caption><tr><td><i>trstu</i> ‘goodbye.SG’</td><td><i>syrma</i> ‘good night.SG’</td></tr><tr><td><i>trstu-ndzi</i> ‘goodbye.DU’</td><td>X ⇒ <i>syrma-ndzi</i> ‘good night’</td></tr></table>

inflectionalized form of the *kr*- infinitive (§16.2.1) of the tropative *nr*- (§17.5) of the stative verb *bdi* ‘be well’.

However, this case is less compelling than *syrma* ‘good night’, because *kr-nybdi-ndzi* and *kr-nybdi-nu* can alternatively be formally analyzed as imperatives with the EASTWARDS *kr*- preverb (§15.1.1.1), and because *nybdi* is also found in regular finite forms (as in 183).

(183) *w-ku-tw-nybdi? w-ku-tw-pe?*
QU-PRS-2-feel.well QU-PRS-2-good
‘Do you feel well, are you fine?’ (conversation, 16-12-28)

14.7.2 Exclamative expressions

The expression *duxpa* ‘poor ...’ seems at first glance to be a verb, as it not only takes dual and plural suffixes (*duxpa-nu* ‘poor them’, example 184), but it can also receive first person indexation (such as 1DU in 185). The variant form *zduxpa* is also attested (see 25, §21.2.5).

(184) *wo a-rjit ra duxpa-nu ma nw w-xtu*
INTERJ 1SG.POSS-offspring PL poor-PL because DEM 3SG.POSS-belly
*uŋgw nwtcu γyzu-nw rca*
DEM:LOC exist:SENS-PL SFP
‘My poor children, there are in his [the wolf’s] belly’ (140430 lang he
qizhi xiaoshanyang-zh) {0003895#S126}

(185) *tcizo ndy duxpa-tci ye, ny tcendre, ky-ntcʰa*
1DU on.the.other hand poor-1DU SFP LNK LNK OBJ:PCP-kill
*u-spa zo cti-tci*
3SG.POSS-material EMPH be.ASSERT:FACT-1DU
‘We, on the other hand, poor us! We are to be butchered.’
(kandZislama2003.210)
Yet, *duxpa* has a defective paradigm: it cannot take any prefix, including the
second person *tu-*, any TAM marker or any nominalization prefix. In addition, if
*duxpa* were to be analyzed as a verb, it would be anomalous, as it is borrowed
from Tibetan སྟགསྟ སདུག པ་ ‘suffering’ (also spelled *sdug*. *ga*),<fnref n="40" /> a nominalized form
taking the *-pa/-ba* suffix.

While examples of verbs directly borrowed from Tibetan into Japhug are nu-
merous, at least in the earliest layer (for instance *rjuy* ‘run’, *bzjur* ‘change, cor-
rect’ etc, see Jacques 2019d), nouns or nominalized verbs borrowed from Tibetan
are never converted to verbs without denominal prefixes. Incidentally, we find in
Japhug two verbs derived from the same Tibetan etymon (in the variant ‘zduxpa,
from an earlier layer of borrowing) by means of denominal prefixes, the intransi-
tive stative verb *syzduxpa* ‘be pitiful’ and the transitive verb *nuzduxpa* ‘have pity
for’. The word *duxpa* cannot be analyzed either as a verb derived from a noun by
zero-derivation, as zero denominal derivation does not exist in Japhug (§20.8.1).

A better account of the defectiveness of *duxpa* and its etymology is that it
originally was an exclamative noun (§5.1.2.8, §22.3), and that the third person and
first person indexation suffixes were added by contamination with finite stative
verbs used in exclamative sentences, as *syzduxpa* ‘be pitiful’ in (186).

(186) ndzi-yi ra, numi mw-pγ-k-γtwγ-nw-ci,
3DU.POSS-relatives PL DEM:DU NEG-IFR-PEG-meet-PL-PEG
pjγ-sγzdwypa-nw ma
IFR.IPFV-be.pityful-PL LNK

‘Their relatives did not meet them [again], poor them.’ (2003 zrAntCW
tWrme)

14.8 Historical perspectives

This section explores a range of hypotheses to account for the synchronic resem-
blance between indexation markers (indexation suffixes, the inverse prefix and
the local scenario portmanteau prefixes) and other morphemes that are possibly
historically related in Japhug, drawing on comparative data from other Gyalrong
languages and beyond.

<footnote n="40">⁴⁰For an account of the alternation between *p/b* and *g* in the spelling, see Hill (2011a) and the references therein.</footnote>
14.8.1 Indexation suffixes, pronouns and possessive prefixes

The indexation suffixes (§14.2.1) are similar to the corresponding possessive prefixes (§5.1.1) and pronouns (§6.1) in Japhug, as shown by the data in Table 14.19. In addition to the Kamnyu dialect, this table includes data on the Tatshi dialect (from Lin & Luoerwu 2003, Lin 2011 and personal communication) between brackets. The two dialects differ mainly in the presence of alveolo-palatal affricates in Kamnyu Japhug in the dual, while dental affricates are found in Tatshi.

<table><caption>Table 14.19: Indexation suffixes, pronouns and possessive prefixes in Japhug</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>Indexation suffix</th><th>Pronoun</th><th>Possessive Prefix</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1SG</td><td>-a</td><td>azo (ŋa)</td><td>a-</td></tr><tr><td>2SG</td><td></td><td>nyzo</td><td>ny-</td></tr><tr><td>3SG</td><td></td><td>wuzo (mi)</td><td>wu-</td></tr><tr><td>1DU</td><td>-tçi (-tsə)</td><td>tçizo</td><td>tçi- (tsə-)</td></tr><tr><td>2DU</td><td>-ndzi (-ndzə)</td><td>ndzizo</td><td>ndzi- (ndzə-)</td></tr><tr><td>3DU</td><td>-ndzi (-ndzə)</td><td>zyni</td><td>ndzi- (ndzə-)</td></tr><tr><td>1PL</td><td>-ji</td><td>izo</td><td>i-</td></tr><tr><td>2PL</td><td>-nu (-nə)</td><td>nuzo</td><td>nu- (nə-)</td></tr><tr><td>3PL</td><td>-nu (-nə)</td><td>zara</td><td>nu- (nə-)</td></tr></tbody></table>

In the other Gyalrong languages, very similar affixes are found, as shown by Table 14.20 (data from Sun 1998: 139, Sun 2017: 562, Gong 2014; 2018, Lin 1993: 168;198).

The main differences between the indexation systems of the four Gyalrong languages include the following observations: (i) only Situ has a 2SG suffix (intransitive and 2SG object)<fnref n="41" /> and a third person object suffix, (ii) the 1SG suffix presents unique correspondences, and has many allomorphs in Zbu and Situ, (iii) Zbu has a 1PL possessive prefix that is unrelated to the 1PL suffix, (iv) Situ has no distinction between 1DU and 2/3DU possessive prefixes, and (v) the 1DU, 2/3DU and 2/3PL affixes are either (alveolo-)palatal or dental across the languages.

As shown by Table 14.21, Tshobdun and Tatshi Japhug only have dental person indices, Zbu and Situ only (alveolo-)palatal ones, and Kamnyu Japhug is intermediate between the two groups, with alveolo-palatal dual affixes -tçi/-ndzi

<footnote n="41">⁴¹In Situ, the second person singular is indexed by both a prefix and a suffix, while in the other languages including Japhug, it is only indexed by the prefix (§14.2.1.2).</footnote>
<table><caption>Table 14.20: Indexation suffixes and possessive prefixes in Tshobdun, Zbu and Situ</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>Tshobdun</th><th>Zbu</th><th>Situ</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1SG</td><td>v-</td><td>-aŋ</td><td>v-</td><td>-ŋ</td><td>ŋa-/ŋə-</td><td>-ŋ</td></tr><tr><td>2SG</td><td>nv-</td><td>nv-</td><td>-ŋ</td><td>na-/nə-</td><td>na-/nə-</td><td>-n</td></tr><tr><td>3SG</td><td>o-</td><td>və-</td><td>-ŋ</td><td>wa-/wə-</td><td>wa-/wə-</td><td>(-w)</td></tr><tr><td>1DU</td><td>tsə-</td><td>-tsə</td><td>tçə-</td><td>-tçə</td><td>ndʒa-/ndʒə-</td><td>-tʃʰ</td></tr><tr><td>2/3DU</td><td>ⁿdzə-</td><td>-ⁿdzə</td><td>ⁿdzə-</td><td>-ⁿdzə</td><td>ndʒa-/ndʒə-</td><td>-ntʃʰ</td></tr><tr><td>1PL</td><td>jə-</td><td>-jə</td><td>ⁿgə-</td><td>-jə</td><td>ja-/jə-</td><td>-i</td></tr><tr><td>2/3PL</td><td>nə-</td><td>-nə</td><td>ŋə-</td><td>-ŋə</td><td>ŋa-/ŋə-</td><td>-ŋ</td></tr></tbody></table>

and dental plural affixes -nu. It is noteworthy that Kamnyu Japhug, the dialect geographically closest to Tshobdun, is less similar to that language in this regard than the Tatshi dialect, which is not in direct contact with Tshobdun.

<table><caption>Table 14.21: (Alveolo-)palatal vs. dental person indices in Gyalrong languages</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>Tshobdun</th><th>Tatshi Japhug</th><th>Kamnyu Japhug</th><th>Zbu</th><th>Situ</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1DU</td><td>-tsə</td><td>-tsə</td><td>-tçi</td><td>-tçə</td><td>-tʃʰ</td></tr><tr><td>2/3DU</td><td>-ⁿdzə</td><td>-ndzə</td><td>-ndʒi</td><td>-ⁿdzə</td><td>-ntʃʰ</td></tr><tr><td>3PL</td><td>-nə</td><td>-nə</td><td>-nu</td><td>-nə</td><td>-n</td></tr></tbody></table>

A possible explanation to account for the resemblances between the suffixes, the possessive prefixes and the pronouns is to argue that the former were grammaticalized from the latter, as has been proposed by LaPolla (1992). In the same line of reasoning, the second and third person dual and plural suffixes, which are similar to the dual and plural nominal markers in Situ and Tatshi Japhug, could be argued to have originated from them. In Tatshi Japhug for instance, the dual -ndzə and plural -nə suffixes could be analyzed as deriving from the dual ndzə and plural nəjo nominal clitics (which differ from those of Kamnyu Japhug, §9.1.1).

The idea of transparent grammaticalization from pronouns or number markers in indexation suffixes is however not as straightforward as it might appear at first glance. Leaving aside extra-Gyalrong comparative evidence (Jacques 2012a; Jacques & Pellard 2021; DeLancey 2014), and the fact that most of the pronouns
in Gyalrong languages are derived from possessive prefixes rather than the op-
posite (Jacques 2016e, §6.1), if the similarity between the three series of person
markers were to be explained as resulting exclusively from a recent grammat-
icalization, the pattern in Table 14.20, where the place of articulation (alveolo-
palatal vs. dental) of dual and plural indexation suffixes is aligned on that of the
pronouns and possessive prefixes and draws an isogloss across the dialects of Ja-
phug (Table 14.21), would imply that the grammaticalization postdated not only
the breakup of proto-Gyalrong, but even that of the common ancestor of modern
Japhug dialects.

The indexation system of Gyalrong languages cannot however be that recent,
in particular because the stem alternation system, which contributes to person
indexation (§12.2.2.2, §14.3.2.1) is clearly reconstructible to the common ancestor
of Gyalrong languages and Tangut (Gong 2016b) and is too complex and irregular
(in particular in Zbu, see Sun 2004 and Gong 2018) to be a recent development.

Three alternative types of explanation can be explored to account for the corre-
spondences between affixes and pronouns: analogical simplification of allomor-
phy, contamination and degrammaticalization.

First, there is evidence that in proto-Gyalrong, the suffixes had phonetically
conditioned allomorphs: the 1sg suffix has maintained some allomorphy in Zbu
(Gong 2014: 46) and Situ (Lin 1993: 198). Analogical levelling is thus a likely ex-
planation for the diverging forms of the 1sg suffix. Note that the form -aɣ in
Tshobdun cannot derive from proto-Gyalrong *-aɣ (which yields Tshobdun -i),
and the Zbu and Situ -η cannot be a phonetic reflex of *-η in most cases, other-
wise for instance stems in -a should alternate with -o ← *-aɣ in Situ in the 1sg.
In Situ and Zbu, the final -η in open syllables must have been restored, due to
analogical spread from a particular context where the *-η was maintained.

Second, the similarity between possessive prefixes, indexation suffixes and pronouns could be the result of mutual contamination and convergence. Cases of contamination between indexation systems and possessive affixes are attested. In Hebrew and Phoenician, for instance, the first person singular perfect suffix -tî has an unexpected vocalism, as it is commonly agreed that proto-North-West Semitic suffix was *-tu, whose outcome should have been †-t. The irregular He-brew form is explained as due to contamination from either the 1sg pronoun ?ănî or the 1sg possessive suffix -î (Joüon & Muraoka 2006: 122-123;132-133, Suchard 2016: 227-229).

Contamination could account for the 1sg affixes in Japhug. The possessive prefix *a-* is the regular outcome of earlier *-ŋa-*; a proto-form which also accounts for the 1sg prefixes in the other languages. The 1sg suffix *-a* however does not regularly correspond to the suffixes *-aɣ* and *-η* found in Tshobdun, Zbu and Situ.
One possibility is that *-ηv was one of the proto-Gyalrong allomorphs of the 1SG suffix,<fnref n="42" /> and was generalized. Another explanation is that only *-η was present in proto-Gyalrong, and that the *-ηv precursor of Japhug -a arose by contamination of *-η with the (historically related) possessive prefix *ηv-.

Third, the possibility of degrammaticalization from person indexation suffixes to nominal number markers in Tatshi Japhug and Situ should be taken into consideration. Kamnyu Japhug, Tshobdun and Zbu have dual and plural markers that are completely different from indexation suffixes (Kamnyu *ni / ra, Tshobdun *ni? / rv?* and Zbu *ni / ré?, see §9.1.1, Sun 1998 and Gong 2018). The plural marker is cognate to Pumi = .ə (Daudey 2014: 135): Japhug -a regularly corresponds to Pumi -ə in the native vocabulary (Jacques 2017c), and it is therefore unlikely to be a Northern Gyalrong innovation.

If the Zbu, Tshobdun and Kamnyu Japhug number markers above are conservative, the corresponding Tatshi Japhug *ndzə / nəjo* and Cogtse Situ *ndʒe / ne* forms must therefore be innovations, and by consequence, it cannot be argued that the 2/3 indexation suffixes derive from these number markers. The opposite scenario is possible: Norde (2009: 204–206) discusses the case of the Irish 1PL proponoun *muid* which comes from one of the allomorphs of the 1PL future indexation suffix. A similar type of debonding can account at least for the Tatshi Japhug dual *ndzə* nominal marker, from the 2/3 dual *-ndzə* indexation suffix.<fnref n="43" /> The acquisition of indexation suffixes by several non-verbal words discussed in §14.7 may have contributed to the reanalysis of indexation suffixes as number-marking enclitics.

Much remains unclear about the history of person indexation suffixes and the nature of their relationship with pronouns, possessive prefixes and number markers in Gyalrong languages. A more satisfying account of these data will only become possible when a fully explicit system of proto-Gyalrong reconstruction, and complete data on as many varieties as possible becomes available.

### 14.8.2 The inverse prefix

Two Gyalrong-internal scenarios could be proposed to account for the origin of the inverse prefix.

First, it could be proposed that the inverse comes from the 3SG possessive prefix. In Tshobdun, Zbu and Situ, the inverse prefix (*o-*, *və-* and *wə-*, respectively) is homophonous with the 3SG possessive prefix (see Table 5.2 in §5.1.1.5). This is not

<footnote n="42">⁴²In Bantawa for instance, the 1SG suffix has three allomorphs -η, -η̥, and -ηa (Doornenbal 2009: 155).</footnote>

<footnote n="43">⁴³The case of plural *nəjo* is more complicated: the *nə-* element here probably rather derives from the distal demonstrative.</footnote>
14 Person indexation and argument structure

the case in Japhug, where the inverse *yu-* / -wy is clearly different from the 3SG *u-*-, but it is possible that the 3SG possessive underwent an irregular development, as argued in §5.1.1.5. The 3′→3SG form would originally be a non-finite form taking a possessive prefix (for instance a predecessor of the bare infinitive, §16.2.2), and the inverse prefix would have spread from the 3′→3 to the mixed scenarios 3→2 and 3→1, following the pathways described in Jacques & Antonov 2018.

Second, the partial resemblance between the Japhug allomorph *yu-* and the associated motion cislocative *yu-* prefix (§15.2.1.1) could support the idea that the inverse derives from the cislocative, following a well-known grammaticalization pathway (Jacques & Antonov 2014). This hypothesis is however less likely, as the cislocative itself may be an innovation in Gyalrong languages (§15.2.1).

In any case, cognates of the inverse prefix are found in other Gyalrongic languages (Lai 2015) and in Kiranti (Jacques 2012a), so that whatever the ultimate origin of this prefix, it was already grammaticalized at the proto-Gyalrongic level.

### 14.8.3 The origin of portmanteau prefixes

The presence of portmanteau prefixes in the local 1→2 and 2→1 configurations in Japhug is not unusual crosslinguistically (Heath 1998). However, the resemblance of the 1→2 prefix *ta-* to the second person *tu-* prefix on the one hand, and of the 2→1 prefix *ku-* to various non-finite velar prefixes (§16.8.1) on the other hand, raises the question of their potential historical relatedness.

The form of the local configuration prefixes is very similar in other Gyalrong languages, as shown by Table 14.22 (data from Lin 1993: 218, Sun & Shidanluo 2002 and Gong 2014).

<table><caption>Table 14.22: Local scenario prefixes in Gyalrong languages</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>1→2</th><th>2→1</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Japhug</td><td>ta-</td><td>ku-</td></tr><tr><td>Tshobdun</td><td>tv-</td><td>kə-o-, tə-o-</td></tr><tr><td>Zbu</td><td>tv-</td><td>kə-w-, tə-w-</td></tr><tr><td>Situ</td><td>ta-</td><td>kə-w-</td></tr></tbody></table>

Only two differences are found in the local domain across the Gyalrong languages: Japhug does not have the inverse *wy-* prefix in the 2→1 form, and Zbu and Tshobdun allow an alternative form with the second person prefix *tə-* and the inverse prefix. In all four languages, the verb takes suffixes that are coreferent
with the object (second person in 1→2 and first person in 2→1). Situ is the only
language with a suffix -n in the 1→2SG form, the same as that found in intransitive
2SG and 3→2SG.

Jacques (2018b: 420–421) proposes that the 1→2 prefix originates from the fu-
sion of the second person prefix *tu*- with the agentless passive *a*- (from *ŋa-*,
Jacques & Chen 2007), which yields the expected form in all four languages. In
this view, a form like Japhug *ta-mbi* 1→2-chase-*SG* ‘I will give it to you*SG*’ would
have developed through the following stages:

• *tə-ŋa-mbi-nə 2-PASS-give-2SG ‘it will be given to you’ (Passive form)

*ta-mbi-nə 2:PASS-give-2SG (Regular phonological fusion between the person marker and the passive prefix, attested in all four Gyalrong languages, §12.3)

• *ta-mbi-nə 1→2-give-2SG ‘I will give it to you’ (reanalysis of the fused form as a portmanteau prefix; the unspecified agent of the passive construction is construed as being first person)*

• *ta-mbi* 1→2-give ‘I will give it to you’ (loss of 2SG suffix in Japhug)

This scenario is not completely straightforward; in particular, the passive *ambi*
‘be given’ of the verb *mbi* ‘give’ takes the theme, not the recipient, as intransi-
tive subject (§18.1.4), and passives in Japhug are only rarely attested with first
or second person subjects (§18.1). However, there are no major phonological or
morphological obstacles against this hypothesized scenario, and good typologi-
cal parallels have been described (DeLancey 2018).

In the case of 2→1 ku-, Jacques (2012a) originally proposed that this prefix
might be an archaism of Gyalrong languages, based on the principle of archaic
heterogeneity (Hetzron 1976), using the data in Table 14.23. In second person
forms other than 1→2, some Kiranti languages have a dental stop prefix (Bantawa
ti-, Doornenbal 2009), and Limbu has the velar prefix *kɛ-* (Michailovsky 2002),
correspondance to Japhug *tu-* in intransitive second person and 2→3, and *ku-*
in 2→1 configurations. A possible way of interpreting this corresponding would
be to suppose that a pattern similar to that found in Gyalrongic (with a velar
prefix in 2→1 and a dental stop prefix in other second person forms) has to be
reconstructed in proto-Kiranti: Bantawa would have generalized the *ti-* prefix to
the 2→1 slot (a type of analogical levelling attested in Zbu and Tshobdun, see
Table 14.22), and Limbu the velar prefix to the 2→3 and intransitive forms.
14 Person indexation and argument structure

<table><caption>Table 14.23: Comparison of second person forms in Japhug and selected Kiranti languages</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>Japhug</th><th>Bantawa</th><th>Limbu</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2.INTR</td><td><span style="color:blue;">tu</span>-Σ</td><td><span style="color:blue;">ti</span>-Σ</td><td><span style="color:red;">kɛ</span>-Σ</td></tr><tr><td>2→3</td><td><span style="color:blue;">tu</span>-Σ</td><td><span style="color:blue;">ti</span>-Σ-u</td><td><span style="color:red;">kɛ</span>-Σ-u</td></tr><tr><td>2→1</td><td><span style="color:red;">ku</span>-Σ-a</td><td><span style="color:blue;">ti</span>-Σ-aŋ</td><td><span style="color:red;">kɛ</span>-Σ-aŋ</td></tr><tr><td>1→2</td><td><span style="color:blue;">ta</span>-Σ</td><td><span style="color:red;">Σ-na</span></td><td><span style="color:red;">Σ-ne</span></td></tr></tbody></table>

This hypothesis raises three issues: (i) the 2→1 form is less common than second intransitive and 2→3, and is unlikely to have served as the basis for analogical levelling in Limbu, (ii) the presence of an inverse prefix in the 2→1 form in other Gyalrong languages is unexplained and (iii) the homophonies between the second person possessive prefix *kɛ-* and the indexation prefix in Limbu on the one hand, and the *kuu-* 2→1 portmanteau prefix and the non-finite *kuu-* prefixes on the other hand, would be due to chance.

Since the *kɛ-* second person indexation prefix in Limbu can be explained as an internal innovation (Jacques 2012a: 94), it is necessary to explore the possibility that Japhug the 2→1 *kuu-* portmanteau is also an Gyalrong innovation, especially since no other traces of such a putative prefix are found elsewhere in the Trans-Himalayan family.

As mentioned above, Japhug 2→1 *kuu-* differs from the 2→1 portmanteau prefixes found in the three other Gyalrong languages, which co-occur with the inverse prefix (Table 14.22). An identical difference appears in the generic object form, which takes of a simple *kuu-* prefix in Japhug (§14.3.2.5) but has an additional inverse prefix *kə-o-* in Tshobdun (Table 14.24, Sun 2014b).

<table><caption>Table 14.24: Comparison of generic person prefix in Japhug and Tshobdun</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>Japhug</th><th>Tshobdun</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>GENR.S</td><td><span style="color:blue;">kuu</span>-</td><td><span style="color:red;">kə-/kʊ</span>-</td></tr><tr><td>GENR.A</td><td><span style="color:blue;">wy</span>-</td><td><span style="color:red;">kə-/kʊ</span>-</td></tr><tr><td>GENR.P</td><td><span style="color:blue;">kuu</span>-</td><td><span style="color:red;">kə-o</span>-</td></tr><tr><td>2→1</td><td><span style="color:blue;">kuu</span>-</td><td><span style="color:red;">kə-o</span>-</td></tr></tbody></table>
The resemblance between the 2→1 portmanteau prefix, the generic person prefixes, and the nominalization prefixes in Japhug and Tshobdun is striking. However, since in these two languages velar participles (§16.1.1, §16.1.2) and infinitives (§16.2.1) are compatible with neither first person indexation suffixes nor the inverse prefix, it is not possible to propose a direct path of reanalysis from participial or infinitive forms to 2→1 (which co-occur with first person suffixes, §14.3.2.3) or generic (which appear with inverse in Tshobdun) prefixes.

However, in Situ, unlike other Gyalrong languages, semi-finite nominalized forms combining a prefix *kə-* and person indexation suffixes (187) and/or inverse marking (188, in 3→1SG configuration) are also attested, in particular to build certain types of relative clauses (Sun & Lin 2007).

(187) [ŋa kə-ʃi-ŋ]=tə teŋê tsəs-ŋ 1SG SBJ:PCP-know[I]-1SG=TOP DEM:PL say[I]-1SG
'I will say what I know about.' (Cogtse dialect, Lin 2016: 72)

(188) [sanam-scāt kə no-kə-o-mbā-ŋ] tə,
Bsod.nams-Skyid ERG AOR.INV-NMLZ-INV-give-1SG DET
<zengguangxianwen> u-tʰiɛ ˈnə-ŋvs
name 3SG.POSS-book SENS-be[I]
‘What Bsod nams Skyid gave me is the book “Zengguan xianwen.”’
(Bragbar dialect, Zhang 2020)

If one accepts the hypothesis that semi-nominalized verb forms did already exist in proto-Gyalrong, and could be used to mark *indefinite* core arguments in addition to the functions they have in modern Situ, it becomes possible to account for the forms in Tables 14.22 and 14.24.

A nominalized form combining the prefix *kə-*, the inverse and a first person suffix like *no-kə-o-mbə-ŋ* in example (188), originally meaning ‘someone gave it to me’, could have become a less abrupt way of saying ‘you gave it to me’ and have been progressively reanalyzed as a 2→1 prefix (Jacques 2018b; DeLancey 2018). The absence of inverse in Japhug in the 2→1 form may be explained by supposing that in the ancestor of Japhug, semi-finite forms became incompatible with inverse marking, while still taking indexation suffixes. This idea is not outlandish, as semi-finite inverse forms are very rare in Situ (only one example is found in Lin’s 2016 text corpus).

The velar nominalization prefixes in semi-finite indefinite forms could also have become reanalyzed as generic person prefixes. This hypothesis implies that Tshobdun is more conservative than Japhug, and that Japhug has later innovated
by replacing generic transitive subjects by inverse forms, perhaps to avoid confusion between generic subjects and object caused by the constraint against inverse in semi-finite forms already posited above to explain the 2→1 portmanteau *ku*. The idea that the Japhug pattern is innovative is supported by the existence of irregular verbs whose generic transitive subjects are marked by *ku-* prefix rather than the inverse (§14.3.4); these verbs would be the remnants of the stage attested in Tshobdun.
# 15 Orientation and associated motion

## 15.1 Orientation preverbs

In Japhug, orientation preverbs have main fundamental functions. First, they are a fundamental element of the TAME system; all finite verb forms, except the Factual Non-Past (§21.3.1) and the Apprehensive (§21.7.1), require one (and only one) orientation preverb. Nearly all verbs (§15.1.1.5) have at least one lexically determined orientation, used to build preverb-requiring tenses. Second, preverbs can in some cases also serve to indicate the spatial direction or orientation of a motion event or an action expressed by the verb form.

This section first presents the morphological features of orientation preverbs and their historical relationship with other words expressing orientation, and then discusses the expression of spatial direction with motion verbs, some common extended uses of the preverbs, and lexicalized orientations.

### 15.1.1 Morphology

The morphology of orientation preverbs presents significant differences across Japhug dialects. This section first describes the system of preverbs in Kamnyu Japhug, in particular with contracting verbs (§12.3), presents comparative data from Eastern dialects, and then discusses the historical relationship of preverbs with the corresponding locative nouns and adverbs.

#### 15.1.1.1 The orientation preverbs in Kamnyu

This section deals with the form of orientation preverbs in the Kamnyu dialect in non-contracting verbs. In the Kamnyu dialect, four series of preverbs can be distinguished, as in Table 15.1. The choice of a particular series depends on TAME and person indexation; capital letters are used as labels, because functional labels (such as ‘perfective’ or ‘imperfective’) would be potentially misleading, since series B preverbs in particular occur in functionally unrelated verb forms. Series C and D historically result from the merger of vowel-initial prefixes with A and B preverbs, respectively (§15.1.1.3).
15 Orientation and associated motion

Only A and B-type preverbs are found in non-finite verb forms.

Preverbs occur in slot -3 of the verbal template (§11.2), following Associated Motion prefixes (§15.2.1), but preceding inverse and indexation prefixes (§14.2.1.2, §14.3.2.3, §14.3.2.7).

The four series of preverbs each comprise seven orientations, which can be divided into four subsets (including three spatial dimensions, §15.1.3): vertical (up / down), riverine (upstream / downstream), solar (east / west) and the unspecified orientation.<fnref n="1" />

<table><caption>Table 15.1: Orientation preverbs in Kamnyu Japhug</caption><thead><tr><th>Orientation</th><th>A</th><th>B</th><th>C</th><th>D</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Upwards</td><td>tɣ̥-</td><td>tu-</td><td>ta-</td><td>to-</td></tr><tr><td>Downwards</td><td>pu-</td><td>pju-</td><td>pa-</td><td>pjɣ̥- / pjo-</td></tr><tr><td>Upstream</td><td>lɣ̥-</td><td>lu-</td><td>la-</td><td>lo-</td></tr><tr><td>Downstream</td><td>tʰu-</td><td>cʰu-</td><td>tʰa-</td><td>cʰɣ̥- / cʰo-</td></tr><tr><td>Eastwards</td><td>kɣ̥-</td><td>ku-</td><td>ka-</td><td>ko-</td></tr><tr><td>Westwards</td><td>nu-</td><td>nu-</td><td>na-</td><td>ŋiɣ̥- / jo-</td></tr><tr><td>Unspecified</td><td>jɣ̥-</td><td>ju-</td><td>ja-</td><td>jo-</td></tr></tbody></table>

Each of the three spatial dimensions are encoded by a pair of preverbs: upper (upwards, upstream, east) vs. lower (downwards, downstream, west) orientations. In addition to formal differences between upper and lower orientation preverbs, this contrast reflects the fact that each of the three dimensions has an intrinsic directionality, encoding the direction of gravity, the flow of water and the apparent trajectory of the sun in the sky, respectively. The lower orientations correspond to the direction of natural motion along these dimensions: downwards (drawn by gravity), downstream (drawn by water flow) and westwards (towards the point where the sun sets). The upper orientations encode the opposite directions, reflecting the source from which natural motion takes place.

The A-type preverbs have either /ɣ/ or /u/ vocalism, corresponding to upper and lower orientations, respectively. They occur in the Aorist (§21.5.1.1, except for the 3SG→3' configurations (where the C series is used instead, §14.3.2.2), the Imperative (§21.4.2.1) and the Irrealis (§21.4.1.1). In addition, the Past Imperfective

<footnote n="1">¹Only orientable verbs (including motion and manipulation verbs, §15.1.2) are compatible with the unspecified orientation preverbs.</footnote>
pu- corresponds to the **DOWNWARDS** A-type preverb (§21.5.3.1, Lin 2011). With subject and object participles, A-type preverbs are used to build perfective participles (§16.1.1.2, §16.1.2.2); they do not occur on oblique participles (§16.1.3.4) or infinitives (§16.2.1.2).

The B-type preverbs have /u/ vocalism in upper orientations, and /w/ in lower orientations. In addition, lower orientations preverbs have a palatalized form. This palatalization is either reflected by the addition of a -j- medial in the case of *pju-* **DOWNWARDS** or by a shift of from dental (in the A-type preverb) to the corresponding palatal for *cʰu-* **DOWNSTREAM** and *jnu-* **EASTWARDS**.<fnref n="2" /> The vowel transcribed *u* is mostly realized as [i] in this context (§3.5.2). The B series occurs in the Imperfective (§21.2.1) and in the Immediate Perfective Converb (§16.6.3). In addition, the *jnu-* prefix marking the Sensory evidential (§21.3.2.1) and the *ku-* prefix of the Egophoric Present (§21.3.3.1) and the Dubitative (§21.4.4) are specialized uses of the **WESTWARDS** and **EASTWARDS** B-type preverbs. B-type preverbs are found with subject, object and oblique participles (§16.1.1.2, §16.1.2.2, §16.1.3.4) as well as velar infinitives (§16.2.1.2, §16.2.1.6).

The C-type preverbs have the same onset as the corresponding A-type preverbs, but their vocalism is neutralized to /a/. This series only occurs in the Aorist 3SG→3' configuration of the transitive paradigm (§14.3.2.2).

The D-type preverbs are exclusively used to build the Inferential (Perfective §21.5.2.1 and Imperfective §21.5.3.1). These preverbs have the same onsets as those of the B series, with a division between non-palatalized **UPWARDS** preverbs and palatalized **DOWNWARDS** preverbs. The preverbs of the **UPWARDS** series have /o/ vocalism, but those of the ‘downward’ series have two variants, with either /o/ or /r/ vocalism in free variation, as illustrated by the 3SG Inferential *jny-me* and *no-me* of the verb *me* ‘not exist’ in (1) and (2), respectively.

(1) tce mtsʰu nɔr-y-me tce,
LNK lake DEM IFR-not.exist LNK
'Then the lake disappeared.' (2003nyima-2)

(2) u-ftsoɔ
nɔ uo-me, o-nu-y-me
3SG.POSS-female.hybrid.yak DEM IFR-not.exist IFR-AUTO-CAUS-not.exist
qʰe
LNK
'Her female hybrid yak was gone, she lost it.' (gesar 2003)

<footnote n="2">²In the synchrony of Japhug, clusters involving a dental stop followed by /j/ are attested, though only in ideophones (§4.2.2.2). The alternation between /tʰ/ and /cʰ/ is unique in the grammar of Japhug.</footnote>
15 Orientation and associated motion

Since the contrast between /r/ and /o/ is neutralized before the inverse -wy- prefix (§14.3.2.7), A- and D-type UPWARDS preverbs have the same surface form when they directly precede it, as shown in Table 15.2. The contrast is however maintained in the transcription system used in this grammar.

With DOWNWARDS preverbs the contrast is not lost in this context, since both vowels and consonants remain different (for instance *pú-wy-* vs. *pjý-wy-*).

<table><caption>Table 15.2: Neutralization of the contrast between A and D-type preverbs when followed by the inverse prefix</caption><thead><tr><th>Orientation</th><th>Perfective 3'→3SG</th><th>Inferential 3'→3SG</th><th>Surface form</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Up</td><td>tý-wy-</td><td>tó-wy-</td><td>[tó(y)]</td></tr><tr><td>Upstream</td><td>lý-wy-</td><td>ló-wy-</td><td>[ló(y)]</td></tr><tr><td>Eastwards</td><td>ký-wy-</td><td>kó-wy-</td><td>[kó(y)]</td></tr><tr><td>Unspecified</td><td>jý-wy-</td><td>jó-wy-</td><td>[jó(y)]</td></tr></tbody></table>

In all four series, the unspecified orientation preverbs behave like the upper orientation preverbs (/r/, /u/ and /o/ vocalism in series A, B and D, respectively).

The isolated preverb *kʰu-*, which cannot be included in the system described above is found in the archaic form *kʰu-ti* 's/he said' of the verb *ti* 'say' (§21.5.4).

### 15.1.1.2 Preverbs and vowel contraction

Vowel contraction occurs when a type A or B preverb (in tenses forms such as the *pu-* Past Imperfective §21.5.3.1, the *nu-* Sensory §21.3.2.1 and the *ku-* Egophoric Present §21.3.3.1 which require the same preverb for all verbs) directly precedes either the stem of a contracting verb (§12.3) or the progressive prefix *asu-*-. Vowel contraction occurs in an idiosyncratic way depending on the type of preverb. The *a-* of contracting verb or of the progressive prefix merges with A-type preverbs as [-a-] in the Aorist, and as [-r-] in the Irrealis and Imperative. With B-type preverbs the result of the contraction depends on the preceding vowel: [-o-] with upper *Cu-* preverbs, and [-r-] with lower *C(j)u-* preverbs. Table 15.3 summarizes the resulting forms (not including Irrealis or Imperative); the spelling adopted in this grammar uses the intermediate 'contracting form'.

The surface forms resulting from vowel contraction of A- and B-type preverbs are identical to C-type and D-type preverbs, respectively. The only immediate difference between D-type preverbs and contracting B-type preverbs is that the former show free variation between *C/r-* and *C/o-* in the DOWNWARDS series, while
the latter only have the Cγ- form. For instance, while the Inferential of me ‘not exist’ is either *ŋu-me* or *ŋo-me* (see 1 and 2 above) with the two variants of the D-type preverbs, the result of the fusion of the B-type preverb *ŋu-* (either Sensory or Imperfective) with either a contracting *a-* initial verb or a progressive *asw*-prefix is *ŋu-y-* [*ŋy-*] and cannot be realized as [*ŋo-*] except in the case of inverse -wy- infixation within the progressive *y*<wy>*swu/z-* (§14.3.2.7, §21.6.1.1).

<table><caption>Table 15.3: Vowel contraction with A- and B-type orientation preverbs</caption><thead><tr><th>Orientation</th><th>Preverb</th><th>Contracting form</th><th>Surface form</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Up (A)</td><td>tγ-</td><td>tγ-a-</td><td>[ta-]</td></tr><tr><td>Down (A)</td><td>pu-</td><td>pu-a-</td><td>[pa-]</td></tr><tr><td>Upstream (A)</td><td>lγ-</td><td>lγ-a-</td><td>[la-]</td></tr><tr><td>Downstream (A)</td><td>tʰu-</td><td>tʰu-a-</td><td>[tʰa-]</td></tr><tr><td>Eastwards (A)</td><td>kγ-</td><td>kγ-a-</td><td>[ka-]</td></tr><tr><td>Westwards (A)</td><td>nu-</td><td>nu-a-</td><td>[na-]</td></tr><tr><td>Unspecified (A)</td><td>jγ-</td><td>jγ-a-</td><td>[ja-]</td></tr><tr><td>Up (B)</td><td>tu-</td><td>tu-o-</td><td>[to-]</td></tr><tr><td>Down (B)</td><td>pju-</td><td>pju-y-</td><td>[pjγ-]</td></tr><tr><td>Upstream (B)</td><td>lu-</td><td>lu-o-</td><td>[lo-]</td></tr><tr><td>Downstream (B)</td><td>cʰu-</td><td>cʰu-y-</td><td>[cʰy-]</td></tr><tr><td>Eastwards (B)</td><td>ku-</td><td>ku-o-</td><td>[ko-]</td></tr><tr><td>Westwards (B)</td><td>ŋu-</td><td>ŋu-y-</td><td>[ŋy-]</td></tr><tr><td>Unspecified (B)</td><td>ju-</td><td>ju-o-</td><td>[jo-]</td></tr></tbody></table>

C-type preverbs never appear in contracting contexts, because on the one hand contracting verbs are all intransitive and thus do not take C-type preverbs in the Aorist (§14.3.1), and on the other hand the progressive *asw-* removes all marks of morphological transitivity, including the alternation between A- and C-type preverbs (§14.3.1, §21.5.1.1).

Confusion between C-type preverbs and A-type preverbs with vowel fusion can arise in two cases with transitive verbs selecting the DOWNWARDS orientation. First, the 3→3' Aorist form (for instance *pa-rku* 'he put it into it') can have the same surface form (in this case [parku]) as the Past Imperfective of the Passive (§21.5.3.1, §18.1.1) of the same verb (*pu-a-rku* 'it was put in it'). Second, the 3→3' Aorist Causative (*pa-su-rxt* 'he wrote it with it, he used it to write it') can be homophonous (here [pasurxt]) with the Past Imperfective Progressive (*pu-asw-rxt* 'he was writing it').
15 *Orientation and associated motion*

Unlike C-type preverbs, D-type preverbs often occur with contracting verbs or with the progressive prefix. In such cases, the result of vowel contraction is not distinguishable from that with a B-type preverb. For instance, in (3) the Inferential Imperfective *pjy-r<nuw>* > *yro-nuw* of the verb *anuyro* ‘play’ has the same surface form [pjy*nwuyrónw*] as the corresponding Imperfective *pjuw-r<nuw>* > *yro-nuw*. It is clear from context however that the form here must be interpreted as Inferential Imperfective, because the other verbs in the same passage *pjy-nuw-ry-rst-nuw* and *pjy-scit-nuw* are in this form, not in the simple Imperfective.

(3) *w-pi* ra *w-jmŋo* *w-ŋgw* *nwtcu*,
3SG.POSS-elder.sibling PL 3SG.POSS-dream 3SG.POSS-inside DEM:LOC
*pjy-nuw-ry-rst-nuw*, *pjy-y<nuw>* > *yro-nuw* *qʰe*, *wuma zo*
IFR.IPFV-AUTO-APASS-write-PL IFR.IPFV-<AUTO>play-PL LNK really EMPH
*pjy-scit-nuw* *nw-yu*
IFR.IPFV-be.happy-PL SENS-be

‘In her dream, her elder brothers were drawing, they were playing, they were very happy.’ (140520 ye tiane-zh) {0004044#S77}

In the Kamnyu dialect of Japhug, however, although vowel contractions involving D-type preverbs are attested, such ambiguous forms are rare and avoided. More commonly, a peg circumfix *kuw-...-ci* occurs in these forms: the *kuw-* element prevents fusion between the D-type prefix and the following vowel, which is realized -r- in this context.

For instance, instead of *pjy-r<nuw>* > *yro-nuw*, the more common Imperfective Inferential form of *anuyro* ‘play’ is *pjy-k-y<nuw>* > *yro-nuw-ci* as in (4). The -ci suffix is originally an evidential marker (cognate to the Tshobdun = cɔ Mediative suffix, on which see Sun 2017: 564), but in Kamnyu Japhug it only occurs in combination with the *kuw-* prefix as a peg element (§11.4).

(4) *tce nwa*ra *pjy-k-y<nuw>* > *yro-nuw-ci*
LNK DEM:PL IFR.IPFV-PEG-<AUTO>play-PL-PEG LNK
‘They were playing.’ (140510 fengwang-zh) {0003939#S33}

Inferential forms with the peg circumfix *kuw-...-ci* regularly occur with contracting verbs or verbs bearing the progressive prefix in the same contexts as the corresponding non-contracting forms without the peg. For instance, in (5), the verb *pjy-k-yrŋi-ci* ‘it was green’ with the peg circumfix clearly belongs to the same TAME category as the two preceding verbs *pjy-tu* ‘there was’ and *pjy-rom* ‘it was dry’.
15.1 Orientation preverbs

(5) tšu ᵃ-rkštš
zw si tšu-pʰšu pjš-tu, si tšu-pʰšu nšu
path 3SG.POSS-side LOC tree one-tree IFR.IPFV-exist tree one-tree DEM
šu-pʰšaš ᵃ-ntši nšu pjš-rom žo,
3SG.POSS-half 3SG.POSS-one.of.a.pair DEM IFR.IPFV-be.dry EMPH
šu-pʰšaš ᵃ-ntši nšu pjš-k-ɣrɣi-ci
3SG.POSS-half 3SG.POSS-one.of.a pair DEM IFR.IPFV-PEG-be.green-PEG
žo,
EMPH

‘On the side of the road, there was a tree, one half of that tree was dead and the other half was green. (The divination 2002) {0003364#S11}

In the Inferential, the peg circumfix becomes a morphological exponent of the
Passive in addition to the Passive prefix ɣ- itself: without the peg, the passive
would not be easily differentiable from the base transitive verb. For instance,
without the peg element, the Inferential Imperfective Passive *pjɣ-k-ɣ-ta-ci* ‘It had
been put there’ in (6) would be identical to the Inferential *pjɣ-ta* ‘he put it there’
with the DOWNWARDS orientation.

(6) tcoχtsi ᵃ-taš nštcu, nɣkinš, qajći kwßde, cʰa kwßde-pʰoɣ

**table** 3SG.POSS-ON DEM:LOC FILLER bread four alcohol four-bottle

*pjɣ-k-ɣ-ta-ci*.

**IFR.IPFV-PEG-PASS-put-PEG**

‘There were four pieces of bread and four bottles of alcohol on the table.’

(140510 sanpian sheye-zh) {0003945#S49}

The peg circumfix appears in first person forms, following the indexation suf-
fix (as in 7), but never in second person forms, as the *tu-* prefix (§14.2.1.2) occurs
between the preverb and the following contracting vowel (8).

(7) azo, [...] tWRme yu š-kyoW
1SG person GEN 3SG.POSS-servant IFR-PEG-become-1SG-PEG
‘(The horse realized that he had been tricked by the man and thought) I
have become a slave of men!’ (2014 ma he lu-zh)

(8) nɣzo pya nɣ-tu-ɣβzu cti tce
2SG bird IFR-2-become be.AFF:FACT LNK
‘You have become a bird!’ (160630 abao-zh) {0006197#S143}

The -ci suffixal element can be elided, though not in utterance-final position
(§11.4.2).
15.1.1.3 Preverbs in eastern Japhug dialects

The Kamnyu dialect of Japhug stands apart from most varieties in terms of its
system of preverbs in two regards: the status of C- and D-type preverbs and the
form of the DOWNWARDS orientation preverbs.

The Xtokavian (§6.5.1) dialects of Japhug spoken in Sarndzu and Tatshi are better analyzed with only two series of preverbs: the A- and B-types (Lin 2011: 70, with a different terminology). Instead of the C- and D-type preverbs, Lin & Luoerwu (2003) and Lin (2011) posit two additional vowel-contracting *a*- prefixes in these dialects, one occurring in the 3→3' Aorist configuration, and the other one in the Inferential.

These prefixes occur with the A- and B-type preverbs, respectively. In third
and first person forms, the surface forms (resulting from the fusion of these pre-
verbs with the *a*- 3→3' Aorist or Inferential) are identical (minor pronunciation
differences excepted) to the corresponding C-type and D-type preverbs in Kam-
nyu Japhug, following fusion rules similar to those presented in Table 15.3

For instance, in (9a) and (9b), the verb forms transcribed as *nə-a-fe* (in Tatshi) and *nɔ̃-ce* (in Kamnyu) are near-identical in surface pronunciation and function.

(9) a. ṭamu nə-a-fe
ANTHR IFR:WEST-IFR-go

‘Lhamu went westwards.’ (Tatshi dialect, Lin 2011: 70)

b. ṭamu nɔ̃-ce
ANTHR IFR:WEST-go

‘Lhamu went westwards.’ (Kamnyu dialect)

In second person forms, on the other hand, the second person prefix in Tatshi is inserted between the B-type preverb and the *a*- Inferential prefix (A-type preverb and *a*- 3→3' prefix, respectively), as can be seen by comparing the Inferential second person intransitive in Tatshi (10a) and Kamnyu (10b). The change in the relative ordering between the vowel-contracting prefixes and the second person prefix has modified the structure of the preverbal system: the Kamnyu dialect has gained two additional series of preverbs, but lost one slot in the verbal template (§11.2).

(10) a. ṛə-tə-a-nuŋemkʰe
B.PREVERB-2-IFR-be.lean

‘You got lean.’ (Tatshi dialect, heard in context)
b. *jy-tu-**nw**y'mkʰe*

IFR-2-be.lean

‘You got lean.’ (Kamnyu dialect)

Alternatively, it is possible to analyze C- and D-type preverbs in Kamnyu Japhug as A- and B-type preverbs with vowel fusion following Lin & Luoerwu (2003), but there is little Kamnyu-internal data to support such an analysis, since D-type preverbs are not segmentable synchronically in this variety.

While in the case of D-type preverbs the vowel fusion approach proposed by Lin & Luoerwu (2003) is less attractive in Kamnyu Japhug than in the Tatshi dialect, for the C-type preverbs it is equally applicable to both dialects. First, there is no prefix ordering difference between Kamnyu and Tatshi: the 3→3' Aorist a- prefix posited by Lin Youjing never occurs in verb forms with prefixed person indexation markers (second person and/or inverse configurations). Second, there is arguably one additional trace of the 3→3' Aorist a- prefix in the Kamnyu dialect: the c̥a- variant of the Apprehensive c̥u- prefix (§21.7.1) when used with transitive verbs in 3→3' form.

There can be little doubt that the fusion hypothesis is correct historically – there was a stage where a 3→3' Aorist prefix did exist. However, from a synchronic point of view, it is not necessary to analyze this prefix as a separate morpheme. Furthermore, I decided to favour the non-contracting analysis of the preverbs to avoid potential confusion with the a- Denominal (§20.2), Passive (§18.1) and Reciprocal (§18.4.1) prefixes.

Another substantial difference between Kamnyu Japhug and the Xtokavian dialects concerns the B-type **DOWNWARDS** preverb. As shown by Table 15.4 (based on Lin 2011: 70), the A- and B-type preverbs in Tatshi are nearly completely identical to the corresponding Kamnyu preverbs (except for notational differences such as ṣ and ə instead of ɣ and ə). The only real difference is the **DOWNWARDS** B-type preverb, which is *pju-* in Kamnyu but has the form cə- with a palatal stop instead of a cluster in Tatshi. It is possible that the Tatshi palatal results from the palatalization of *p-*, but no other examples of *pj- → c-* are known to me. Alternatively, Kamnyu *pju-*- (and D-type *pjɣ-*) could be analogically based on the A-type preverb *pu-*-. Another possible origin for the cə- of xtokavian dialects is the base -ki **DOWNWARDS** found in the adverbs *aki* and *tɛeki* (§15.1.1.4).

15.1.1.4 Orientation preverbs and orientation nouns and adverbs

Excluding the unspecified orientation, there is a one-to-one relation between
the orientation preverbs, the egressive postpositions (§8.2.10, Table 8.1), locative
<table><caption>Table 15.4: Orientation preverbs in Tatshi Japhug</caption><thead><tr><th>Orientation</th><th>A</th><th>B</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Up</td><td><i>tv̥-</i></td><td><i>tu-</i></td></tr><tr><td>Down</td><td><i>pə-</i></td><td><span style="background-color: #d3d3d3;">cə-</span></td></tr><tr><td>Upstream</td><td><i>lb̥-</i></td><td><i>lu-</i></td></tr><tr><td>Downstream</td><td><i>tʰə-</i></td><td><i>cʰə-</i></td></tr><tr><td>Eastwards</td><td><i>kɒ-</i></td><td><i>ku-</i></td></tr><tr><td>Westwards</td><td><i>nə-</i></td><td><i>ŋə-</i></td></tr></tbody></table>

relator nouns (§8.3.4.1) and orientation adverbs (§22.2.6), as the data in Table 15.5 show.

The initial consonant of the orientation preverbs is identical to that of the locative adverbs (Table 15.5), except for (i) the WESTWARDS orientation with a nasal *n-* instead of a prenasalized *nd-* (ii) the DOWNWARDS orientation, which corresponds to -ki in some adverbial forms (*aki* and *tçeki*).

The vocalism of the preverbs is only partially predictable from that of the corresponding adverbs: the prefixes *tʰu-* and *nu-* could be seen as the bound state of the adverbs *tʰi* 'downstream' and *ndi* 'westwards' with -i → -u alternation, but the pattern is less clear in the remaining preverbs. In the case of the UPWARDS preverbs, the *t-* prefixes are more likely to be related to the -tu root found in the adverbs *atu* and *tçetu* rather than the -tau root found in the locative noun *u-taue* (on which see §8.3.4.3).

The irregular consonantal correspondence between the preverb *nu-* and the adverb *ndi* of the DOWNWARDS orientation could be interpreted in three ways.

First, the preverb could have been grammaticalized from the adverb, and a sound change *ndi- → nu-* could have taken place one it had become a prefix, due to a phonotactic constraint against prenasalized stops (and complex segments in general) in prefixal position (§11.2.4). This hypothesis is unlikely however, because orientation preverbs are precisely the only prefixes that appear to violate the phonotactic constraints observed by all other elements of the prefixal chain, as shown in particular by the presence of aspirated segments (*tʰu-*), laterals (*lɔ-*), and clusters (*pjuu-*).

Second, the adverb *ndi* could originate from a compound, whose first element *n-* would come from the same etymon as the WESTWARDS preverb *nu-*.

Finally, the possibility that the preverb *nu-* and the adverb *ndi* are historically unrelated should also be considered.
15.1 Orientation preverbs

The strong resemblance between the preverbs and the locative adverbs could be interpreted as due to a relatively recent grammaticalization. However, just as in the case of the relation between pronouns and indexation suffixes (§14.8.1), the possibility of mutual contamination between partially cognate paradigms has to be taken into consideration.

<table><caption>Table 15.5: Orientation preverbs, egressive postpositions and locative nouns and adverbs</caption><thead><tr><th>Orientation</th><th>A-preverbs</th><th>Locative Adverbs</th><th>Egressive</th><th>Locative relators</th><th>Locative distal adverbs</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Upwards</td><td><i>ty-</i></td><td><i>ta</i><i>k</i></td><td><i>caŋta</i><i>k</i></td><td><i>u-<i>ta</i></i><i>k</i></td><td><i>tɛ̣etu</i></td></tr><tr><td>Downwards</td><td><i>pu-</i></td><td><i>pa</i></td><td><i>caŋpa</i></td><td><i>u-<i>pa</i></i></td><td><i>tɛ̣eki</i></td></tr><tr><td>Upstream</td><td><i>lɔ-</i></td><td><i>lo</i></td><td><i>caŋlo</i></td><td><i>u-<i>lɔ</i></i><i>cu</i></td><td><i>tɛ̣elo</i></td></tr><tr><td>Downstream</td><td><i>tʰu-</i></td><td><i>tʰi</i></td><td><i>caŋtʰi</i></td><td><i>u-<i>tʰ</i>ɔ</i><i>cu</i></td><td><i>tɛ̣etʰi</i></td></tr><tr><td>Eastwards</td><td><i>kɔ-</i></td><td><i>k<u></i><i>u</i></td><td><i>caŋku</i></td><td><i>u-<i>kɔ</i></i><i>cu</i></td><td><i>tɛ̣ek<u></i><i>u</i></td></tr><tr><td>Westwards</td><td><i>nu-</i></td><td><i>ndi</i></td><td><i>caŋndi</i></td><td><i>u-<i>ndɔ</i></i><i>cu</i></td><td><i>tɛ̣endi</i></td></tr></tbody></table>

15.1.1.5 Verbs incompatible with orientation preverbs

In the West Gyalrongic languages, including Stau (Jacques et al. 2017: 601) or Khroskyabs (Lai 2017: 311), some verbs never take orientation preverbs even in the Imperative and Aorist. This appears to be an archaic feature, as it is restricted to a very small set of cognate verbs, for instance Stau *vdɔ* ‘see’ and Khroskyabs *vdê* ‘see’. No such phenomenon exists in Japhug.<fnref n="3" /> The Japhug cognates of West Gyalrongic preverb-less verbs regularly take orientation preverbs (for instance, *mto* ‘see’ selects the *DOWNWARDS* orientation, see §15.1.5.9).

A handful of verbs never occur with orientation preverbs in Japhug, but this phenomenon is completely different from the West Gyalrongic case. In Japhug, preverb-less verbs have a defective paradigm, and only occur in one TAME category. Two of them (*mɔ*-xsi ‘one does not know’ and *kɔ*rtupa ‘tell’, §14.3.4) are only attested in the Factual Non-Past, and the absence of preverbs is thus regular. The existential verbs *γɔ*zu ‘exist’ and *maŋe* ‘not exist’ are only found in the Sensory Evidential (§14.2.2, §21.3.2), which is normally marked by the preverb

<footnote n="3">³Still, there are some indirect clues that *ti* ‘say’ could have had irregular preverbless forms at an earlier stage (§21.3.1.4).</footnote>
15 *Orientation and associated motion*

juu-, and can be considered to be the suppletive forms of tu 'exist' and me 'not exist', respectively.

15.1.2 Orientable verbs

Most verbs in Japhug have one or several lexicalized orientation(s) (§15.1.5), and when used with preverbs, these no longer express spatial orientation or direction. Yet, there is a subclass of verbs, in which the preverbs retain their original spatial meaning: these are called in this grammar “orientable verbs”.

The defining feature of these verbs is not simply the ability to take any of the six orientation preverbs, but more importantly their compatibility with the *unspecified orientation* (§15.1.1.1), which is never used as a lexicalized orientation.

Orientable verbs can be subdivided into three main categories: motion verbs ('go', 'come' etc), manipulation verbs ('bring', 'take' etc) and orienting verb ('look towards', 'turn towards' etc). In addition, some stative verbs can be converted into orientable verbs. This section presents the specificities of a sample of these categories, and then describes the uses of preverbs to express spatial direction.

15.1.2.1 Motion verbs

Motion verbs in Japhug can be subdivided into four categories, depending on their transitivity and on whether they select a local phrase.

First, allative motion verbs select a locative phrase (in the absolutive §8.1.8, with a locative postposition §8.2.4 and/or a relator noun §8.3.4) expressing the goal / direction of the motion. The most common allative verbs are ᶜe 'go' and γi 'come' (§15.1.2.3), which can also take a purposive complement (§16.1.1.6).

Other allative verbs include *zyut* ‘arrive’ (11), *cit* ‘move’, *pʰyọ* ‘flee’, *mtsaub* ‘jump’, *ɛqʰlɛt* ‘disappear’ and *jyɛt* ‘turn around’, and derived vertitive verbs (§19.2) such as *nuee* ‘go back’.

The orientation preverbs of allative verbs express the trajectory towards the goal, as in (11). Note here the orientation concord between the EASTWARDS preverb ko- and the locative relative noun *u-kycu* ‘east of’ (§15.1.2.7).

(11) *u-kycu* tce icqʰa mtsʰu ku-wyrum nu yu
3SG.POSS-east LOC the.aforementioned lake SBJ:PCP-be.white DEM GEN
u-taub nutcu ko-zyut-ndzi.
3SG.POSS-on DEM:LOC IFR:EAST-reach-DU
‘They arrived at the white lake east of there.’ (28-smAnmi)
{0004063#S256}
In addition, reflexive-causative derivations from allative verbs, or from verbs of relative location, such as *zyyszyut* ‘manage to reach’ and *zyysyrmbat* ‘move closer’ from *zyut* ‘arrive’ and *armbat* ‘be near’ (§15.1.2.5, §18.3.4.3), can also be allative verbs.

There is always an implicit goal with *ce* ‘go’, *yi* ‘come’ and *zyut* ‘arrive’, even when it is not overt, as in (12). In this example, the locative adverb *alo* ‘upstream’ (here ‘closer to the mountain’, see §15.1.3.2) refers to the path of the motion, not its goal. The goal, being encoded by the *EASTWARDS* preverb, would have to be expressed with a *eastwards* locative noun or adverb (§15.1.2.7).

(12) alo ny alo kъ-ye-a ma u-ъyri
upstream add upstream aor:east-come[II]-1sg lnk 3sg.poss-front
ku-ku-yi tce, pu-yuts^yduy.
ipfv:east-genr:s/o-come lnk sens-be.hot

‘I came [here], (eastwards from the point of origin) by [the road that lies] closer to the mountain, when one comes by the [road that is located] in the front (closer to the river), it is too hot.’ (conversation, 140510)

Second, the verb *tov* ‘come out’ is an ablative motion verb, selecting a locative phrase expressing the point of departure of the motion event, as *ndzom u-pa nutcu* ‘from under the bridge’ and *tu-ci u-rku nutcu* ‘from the side of the river’ in (13) and *tumunymk^ha zu* ‘from heaven’ in (14). The preverb refers to the direction from this point of origin to the goal (which may be left unspecified), a motion upwards in (13), and downwards in (14).

(13) tce ndzom u-pa nutcu tu-ci u-rku
lnk bridge 3sg.poss-under dem:loc indef.poss-water 3sg.poss-side
nutcu pyutcu nu to-nu-tov tce
dem:loc bird dem ifr:up-auto-come.out lnk

‘The bird came out from under the bridge, near the river.’ (2002 qaCpa)

(14) tumunymk^ha zu pjy-nu-tov-nu.
heaven loc ifr:down-auto-come.out-pl
‘[They] came down from heaven.’ (150828 niulang-zh) {0006318#S48}

The verb *yi* ‘come’ sometimes selects a locative phrase referring to the source of the motion, rather than to the goal, as shown by (15), describing an action similar to (14).
15 Orientation and associated motion

(15) spikuku zo tce tumunymkʰa nutcu, qro xswum
every.day EMPH LNK heaven DEM:LOC pigeon three
pju-yi-nu
IPFV:DOWN-come-PL
'Everyday, three pigeons came down from heaven.' (31-deluge)
{0004077#S47}

Another ablative verb is the reflexive-causative *zγγsrqʰi* ‘move further away’ derivation from the stative verb *arqʰi* ‘be far’ (see §15.1.2.5).

Third, atelic motion verbs do not select a locative phrase. This category includes verbs expressing the speed of motion (*r}*juγ* ‘run’, *ŋke* ‘walk’), or non-terrestrial motion (*n}*uqambumbjom ‘fly’, *ndzaŋ* ‘swim’). With these verbs, when a locative phrase is present, it generally indicates the path of the motion, not the goal, as in (16).

(16) <bazi> u-ŋgw ri tv-ŋke-a ma, ku-yrqʰi k-c-e
yard 3SG.POSS-in LOC AOR-walk-1SG LNK SBJ:PCP-be.far INF-go
mu-ku-cʰa-a.
NEG-PRS-can-1SG
'I had a walk in the yard, I cannot go very far.' (conversation, 2017-09-21)

To specify a goal, the atelic motion verb is usually conjoined with an allative verb, in particular *c-e* ‘go’ or *y-i* ‘come’, as in (17).

(17) rjymtsʰu u-pcoŋ tce jo-ndzaŋ tce jo-c-e.
sea 3SG.POSS-side LOC IFR-swim LNK IFR-go
'He swam towards the sea.' (150830 baihe jiemei-zh) {0006368#S201}

With the verb *r}*juγ* ‘run’ there are apparent examples of locative phrases indicating the goal as in (18), but only in texts translated from Chinese, and this may be a calque, though such examples are not considered clumsy by Tshendzin.

(18) rjara u-ŋgw cʰy-rjuy ri,
yard 3SG.POSS-in IFR:DOWNSTREAM-run LNK
'He ran out into the yard.' (140505 bulaimei-zh) {0003911#S104}

The verb *ŋke* ‘walk’ is barely attested with the unspecified orientation preverbs. It only occurs with them when in a serial verb construction (§25.4.1) with an allative motion verb, as in (19). When used on their own, the *UPWARDS* preverbs occur to express unspecified orientation, as in (16) above.
15.1 Orientation preverbs

(19) tce jo-ŋke jo-ce tce tce, <changcheng> [...] u-kuu-βzu
LNK IFR-walk IFR-go LNK LNK great.wall 3SG.POSS-SBJ:PCP-make
ra nuu-cki tce jo-zyuut.
PL 3PL.POSS-DAT LOC IFR-arrive

‘She went [there] on foot and arrived where people were building the
Great Wall.’ (150827 mengjiangnv-zh) {0006290#S145}

The distributed action verb *nɔ̃cʊuɛe* ‘go around’ (from *ɛe* ‘go’) does not take definite goals (§19.4), and in addition is only compatible with unspecified orientation preverbs.

Fourth, transitive motion verbs include *βji* ‘chase’, *pjɛrl* ‘go around, cross, avoid’, *pula* ‘turn over’ and *numgla* ‘step over’, which can also occur with the non-specific orientation preverbs, as in (20). The object of these verbs is the location or entity around which (or through/towards which) the motion event takes place.

(20) zgo tʰɪstwhy ja-nnu-pula-ndzi, tu-ci
mountain how.many AOR:3→3'-AUTO-turn.over-DU INDEF.POSS-water
tcʰi jarma ja-n-numgla-ndzi mɔ-xsi ma,
what about AOR:3→3'-AUTO-CROSS-DU NEG-GENR:know LNK
'It is not known how many mountains and rivers they crossed.'
(qajdoskAt 2002) {0003366#S50}

The transitive verb *nuwqʰu* ‘go along, follow’ (§20.7.2) is also compatible with the unspecified orientation preverbs, but can also selects the *UPWARDS* preverbs as default, like *ŋke* ‘walk’.

15.1.2.2 Manipulation verbs

Manipulation verbs are transitive verbs expressing a motion involving two entities.<fnref n="4" /> The subject, generally (but not exclusively) animate causes the object (prototypically, an inanimate) to move (in some case together with him/her/it). As in the case of motion verbs, there are several categories depending on whether a locative phrase is selected and the nature of the motion causation.

Allative manipulation verbs select a locative phrase indicating the goal of the motion, such as <xuexiao> yu u-<caochang> u-χcɛl ‘the middle of the school playground’ in (21) or sɛtɛhə ku-ɛrqʰi zu ‘to a place far away’ in (22). The presence of a locative phrase is however always optional (§14.5.4).

<footnote n="4">⁴The term “caused accompanied motion” has been suggested to replace “manipulation” (Margetts et al. 2019).</footnote>
15 Orientation and associated motion

(21) ji-kʰu̯tsa sy-rku tsʰaŋ numu,
1PL.POSS-bowl OBL:PCP-put.in cupboard DEM
ta-nxjoŋjoŋ-nu̯ ta-nu̯tʰaj-nu̯ qʰe
AOR:3→3'-lift.up.and.go.around-PL AOR:3→3'-lift.up.and.carry-PL LNK
rcanu̯, <xuexiao> yu̯ u̯-caochang> u̯-χcyl zo
UNEXP:DEG school GEN 3SG.POSS-playground 3SG.POSS-center EMPH
na-tsum-nu̯.
AOR:3→3':EAST-take.away-PL

'They lifted up the cupboard where we put our bowls, and carried it to the middle of the school playground.' (150831 BZW kAnArRaR) {0006378#S20}

(22) u̯-pci zw jú-wy-sco, sytcʰa ku̯-yrqʰi zw
3SG.POSS-outside LOC IPFV-INV-send place SBJ:PCP-be.far LOC
pjúu̯-wy-lýt ma-púu̯-wy-sat ra
IPFV:DOWN-INV-release NEG-IMP-INV-kill be.needed:FACT
tu̯-ku̯-ti pu̯-pu̯
IPFV:DOWN-GENR:S/O-say SENS-be

'One has to send [the snake] outside, to a place far away without killing it, people say.' (2010-11)

Allative manipulation verbs can be divided into several subcategories. Verbs of transportation, in which the subject carries the object and moves together with it/him include *tsum* ‘take away’ and *yut* ‘bring’, the transitive counterparts of the motion verbs *çe* ‘go’ and *yi* ‘come’ (§15.1.2.3), *ru* ‘fetch, bring’ (discussed in more detail in §15.2.9). Verbs of accompanied motion, whose subject and objects move together along the same trajectory, include *mtsʰi* ‘lead’, *no* ‘drive’, *sco* ‘see off’ and *lyt* ‘release’.<fnref n="5" /> The latter two verbs can also refer to transportation in a vehicle, as in (23). Verbs of accompanied motion can occur with a locative phrase, but such uses are very rare.

(23) u̯-wa ku̯ yu̯-lý-wy-lýt-i
3SG.POSS-father ERG CISL-IFR:UPSTREAM-INV-release-1PL
'His father give us a ride here (from Chengdu to Mbarkham).' (elicited)

Allative verbs of induced motion comprise the causative derivations of motion verbs, in particular *swye* ‘invite’, ‘cause to come’ and *suxçe* ‘send’, ‘cause to go’.

<footnote n="5">⁵This verb has many functions as a light verb (§22.4.2.2), but one of its basic meanings when used on its own is ‘see off’ like sco.</footnote>
Only the object undergoes the motion, as in (24).<fnref n="6" />

(24) *rŋul rskyt w-taw* tý-wý-sux-ce p<u>-ηu*
silver stairs 3SG.POSS-ON IFR:UP-INV-CAUS-GO SENS-be
‘They made her go up the silver stairs.’ (2003 Kunbzang)

The verbs *mɣa* ‘take’ (§19.7.3) and *tçt* ‘take out’ when used as manipulation verbs select a locative phrase which can refer to the goal, as in (26), but also in some cases to the point of origin of the motion, as in (25). These verbs do not necessary imply translational motion of the subject (only motion of the hands).

(25) pγ-mtsuwr qʰe tcendre w-pʰuŋgw nwtcu icqʰa n<u>w>,
IFR-be.hungry LNK LNK 3SG.POSS-fold.of.clothes DEM.LOC FILLER DEM
qajyi ci pγ-tcxt tce to-n<u>-ndza>.
bread INDEF IFR-take.out LNK IFR-AUTO-eat
‘He became hungry, took a piece of bread from the folds of his clothes
and ate it.’ (150830 san ge heshang-zh) {0006416#S129}

(26) rjymtsʰu u-mŋu zw ju-tcxt-n<u>w* tce
ocean 3SG.POSS-border LOC IPFV-take.out-PL LNK
'[The whalers] take [the whale] to the shore.' (160703 jingyu)
{0006169#S35}

Atelic manipulation verbs cannot select a locative phrase. Some atelic verbs are not orientable, and cannot take the unspecified orientation preverbs. For instance, *nutʰaj* ‘carry’ (a verb borrowed from Chinese, see §20.11) is only compatible with the *UPWARDS* orientation, and requires to be used with an allative verb such as *tsum* ‘take away’ to specify the goal and the orientation, as in (21) above.

15.1.2.3 Motion deixis

Motion and manipulation verbs both have a contrast between translocative (ce
§15.1.2.1, tsum §15.1.2.2) and cislocative (yi §15.1.2.1, yut §15.1.2.2), like the corres-
ponding associated motion prefixes (cw- §15.2.1.2, yu- §15.2.1.1).

The translocative and cislocative verbs can often be translated as ‘go/take away’ and ‘come/bring’, respectively. However, these translations may be misleading, as the criteria for determining the deictic center in Japhug are not identical to those of Chinese or English.

<footnote n="6">⁶However, the motion verb *r}*u}*y* ‘run’ has a causative form *su}*u}*y* ‘run away with’ which ex-
presses motion of both subject and object (§17.2.5.10).</footnote>
15 *Orientation and associated motion*

The cislocative verbs are required not only in case of motion towards the loca-
tion of the speaker, they have to be used whenever a motion is directed towards
a spatial location related either to the speaker or the addressee, even in the case
of motion from the location of the speaker to that of the addressee. For instance,
while in Chinese (and most languages of Europe) both 来你家 <lái nǐ jiā> ‘come
to your house’ and 去你家 <qù nǐ jiā> ‘go to your house’ are grammatical, in
Japhug only the cislocative verbs are employed in this case. In (27) for instance,
replacing ju-yi-a by ju-ce-a would result in a very clumsy clause.

(27) az̥o tʰv̥jtcu jamar nvs-ka
ju-yi-a pe?
1SG when about 2SG POSS-house IPFV-come-1SG be.good:FACT
‘What time should I go to your house?’ (elicited)

Similarly, the cislocative is necessary when both addressee and speaker go
together, in sentences with the secutive *u-rca* (§8.3.2) such as (28), (29) (see also
62 in §15.1.3.3). The translocative *ce* ‘go’ is never attested is such contexts.

(28) a-rca jv-yi
1SG POSS-following IMP-come
‘Come with me.’ (several attestations)

(29) nvs-rca tu-yi-a ra ma kutcu
2SG POSS-following IPFV:UP-come-1SG be.needed:FACT LNK here
az̥o-sti ku-rv̥zi-a műj-cʰa-a
1SG-alone IPFV-stay-1SG NEG:SENS-can-1SG
‘I am going [to heaven] with you, I cannot stay here alone.’ (02-deluge)
{0003376#S74}

The translocative manipulation verb *tsum* ‘take away’ however can be used
with a second person secutive, as in (30).

(30) nvs-rca tu-kw-tsum-a ra
2SG POSS-following IPFV:UP-2→1-take.away-1SG be.needed:FACT
‘Take me with you [to heaven].’ (31-deluge) {0004077#S71}

15.1.2.4 Orienting verbs

Orienting verbs express change of orientation without translational motion, in-
volving a pointing/aiming gesture towards a goal. This category includes the
intransitive *ru* ‘look at’ (§14.2.4), the transitive verbs *ctʰuz* ‘turn towards’ and *tʰu*
'built' (of roads or bridges; this verb also has additional meanings such as 'leave (a trace)' as in 33 in specific contexts), as well as the anticausative ndu 'be spread' (§18.5).

With the verb cthuz for instance, the preverb indicates the orientation towards which the object is directed, and it can correlate with locative adverbs (31) or locative phrases (32).

(31) tce tcekw zw rŋwl-kʰri ndi pɔ-y-ctʰwz, tcendi
LNK east.DISTAL LOC silver-seat west IFR:WEST-turn.towards west.DISTAL
zw kw ko-ctʰwz tce,
LOC east IFR:EAST-turn.towards LNK

'On the eastearn side, he turned the silver seat towards the west, and on
the western side he turned [the other seat] towards the east.'
(smAnmi2003)

(32) tce nw kʰwtsa nw tu-ctʰwz-nw, tw-mРАВ
LNK DEM bowl DEM IPFV:UP-turn.towards-PL INDEF.POSS-eye
w-pa ri tu-ctʰwz-nw kw-fse tce,
3SG.POSS-below LOC IPFV:UP-turn.towards-PL INF:STAT-be like LNK
'[The lamas] turn the bowl upwards below the eye [of the patient].'
(27-tApGi) {0003706#S18}

Orienting verbs are also compatible with unspecified orientation preverbs, as
example (33) shows.

(33) kw-fsoŋ w-jroŋ kw-fse ci
SBJ:PCP-be.bright 3SG.POSS-trace SBJ:PCP-be lik e INDEF
ju-tʰi tce,
IPFV:UNSPECIFIED-leave.trace[III] LNK
'The shooting star leaves something like a bright trail.' (29-mWBZi)
{0003728#S86}

15.1.2.5 Conversion to orientable verbs

A handful of stative verbs can take the unspecified orientation preverbs and be
converted to dynamic orientable verbs. The stative verbs of relative location arm-
bat 'be near' and arqʰi 'be far' can be used in the meanings 'move closer' and
'move further away' identical to the reflexive-causative derived verbs zyɛsyrmbat
'move closer' and zyɛsrqʰi 'move further away' (§15.1.2.1, §18.3.4), as in (34).
15 Orientation and associated motion

(34) *jy-armbat tce ku-rtoь tce, tceri wzo w-pi
         вънъз
AOR-be.close LNK IPFV-look LNK LNK 3SG 3SG.POSS-elder.sibling two
         nwni pjy-nyu-ndzi.

DEM:DU IFR.IPFV-be-DU

'As he moved closer, he saw that [the people about to be executed] were
his brothers.' (140507 jinniao-zh) {0003931#S318}

Finally, the stative verb *pat* 'be tired' occurs with the indefinite orientation preverbs in the meaning 'become tired (from walking/running)', as in (35).

(35) *mw-jy-pat zo myctsa jo-ce*
NEG-AOR-be.tired EMPH until IFR-go

'He went [after them] until he became tired.' (160706 poucet6)
{0006109#S45}

15.1.2.6 Complement clauses

Some complement-taking verbs, in particular phasal verbs (§24.5.6.2) such as *za*
'begin', select the orientation of the verb in the complement clause, and can be
used with indefinite orientation preverbs (§24.3.5).

15.1.2.7 Orientation concord

Clauses containing an orientable verb generally show agreement between the
orientation of the preverb and that of orientation nouns and adverbs (§8.3.4.1,
§15.1.1.4).

In (36) for instance, the *UPSTREAM* *lo-* and *cʰy-* *DOWNSTREAM* preverbs correlate
with the adverbs *alo* ‘upstream’ and *atʰi* ‘downstream’, respectively, expressing
here a back and forth motion.

(36) *alo nγ lo-r;y
upstream ADD IFR:UPSTREAM-run downstream ADD
    cʰy-r
    IFR:DOWNSTREAM-run*

IFR:DOWNSTREAM-run

'He ran upstream and downstream.' (160720 kandZislama) {0006147#S66}

In (37), the WESTWARDS *jy-* preverb corresponds to the orientation relator
noun *w-ndγcu* ‘west of’. In the same story, the main character comes back to the
same place on the return trip, from the opposite direction, and the EASTWARDS
orientation preverb and relator noun are found instead (example 11, §15.1.2.1).
15.1 Orientation preverbs

(37) *w-ndscu* tce, mtsʰu kw-wyrum ci ṛṣ-k-ytwy-ci.
3SG.POSS-west LOC lake SBJ:PCP-be.white INDEF IFR:WEST-PEG-meet-PEG
‘In the west from there, he came upon a white lake.’ (28-smAnmi)
{0004063#S97}

15.1.3 The tridimensional system

Orientation preverbs (§15.1.1.1) in Japhug are organized in a three-dimensional
system like spatial postpositions, relator nouns and adverbs (§8.2.10, §8.3.4.1,
§22.2.6). Very similar orientation systems are found in other Gyalrong languages,
in particular Tshobdun (Sun 2000a) and the Cogtse dialect of Situ (Lin 1993; Lin
2002; 2017).<fnref n="7" />

The present section describes the concrete spatial uses of each of the three dimensions (vertical, riverine and solar)<fnref n="8" /> with orientable verbs. The discussion here not only applies to orientation preverbs, but also to all nouns, postpositions and adverbs encoding orientation.

15.1.3.1 The vertical dimension

The basic meaning of the UPWARDS and DOWNWARDS preverbs, adverbs and lo-
cator nouns is to encode relative position or motion on the axis that is perpen-
dicular to the ground. A typical use of these preverbs with orientable verbs for
instance is to describe motion up and down trees or stairs, as shown by (38) and
(39).

(38) tcʰi nʷ yu ʷ-taк ts-ari pʷ-ŋu
tree.trunk.stairway DEM GEN 3SG.POSS-on AOR:UP-go[II] SENS-be
‘He went up the tree trunk stairway.’ (2005 Kunbzang)

(39) *rfy skyt to-syglyglyy* zo *pjy-ce* tce,
stairs IFR-make.trampling.noise EMPH IFR:DOWN-go
‘She hurtled down the stairs.’ (Nyima wodzer2002)

The DOWNWARDS preverb also expresses downwards motion into another me-
dium such as water, as in (40).

<footnote n="7">⁷Not all Core Gyalrong languages, however, have a tridimensional orientation system: Zbu (Gong 2018) and the Bragbar dialect of Situ (Zhang 2020) are exceptions.</footnote>

<footnote n="8">⁸The labels ‘riverine’ and ‘solar’ follow Sun’s (2000a) and Lin’s (2002) work on Tshobdun and Situ. Previous authors (Lin 1993) have analyzed the ‘riverine’ and ‘solar’ dimensions as ‘river-mountain’ and ‘upstream-downstream’, respectively (see the discussion in §15.1.3.2).</footnote>
15 Orientation and associated motion

(40) **tcendsre tw-pjyt**      **kw tw-ci**      **w-ŋgw**
LNK NMLZ:ACTION-regret ERG INDEF.POSS-water 3SG.POSS-in
**pjy-mtsaɣ**      **qʰe pjy-si.**
IFR:DOWN-jump LNK IFR-die
‘(Desperate from) regret, he jumped into the water and died.’
(28-qajdoskAt) {0003718#S177}

The rising and setting of the sun is also expressed with the vertical preverbs (*to-łɔv* IFR:UP-come.out ‘(the sun) rose’ vs. *pjy-cqʰlyt* IFR:DOWN-disappear ‘(the sun) set’); alternatively, the solar dimension is also used (§15.1.3.3).

The vertical dimension preverbs also express relative altitude, in particular when the slope between two places is particularly steep. Alternatively, the riverine preverbs *UPSTREAM* / *DOWNSTREAM* (§15.1.3.2) occur either when the slope is less steep, or when following a water stream. This dimension can also be used between far away places when the difference in altitude is perceived to be particularly conspicuous. For instance, the orientation *UPWARDS* is selected to describe a journey from Gyalrong areas to central Tibet, and *DOWNWARDS* for a trip to Chinese areas, as in (41) and (42) (see also 193 in §15.2.4). The riverine dimension is alternatively possible however to refer to motion between Gyalrong and Chinese areas (§15.1.3.2).

(41) **pot stʰuci kw-ŋrqʰi me**      **ri, nutcu ty-ari**
Tibet such as SBJ:PCP-be.far notuez:FACT LNK DEM.LOC AOR:UP-go[II]
**cti tce**
be.AFF:FACT LNK
‘There is no [place] further away [from here] than Tibet, but he went there.’ (meimeidegushi)

(42) **rja pjy-ce tce**
Chine IFR:DOWN-go LNK
‘He went to China.’ (Gesar)

In some cases, the orientation *DOWNWARDS* is selected when the path includes a section down a mountain, even if the axis is oriented in the upstream/downstream or east/west directions. For instance, the *DOWNWARDS* orientation preverb appears to express a motion from *kŋnyu* Kamnyu to *smulju* Smeliu village, as explained in example (43), although the path between them follows the east-west axis. It is however alternatively possible to use the *EASTWARDS* preverbs to describe the trip from Kamnyu to Smeliu (and the *WESTWARDS* preverbs for the opposite journey).
15.1 Orientation preverbs

(43) “rqaco pjw-ce-a” tu-kw-ti, “smwlju pw-ari-a”
TOPO IPFV:DOWN-go-1SG IPFV-GENR-say TOPO AOR:DOWN-go[II]-1SG
tu-ti-nw. tce ma numw zgo nw tu-kw-ce tce,
IPFV-say-PL LNK LNK DEM mountain DEM IPFV:UP-GENR:S/O-go LNK
akw tce pa pjw-kw-ce pw-ra loß, tce
east LOC down IPFV:DOWN-GENR:S/O-go SENS-be-needed SFP LNK
núndza pw-nu.
for this reason SENS-be

'People say 'I will go (down) to Rqakyo', or 'I went [down] to Smeliu', this
is because one has to go up a mountain and back down its eastern side.'
(150904 akW andi-zh) {0006372#S15}

15.1.3.2 The riverine dimension

The basic meaning of the **UPSTREAM** and **DOWNSTREAM** preverbs, adverbs and
locator nouns is to express motion or relative position along the axis of a flowing
river or streamlet.

The downstream preverbs are systematically used to refer to the direction of
water flow. In particular, the imperfective participles cʰu-ku-yi or cʰu-ku-çe with
the **DOWNSTREAM** preverb are sometimes added to the noun tu-ci ‘water’ to spec-
ify the meaning ‘river, stream’ (tu-ci cʰu-ku-yi, literally ‘the water that is coming
downstream’) as in (44) and (46).

(44) alo ji-tw-ci cʰu-ku-yi,
upstream 1PL.POSS-INDEF.POSS-water IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-SBJ:PCP-come
<jiaomujiao> tw-ci nw
pl.n INDEF.POSS-water DEM
‘Our river upstream [in Kamnyu], the Kyomkyo river…’ (150820
ZNGWIoR) {0006292#S10}

In (45), the **DOWNSTREAM** preverb is not only used with motion verbs in the collocation with the nouns *tçʰitʰyn* ‘mudslide’ or *túpryt* ‘landslide’, it is also found on the verb *cʰy̌-wy-yut* to describe a mudslide taking away an animal with it.

(45) tce tcʰitʰyn cʰy-yi tcendsre <dianchang>
LNK mudslide IFR:DOWNSTREAM-come LNK power.station
cʰy-pʰut. <dianchang> cʰy-pʰut,
IFR:DOWNSTREAM-take.out power.station IFR:DOWNSTREAM-take.out
numw túpryt tʰuy-e nw w-rca
DEM landslide AOR:DOWNSTREAM-come[II] DEM 3SG.POSS-together
15 Orientation and associated motion

n̥w̥tcu tce, n̥w̥ŋa pʷ-kʷ-n̥w̥rʷ
nʷ tsrca
DEM.LOC LOC COW PST.IPFV-SBJ:PCP-grazing DEM together
cʰý-wỳ-yu̥t, tʷ-rdɔ́w.

IFR:DOWNSTREAM-INV-bring one piece

‘The mudslide swept away the power station. It swept away the power station, and when the landslide occurred, it took away a cow that was grazing [there].’ (160715 nWNa) {0006067#S3}

The direction opposite to that of the flow of water is normally referred to with the **UPSTREAM** preverbs, as in (46).<fnref n="9" /> As shown by (47), the **UPSTREAM** preverbs and adverbs are understood by speakers as specifically referring to the direction towards the source of the river (tɛʰipʰuɣ, a noun borrowed from ɛ́kɛ́ lɔ́ŋu tɛʰu.pʰugs ‘water source’).

(46) kʷki tʷ-ci cʰu̥-ku̥-yi kʷki
DEM.PROX INDEF.POSS-water IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-SBJ:PCP-come DEM.PROX
tú-wỳ-nu̥nqʰu lu-ku̥-ce tce,
IPFV-INV-follow IPFV:UPSTREAM-GENR:S/O-go LNK
'[If] you follow this creek upstream...' (04-cuiniao-zh) {0003390#S60}

(47) tcʰipʰuɣ u̥-pcɔ́w lu-ku̥-ce nʷ tce
source.of.the.river 3SG.POSS-side IPFV:UPSTREAM-gen:S/O-go DEM LNK
“lo”, tcʰimtʰa u̥-pcɔ́w cʰu̥-ku̥-ce
upstream lower.reaches 3SG.POSS-side IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-GENR:S/O-go
nʷ tce “tʰu̥-ari-a”, “tʰi” tú-wỳ-nu̥-syrmi
DEM LNK AOR:DOWNSTREAM-go[II]-1SG downstream IPFV-INV-AUTO-call
pu̥-ŋu.
SENS-be

‘One calls going towards the source of the river UPSTREAM, and going towards the lower reaches of the river ‘downstream.’ (150904 akW andi) {0006372#S24}

For motion between localities in the Gyalrong areas located along a river, the **UPSTREAM** and **DOWNSTREAM** orientation are selected in some cases. For instance, the **UPSTREAM** preverbs occur to describe trips from Kamnyu to Tshobdun (or Zbu) as in (48), and the **DOWNSTREAM** preverbs for the opposite trip.

<footnote n="9">⁹In (46), the **UPWARDS** preverb on n̥u̥nqʰu ‘go along, follow’ is the default orientation, see §15.1.2.1.</footnote>
(48) tsʰuβdwn ku-sy-swxcyt ly-ari-a.
TOPO SBJ:PCP-APASS-teach AOR:UPSTREAM-go[II]-1SG
'I went to Tshobdun to teach.' (150819 kumpGa) {0006388#S69}

The riverine dimension preverbs can also be used in the case of trips to far away places up or down the course of a river. For instance, a journey to Chinese areas can be described using the **DOWNSTREAM** orientation as in (49), though due to the considerable altitude difference the orientation **DOWNWARDS** is often preferred (compare with example 42, §15.1.3.1).

(49) rja syz ku-yrqʰi me ri, nutcu
China COMIT SBJ:PCP-be.far-away notuezFACT LNK DEM:LOC
tʰu-ari cti
AOR:DOWNSTREAM-go[II] be.AFF:FACT
'There is no [place] further away [from here] than China, but he went there.' (meimeidegushi)

However, in valleys where the main river flows along the east-west axis, the solar dimension (§15.1.3.3) takes over the riverine dimension. In Mbarkham and the towns around it, where the Somang river flows from east to west, the **UPSTREAM** and **DOWNSTREAM** preverbs cannot be used to refer to the places along the river. Rather, the **EASTWARDS** preverbs occur for the **UPSTREAM** direction and the **WESTWARDS** preverb for the downstream orientation. For instance, from Mbarkham to Cogtse, located upstream, the **EASTWARDS** preverb is selected as in (50). For Rdzonggag and Bragbar, further downstream (and southwest from Mbarkham), the **WESTWARDS** preverb is used. For shorter trips (on foot or on vehicles) inside Mbarkham city, the solar dimension preverbs are also systematically used.

(50) tewχtsi ky-ari-j, ku-nympo
TOPO AOR:EAST-go[II]-1PL SBJ:PCP-watch
'We went to Cogtse, to visit.' (conversation, 2013-10-15)

In this environment, the riverine preverbs are used to encode the mountain-river slope axis, which is perpendicular to the river axis. This phenomenon has been observed in other Gyalrong languages. Lin (2002: 34), in an article about Situ where the same reorganisation of preverb dimensions occurs, argues that 'the riverine pair has become generalized for cases where there are no mountain creeks in sight, and the orientation markings then encode an opposition between higher and lower parts of a slope via metaphorical extension.'
15 *Orientation and associated motion*

A further extension of the riverine dimension in such geographical environ-
ments is to encode the orientation perpendicular to that river even in places with
relatively flat ground without any slope. In localities where the river is exactly
aligned on the East-West axis, the riverine preverbs thus started to encode the
North-South axis, with the **DOWNSTREAM** preverb for the orientation *towards the
river* on this axis, and the **UPSTREAM** preverb from that *away from the river*.

This perpendicular orientation grid is applied not only on streets (where a mild slope is generally perceptible in Gyalrong-speaking valleys), but even extended within houses, where the ground is even. For instance, if the toilets are located on the side of the building that is closer to the river, and if one happens to be on the opposite side of the apartment, one can say (51), even though one remains at the same vertical level (all solar and riverine prefixes would also be appropriate, depending on the absolute orientations).

(51) jyγyt ci cʰʰu-ce-a
toilet a.little IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-go-1SG
‘I am going to the bathroom.’ (heard several times in context)

Some journeys involve a change of orientation. In such cases, the choice of
the preverb depends on the longest section during the trip. For instance, the road
from Mbarkham to Kamnyu first goes downstream the Somang river (westwards)
and then, for a longer distance, upstream the Kyomkyo river (northwards), and
therefore the UPSTREAM preverbs are required (52).

(52) kympu mw-ly-tswm-a
TOPO NEG-AOR:UPSTREAM-take.away-1SG
‘I did not take [my mobile phone] to Kamnyu.’ (said after having come
back to Mbarkham, conversation, 16-02-21)

For the opposite journey (from Kamnyu to Mbarkham), the orientation **DOWN-STREAM** is always selected, as in (53).

(53) tce mbarkʰom kw-rγ-βzjoz tʰʰu-γe-a,
LNK TOPO SBJ:PCP-APASS-study AOR:DOWNSTREAM-come[II]-1SG
‘I came to Mbarkham to study.’ (140501 tshering skyid) {0003902#S48}

Given the fact that several contradictory constraints are involved in the choice
of the riverine vs. solar orientation preverbs, it is not surprising that the orien-
tations chosen to describe motion from one locality to another in the Japhug
15.1 Orientation preverbs

speaking area is not completely predictable, and that some orientations must be
analyzed as having been completely lexicalized (§15.1.5).

The DOWNSTREAM preverbs can be used also for motion into water as in (54) and (55). They compete in this function with the vertical dimension DOWNWARDS preverbs (see 40 in §15.1.3.1, an example describing the event referred to in 54 in another version of the same story).

(54) claɔ̃w
zo tw-ci
u-ŋgw
IDPH(I):immediately EMPH INDEF.POSS-water 3SG.POSS-in
cʰy-mtsʰa

tce pjy-zyy-sat.

IFR:DOWNSTREAM-jump LNK IFR-REFL-kill

‘He immediately jumped into the water to commit suicide and died.’

(qajdoskAt 2002) {0003366#S117}

(55) βlama nɔra kw [...] tsʰytsʰyr lu-lyt-nw pn-ny. tce
lama DEM:PL ERG life.release IPFV-release-PL SENS-be LNK
tw-ci u-ŋgw s-cʰw-lyt-nw tce,
INDEF.POSS-water 3SG.POSS-in TRAL-IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-release-PL LNK
‘The lamas perform life release and release [aquatic animals] into the
water.’ (140510 wugui) {0003951#S14}

The UPSTREAM preverbs occur to express motion out of the water, as in (56).

(56) <wugui> nɔu tw-ci u-ŋgw
turtle DEM INDEF.POSS-water 3SG.POSS-in
lo-nu-tok

IFR:UPSTREAM-AUTO-come.out

‘The turtle came out of the water.’ (elicited, based on a text example)

Metaphorical extensions of the riverine preverbs include the illative/elative functions (§15.1.4.2, §15.1.5.1), the orientation in the living room (§15.1.4.4), the loom (§15.1.4.5) and various lexicalized uses (§15.1.5.4).

15.1.3.3 The solar dimension

The basic meaning of the EASTWARDS and WESTWARDS preverbs, adverbs and locator nouns is to encode the east-west axis. Example (57) for instance shows that the orientation encoded by the distal locative adverb tcendi is the same as that of the place where the sun sets.
15 Orientation and associated motion

(57) *twrmwkh*a ri tce tcendi ri tyŋe w-sy-cqʰlyt pcoŋ ri
dusk LOC LNK west LOC sun 3SG.POSS-OBL:PCP-disappear side LOC
tu.
exist:FACT
'[This star] is found in the west at dusk, at the place where the sun sets.'
(29-mWBZi,76) {0003728#S71}

The selection of the EASTWARDS and WESTWARDS preverbs is observed not only with the orientational adverbs *tcendi*, *tçeku* (§22.2.6) and related forms, but also with the borrowed cardinal point *çyrpcɔv* ‘east’ (from *çr-ยูگะ* *çar.pʰiɒgs* ‘east’) or descriptive relative clauses meaning ‘place where the sun sets’ or ‘place where the sun rises’ as shown by example (58).

(58) *tw-rdoɔ* nwnw, *çyrpcɔv ko-ce, *tw-rdoɔ* nwnw bmbyi
one-piece DEM east IFR:EAST-go one-piece DEM sun
w-sy-cqʰlyt nwtcu py-cqʰlyt.
3SG.POSS-OBL:PCP-disappear DEM:LOC IFR:WEST-disappear
‘One [of the feathers] went to the east, another one disappeared in the
direction where the sun sets.’ (140510 sanpian yumao-zh) {0003947#S16}

The WESTWARDS orientation is found to express the motion of the sun with both the verbs *tɔv* ‘come out’ and *cɔv* ‘disappear’, as in (59). Alternatively, the vertical dimension is also used (§15.1.3.1).

(59) *tyŋe pɔ-yu-tɔv*
sun IFR:WEST-AUTO-come.out
‘The sun rose (from the east, towards the west)’. (elicited)

The EASTWARDS orientation is selected to describe trips between localities from west to east, for instance from Kamnyu (32°12′N, 101°57′E) to Sarndzu township (32°09′N, 102°07′E) (60), and the WESTWARDS orientation for the return journey.

(60) izora tce “syrndzu k-ari-a” tu-ku-ti ngu.
1PL LNK TOPO AOR:EAST-go[II]-1SG IPFV-GENR-say be:FACT
‘We (in Kamnyu) say “I went (eastwards) to Sarndzu.’ (150904 akW andi)
{0006372#S21}

In locations where the river is oriented on this axis, the solar dimension is dominant and the riverine dimension recessive (§15.1.3.2). In Mbarkham city, where
the river flows from east to west, the EASTWARDS and WESTWARDS preverbs are
used for the upstream and downstream directions, respectively. This overlap has
caused previous linguists working on Gyalrong languages (in particular Situ) to
analyze the solar dimension preverbs and adverbs as encoding the ‘upstream/
downstream’ axis (see the discussion in Lin 2002).

The solar dimension remains dominant even when the path is not parallel
to the east-west axis, but oriented southwest-northeast or southeast-northwest.
For instance, a journey from Mbarkham to Jinchuan or Danba along the Somang
river, which has a clear southwest orientation, the WESTWARDS orientation is still
preferred over the DOWNSTREAM orientation.

(61) <jinchuan> *nū-azyūt-i*      *ri*
TOPO AOR:WEST-arrive-1PL LNK
‘When we arrived in Jinchuan...’ (2010-1)

The east/west dimension can even be used in the case of far away countries, as
between France and China, as shown by the choice of the WESTWARDS preverb
in (62).

(62) *ny-rca* azo kwny <faguo> ny-yi-a.
2SG.POSS-following 1SG also France IPFV:WEST-come-1SG
‘I am going with you to France.’ (conversation, 2013)

This usage is also found with *lṛt* ‘release’ in its meaning ‘phone’ (when occurring in collocation with the Chinese noun 电话 <diànhuà> ‘phone’), which takes the orientation EASTWARDS to describe a phone call from France to China, and WESTWARDS for the opposite direction.

(63) wzo kw (<dianhua>) ku-lyt      cti ma, azo
3SG ERG phone      IPFV:WEST-release be.AFF:FACT LNK 1SG
pw-lat-a           mγ-kʰw           tce, andi ku-ryzi tce
IPFV:WEST-release-1SG NEG-be.possible:FACT LNK west IPFV-stay LNK
w-<dianhuahaoma>  a-ky-ti           mγ-kʰw
3SG.POSS-phone.number 1SG.POSS-INF-say NEG-be.possible:FACT
‘It is he who calls [me on the phone], I cannot call him, he lives in the
west (in France), I cannot say his phone number.’ (conversation, 16-12-28)

The west is the orientation of the mythical countries in traditional stories, as
in (64). This use probably reflects the geographical location of India as in (65).
15 Orientation and associated motion

(64) andi smynmimitokucana cw-nysdan-a ra tce,
west ANTHR TRAL-invite:FACT-1SG be.needed:FACT LNK
p̥w-ce-a tce, ky-ye-a tce a-pu-ŋu
IPFV:WEST-go-1SG LNK AOR:EAST-come[II]-1SG LNK IRR-IPFV-be
'I am going to the west to invite Smanmi Metog Koshana [to our realm],
let us do [the wedding] when I come [back].' (smAnmi 2003)

(65) nʷ rjskxr p̥w-ce kʷ-ra,
DEM India IPFV:WEST-go SBJ:PCP-be.needed
'That [daughter] has to go to India.' (Gesar)

The EASTWARDS orientation is selected to refer to Hor (Mongolia) in the Japhug version of Gesar, as in (66).

(66) nʷ χwrr ku-ce kʷ-ra cti,
DEM TOPO IPFV:EAST-go SBJ:PCP-be.needed be.AFF:FACT
'That [daughter] has to go to Hor.' (Gesar)

There is one case in which the solar dimension preverbs are selected to encode
the axis that is perpendicular to the river: to refer to motion toward the opposite
bank of the river at the same altitude level (by walking on a bridge, by boat or
wading), the EASTWARDS and WESTWARDS preverbs are selected, as in (67) and
(68). In this context, both orientations are appropriate, and there is no strict rule
to choose EASTWARDS or WESTWARDS to cross a river, unless the river is oriented
north-south and the axis perpendicular to it corresponds to the east-west axis.

(67) qapri nʷ kʷ kʷ-cʰu pʰyri li
snake DEM ERG east-APPROX.LOC opposite.bank again
ký-wy-tcyt p̥w-ŋu
AOR:EAST-INV-take.out SENS-be
'The snake took him to the opposite bank.' (divination 2005)

(68) kʷ-cʰu pʰyri nʷtcu w-wa
east-APPROX.LOC opposite.bank DEM.LOC 3SG.POSS-father
ko-tswm tce,
IFR:EAST-take-away LNK
'He took his father to the opposite bank of the river.' (2011-05-nyima)

The EASTWARDS and WESTWARDS preverbs have many other extended uses, in
particular to express centripetal/centrifugal directions (§15.1.4.3) and meanings
further derived from them (§15.1.5.7, §15.1.5.10, §15.1.4.1). In addition, the Sensory *nuu*- (§21.3.2.1) and Egophoric Present *kuu*- (§21.3.3.1) prefixes originate from the B-type WESTWARDS and EASTWARDS preverbs, respectively.

### 15.1.3.4 Deadverbial verbs of relative location

Deadverbial verbs of relative location express the position of the subject (in comparison to that of other referents) on one of the three dimensions. These verbs are built by adding the prefix *maŋ-* to the adverbial stems, as indicated in Table 15.6, and their stems are homophonous with the corresponding nouns of relative location (§5.7.2).

The *maŋ-* prefix has a function that is similar to that of the denominal *muy-* prefix, which derives verbs of relative location from relator nouns (§20.6).

<table><caption>Table 15.6: Verbs of relative location and corresponding locative ad-verbs</caption><thead><tr><th>Locative adverb</th><th>Verb of location</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><em>tau</em></td><td><em>maŋtau</em> ‘be on the upper side’</td></tr><tr><td><em>pa</em></td><td><em>maŋpa</em> ‘be on the lower side’</td></tr><tr><td><em>lo</em></td><td><em>maŋlo</em> ‘be upstream’</td></tr><tr><td><em>tʰi</em></td><td><em>maŋtʰi</em> ‘be downstream’</td></tr><tr><td><em>kwu</em></td><td><em>maŋku</em> ‘be on the east side’</td></tr><tr><td><em>ndi</em></td><td><em>maŋndi</em> ‘be on the west side’</td></tr></tbody></table>

Each of the six verbs in Table 15.6 selects the orientation preverbs corresponding to their own orientation, for instance *maŋlo* ‘be upstream’ can only select the *UPSTREAM* orientation, as in shown by (69) and (70). They are not compatible with the indefinite orientation preverbs, and should not be confused with orientable (§15.1.2) and orienting (§15.1.2.4) verbs.

(69) *nuu-*<beifen> *kuu*-mbro *nuaa* 3PL.POSS-seniority SBJ:PCP-be.high DEM.PL *lu*-maŋlo-nuu, IPFV:UPSTREAM-be.upstream-PL ‘The elders [sit] higher (i.e. upstream).’ (31-khAjmu) {0004079*S59}
15 Orientation and associated motion

(70) tce nwnw ty-ftsa nw ty-rpw syz
LNK DEM INDEF.POSS-ZS DEM INDEF.POSS-MB COMP
lu-kw-maŋlo mw-pjγ-ŋgryl
IPFV-GENR:S/O-be.upstream NEG-IFR.IPFV-be.usually.the.case
‘(In former times) nephews (were not allowed to) be seated higher (i.e.
upstream) than their maternal uncles.’ (08-saCW) {0003462#S12}

These verbs are however compatible with tenses where the orientation pre-
verbs are neutralized, such as the Sensory *nw-* as in (71).

(71) nzyo p̱w-tu̱-maŋlo cti ma azo p̱w-maŋtʰi-a
2SG SENS-2-be.upstream be.AFF:FACT LNK 1SG SENS-be.downstream-1SG
cti tce,
be.AFF:FACT LNK
‘You are upstream and I am downstream.’ (2014, lang he yang-zh)

Deadverbial verbs of relative location are either used in comparative sentences (70), in superlative constructions with *stu* ‘most’ (§26.4.1), with contrasting orientations such as (71) or in sentences with an implicit comparison such as (69).

15.1.4 Extended uses of orientations

15.1.4.1 Time

The flow of time can be expressed in Japhug using the vertical dimension, in
particular to refer to a following period, as shown by the verb *pw-ari* in (72),
which is translated as 到了他们的下一代 <dào le tāmen de xiàyīdài> ‘in the
following generation’ by Tshendzin in this context (see §27.2.4 concerning this
aspect of the kinship system).

(72) ṉu w̱-pa pw-ari tce tce, a-wymw
DEM 3SG.POSS-down AOR:DOWN-go[II] LNK LNK 1SG.POSS-brother
w-γe pw-nw-ηu, a-sqʰaj γw
3SG.POSS-grandchild PST.IPFV-AUTO-be 1SG.POSS-sister GEN
w-γe pw-nw-ηu tce azo tyrcw̱rca
3SG.POSS-grandchild PST.IPFV-AUTO-be LNK 1SG together
“a-γe” tu-ti-a cti.
1SG.POSS-grandchild IPFV-say-1SG be.AFF:FACT
‘In the [generation] below [that of my nephews], I say a-γe ‘my
grandchild’ (to all grandnephews), whether they are my brother’s
grandchildren or my sister’s granchildren.’ (140425 kWmdza02) {0003786}
15.1 Orientation preverbs

However, motion verbs in collocations with temporal nouns in the sense of
'pass (of time)' select the orientation WESTWARDS, as in (73) and (74). This use
could also be a metaphorical extension of the apparent westward motion of the
sun in the sky during day time (§15.1.3.3), or derived from the centrifugal function
of the 'westward' orientation (§15.1.4.3).

(73) tce w-tw-sy-scit
kʷ nʷ ty-ržaŋ
LNK 3SG.POSS-NMLZ:DEG-PROP-be.happy ERG DEM INDEF.POSS-time
nʷ-ari mʷ-pjy-tso.

AOR:WEST-go[II] NEG-IFR-understand

'It was so nice there that he did not realize that [a lot of] time had passed.'
(28-smAnmi) {0004063#S273}

(74) kvntcʰʷ-sla jy-cqʰlyt ri
several-months IFR:WEST-disappear LNK

'Several months passed, but ...' (140513 mutong de disheng-zh)

{0003977#S11}

The semi-transitive verbs *mda* ‘be the time’ and *tsu* ‘pass (of time)’ however
generally select the orientation *UPWARDS* (see 115 and 116 in §7.5.1), though the
unspecified orientation is also attested for the latter, as in (75). The verb *mdu*
‘live up to’ is used with the *DOWNSTREAM* orientation preverbs (see 89 and 90,
§19.7.2).

(75) χsw-xpa jy-tsu-j,
three-year AOR:UNSPECIFIED-pass-1SG

'We have been [together] for three years [now], and ...' (2005 Norbzang)

For these semi-transitive verbs, the noun phrase referring to a time period is
the semi-object, not the subject.

15.1.4.2 Illative / elative

A common extended function of the riverine dimension preverbs is to express motion through an opening. The UPSTREAM preverbs can have an illative meaning, describing motion into a building or a natural cave (through a door, a window or any other opening) as in (76), (77) and (78).

(76) prəkʰaŋ w-ŋgw nwtcu lo-ce pʷ-ŋu tceri
cave 3SG.POSS-in DEM:LOC IFR:UPSTREAM-go SENS-be LNK

'He went into the cave.' (140425 shizi huli he lu-zh)
15 Orientation and associated motion

(77) kʰa w-ŋgw lɣ-yi-ndzì tce,
house 3SG.POSS-in IMP:UPSTREAM-come-DU LNK
‘Come inside the house.’ (140507 tangguowu-zh) {0003933#S87}

The combination of the **UPSTREAM** orientation with **stʰoʊk** ‘push’ in (78) means
‘push (the door) towards the inside of the house’.

(78) spjankw nʷ ku kʷm lo-stʰoʊk tce, w-ŋgw
wolf DEM ERG door IFR:UPSTREAM-push LNK 3SG.POSS-in
lo-ce.
IFR:UPSTREAM-go
‘The wolf pushed the door open and went in.’ (140428 xiaohongmao-zh)
{0003884#S76}

The opposite **DOWNSTREAM** orientation preverbs have an elative meaning, ex-
pressing motion out of a building, as in (79).

(79) kʰa w-pci cʰy-ɔk.
house 3SG.POSS-outside IFR:DOWNSTREAM-come.out
‘She came out of the house.’ (140428 xiaohongmao-zh) {0003884#S27}

However, in the case of tubular or pipe-like objects like the trunk of a musket,
the orientation is the opposite: the **DOWNSTREAM** preverbs are used for motion
toward the inside (80), and the **UPSTREAM** preverbs occur for motion towards the
outside (81).

(80) cymuɣdwo w-lycu w-mŋu ri qandzì
musket 3SG.POSS-upstream 3SG.POSS-opening LOC bullet
cʰu-rku-nu
IPFV:DOWNSTREAM-put.in-PL
‘They load the bullet into the [barrel] of the musket from the opening
[the muzzle]’ (28-CAmWGdW) {0003712#S37}

(81) nwnw mzu i n w tu-nw tce tce qandzi n w
DEM gunpowder DEM IPFV-burn LNK LNK bullet DEM
lu-βde tce ju-ce p w-ŋu
IPFV:UPSTREAM-throw LNK IPFV:UNSPECIFIED-go SENS-be
‘The gunpowder flares and drives the bullet out (of the barrel of the
muzzle).’ (28-CAmWGdW) {0003712#S103}
Likewise, the UPSTREAM preverbs occur to express motion out of a sheath, as in (82).

(82) **scapa** lo-χcoь
sword IFR:UPSTREAM-take.out
‘He unsheathed his sword.’ (140514 huishuohua de niao-zh)
{0003992#S166}

The same applies with containers having a small (and tubular) opening, like bags or bottles for instance. The DOWNSTREAM orientation preverbs have the illative meaning ‘go/put into’ and the UPSTREAM preverbs the elative meaning ‘come out of/take out of’ as illustrated by (83) and (84). By extension, the verb γymut ‘blow’ (for instance, into a pipe) also selects the DOWNSTREAM preverbs (§15.1.5.8).

(83) **tcendvre** “ty-fkwъ w-ŋgw tce thъw-ce
LNK INDEF.POSS-bag 3SG.POSS-in LOC IMP:DOWNSTREAM-go
pw-ntsъi wo” to-ti. tcendvre <dongguoxiansheng> nw kw
SENS-be.better SFP IFR-say LNK ANTHR DEM ERG
icqъa ty-fkwъ w-ŋgw juyi nwra tsuku
the.aforementioned INDEF.POSS-bag 3SG.POSS-in book DEM:PL some
lo-tcyt, [...] spjankw nw nw w-ŋgw
IFR:UPSTREAM-take.out wolf DEM DEM 3SG.POSS-in
cъy-rku.
IFR:DOWNSTREAM-put.in

‘Mr. Dongguo said: ‘Why don’t you go into the bag [to hide]’, took out some of the books from the bag, and put the wolf into it.’ (150901 dongguo xiansheng he lang-zh) {0006336#S45}

(84) <suoluomen> nw kw azo kwki pʰoŋ w-ŋgw tce
ANTHR DEM ERG 1SG DEM.PROX bottle 3SG.POSS-in LOC
tʰúr-wy-rku-a ny,
AOR:DOWNSTREAM-INV-put.in-1SG be:FACT
‘Solomon put me in this bottle.’ (140512 yufu yu mogui-zh) {0003973#S73}

In the case of boxes with large openings on the top, the riverine orientation preverbs are not used, and the vertical dimensions preverbs occur instead: the DOWNWARDS preverbs express motion into the box, as in (85), and the UPWARDS preverbs motion out of it, as shown by example (86).
15 Orientation and associated motion

(85) mar-rgym w-ŋgw zw χwyr ra yw nw-rysβlun tʰamtcvt yw butter-box 3SG.POSS-in LOC TOPO PL GEN 3PL.POSS-ministers ALL GEN nw-ku nw pjʊ-rku 3PL.POSS-head DEM TRAL-IFR:DOWN-put.in

'He had put the heads of all the ministers of Hor in a butter box.' (gesar)

(86) w-sloχpwn nw kw rgym w-ŋgw zw, nykinw, χcylmdoŋ ci 3SG.POSS-teacher DEM ERG box 3SG.POSS-in LOC FILLER spyglass INDEF to-tcvt tce p-y-mbi IFR:UP-take.out LNK IFR-give

'His teacher took a spyglass from a box and gave it to him.' (140508 benling gaoqiang de si xiongdi-zh) {0003935#S72}

The WESTWARDS preverbs are selected in the case of an object passing through a hole with openings on both sides, for instance a needle's eye, as in (87).

(87) taqaβ nw w-rna ri spoχ tce, tce nwtcu needle DEM 3SG.POSS-ear LOC have.a.hole:FACT LNK LNK DEM:LOC t-y-ri p-y-wy-rke, INDEF.POSS-thread IPFV:WEST-INV-pass.through

'The needle has an eye at its tip, and one passes the thread though it.' (12-kAtsxWb) {0003486#S29}

The orientation EASTWARDS can be used for motion into a small cavity whose opening is as large as the inside and is located on the side, as shown by examples (88) and (89).

(88) nwna w-ndʒi tʰw-ky-rxydwšt w-ŋgw nwtcu cow 3SG.POSS-skin IPFV-OBJ:PCP-distend 3SG.POSS-in DEM:LOC ko-ce.

IFR:EAST-go

'He went into the distended hide of the cow.' (31-deluge) {0004077#S25}

(89) nw yw w-rna w-ŋgw xcelwi ko-ce p-yu DEM GEN 3SG.POSS-ear 3SG.POSS-in tick IFR:EAST-go SENS-be

'A tick went into his ear.' (kAndZislama 2003)

The EASTWARDS orientation also occurs for piercing motion into a surface (like skin), as in (90) (see also 125, §17.5.4).
15.1 Orientation preverbs

(90) **tw-c̥a** *w-ŋgw* *kʊ-ari* *qʰe, koh̥la*
INDEF POSS-flesh 3SG.POSS-in AOR:EAST-go[II] LNK completely
*w-ŋgw* *zo* *ku-ce* *cti.*
3SG.POSS-in EMPH IPFV:EAST-go be.AFF:FACT
‘When [its thorn] goes into the flesh, it penetrates completely.’ (17-xCAj)
{0003528#S66}

The data above show that no orientation preverb intrinsically encodes illative or elative meaning in Japhug. The interpretations ‘towards the inside’ or ‘towards the outside’ depend on the shape of the object and the location and the relative size of the opening.

15.1.4.3 Centripetal / centrifugal

In Gyalrong languages, the WESTWARDS and EASTWARDS preverbs in some cases express centrifugal vs. centripetal directions, respectively. This phenomenon was first noticed in Situ by Lin (1993: 228–229).

Example (91)<fnref n="10" /> illustrates this extension of the solar dimension with the verb čtʰuẓ ‘turn towards’ (§15.1.2.4): the orientation towards the subject of the verb (centripetal) is expressed by the EASTWARDS preverb (*ko-čtʰuẓ*), and the opposite orientation away from the subject (centrifugal) is encoded by the WESTWARDS preverb (*ŋr-čtʰuẓ*).

(91) tce w-rme nw w-pci nɣ-ctʰuẓ,
LNK 3SG.POSS-hair DEM 3SG.POSS-outside IFR:WEST-turn.towards
w-ndʒi nw w-ŋgw ko-ctʰuẓ tce tce to-ŋga.
3SG.POSS-skin DEM 3SG.POSS-in IFR:EAST-turn.towards LNK LNK IFR-wear
‘He turned the fur [of the jacket]i towards the outside, and the leather
towards the inside and wore iti.’ (140513 mutong de disheng-zh)
{0003977#S52}

The centrifugal use of the WESTWARDS preverbs has been further lexicalized and extended to verbs expressing loss or transfer of property (§15.1.5.7, §15.1.5.10) and passing of time (§15.1.4.1).

The centripetal use of the EASTWARDS preverbs also accounts for the presence of the EASTWARDS preverbs with verbs meaning ‘close’, ‘wrap up’ or ‘fold’. Compare for instance the EASTWARDS preverb on *wum* ‘gather’ (in the meaning ‘fold wings’) with the WESTWARDS one on *qšt* ‘separate’ in (92).

<footnote n="10">¹⁰This example is very freely translated from ……把羊毛朝外面翻出来 <bà yángmáo cháo wàimiàn fānchūlái> ‘he turned over the jacket so that the sheep fur was on the outside’. Given the distance from the original, there is no suspicion of calque from Chinese here.</footnote>