Order of Demonstrative and Noun (Feature 5)

From Apics

Feature Annotation

For the purposes of this feature, a word or affix is considered a demonstrative if it satisfies at least one of two criteria:
(1) it has among its uses a meaning that contrasts with some other form in terms of physical proximity to the speaker, so that there is at least a two-way contrast of proximal (near speaker) versus distal (not near speaker); or
(2) the form has among its uses an indication that the hearer is intended to direct their attention towards something in the physical environment. In many (probably most) languages, demonstratives are associated with both of these functions. The words this and that (and their plural forms these and those) constitute the demonstratives of English.
Demonstratives often derive from spatial adverbs and sometimes there may be a question whether words glossed as 'here' or 'there' count as demonstratives. Among the criteria for a demonstrative status of such adverbs are the following:
– the demonstrative differs in shape from the spatial adverbs (French ici ’here’ vs. cette femme-ci ’this woman’; French thus has a bipartite demonstrative and would be classified as value 5);
– the spatial adverbs are the only available demonstratives in the language, as in Papiamentu, where ’this house’ can only be rendered by e kas aki, lit.’the house here’; e kas without ki means ’the house’ and not ’this house’, although the Papiamentu definite article derives diachronically from a demonstrative;
– the combination of the demonstrative and the adverb is obligatory, i.e. if in a given language only this house here may be used, but not *this house.

Additional remarks

....

Values

Value		Value Annotation
1	Demonstrative word precedes noun	Nicaraguan Creole Dis hat man waahn aal di gyal dem. [dem hot man want all art.def girl pl] ’This hot man wanted all the girls.’
2	Demonstrative word follows noun	Kituba mu-ntu yayi [person dem] ’this person’
3	Demonstrative prefix on noun	Abzakh Adyghe mə-səy-ğ°əne ğ°ə-r [this-1sg.poss-neighbour-def] ‘this neighbour of mine’
4	Demonstrative suffix on noun	Gude zəmə-na [food-this] ‘this food’
5	Demonstrative simultaneously before and after noun	Ternateño si kabá ja rin éli ésti ánjo ésti [if finish already also 3sg this year this] ’if she finishes already this being year’
6	Other	(Please give details in the “General comments” field.)

WALS No.

88 (Total)