Whence Come Direct Object Markers in Northwest Semitic?
Many derivations of the definite direct object marker in Northwest Semitic have been suggested, but the enigma of its origins still persists. Classic and contemporary studies have concluded that the source of the particle may be nominal, verbal, prepositional, pronominal, or an amalgam of deictic el...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
[2016]
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| In: |
Journal of Semitic studies
Year: 2016, Volume: 61, Issue: 2, Pages: 299-318 |
| IxTheo Classification: | TC Pre-Christian history ; Ancient Near East |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | Many derivations of the definite direct object marker in Northwest Semitic have been suggested, but the enigma of its origins still persists. Classic and contemporary studies have concluded that the source of the particle may be nominal, verbal, prepositional, pronominal, or an amalgam of deictic elements. Each of these explanations, however, fails to account adequately for both the full spectrum of the attested realizations and the origin of the grammatical function. This study suggests a new solution: the direct object markers in Northwest Semitic derive from the Proto-Semitic oblique pronouns, *su’āti and *si’āti . After the loss of the case system, the Proto-Northwest Semitic reflexes of these pronouns were grammaticalized as object markers. Following the loss of the original pronouns and cliticization, phonological changes in each daughter language resulted in the various Northwest Semitic forms. |
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| ISSN: | 1477-8556 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of Semitic studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1093/jss/fgw006 |