| Grammatical features |
|---|
Syntax relationships |
Inlinguistics,egophoricity refers to agrammatical category that marks one's personal involvement in an event.[1] In languages with this category, anegophoric form is used for expressing information to which the self has "privileged access"[2] as opposed to anallophoric (ornon-egophoric)form.[1][3]
Egophoric forms are typically associated with first-person subject declarative sentences and second-person subject interrogative sentences (egophoric distribution).[4]
The concept of egophoricity was originally developed in descriptive studies onTibeto-Burman languages spoken in theHimalayas such asNewar andTibetan; however, the category has also been found in languages ofNorthwestern China, theAndean region,Caucasus,New Guinea, and elsewhere.[5]
"Ego-" refers to "self" and "-phor" means "to carry".[6]
The term "egophoric" was coined by French linguistNicolas Tournadre in his description ofLhasa Tibetan[6][7][8] although his former supervisorClaude Hagège had used "égophore" in a different sense prior to that.[8][9]
Before "egophoricity" came into use in the literature, linguists often referred to the same phenomenon by the termconjunct anddisjunct forms.[10][11] The distinction between conjunct/disjunct was first made in Austin Hale's work on Kathmandu Newar.[12][13]
Usually, the marking of egophoricity is correlated withgrammatical person and sentence types: egophoric forms typically occur with the first-person subject in declarative sentences and the second-person subject in questions. By contrast, non-egophoric forms will appear in the other contexts. This pattern is calledegophoric distribution.[4][14][15]
| Declarative | Interrogative | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st person | ego | non-ego |
| 2nd person | non-ego | ego |
| 3rd person | non-ego | non-ego |
Unlikeperson agreement, however, the use of (non-)egophoric forms may not follow it under certainsemantic orpragmatic situations.
Kathmandu Newar, aTibeto-Burman language spoken in the capital ofNepal, has twopast tense makers for verbs: the egophoric-ā and the non-egophoric-a. The former is normally used in first-person declaratives and second-person questions whereas the latter is applied to the other sentences:[16][17]
EGO:egophoric
If the verb describes an unintentional action, however, the non-egophoric past tense marker will appear in first-person declaratives and second-person questions as well:[18]
lā
meat
Jįį lāpalā.
1.SG.ERG meat cut.PST.EGO
"I cut the meat (intentionally)."
lā?
Chadanā lā?
2.SG.ABS get-up.PST.EGO Q
"Did you get up (voluntarily)?"
lā
meat
Jįį lāpala.
1.SG.ERG meat cut.PST.NEGO
"I cut the meat (quite by accident)."
lā?
Chadana lā?
2.SG.ABS get-up.PST.NEGO Q
"Did you get up (involuntarily)?"
While the third person subject usually takes the non-egophoric marker both in declaratives and interrogatives, the egophoric counterpart will be used in indirect speech if the main and subordinate clauses share the same subject:[19]
ana
there
dhakāā
Wа̨а̨ wa anawanā dhakāā dhāla.
3.SG.ERG 3.SG.ABS there go.PST.EGO QUOT say.PST.NEGO
"He said that he went there (himself)."
ana
there
dhakāā
Wа̨а̨ wa anawana dhakāā dhāla.
3.SG.ERG 3.SG.ABS there go.PST.NEGO QUOT say.PST.NEGO
"He said that he (someone else) went there."
Lhasa Tibetan, anotherTibeto-Burman language, has a system of verb endings that expressevidentiality and/or egophoricity.[20]
| Egophoric | Factual (non-egophoric) | Evidential | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct | Inferential | |||
| Perfective | -pa yin | -pa red | -song | -zhag |
| Perfect | -yod | -yog red | -‘dug | |
| Imperfective | -gi yod | -gi yog red | -gi ’dug / -gis | |
| Future | -gi yin | -gi red | ||
In a nominal construction, the egophoriccopulae (e.g.yin) and the non-egophoric ones (e.g.red) are used in accordance with the egophoric distribution:[10][21]
bod=pa
Tibetan
pas
khyed=rang bod=payin pas
2.SG.HON Tibetan COP.EGO Q
"Are you Tibetan?"
However, the distinction betweenyin andred may also be made according to voluntariness of an action as in Kathmandu Newar.[22][23] Likewise, the third-person subject in indirect speech is marked by an egophoric marker if it is co-referential with the subject of the main clause.[23][24]
Also, the third-person subject takes an egophoric marker when the speaker emphasizes their personal involvement in the information conveyed in the statement.
bu
son
kho nga’i bured
3.SG 1.SG.GEN son COP.NEGO
"He is my son." (e.g. answering "who is he?")
bu
son
kho nga’i buyin
3.SG 1.SG.GEN son COP.EGO
"He is my son." (e.g. answering "whose son is he?")
In a language likeLhasa Tibetan, egophoricity is part of itsevidential system as the egophoric copula occupies the same slot as the allophoric and the evidential. This is not the case for languages such as Kathmandu Newar, where the two categories areexpressed separately.[26]
Languages likeAkha have paradigmatic structure ofmirative and egophoric marking, which suggests both categories can interact with each other.[27]
Few languages deploygrammatical person and egophoric marking at the same time.[28] Still, cohabitation of both categories is reported inJaphug, aRgyalrongic language ofSichuan.[29]
Aside from Newar andTibetic, egophoricity is attested in Tibeto-Burman languages likeGalo (Tani),Japhug (Rgyalrongic),Bunan,Kurtöp (East Bodish), andYongning Na (Naic) as well.[30]Akha (Loloish) has developed egophoric marking independently of the other branches of the family.[31][32]
Outside of Tibeto-Burman, some languages spoken inNorthwestern China such asSalar (Turkic),Mongour (Mongolic) andWutun developed egophoricity due tocontact withAmdo Tibetan.[30][33]
NorthernAkhvakh (Northeast Caucasian) marks egophoricity to some extent.[34] InSouth America,Barbacoan languages such asAwa Pit andCha’palaa exhibit an egophoric system similar to that of Tibeto-Burman.[35]
Tournadre and LaPolla (2014) compare theJapanesedesiderative suffix-tai to an egophoric marker in languages like Tibetan, as they follow the egophoric distribution.[36] In Japanese,-tai as well as adjectives describing one's inner experience (such as "glad", "itchy") cannot be used for the third-person without the support of the suffix-garu or some evidential markers.[37]
 | This articleneeds additional or more specificcategories. Pleasehelp out byadding categories to it so that it can be listed with similar articles.(November 2023) |