The demise of serial verbs in South Efate

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    Author
    THIEBERGER, N
    Date
    2007
    Source Title
    Language Description, History and Development
    Publisher
    Benjamins - John Benjamins Publishing Company
    University of Melbourne Author/s
    Thieberger, Nicholas
    Affiliation
    Languages and Linguistics
    Metadata
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    Document Type
    Chapter
    Citations
    THIEBERGER, N. (2007). The demise of serial verbs in South Efate. Siegel, J (Ed.). Lynch, J (Ed.). Eades, D (Ed.). Language Description, History and Development, (1), pp.253-251. Benjamins - John Benjamins Publishing Company.
    Access Status
    Open Access
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/11343/31292
    Description

    Author's final version reproduced with the permission of John Benjamins Publishing Company. http://benjamins.com
    Abstract
    The literature on Oceanic verb serialisation is replete with examples from Vanuatu. Crowley (2002a) noted that what he called the dissolution of serial verbs was observable in languages of southern Vanuatu, in particular in his study of Sye of Erromango. I will show that serial verbs in South Efate have followed a similar path to that described for Sye and also for Anejom by Lynch (2004a), including verb compounding, the use of directional particles, and an “echo-subject” construction. What is particularly interesting in South Efate is the development of a set of auxiliary verbs in a preverbal slot that carry out many of the functions associated with serial verb constructions. South Efate has been described as the southernmost of the Proto North-Central Vanuatu subgroup, but the features outlined here suggest a more complex relationship with southern languages than was previously considered.
    Keywords
    Linguistics

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