The significance of word order variation in Iraqw sentences
| dc.contributor.author | Alphonce, C. | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-01-04T14:39:23Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2023-01-04T14:39:23Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2021 | |
| dc.description | Abstract, Full Text Article Available at http://www.jehs.duce.ac.tz/index.php/jehs/article/view/100 | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | This paper investigates the significance of word order variation in Iraqw, a Southern Cushitic language found in Tanzania. The paper is based on the communicative approach in analysing the variation of word order beyond the grammatical point of view. By scrutinizing the syntax of Iraqw, this paper hopes to make a welcome contribution to the comparative syntax of Cushitic languages scattered across the northern sub-Saharan area (Sudan, e.g., Beja; Ethiopia, e.g., Oromo; Somalia, e.g., Somali; Eritrea, e.g., Afar; and Tanzania, e.g., Gorwa, Alagwa, and Burunge). The primary data presented in this paper were collected from a sample of Iraqw native speakers living in Mbulu. Supplementary data came from Iraqw documentary materials. The findings revealed new generalizations about Iraqw syntax. Firstly, although the basic word order of the Iraqw sentence is SOV1, this order is not always fixed in that it is affected by the communicative needs of the communicator. Secondly, grammatical agreement between the arguments and the verb enables flexible positioning of elements to reflect their information status in the discourse. Thus, either the subject or object and the verb can be re-ordered. Thirdly, the re-ordering of elements follows the rule that communication always develops from what is known (topic) to what is unknown (comment) in the context. The topic thus tends to occur in sentence-initial position, and the comment is placed in sentence-final position. It could be concluded that permutation of elements in the sentences is therefore determined by pragmatic and informational criteria. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.citation | Alphonce, C. (2021). The significance of word order variation in Iraqw sentences. Journal of Education, Humanities & Science (JEHS), 10(4). | en_US |
| dc.identifier.other | URL: http://www.jehs.duce.ac.tz/index.php/jehs/article/view/100 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12661/3602 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.publisher | DUCE | en_US |
| dc.subject | Iraqw | en_US |
| dc.subject | Southern Cushitic | en_US |
| dc.subject | Word order variation | en_US |
| dc.subject | Sentence | en_US |
| dc.subject | Southern Cushitic language | en_US |
| dc.subject | Tanzania | en_US |
| dc.title | The significance of word order variation in Iraqw sentences | en_US |
| dc.type | Article | en_US |