Defining Nominal Compounding
as a Productive Word-formation
Process in Chuxnabán Mixe
Carmen Jany
California State University, San Bernardino
cjany@csusb.edu
Fieldwork Forum, UC Berkeley
March 13, 2013
Introduction: What is a compound?
„
Proposed criteria for defining compound words
„Complex
w/o word-formation affixes
„Spelled together
„Specific stress pattern
„Right-headed
„Include linking elements
„Inflected as a whole „Syntactically inseparable
„Conceptual
„
„Formed
units
„Syntactico-semantic
islands
Bauer (2006), Lieber & Štekauer (2009), Scalise &
Vogel (2010)
Introduction: What is a compound?
„
„
Many not universally accepted criteria
Lieber & Štekauer (2009) emphasize importance
of at least three criteria for compoundhood
Stress and phonological patterns
„ Behavior of compound with respect to inflection
„ Syntactic impenetrability
„
„
This work
„
Maintains that criteria are best viewed languagespecifically
Introduction: Nominal compounds
„
Aikhenvald (2007:24)
„
„
„
Compounding refers to the combination of at least
two potentially free forms
Nominal compounding results in the creation of
new nouns
Some definition problems
„
„
What is a lexeme/word (Bauer 2006)
Roots vs. derivational affixes (Lieber & Štekauer 2009)
Introduction: Nominal compounds
„
Some definition problems (con’t)
„
„
„
„
Postulated criteria: Gradient rather than
categorial distinction (Lieber & Štekauer 2009)
Construction vs. lexcial unit (Bauer 2006)
Deictic compounds (Downing 1977)
Common word-formation process in
Mixean and other Mesoamerican languages
(Campbell et al. 1986; Romero 2010; Ruiz De Bravo Ahuja
1980; Schoenhals 1982; Van Haitsma 1967)
Introduction: This presentation
„
„
„
Common and productive word-formation
process in Chuxnabán Mixe
Nominal compounds may share properties
with NPs and possessive constructions => not
easily identified in all instances
Examining formal criteria that distinguish
nominal compounds from NPs and from
possessive constructions in Chuxnabán Mixe
Introduction: This presentation
„
„
„
Chuxnabán Mixe language and data
Noun phrases & Possessive constructions
Nominal compounding
„
„
„
„
Semantics of compounds and types
Phonological criteria
Morphosyntactic criteria
Summary and Conclusions
Language and Data
„
Chuxnabán Mixe
„
„
„
Mixe-Zoquean language
Spoken by 900 people in one village in Oaxaca
Typologically
Polysynthetic and head-marking
„ Inverse alignment system and noun incorporation
„
„
Data
„
„
Personal field work
Elicitation (words, phrases) & oral narratives
Language and Data
„
Mixean-Zoquean language family
„
From Wichmann 1995
Language and Data
San Juan Bosco Chuxnabán
Language and Data
Language and Data
Noun Phrases & Possession
„
Noun phrases in Chuxnabán Mixe
„
„
„
Lack any binding morphology
Consist of personal or demonstrative pronoun,
noun, or noun + modifiers (ADJ, NUM, DEM)
Adjectives precede or follow noun with no
change in meaning
(1) tu’uk tsaajptëëjk mutsk / tu’uk mutsk tsaajptëëjk
one church small / one small church
‘one small church’
Noun Phrases & Possession
„
Nominal Morphology and Possession
„
„
„
Optional plural marker for humans -ëch, diminutive
suffix –u’unk, possessive prefixes, locative case suffix
Possession marked as prefix on the possessed
3rd person possessive prefix y- triggers
palatalization of following segment
(2)
tëëjk
‘house’
y-tëëjk
-> chëëjk
‘his, her house’
u’k y-tëëjk -> u’k chëëjk ‘the dog’s house’
Compounding: Semantics
„
Endocentric & often predictable meaning
„
nëëj ‘water’ + yuujk ‘animal’
naax ‘earth’ + yuujk ‘animal’
uujts ‘plant’ + atsëm ‘pig’
„
tsuxk ‘green’ + kat ‘toucan’
„
„
„
„
„
„
„
wiin ‘eye’ + waay ‘hair’
yo’k ‘neck’ + paajk ‘bone’
kaan ‘ salt’ + nëëj ‘water’
këk ‘deep’ + nëëj ‘water’
-> nëëjyuujk ‘fish’
-> naaxyuujk ‘worm’
->uujtsatsëm ‘ wild boar’
-> tsuxkat ‘type of
-> wiinwaay ‘eyelash’
-> yo’kpaajk ‘Adam’s apple’
-> kaanëëj ‘salt water’
-> këknëëj ‘lagoon’
They are always right-headed
Compounding: Semantics
„
Exocentric & sometimes predictable meaning
„
„
„
„
„
„
„
’ipx ’20’ + teky ‘foot’
-> ’ipxteky ‘centipede’
teky ‘foot’ + waj ‘horn’
-> tekywaj ‘ankle’
kë’ë ‘hand’ + kaa ‘lion’
-> kë’ëkaa ‘thumb’
të’ëny ‘excrement’ + tsik ‘coati’ -> të’ënychik ‘lizard’
kay ‘food’ + tëëjk ‘house’ -> kaychëëjk ‘stomach’
naax ‘earth’ + waay ‘hair’ -> naaxwaay ‘dust’
Coordinate & often predictable meaning
„
„
tun ‘mountain’+ kopk ‘mountain’ -> tunkopk ‘mountain’
tsuxk ‘green’ + yëk ‘black’
-> tsuxkyëk ‘blue’
Compounding: Semantics
„
„
New concepts as compounds
„
iix ‘visible’ + jok ‘smoke’
-> iixjok ‘airplane’
„
u’k ‘dog’ + tëëjk ‘house’
-> u’ktëëjk ‘doghouse’
Compounds with loan words from Spanish
„
cerë from Spanish cera ‘wax’
„+
pa’ak ‘sweet’
„ + yuujk ‘animal
-> cerëpa’ak ‘honey’
-> cerëyuujk ‘bee’
Compounding: Phonology
Consontant inventory
Vowel inventory
Compounding: Phonology
Compounds differ from phrases based on
„
„
Obstruent voicing only within words (Jany 2010)
„
„
nëëkopk ‘fountain’ (nëëj ‘water’ + kopk ‘mountain’)
kë’ëxooky ‘fingernail’ (kë’ë ‘hand’ + xooky ‘nail’)
But: mëk uky ‘strong purple’ (mëk ‘strong’ + uky ‘purple’)
„
Sonorant devoicing only at word boundary (Jany 2010)
„
„
kaajpn ‘village’, But: kaajpnkopk ‘capital’
Nasal place assimilation only within words (Jany 2010)
wiimpo’k ‘forehead’ (wiin ‘eye’ + po’k ‘basket’)
But: wiin poop ‘sclera’ (wiin ‘eye’ + poop ‘white’)
„
Compounding: Phonology
„
Compounds differ from phrases based on
„
Suprasegmental palatalization only within words
kachypaajk ‘rib’ (kachy ‘basket’ + paajk ‘bone’)
„ kaychaajkn ‘kitchen’ (kay ‘food’ + taajkn ‘place’)
„ tsooychëëjk ‘hospital’ (tsooy ‘medicine’ + tëëjk ‘house’)
But: mony joypyp ‘early morning’
(mony ‘early’ + joypyp ‘morning’)
There is only one primary stress (on the right-most root)
„ mëjnëëteech ‘sea’ (mëj ‘big’ + nëëj ‘water’ + teech ‘father’)
„ mëja’aychëëjk ‘ancestor’ (mëj ‘big’ + ja’ay ‘person’ + tëëjk
‘house’)
„
„
Compounding: Phonology
„
Compounds differ from phrases based on
„
Occasional consonant elision & syllable reduction
when compared to free forms
jëxk ‘back’ + paajk ‘bone’
-> jëpaajk ‘spine’
„ kë’ë ‘hand’ + waj ‘horn’
-> kë’waj ‘wrist’
„ teky ‘foot’ + kaa ‘lion’
-> tekyaa ‘big toe’
„ maap ‘sleep’ + taajkn ‘place’ -> maataajkn ‘bedroom’
Occasional linking vowel (also in Zoque, Herrera 1995)
„ teky ‘foot’ + waj ‘horn’
-> tekyüwaj ‘ankle’
„ teky ‘foot’ + wa’axy ‘divided’ -> tekyëwa’axy ‘toes’
„
„
Compounding: Morphosyntax
„
Morphosyntactic clues for compounding
„
Formally distinct from nominal possession
Compounding
tsaajp ‘heaven’ + tëëjk ‘house -> tsaajptëëjk ‘church’
„ Nominal possession
taajk ‘policeman’ + tëëjk ‘house ->taajk
chëëjk
taajk
y-tëëjk
policeman POSS-house
‘policeman’s house’
„ Compare
„
„
u’k chëëjk ‘dog’s house’
versus
u’ktëëjk ‘doghouse’
Compounding: Morphosyntax
„
Phoneme vs. morpheme-induced palatalization
tsooy ‘medicine’ + tëëjk ‘house’ = tsooychëëjk ‘hospital’
=> if the last consonant of the preceding word is
palatalized, compounding and nominal possession
show the same pattern of palatalization
„
„
Possession: compounds inflected as whole
„
„
poopniij ‘white chilli’
tsiinka’ax ‘parrot’
-> pyoopniij ‘his white chilli’
-> ntsiinka’ax ‘my parrot’
Compounding: Morphosyntax
„
Word order
„
„
Fixed order in compounds, but variable in noun
phrases (Adj + N or N + Adj)
Compounds versus Noun phrases
„
„
këknëëj ‘lagoon’
vs. nëëj këk ‘deep water’
(këk ‘deep’; nëëj ‘water’)
tookxtsooy ‘pepper’ vs. tsooy tookx ‘food is medicine’
(tookx ‘food’; tsooy ‘medicine’)
Compounding: Morphosyntax
„
Componds with different meaning
„
uujtsatsëm ‘wild boar’ vs. atsëmuujts ‘type of plant’
(uujts ‘plant’; atsëm ‘pig’)
„
nëtoky ‘iguana’
vs. tokynëëj ‘rotten water’
(nëëj ‘water’; toky ‘rotten’)
„
kaatsi’ixy ‘onion’
vs. tsi’ixykaa ‘lion’s fart’
(kaa ‘lion’; tsi’ixy ‘fart’)
„
kopktëëjk ‘house in the
(tëëjk ‘house’; kopk ‘mountain’)
mountain’
tëëjkopk ‘roof’
vs.
Compounding: Morphosyntax
„
Word order: Adjectives before or after compound
„
„
Sometimes one part can’t stand alone (“cranberry-type”)
„
„
„
po’owëën ‘leather belt’ (po’o ‘leather’; wëën ‘belt’)
yëk po’owëën or po’owëën yëk ‘black leather belt’,
But not: *po’o yëk wëën
to’oxychëëjk ‘woman’ (to’oxy = female; can’t stand alone)
ye’eychëëjk ‘man’ (ye’ey = male; can’t stand alone)
Lexical categories in nominal compounds
„
N + N; ADJ + N; NUM + N; N+ V, V + N
Compounding: Productivity
„
Morphological productivity: gives rise to new
formations on a systematic basis (Plag 2006)
„
„
„
„
Qualitatively: process is widely available and can be
used to produce new words
Quantitatively: process is being extensively used
This work: Productivity examined qualitatively
Aikhenvald (2007): productivity correlates with
„
„
Few (phon, morph, morpho-synt) restrictions
Semantic predictability
Compounding: Productivity
„
Aikhenvald (2007) (con’t)
„
„
„
„
Formal regularity
Synchronic use for new forms
Recursiveness
Chuxnaban Mixe
„
„
„
„
No restrictions as long as there is semantic need
Strong semantic predictability (endocentric)
Regularity: right-headedness
New concepts, also Spanish loans
Summary and Conclusions
„
Compounds distinguished from phrases
„
„
„
Mainly phonologically, as noun phrases are
morphologically simple
Morphosyntax: Fixed order and treated as a
whole for inflection
Further studies
„
Mismatches between phonological and
grammatical word (i.e. phonology of separate
words, but fixed word order)
Summary and Conclusions
„
„
„
„
„
„
Nominal compounding fairly productive
Used synchronically for new forms
Some regularity and semantic predictability
Largest group: endocentric (right-headed)
No restrictions due to phonological shape
Some restrictions on modifying compounds
(mëjnëëjteech ‘sea’; mëj ‘large’, nëëj ‘water’, teech’ ‘father’;
can’t say ‘large sea’)
Bibliography
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„
„
„
Aikhenvald, Alexandra. 2007. Typological distinctions in wordformation. In Timothy Shopen ed. Language typology and syntactic
description: Volume III: Grammatical categories and the lexicon.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1-65.
Bauer, Laurie. Compound. 2006. In: Keith Brown ed. Encyclopedia of
Language & Linguistics. Second Edition. Elsevier. 719-726.
Campbell, Lyle, Terrence Kaufman, Thomas C. Smith-Stark. 1986.
Meso-America as Linguistic Area. Language 62:3. 530-570.
Downing, Pamela. 1977. On the Creation and Use of English
Compound Nouns. Language 53:4. 810-842.
Bibliography
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„
„
„
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Herrera, Z. Esther. 1995. Palabras estratos y
de fonologia léxica en Zoque. El Colegio de México
Jany, Carmen. 2011. The phonetics and phonology of Chuxnabán
Mixe. Linguistic Discovery 9:1.
Jany, Carmen. 2010. Assimilatory processes in Chuxnabán Mixe.
Proceedings from the Annual Workshop on Native American Languages.
University of California, Santa Barbara.
Jany, Carmen. 2006. Vowel Length and Phonation Contrasts in
Chuxnabán Mixe. Proceedings from the Annual Workshop on Native
American Languages. University of California, Santa Barbara.
Lieber, Rochelle and Pavol Štekauer (eds). 2009. The Oxford
Handbook of Compounding. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Bibliography
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„
„
„
„
Romero-Méndez, Rodrigo. 2008. A Reference Grammar of Ayutla Mixe
(Tukyo’m Ayuujk). Dissertation. University of Buffalo: New York.
Ruiz de Bravo Ahuja, Gloria. 1980. Mixe Tlahuitoltepec, Oaxaca.
Archivo de Lenguas Indígenas de México. (Data by Don D. Lyon)
Schoenhals, Alvin and Louise C. Schoenhals. 1982. Vocabulario Mixe
de Totontepec. Hidalgo, Mexico: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
Sergio Scalise and Irene Vogel (eds.). 2010. Cross-disciplinary issues
in compounding. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Van Haitsma, Julia Dieterman and Willard Van Haitsma. 1976. A
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Dios kujuuyëp!
Thank you!