Definite article in San Miguel Canoa Náhuatl

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24201/clecm.v10i00.279

Keywords:

definiteness, uniqueness, inclusiveness, elicitation, semantics

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the manner in which simple definiteness is expressed in San Miguel Canoa Nahuatl. It is concluded that in= is the definite article in the Nahuatl of this community based on a direct elicitation methodology. To carry out this task, the Questionnaire to identify 'simple' definite reference noun phrases (Vázquez-Rojas et al. 2017) is used, which allows to elicit both positive and negative evidence of the phenomenon. The data shows that phrases with the clitic in= refer to the totality of entities that match the description of the noun phrase, which must be located within one of the pragmatic sets or uses proposed by Hawkins (1978, 1991): anaphoric use, associative anaphoric use, immediate situation use, and larger situation use. In addition, the generic reference and the Representation of Previous Particular States are addressed (García Fajardo 1994), as part of the tests to elicit such an expression.

 

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Published

2023-09-19

How to Cite

Rodríguez Corte, A. (2023). Definite article in San Miguel Canoa Náhuatl. Cuadernos De Lingüística De El Colegio De México (CLECM), 10(00), 1–57. https://doi.org/10.24201/clecm.v10i00.279

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Section

Research Articles