Alor-Pantar languages: Origins and theoretical impact

Conditions on pronominal marking datasets

These datasets were obtained through the use of video stimuli designed to study to study variation in the patterns of pronominal marking in four non-Austronesian languages of Alor and Pantar (Teiwa, Adang, Kamang, and Abui) of eastern Indonesia.

We examined the varying role of conditions on grammatical relation marking (namely animacy and volitionality) by looking at differences between members of a single family. This enabled us to see the degree of variation permitted within closely related languages. Conditions on argument marking are manifested in different ways. Those languages with syntactic alignment index objects with a prefix, those which have semantic alignment index objects and some subjects with a prefix. In 42 video clips we systematically varied animacy and volitionality values for participants in one and two-participant events. These clips were used in fieldwork to elicit descriptions of the events. The data show that animacy of the object is an important factor which favours indexation of the object on the verb in all four languages to varying degrees. Volitionality, on the other hand, is a factor in the semantically aligned languages only. While the presence of a prefix on the verb is semantically motivated in many instances, marking is not directly determined by verbal or participant semantics, and lexical factors must also play a role.

For further information on the results of the research see:

Fedden, Sebastian, Dunstan Brown, Greville G. Corbett, Marian Klamer, Gary Holton, Laura C. Robinson & Antoinette Schapper. 2013. Conditions on pronominal marking in the Alor-Pantar languages.Linguistics 51.1, 33 – 74.

Fedden, Sebastian, Dunstan Brown, František Kratochvíl, Laura. C. Robinson and Antoinette. Schapper. 2014. Variation in pronominal indexing: Lexical stipulation vs. referential properties in the Alor-Pantar languages. Studies in Language 38.1, 44-79.

Citation and use

The datasets are freely available for individuals to use for non-comerical purposes, providing they are cited using the citation method given below.


Complete dataset

Fedden, Sebastian & Dunstan Brown. 2010. Conditions on pronominal marking in Alor-Pantar languages: Complete pronominal marking dataset. University of Surrey. http://dx.doi.org/10.15126/SMG.25/2

Download the complete dataset [XLS]


Abui dataset

Fedden, Sebastian & Dunstan Brown. 2010. Conditions on pronominal marking  in Alor-Pantar languages: Abui pronominal marking dataset. University of Surrey. http://dx.doi.org/10.15126/SMG.25/2.1

Download the Abui dataset [XLSX]


Adang dataset

Fedden, Sebastian & Dunstan Brown. 2010. Conditions on pronominal marking in Alor-Pantar languages: Adang pronominal marking dataset. University of Surrey. http://dx.doi.org/10.15126/SMG.25/2.2

Download the Adang dataset [XLSX]


Kamang dataset

Fedden, Sebastian & Dunstan Brown. 2010. Conditions on pronominal marking in Alor-Pantar languages: Kamang pronominal marking dataset. University of Surrey. http://dx.doi.org/10.15126/SMG.25/2.3

Download the Kamang dataset [XLSX] 


Teiwa dataset

Fedden, Sebastian & Dunstan Brown. 2010. Conditions on pronominal marking in Alor-Pantar languages: Teiwa pronominal marking dataset. University of Surrey. http://dx.doi.org/10.15126/SMG.25/2.4

Download the Teiwa dataset [XLSX]


Western Pantar dataset

Fedden, Sebastian & Dunstan Brown. 2010. Conditions on pronominal marking in Alor-Pantar languages: Western Pantar pronominal marking dataset. University of Surrey. http://dx.doi.org/10.15126/SMG.25/2.5

Download the Western Pantar dataset [XLSX]


Project members

Prof Greville G. Corbett
Dr Matthew Baerman
Prof Dunstan Brown
Dr Sebastian Fedden

Period of award:

October 2009 - September 2012

Funder

Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) through European Science Foundation-EuroBabel

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