Encoding Direction and Voice in Innu
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2016
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Swarthmore College. Dept. of Linguistics
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Thesis (B.A.)
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Abstract
Givon calls voice "the most complex grammar-coded functional domain in language" (1994: 3).
This thesis looks at the morphological encoding of direction and voice in Innu, an Algonquian
language spoken in Quebec, Newfoundland, and Labrador. Understanding the verbal morphology
in this language requires a knowledge of the form of the verb stems, the system of obviation,
and Algonquian topicality hierarchies, all of which are explained near the beginning of this
thesis. Each type of direction and voice in Innu - direct, inverse, passive, medio-passive,
reflexive and reciprocal - differs mainly in the form of the theme sign, the morpheme that
expresses direction and/or voice in Innu verbs. The theme signs that encooe voice are discussed
in Drapeau's (2012, 2014) work, while the direct and inverse direction-marking theme signs
are proposed by me using analogy from work on related languages. The meaning of these
morphemes are discussed in terms of the specification of a GOAL and an ACTOR, or at least
the hierarchical relationship of one argument to another. A template for understanding an Innu
verb, beginning at the stem, followed by the theme sign, and ending with the various person and
number marking verbal affixes, is proposed near the end of this thesis. Aspects of the verbal
system and the implications of specific morphemes are illustrated using a paradigmatic table
of verb forms, as well as a verb parser written in a pseudo-code, in order to provide a clear,
comprehensive method of understanding the complex morphology present in Innu verbs. While
the most specific information about the direction and/or voice of a particular verb lies in the
theme sign, all of the components are essential for a complete understanding.