Bribri media tantum verbs and the rise of labile syntax

Linguistics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Pacchiarotti ◽  
Leonid Kulikov
Keyword(s):  
Passive Voice ◽  
Transitive Verb ◽  
Active Voice ◽  
Middle Voice ◽  
Small Subgroup ◽  
Verb Forms ◽  
Intransitive Verbs

Abstract In this article, we first show that the Bribri (Chibchan) middle voice suffix -r derives passive voice from active transitive and agentive intransitive verbs, as well as anticausative verbs from nominal and adjectival roots. Second, we focus on five media tantum verbs, i.e., forms that synchronically carry the -r suffix and have no counterpart without -r. Unlike most other verbs, these five forms are labile, i.e., they can occur in syntactically intransitive and transitive constructions with no (supra-)segmental change. After describing the valence patterns in which Bribri media tantum labile (MTL) verbs occur, we investigate whether: (i) their non-absolutive arguments behave like ergative phrases; and whether (ii) MTL verb forms in two-argument constructions behave like active voice transitive verb stems. Third, we outline a hitherto unnoticed diachronic path for the rise of lability in a small subgroup of Bribri media tantum verbs.

The passive voice in ancient Indo-European languages: inflection, derivation, periphrastic verb forms

2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (s42-s2) ◽  
pp. 339-391
Author(s):  
Silvia Luraghi ◽  
Guglielmo Inglese ◽  
Daniel Kölligan
Keyword(s):  
Passive Voice ◽  
Middle Voice ◽  
European Languages ◽  
Verb Forms ◽  
Germanic Languages ◽  
Inflectional Paradigms

Abstract The IE languages developed different strategies for the encoding of the passive function. In some language branches, the middle voice extended to the passive function to varying extents. In addition, dedicated derivational formations arose in a number of languages, such as the Greek -ē-/-thē- aorist and the Indo-Aryan -ya-presents. Periphrastic formations involving a verbal adjective or a participle are also widely attested, and played an important role in the building of the passive paradigm in e.g. Romance and Germanic languages. As the periphrastic passive is also attested in Hittite alongside passive use of the middle, both strategies seem to be equally ancient. Some minor strategies include lexical passives and the extensive lability of verbs. A survey of possible strategies provides evidence for the rise of a disparate number of morphemes and constructions, and for their ongoing incorporation into the inflectional paradigms (paradigmaticization) of given languages, thus adding to our knowledge about cross-linguistic sources of passive morphology and grammaticalization processes involved.

scholarly journals The Traditional Conception of Diathesis (Voice) and a Modern View to It

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 81
Author(s):  
Albana Deda ◽  
Leonora Lumezi
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Morphological Aspect ◽  
Active Voice ◽  
Middle Voice ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Verb Forms ◽  
Greek Tradition ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Voice

Since the antiquity, diathesis has been analyzed in linguistic theories as a morphological category of the verb. Consulting the earliest papers, there could be noticed that Greek tradition makes mention of active, passive and middle verbs, whereas in Latin papers we find active and passive verb forms. (There must be said that during this linguistic period the term diathesis could hardly be found. The above mentioned terms referred to the classification of verbs). During the Medieval Age linguists defined the same concept of diathesis. Most of the traditional grammars of many contemporary languages hold the same view, without any significant differences. In traditional Albanian papers diathesis or voice is defined as a morphological category that expresses relations between the verb (the traditional predicate) and the subject. There has been made a division between active and non-active voice. Non-active voice verbs are further divided into: passive, reflexive and middle voice. Empirical studies show that it is difficult to make a distinct and final classification of verbs in terms of the different patterns in which it can be found. This inference is made taking into consideration abundant examples from the Albanian corpus, showing that a verb can be used intransitively in some patterns and transitively in others. The voice division of verbs provided by the Albanian grammars reveals a gap in the examination of the formal and especially the semantic aspect. There are many semantic and formal arguments that lead us to the conclusion that the traditional definition of diathesis is problematic. In our view, this process should be treated as a wider phenomenon that includes more than the morphological aspect. The Valency Theory could be an alternative approach that provides a better solution to this problem.

The Translation of Passive Voice in Harry Potter Novel into Bahasa Indonesia

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Harry Sumbayu ◽  
Amrin Saragih ◽  
Syahron Lubis
Keyword(s):  
Key Words ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
Cultural Value ◽  
Passive Voice ◽  
Active Voice ◽  
Source Language ◽  
Lexical Categories ◽  
Bahasa Indonesia

This study addresses the translation of passive voice in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azakaban into Bahasa Indonesia. The study was based on descriptive qualitative approach. The data were collected by applying documentary techniques. There were three chapters taken as the source of the data. They were chapters 1, 8 and 15. The findings indicated that there were two types of passive voices as a product of passive voices’ translation in Bahasa Indonesia. The passive voice retained as passive one in TL was more dominantly translated into passive voice type one than type two in TL. It caused the use of prefix di+verb base, prefix di+verb base suffix i, and prefix di +verb base+ suffix+ kan are able to represent the meaning of the SL literally and culturally. The changing of English passive voice into Bahasa Indonesia active voice when they were translated indicated that the translator has attempted to find the closest natural equivalent of the source language in aspect of grammar, style, and cultural value. In essence naturalization rate of an expression is a matter of looking for matches in level lexical categories, grammatical categories, semantic, and cultural context.   Key words: translation, passive voice, English, Bahasa Indonesia.

scholarly journals The Role of the Passive Voice Mindset in Regulating Healthy Eating

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Senay ◽  
Muhammet Usak ◽  
Zeynep Ceren Acarturk
Keyword(s):  
Healthy Eating ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Passive Voice ◽  
Active Voice ◽  
The Past ◽  
It Impacts ◽  
Unhealthy Eating

Talking about eating in the passive, as opposed to the active voice, (e.g., The cake will be eaten vs. I will eat the cake) can lead people to see the act of eating to be triggered by the food to a greater extent, leading to the continuation of past eating habits. Depending on whether or not the past habits are healthy, the motivation for healthy eating may change as a result. In study 1, writing passive sentences increased the motivation for healthy eating to the extent that people reported eating healthy in the past. Moreover, in study 2 across 127 languages spoken in 94 countries, when the acted-upons of actions (e.g., the food in the act of eating) became relatively more salient in a language, people became more likely to act on cultural habits that may be relatively healthier, decreasing unhealthy eating. The results are important for understanding the perceived role of food in starting eating as it impacts healthy eating across cultures.

The Passive Voice Verb: A Selected, Annotated Bibliography — Parts II — V

1981 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 373-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas L. Warren
Keyword(s):  
Technical Writing ◽  
Annotated Bibliography ◽  
Passive Voice ◽  
Active Voice ◽  
Principal Points

Various style manuals, advice to authors, and textbooks on writing stress that writers should prefer the active voice of the verb and avoid the passive form. The following bibliography brings together references to the passive voice of the verb from linguists, grammarians, and researchers of the use of passive voice verbs; comments from technical writing textbooks; comments from books on language; comments from style manuals; and references from various other sources. The annotations summarize the principal points the article makes about passive voice verbs (abstracts provided by the authors of the articles are marked with an asterisk (*)). Part I covered materials from linguists while Parts II through V list references in technical writing textbooks, style manuals and authors' guides, and various other sources.

The Passive Voice Verb: A Selected, Annotated Bibliography — Part I

1981 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas L. Warren
Keyword(s):  
Technical Writing ◽  
Annotated Bibliography ◽  
Passive Voice ◽  
Active Voice ◽  
Language Style ◽  
Principal Points ◽  
Selection Of

Various style manuals, advice to authors, and textbooks on writing stress that writers should prefer the active voice of the verb and avoid the passive form. The following bibliography brings together references to the passive voice of the verb from linguists, grammarians, and researchers of the use of passive voice verbs; comments from technical writing textbooks; comments from books on language; comments from style manuals; and references from various other sources. The annotations summarize the principal points the article makes about passive voice verbs (abstracts provided by the authors of the articles are marked with an asterisk (*)). Part I covers materials from linguists while Part II, to be published in the next issue, lists references in technical writing textbooks, a selection of general books on language, style manuals and author's guides, and various other sources.

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