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Of Men, Hills, and Winds: Space Directionals in Mwotlap

Of Men, Hills, and Winds: Space Directionals in Mwotlap <p>In Mwotlap, an Oceanic language of Vanuatu, the principal device for referring to space is a paradigm of six directionals. Organized in pairs, these morphemes define three ways to draw a vector in space: by reference to a salient participant (hither-thither); by reference to an asymmetry perceptible within the immediate, local setting (up-down; in-out); or by reference to a fixed, absolute system of four horizontal quadrants (also lexified as up-down; in-out). These three "coordinate sets" can be shown to obey a strict hierarchy, determining which one the speaker should activate in a given situation. After providing an overview of this directional system, this paper investigates in more detail the mechanics of geocentric reference in Mwotlap, whereby a land/sea axis (inout) is crossed by a second axis, running from [south]east (up) to [north]west (down). In order to account for this use of the vertical directionals up-down on the horizontal plane, a semantic hypothesis is proposed that is related to the seafaring history of Mwotlap&apos;s population.</p> http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Oceanic Linguistics University of Hawai'I Press

Of Men, Hills, and Winds: Space Directionals in Mwotlap

Francois, Alexandre.
Oceanic Linguistics , Volume 42 (2) – Dec 30, 2003
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Publisher
University of Hawai'I Press
Copyright
Copyright © 2003 University of Hawai'i Press.
ISSN
1527-9421

Abstract

<p>In Mwotlap, an Oceanic language of Vanuatu, the principal device for referring to space is a paradigm of six directionals. Organized in pairs, these morphemes define three ways to draw a vector in space: by reference to a salient participant (hither-thither); by reference to an asymmetry perceptible within the immediate, local setting (up-down; in-out); or by reference to a fixed, absolute system of four horizontal quadrants (also lexified as up-down; in-out). These three "coordinate sets" can be shown to obey a strict hierarchy, determining which one the speaker should activate in a given situation. After providing an overview of this directional system, this paper investigates in more detail the mechanics of geocentric reference in Mwotlap, whereby a land/sea axis (inout) is crossed by a second axis, running from [south]east (up) to [north]west (down). In order to account for this use of the vertical directionals up-down on the horizontal plane, a semantic hypothesis is proposed that is related to the seafaring history of Mwotlap&apos;s population.</p>

Journal

Oceanic Linguistics – University of Hawai'I Press

Published: Dec 30, 2003

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