The ideophone in Tsonga

Abstract

In this thesis, the phonetic, phonological, morphological, syntactic and semantic characteristics of the ideophone are investigated. ldeophones constitute a subsystem of the language while other word classes constitute the main system. Phonetically and phonologically, the subsystem is not far removed from the main system although it also has its own characteristics. Phonologically, the subsystem is characterised by assonance and consonant repetition. Tonally, the subsystem employs a rising tone. The tonality of the ideophone is not affected by its position in the sentence. It retains its tonal pattern within or without the context of the sentence. In this thesis, the principle of the Ideophonic Phrase (IP) functioning as a predicative is recognised. Structurally, the IP consists of the auxiliary verb stem ~ri and the ideophone. The morphology of the auxiliary verb stem -ri isgrammatical while that of the ideophone is derivational. The verb stem -!l, together with its concomitant numerous auxiliary morphemes, performs the verbalizing function of the IP, serving to put it into the different moods and tenses. On the other hand, longer forms of the ideophone may be derived from shorter forms by partial or complete reduplication. Ideophones may also be derived from verbs by the use of certain morphemes. The syntax of the ideophone is realised by means of the IP. The IP is capable of serving as a predicative. Like the verb, it may be transitive or intransitive. It may take objects and in such cases it inco rporates the object concord (oc). It may be used predicatively in passive constructions. A major characteristic of the IP is that its auxiliary i.e. the auxiliary verb stem -ri and its concomitant grammatical morphemes may be deleted in surface realisations, leaving the ideophone to occur alone. Semantically, while the auxiliary verb stem -!i expresses the verbalizing function of the IP, the ideophone supplies its meaning. Ideophones serve to •exemplify• actions and states of their subjects. For this reason, they are basically iconic in nature, i.e. they are phonetically motivated. The general conclusion of this investigation is that the ideophone in Tsonga has verbal properties but is in fact a non-verb predicative.